Christmas Traditions - Making Keepsake Ornaments

Traditionally we like to spend the weekend after Thanksgiving, picking and decorating our Christmas tree.

I lay out the children's special ornaments (they get a new one each year) in chronological order, by child. Then, I call them in one at a time to hang their ornaments on the tree, while we reminisce about the past ornaments, and the memories they represent.


I also set up a cookie decorating station, so when they were finished hanging their ornaments, each child could cut out a sugar cookie, Christmas tree to decorate with M&M ornaments.


I baked the cookies while the children were changing into jammies. Then, we enjoyed a before bed snack of cookies and hot chocolate by Christmas light, while listening to our favorite Christmas CD (Bing Crosby's White Christmas, naturally).


When we first started our Christmas tree tradition, it included a trip to Hallmark to purchase each child a keepsake ornament. For the last few years, I've made a surprise ornament for the children. This year, they made their own, beaded snowflake ornaments, as part of E's snow themed birthday party...


...with a Creativity for Kids craft kit, I picked up off of Amazon. The bead loaded kit was less than $20.00, and included enough supplies for making 6 ornaments, so it was perfect for us.


The children (ages 5-14) really enjoyed the activity too, and were all able to make their ornaments on their own, without help. T, objected a little, saying it was a "girl craft", but was able to put together enough sleek, silver beads for a modern, and apparently manly looking, snowflake.


The snowflakes are pretty large, but lightweight, so they don't weigh down the branches of the tree.


They also look pretty hanging, as decorations, about the house. I almost didn't want to move ours from over the dining room table, where we had placed them, after the party, to await the tree.


It's great to be a homeschooler.