Winter Snowflake List - Things to Do While the Snow's Still Falling

The picture to the right is from a few weeks ago. We don't actually have any snow falling, or even on the ground right now, so the title of this post is a little optimistic, but I'm sure you get the idea - it's our Winter To-Do list.

Winter may have officially started last week, but of course, being in the middle of the pre-Christmas rush, we didn't pay much attention to its arrival, except to give a quick cheer, that we'd finally passed the shortest day of the year.

Yesterday, once the tree was gone, and the children were feeling a somewhat glum, I reminded them, it was time to start planning some wintertime time. They informed me, that winter isn't going to be any fun, because we don't have any snow.

I assured them the snow will be back (surely it will be back - this is Montana, after all), and until then, there are lots of fun things to do, that require cold, but not snow, like making popsicles outside, or blowing frozen bubbles. It wasn't long before we had a list assembled.

Winter Snowflake List
Make a snowman (hopefully out of snow)
Have a snowball fight
Make lemon ice ala The Lemon Sisters by Andrea Cheng
Blow bubbles outside and watch them freeze
Make popsicles outside
Make snow ice cream
Put together a 1000 or more piece puzzle
Have a family game night
Make snowman hot chocolate
Shovel snow for the neighbors
Have a pajama day
Build a snow fort
Make snow sculptures
Decorate heart cookies
Pick a new calendar
Look for animal tracks in the snow
Make Valentine's "mail" boxes
Make Valentine's
Do a heart craft
Do a snowman craft
Do a penguin craft
Do a "lion and lamb" craft


And celebrate:

New Year's Day
D's Birthday
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Valentine's Day
A's Birthday
President's Day
National Cherry Pie Day
Valentine's Day
Leap Day


If the rest of our snow delays until spring, we might have to get creative with a few of the items on our list, but I'm pretty optimistic we'll have more of the white stuff any day now.

We didn't add any family movie nights to the list, because I'm not sure of any really good, family movies with winter DVD release dates. Any ideas?

It's great to be a homeschooler.

Happy Boxing Day!

Christmas is over. The last present has been opened, the candy canes eaten (most of them, anyway), the hot chocolate has been drunk, and the Christmas crackers popped with proper pomp and silliness.


It's time to remove the empty advent calendars...


...box up the ornaments and decorations for next year...


...haul away the tree...


...and stash the nativity figures in a place of easy access for Easter, when we'll need them again. I tucked ours into a drawer in the living room, except for baby Jesus, who went missing after the younger girls decided to have a Nativity scavenger hunt. We'll continue to seek Him in the days to come - which has a nice symbolic ring to it, I think.


It's great to be a homeschooler.

Simple Christmas Themed Lunch - Making Christmas Magic

One of the things I love most about children is how simple their expectations really can be. Cut circle, snowmen sandwiches, with olive piece buttons, carrot slice noses, and bread crust hats and scarves.



Pair them with Christmas tree brownies for dessert...


...and suddenly peanut butter and jelly is magical.



I'll be off for the next few days, making the magic happen, and focusing fully on Christmas with family, then probably napping for at least one entire day after that. In the meantime...

Merry Christmas!

Bread Maker Panettone

Last year, I made a bread maker version of the Italian Christmas bread, panettone, for the children, to go along with our study of the Italian legend of Befana (the old woman so busy around her house, she misses a chance to see the Christ Child).

Apparently, I hadn't yet discovered Tony dePaola's retelling of the legend of the first panettone, Tony's Bread. I came across the story of the baker, his daughter, and the nobleman who wants to marry her, this year, in my search for Christmas picture books, with recipes included. Unfortunately, even though this is one of those stories, that begs to have a recipe included - it does not.

So, it was back to the bread maker for us.



This year, I had some candied fruit on hand, and added a half a cup of it to the recipe. I also discovered the fruit can be added right on top of the flour, without having to wait to catch any beeps for add-ins (so much easier). I chucked a handful of nuts into mine, I don't think that's traditional, but I like nuts. In the end, the taste might be more Montana than Milan, but that won't stop it from becoming a tradition around here.

Bread Machine Panettone (by a total non-Italian)

1/2 cup warm water
1/4 cup, fresh squeezed, orange juice
1/4 teaspoon orange zest
1/4 cup butter, cubed
2 eggs
1 and 1/8 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon anise extract
3 and 1/4 cups flour (bread flour, if you have it)
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons dry milk powder (you can use milk instead, just add it with the wet ingredients)
1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons yeast
1/4 cup golden raisins, and craisins, or any mixture of dried fruit
1/2 cup candied fruit (like the stuff for fruitcake)
1/4 cup chopped nuts (totally optional).

Add the ingredients to the bread machine in the order they are listed. Select light crust for white, and start the machine.


It's great to be a homeschooler.

