Tag Archives: Twelve Days of Christmas

On the First Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Fun Picking Out Our Christmas Tree

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On the first Day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…fun picking out our Christmas tree. On Black Friday, when some were out searching for deals, my family was keeping with tradition searching for the perfect Christmas tree. It was more colder than 2017, 2016, 2015 and even 2014 when we wore light jackets or even jean jackets, but that didn’t stop us from seeking out a tall, wide, fluffy tree who would become a part of our family for the next month and a half or so.

Actually, we spotted “Gerald” shortly after arrived at the tree shop and knew he was the one, but we still milled around for another ten to fifteen minutes just in case there was a better one hiding amongst the others. Then, in the distance, we saw a family looking at “our” tree, so Quinn shouted, “Hurry! They’re going to get our tree!” We hustled back over to claim him, and both Quinn and I smiled knowing that the tree would be ours.

One of our traditions is to name our tree as a part of our family. We’ve had BG, short for Big Green, BGJ, short for Big Green junior and BG3, short for Big Green the third. Last year, Quinn picked a very interesting name: Heavenly Brownie! This year, she picked Gerald. When I asked her what made her choose that name, she said, “I just like it!” Who knows what we’ll call our tree next year, but I’m definitely looking forward to the experience.

Here’s to fond memories with our 2018 Christmas tree: Gerald!

All the best,

Tanya

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Christmas Eve Excitement

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On the twelfth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…Christmas Eve excitement. “You know what today is, Mommy…Christmas Eve!” my four year old smiled with joy in her voice. Today, we baked cookies for Santa, our Elf on the Shelf, Olivia, went to her last hiding place to report back to Santa, we watched a Trolls holiday special through Netflix and made sure her little snowflake in her window is working and lights up to alert Santa to stop by our house.

She went out to lunch with her daddy while I took care of some Christmas tasks, and upon arriving home she said, “Mommy, can I go to bed now so that when I wake up it’ll be Christmas?” It reminded me of when I was younger and would go to sleep in the afternoon just so that Christmas would come sooner. I then located this great website so that Quinn could see where Santa is on his route, and she was amazed with how many presents he already delivered: nearly three million.

As she goes to bed in her special Christmas night clothes, I’m sure she’ll wake up extra early as I did when I was her age filled with excitement knowing that Christmas is finally here!

All the best,

Tanya

 

On the Tenth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me, A Great Time Making Snowmen with Her Class

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On the tenth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me, a great time making snowmen with her class. One of the benefits to teaching on the college level is having a winter break. An advantage to having a winter break is having the time to visit my daughter’s school.  I love crafting, so when I came across this cute sock snowman on Pinterest and saw that I already had most of the supplies, I know it was the perfect project for Quinn and her friends.

To streamline the process, I made sure to already have the snowmen (or snow women) ready for the children by purchasing white socks from the dollar tree and using Quinn’s clean socks that were way to small for her now. I filled the socks with rice down the bottom, tied them off with a rubber band and filled to stop with cotton stuffing. Then, I used sticker dots for the eyes and mouth and pom pom balls for the nose and little hat ball.

It was a quick yet fun project that all of the children enjoyed, as did I. Quinn and I even made some snowmen envelopes for their Christmas cards with snowmen stickers. I quickly printed out the pictures of  the class holding up their finished snow people, and enclosed them in the cards as well. We put them in a snowman bag containing holiday lollipops as a special treat for their hard work. I gave my daughter a bag with the same contents inside too. She and many of her friends were happily surprised thanked me for coming in to make snowmen with them.

Something I love about this time of the year is sharing joy and happiness with others. Seeing the smiles on the faces of the children in Quinn’s class and knowing that being there really made my daughter’s day is such an amazing feeling. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year!

All the best,

Tanya

On the Ninth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Fun Reading Christmas Books Right Before Sleep

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On the ninth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…fun reading Christmas books right before sleep. With the anticipation of Christmas building, Quinn and I decided that we’d check out some books about the holiday to read as her bedtime story everyday this week leading up to Christmas.

So far, we’ve read, Daddy Christmas and Hanukkah Mama which is a wonderful story that demonstrates how a family celebrates both religious traditions. This is perfect because my daughter goes to a Jewish school and learns about Hanukkah. Grace at Christmas is a great story too about a little girl who lived with her mother and nana who was used to a certain Christmas traditions that would change this Christmas as a result of some visitors staying with them. A Very McStuffins Christmas is fun story involving Doc McStuffins from the cartoon, and The Day Santa Stopped Believing in Harold is a funny reversal tale of Santa not believing that Harold is who he says he is and staking out his house to make sure he’s the one asking for certain gifts.

