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Showing posts from December, 2018

Top Blog Posts of 2018

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It's that time of year again!  Happy New Year!  I'm looking forward to the rebranding launch of my blog tomorrow and all the amazing content I'll be bringing your way this year!  In honor of saying good-bye to one era and hello to another, I present you the top five posts of 2018! 5- 100 Disney-fied Elf Ideas I only posted this elf-on-the-shelf list in October, and it's already one of my most popular articles.  It's got everything people love- Disney, ideas, and elves.  I had a lot of fun putting together the list and looking for all the Disney fun to add.  I anticipate adding another 100 or so in the future. 4- Free Camping Notebook The success of posts like this one is part of why I decided to make a new blog called Party Through the USA .  At the beginning of the summer, I was posting two times a week with content for travel, which was distracting me from the purpose of this blog.  This particular post was inspired by my mom and her camping organ

Hope the Elf's Adventures- Part 3

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This is the last batch of pictures from our 2018 Christmas season.  Our Barbie-who-identifies-as-an-elf worked pretty well.  I wish I had planned her visit a bit more; although I didn't do everything that my kids were hoping I'd do (nuts to crack, a cookie scavenger hunt, and a few more).  They're always so sad to see the elves go.  Maybe I'll bring them back for a month of kindness in February (or maybe just 2 weeks).  We'll have to see what happens (wink).

Hope the Elf's Adventures- Part 2

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Every day, my husband refuses to look at the elf set up I've done because he enjoys being surprised every morning.  It makes me think that I should do more silly or surprising things throughout the year, especially since I'm usually up later than him.  This is the second installment of our elf adventures for the year.  The first set of pictures can be found by clicking on the picture below.

Meet Hope- Our Elf on the Shelf Alternative

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Many feel like the official red-suited Elf-on-the-Shelf is slightly creepy.  Others don't like him because of his spy backstory.  When I chose JOY two years ago, I wanted a doll that had a Christmas look, but was cuter and more friendly than the official Elf.  I also liked that her outfit was non-traditional colors.  Her soft clothes and body invited snuggling (in fact, Dragonfly has been begging me for 3 years to let her have the doll to keep).  She has had many  adventures  with our family, but my expectations for an elf have changed during that time.  As Christmas approaches, I find myself in the market for a different kind of elf, one better suited to interesting scenarios.  Which led me on a wild Pinterest search for ideas. I ran into this inspiring blog post, where the mom took a Disney Fairy doll and turned her into a girly elf .  She clipped the wings, then took a Dollar Store sock and made the "cold weather" accessories.  I love how simple the project was

Christmas at Our House, Warm Memories

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I'm not sure what it is about this year, maybe it's my kids' ages or my age, but I'm feeling very nostalgic this year.  I've been forcing my children to listen to the albums from my childhood, songs like Christmas at Our House by Barbara Mandrell, Breath of Heaven by Amy Grant, and Christmas Like a Lullaby by John Denver.  Listening to those songs instantly takes me back to all the chaos, excitement, and memories of twenty years ago (does that mean I'm old?).  For today's post, I'm hoping you'll indulge me as I walk through Christmas of yesteryear. My parents have been married for thirty-six years and have a strong marriage, but for some reason, Christmas highlights their differences, at least in my memories.  My mom is an organized, type-A woman with a plan and a gift-giving matrix.  When we were kids, her list, and sometimes her buying, was done before Thanksgiving many years.  On the contrast, my dad's shopping was often done Christ

45 Ways to Play During Winter Break

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It's only a few more weeks until Christmas!  Even if you don't celebrate that particular day, many schools and homeschool groups have a Winter Break around New Year's Day.  If you're anything like me, you're probably stuck at home with stir-crazy kids.  There's not enough snow to motivate them to go outside and they're just SO excited about presents that they can hardly contain themselves.  I'm finding myself on Pinterest searching for things to do with the kids and ways to keep them busy.  When I called on my friends at the Kid Blogger Network, I ended up with this awesome list! Snow Slime // No Time for Flashcards Holiday Slime // This Teaching Mama Melting Snowman Slime // Little Bins for Little Hands Grinch Glitter Slime // Citrus and Stripes Santa Slime // Growing a Jeweled Rose Cocoa Slime // Fantastic Fun and Learning Gingerbread Ooblek // My Bored Toddler Fluffy Snow Slime // Natural Beach Living Edible

Spelling Printables and More

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Ways to Teach Kids Writing Skills

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