Christmas and Winter Themed Picture Books With Recipes or Crafts Included

This is by no means a comprehensive list of all the Christmas picture books, out there, with recipes or crafts included. About the time you think you've found them all, you bump into another one. But, the books below ought to be enough to provide quite a bit of crafting, baking, and story time fun for the Christmas season (for next year, if not this one), and well beyond into winter.

If there is a link present, it should take you to our review and activity post related to that particular title.

A Pioneer Christmas by Barbara Greenwood (multiple crafts and recipes).


The Cookie Store Cat by Cythia Rylant (multiple cookie recipes).


The Very Best Christmas Ever! by Emilie Barnes (multiple crafts, recipes and activity ideas).


Max & Mo Make a Snowman by Patricia Lakin (cut and glue snowman craft).


Zoo Flakes ABC by Will C. Howell (paper dollish type paper snowflakes).


I Am Snow by Jean Marzollo (paper snowflakes).


Snip, Snip...Snow! by Nancy Poydar (paper snowflakes).


A Blue's Clues Holiday by Angela Santomero (a paper chain, paper plate snowflakes, and pecan snowball cookies).


The Candymaker's Gift by David and Helen Haidle (candy cane cookie recipe, and multiple activity ideas, including stirring hot chocolate with a candy cane).


Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett (gingerbread men).


World Book's Christmas Around the World Series (multiple crafts and recipes in each volume).


Look-Alikes Christmas by Joan Steiner (peanut bear ornaments, and lollipop elves).


If You Take a Mouse to the Movies by Laura Numeroff (contains a CD, sheet music, multiple recipes, and craft instructions).


Counting to Christmas by Nancy Tafuri (popcorn and cranberry garland, fruit slice ornaments, and peanut butter, pinecone, bird feeders)


Christmas Delicious by Lyn Loates (Raisin and Rice Christmas treats, basically Rice Krispie treats with chocolate chips melted in with the marshmallows, and raisins added).


Cranberry Christmas by Wende and Harry Devlin (Maggie's Favorite Cranberry Cookies).


Christmastime is Here! (a cut, glue, and glitter, Strawberry Shortcake inspired, Christmas ornament craft)


Christmas Cookies: Bite Sized Holiday Lessons by Amy Krouse Rosenthal (sugar cookies).


The Gift of the Christmas Cookie, Sharing the True Meaning of Jesus' Birth by Dandi Daley Mackall (sugar cookies).


Jingle the Christmas Clown by Tomie de Paolo (star cookie).


The Snow Show by Carolyn Fisher (popsicles).


Snowballs by Lois Ehlert (popcorn balls).


Gingerbread from the Heart by Janice K. Mineer (gingerbread house).


Christmas Turtles by Sara Ann Denson (turtle candies).


The Shortest Day : Celebrating the Winter Solstice by Wendy Pfeffer (cupcakes and simple science activities).


Christmas Around the World by Mary D. Lanford (pinecone pine trees, nativity scenes, paper stars, Christmas cards, cornucopias, party crackers, and advent calendars).


Christmas USA by Mary D. Lanford (multiple activities, crafts, and recipes - including a very neat Scripture Cake, that would be fun to try anytime of year).


It's great to be a homeschooler.

Picture Books with Latke Recipes Included

Looking for a good, child friendly, latke recipe for Hanukkah? There's more than enough recipes included in the picture books below to fill all eight nights of the holiday, and then some. Links on the book titles, when present, will take you to the authors', or another, website, where you can view the recipe for yourself, if you find all the books already checked out at your local library.

Malke's Secret Recipe by David A. Adler


The Runaway Latkes by Leslie Kimmelman


I Have a Little Dreidel by Maxie Baum. This book also includes instructions for playing Dreidel, and sheet music for the Dreidel Song. The entire text can be sung to the tune of the song.


Inside-Out Grandma, A Hanukkah Story by Joan Rothenberg.


The Very Best Hanukkah Gift by Joanne Rocklin. This one contains a recipe for zucchini latkes (you have to page down a bit on the website I linked, to view the recipe, but it's there, and listed with the book title).


It's Hanukkah Time! by Latifa Berry Kropf, contains a recipe for Sufganiyot (donuts) instead of Latkes, but since I don't have a separate "books with donut recipes" list, I decided to include it here.


The Borrowed Hanukkah Latkes by Linda Glaser. Click here, for a review of this book, and a tip or two for making latkes, from Mouse Grows, Mouse Learns.


Latkes, Latkes Good to Eat, a Chanukah Story by Naomi Howland.


Lots of Latkes a Hanukkah Story by Sandy Lanton.


Latkes and Applesauce, A Hanukkah Story by Fran Manushkin. This book also contains rules for playing Dreidel. Both the rules, and the recipe can be viewed in Amazon's "Look Inside This Book" feature, here, by typing "recipe" in the search box.


It's great to be a homeschooler.