The books remaining are Santa Claus and the Three Bears, Are You Grumpy, Santa? and the classic, The Night Before Christmas. I truly enjoy reading the Christmas stories  to my four year old possibly more than she enjoys hearing them.She even counts down how many books we have remaining knowing that we only have a few more days left until Christmas.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Sixth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Festive Music By Charlie Brown and Friends

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On the sixth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…festive music by Charlie Brown and friends. “Close your eyes, Mommy!” my daughter signaled as she got ready to press the button of one of the characters. She then said, “You can now open your eyes, Mommy! Which character do you think is leading the band this time?” I thought for a few seconds and said, “Linus!” She shook her head, “Nope, but I’ll give you a glue. The person is next to Charlie Brown.” I then shouted, “Lucy!” Quinn smiled and said, “Yes, you got it right!”

Last year, I purchased a Mickey Mouse character musical set from Hallmark, and this year, I could not resist purchasing the Peanuts set with Charlie Brown, Lucy, Schroeder, Linus and Snoopy. This one even has the option of adding spotlights, which I just had to have and my four year old loves. Since the holiday season has been in full swing, not a day goes by that she doesn’t press a button or two to hear a Christmas tune by one of the characters. She even inquired if I thought Sally, Charlie Brown’s sister would be added at some point. It’s such a cute set, and I think it will become a collectible and one of the decorations Quinn will look forward to in the years to come.

 

All the best,

Tanya

On the “Actual” Day of Christmas My Toddler Gave to Me…Christmas Fun with My Little One

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Quinn Enjoying Her Christmas Present: Lambie from Doc McStuffins

On the “actual” day of Christmas, my toddler gave to me joy selecting a Christmas tree,  memorable moments decorating, festive and fun goofing around, partying all night, excitement while visiting Santa Claus, counting down the days, happiness at Sesame Place, bonding time making our own tree, befriending Santa’s elf on the shelf, creating a chocolate cookie candy train, receiving messages from the North Pole, baking cookies for Santa Claus and witnessing the happiness in my daughter’s eyes!

This Christmas day, my two and a half year old woke up at 6:37 am, which is around the time she usually wakes up, but today she knew it was Christmas and asked, “Did Santa come, Mommy?” I told her, “Let’s go see!” “Wow, look at all these presents, Mommy! How did Santa get them here? Where did he get them from? Did he go to the store?” My inquisitive little girl was full of questions. “May I open one please, Mommy?” With each gift she opened, the excitement continued to build, and when she finally got to the one gift she asked Santa for when she visited and took a picture with him, she was so happy. “Mommy, Santa got me Lambie! I asked for Lambie when I talked to Santa!”

What made me a proud mommy is that with each gift Quinn opened, she thanked her father and me and asked if she could thank Santa too. She also gave me the opportunity to be a big kid and play with some of her gifts with her. After a morning filled with fun and what felt like never-ending playtime, we both took a nap and then had a wonderful time with our relatives. Watching Quinn interact with her cousins was reminiscent of the fun times I had with my siblings and cousins.

Before she dozed off on the car ride home a little before 11:00 pm, my husband and I asked her how was her Christmas, and she said, “It was great! I got Lambie, saw family (she actually named everyone) and had a good day!” What a wonderful way to spend the Christmas holiday. Here’s to many years to come counting down the days of Christmas with my little girl!

Happy Holidays,

Tanya H. Franklin

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas My Toddler Gave to Me…Christmas Fun with My Little One

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Quinn is Ready to Bake Cookies for Santa

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my toddler gave to me joy selecting a Christmas tree,  memorable moments decorating, festive and fun goofing around, partying all night, excitement while visiting Santa Claus, counting down the days, happiness at Sesame Place, bonding time making our own tree, befriending Santa’s elf on the shelf, creating a chocolate cookie candy train, receiving messages from the North Pole and baking cookies for Santa Claus!

One of my favorite Christmas activities since I was a young child is baking Christmas cookies for Santa with my siblings and mother. Now, it feels wonderful to continue that tradition with my two and a half year old daughter. Even though I do like preparing the cookies from scratch, sometimes Quinn loses interest when we are baking, so to ensure that it was a fun and quick activity for her, we used the pre-made Pillsbury sugar cookies and a cookie pan with the shapes already cut out.

To make baking cookies for Santa memorable for my little girl and to establish our own Christmas Eve tradition, we used a special plate just for Santa that Quinn’s auntie purchased for her, and I gave her a little red apron that says, “Santa’s Little Helper” to make her feel special and like a real baker.

Quinn’s favorite part, which was mine too when I was younger, is putting sprinkles on the cookies and, of course, having a cookie or two to make sure they are perfect for Santa.

