Christmas Tea

A few years ago, Grandma Patti started hosting a Christmas tea party for the kids.  She had a tiny Christmas tea set which inspired the idea.  The kids don't really care for tea, but enjoy hot chocolate or apple juice and lots of yummy treats.  Simon had a special affinity for the chocolate truffles.  This year Olivia wore her Grandma Patti's Christmas dress from years ago.  It was one of the only brand new dresses Patti had ever been given since as the middle child, she usually had hand-me-downs from her older sisters.  Aside from the metallic thread around the neck being a little scratchy, it was in perfect condition and fit Livi well this year.  It was fun to have something so special to wear for this year's tea party!  

 

Homeschool - December

Aside from their normal reading and math work, homeschool in December looked a lot like Christmas gift making and other holiday themed projects.

They made salt dough ornaments to give away as gifts. We tried to use pine needles to decorate them naturally, but they didn't stick and we ended up painting them instead.

The kids got a soap making kit from Grandma this fall.  It was super fun to make this.  They chopped up the clear portion of the soap and microwaved it until it was liquid.  In the meantime they dropped different soap shapes into the soap molds.  Simon loved this part, but despite me telling him repeatedly that it was soap, NOT CANDY, he smugly stuck it into his mouth.  He was so defiant and sassy about it...until he started to chew and realized it was not candy after all.  Sometimes this kid has to learn things the hard way I guess.  After that they poured the liquid soap over the top of the shapes and let it sit in the molds until it hardened.  The soaps turned out beautiful and smelled so good.  

 

We did Santa Claus directed drawings, and used watercolor paints to finish them off.  They turned out adorable!

Olivia and Nolan wrote letters about what they love about each other.  They read them aloud and it was so sweet to see how proud they were to read and hear what was written.  

The last week of December, the kids enjoyed playing with their Christmas presents.  Simon enjoyed playing in his new work bench, Olivia painted her model horses, and Nolan and I built a Harry Potter Lego set.  

Las Posadas

Tonight we celebrated Las Posadas with the Vadis girls.  This was another fun celebration we continued from last year's Holidays around the World Unit.  Tati and Nolan were Mary and Joseph who were led by the angel (Olivia) to knock on different doors looking for shelter.  Elsa and Pastor Kari were the innkeepers who kept turning them away until they got to the final door.  It is supposed to remind us of the story of Mary and Joseph looking for shelter in Bethlehem, but there being no room for them at the inn.  In Mexico, this festival lasts for 9 days, culminating on Christmas Eve night.  When Mary and Joseph finally find shelter, they come inside and a party awaits.  We had a delicious Mexican feast including a stunning tres leches cake made by Eric.  We ate our meal by candlelight (the kids request) and it was a beautiful, magical evening with our friends.

Lights of the Northwoods

It was a brisk but beautiful walk around Hodag Park this year for the Lights of the Northwoods.  The kids loved seeing all the lights, and this year the library added the Story Stroll of "The Night Before Christmas."  Simon was a wild man - taking off in every direction, but the adults teamed up to keep him from getting too far away.  When he wasn't running away, he was cold and insisted on being held.  Thank goodness we had Grandma Patti's extra arms, because the path is long!  We enjoyed this Northwoods tradition again this year, and look forward to seeing it again next time!
 

Ory Christmas

We had a Christmas present opening gathering on Saturday, and once again, it didn't look like we thought it would.  Unfortunately Uncle Tom tested positive for covid, which meant that he and Sara would not be able to join us.  If we've learned anything over the past year and a half, it's that being flexible is important, so we decided to carry on and meet up with Tom and Sara on New Year's, assuming they were healthy.  

We had a lovely time and the gifts were awesome.  Olivia was thrilled to get her much anticipated Barbie camper, Nolan got a new video game and an awesome beanbag chair, and Simon got some cool new blocks and a dumptruck.  Eric was like a little kid on Christmas, receiving his much anticipated Play Station 5 and I had many beautiful and useful gifts, including some warm and cozy new boots.  We had lots of yummy appetizers and had a really relaxing, cozy evening together.  

While we with Tom and Sara could have joined us, it was a nice afternoon spent with our loved ones and we were grateful for the time together and beautiful presents!