Happy holidays,

Tanya H. Franklin

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Quinn Making Sure Santa’s Cookies Are Tasty

On the Eleventh Day of Christmas My Toddler Gave to Me…Christmas Fun with My Little One

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Quinn with Her North Pole Message Machine

 

On the eleventh day of Christmas, my toddler gave to me joy selecting a Christmas tree,  memorable moments decorating, festive and fun goofing around, partying all night, excitement while visiting Santa Claus, counting down the days, happiness at Sesame Place, bonding time making our own tree, befriending Santa’s elf on the shelf, creating a chocolate cookie candy train and receiving messages from the North Pole!

When I was younger, I was not only fascinated with Santa Claus but the North Pole as well. What I wouldn’t give to be granted a special trip to Santa’s Workshop in the North Pole. Though the likelihood of this happening is slim for me, especially as an adult, there is still a glimmer of hope for my daughter. While she is only two and a half and still learning about Christmas, Santa, where he lives and how he knows if she’s been naughty or nice, she does look forward to the communication she receives from her North Pole Message Machine.

Clementine, one of Santa’s head elves, Mrs. Claus, a few other characters and even Santa himself share little facts about what goes on in the North Pole from December 1st through December 25th. At this point, my eight year old niece, who has been spending some time with us for the past few days, does appreciate the North Pole messages a bit more than Quinn. But my daughter already has been able to make the distinction between the voice of one of the male elf’s and Santa. When I think she is not paying attention to the message, she perks up when Santa’s voice comes on and says, “That’s Santa talking from the North Pole! Hi, Santa!”  As Quinn gets older, I have a feeling that she will look forward to the messages more and more. I may be an adult, but I enjoy listening to them as they have added to the Christmas spirit and give us something special to look forward to after breakfast.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Eighth Day of Christmas My Toddler Gave to Me…Christmas Fun with My Little One

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Quinn is ready to get started!

On the eighth day of Christmas, my toddler gave to me joy selecting a Christmas tree,  memorable moments decorating, festive and fun goofing around, partying all night, excitement while visiting Santa Claus, counting down the days, happiness at Sesame Place and bonding time making our own tree! I’ve always loved doing special art projects in school, and though my two and a half year old is not in day school, I want to ensure that she has the experience of doing special art projects for the holiday. Since she loves the Christmas tree, having her make one herself was a perfect idea. I had a vision of what I wanted us to create together, and we were able to get most of the materials from Target: green tissue paper, green shredded paper, colorful pom pom balls in multiple sizes, puffy red garland and a gold bow. We already had the construction paper,  Modge Podge matte finish and scissors.

We used an 11 x 17 green construction paper. I folded it in half and cut the paper on an angle to make the triangular tree. I thin folded and cut up the tissue paper in rectangular pieces. Then, Quinn took over the project by applying Modge Podge to the tree a little at a time with her sponge then placing the tissue paper on top. To give the tree some texture, we added the shredded green paper with a little more Modge Podge Glue. After allowing the tree to dry, we then added the red garland with glue and taped the backs to make sure it was secure. Then, we added the pom pom balls as ornaments. Once everything was dry, we put the tree on red construction paper as a backing and then added the gold bow as the star. This was a fun project for us both, and now we have two trees for Christmas!

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Our work is displayed on Quinn’s special frame for all to see.

All the best,

Tanya

Here’s a slide show of our project below:

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On the Seventh Day of Christmas My Toddler Gave to Me…Christmas Fun with My Little One

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2015-12-19 14.27.45-1Selected and decorated the perfect tree, put up festive and fun decorations, partied, visited Santa: the count down has begun! While these are some of our favorite things about the holiday season, going on a special outing today with my daughter to see the special holiday shows, parade, and friends of Sesame Place put the “star” on top of the Christmas tree. This actually was our second time going because it just was extremely packed on Black Friday because it was 70 degrees, and we only saw the parade, but today it was in the low 40s but felt like the 30s at times. (I’m so happy we have a season pass and did not have to pay additional money for our second visit)  As we waited in line out in the cold for about twenty minutes, I thought to myself, “I’d rather not stay” and then tell Quinn, “Baby, it’s cold outside,” but she was just so excited, dancing around and saying, “We’re going to see the Elmo Christmas show, Mommy!” I sure was glad that show was indoors and happily put my two and half year old on my lap to warm up my frozen fingers.  If Quinn was cold, she  must have been so overcome with excitement that it did not bother her as she hugged Bert and Ernie and watched her favorite Sesame Street character, Grover, perform, “Run Rudolph.” Even after the parade, it took a lot of cajoling to get her to leave Sesame Place willingly. If I had to guess, I’d say one of my daughter’s Christmas wishes was fulfilled today, and that makes enduring the cold weather worth it!

All the best,

Tanya