Prayer Kneelers for Kids

Helping my children learn to pray is once of the greatest joys - and challenges - I have had as a parent.

While perusing the garden clearance, I was inspired to make prayer kneelers for my kids. I had seen this idea last summer on Catholic Icing, initially considering this as part of our Brownie troop's Family of God religious award journey, but would think about gathering supplies for the project when it was definitely out of season.

Lately I've noticed that my youngest has created a "prayer spot," completely unprovoked, in his room. There is an "Our Father" poster he made in kindergarten, as well as a cross and the various crafts he's made during Vacation Bible School. I thought a prayer kneeler would be a great addition.

I found these apple-shaped garden kneelers on clearance at Walgreens for $2 each, and I used marker to decorate them with a rosary and children's names to create portable prayer kneelers for my godchild and for my children. 

(Why portable? Of course the kids are going to carry things around. Everywhere...)

The kids' prayer kneelers will be packaged with some inspirational reading for Christmas gifts. (I can also see it as a gift for First Communion, or a craft project for Vacation Bible School or Sunday school class.)

On the back, it says "When life gets too hard to stand, kneel." I hope the kids take it to heart.

American Girl Stocking Stuffer: Make Your Own Sleep Mask

Last Christmas Eve, my daughter threw me for a loop. As we were setting out our stockings that night, suddenly a tiny stocking from the tree appeared for Sophie, her "American Girl" doll. 

I looked confused. Santa only brings for kids, I said. 

But, she argued, the doll was good. 

Fortunately I had a small accessory I had picked up that I quietly switched to Sophie's stocking that night. And I thought that was the end of it.

This year, though, she's already informed her brother that Santa will bring toys for his stuffed animals if he finds a stocking for him!

While I'm still shaking my head about that one, I did come up with a quick stocking stuffer idea for her doll this year. For the craftily challenged, it only takes about 5 minutes and can be done with minimal supplies at home. My daughter loves the sleep mask we had purchased for her for road trips, so why not make one for her doll, too?

Here's what you need for your a sleep mask for your doll.

Felt, craft foam or fabric scrap - approximately business card size or slightly larger.

Ribbon or yarn

Fold the felt in half horizonally and round the corners. Unfold.

Cut the ribbon or yarn in half and thread each half into one end of the sleep mask. Knot it so it doesn't loosen. 

To use, place sleep mask over face and tie around the back of the head. Sweet dreams!

Linked to Motivation Mondays, Titi's Crafty Party, The Mommy Club.

Recycled denim pet toys

When November brings you tornado watches and warnings, you tuck into the bathroom and work on your Christmas gifts!

My oldest had wanted to make a gift for her "dog cousin" and a pair of well-worn jeans provided just the opportunity to do so. We had seen this great idea for a fleece rope toy from Parents magazine and had tucked the idea away in our "emergency" binder of ideas.

For a few short minutes, we had a great distraction from the day's storms.

Each side of the leg was cut lengthwise into three strips, which were knotted and braided.

We wound up with simple gifts for four of our closest four-legged friends!

American Doll clothes for pennies

Sophie is one admittedly unstylish American Girl knock-off.

Since she joined our family two years ago, she's gotten not one name-brand outfit.

Sure, Santa's bought her an outfit or two, and she got a Girl Scout sweatshirt for a birthday. But largely she's been spared of high-priced duds.

Lately my daughter has been begging for more clothes for Sophie. Admittedly these can quickly break the bank. But I found a simple solution: hand-sewn clothes for pennies.

Liberty Jane offers a small selection of free doll clothes patterns on its website. I downloaded the pants and tank top patterns and used some worn khaki shorts of mine to make a pair of pants and a pair of khaki shorts. Sophie also got several tank tops and T-shirts cut from a layered shirt she'd taken a pair of fabric scissors too, and she'll also be getting a swimsuit this Christmas season too.

The patterns are fairly easy for a rusty sewer to work with; in fact, I hand-sewed mine while catching up on Revolution. The only out-of-pocket costs were for elastic.

So if you have an hour to spare and an old piece of clothing, you might consider reinventing it as a Christmas present for your favorite American Girl-type doll.

Homemade Gift Ideas

Looking for some homemade gift ideas? Even if you're not handy in the kitchen, or overly crafty, there are some great ideas to consider, if you just have time. Visit the Green Phone Booth to check out Jenn's ideas.

Don't have a trashy Christmas, part 2: Reducing wrapping and shipping waste

Ninety nine percent of the trappings of Christmas end up in the landfill within six months, I read in the paper today. That's a lot of waste for one magic moment.

Lisa over at Retro Housewife Goes Green started the discussion on how we can reduce the trash in our holiday celebrations, and I'd like to offer a few more ideas that have worked for our family.

While re-thinking our gift-giving can make it more meaningful - and hopefully cut down on your holiday spend and wasted gifts - there are steps you can take to reduce the trash generated in your holiday celebrations. A lot of the trash we generate isn't even from the gifts themselves - it's from getting the gifts to the recipient.

Wrapping it up

We rely heavily on gift bags in our house. It came less from a desire to be green than the reality that I hated to trash the pretty bags after the holidays. I'll admit I love pulling out my Crown Center bags each year - it helps with a bit of the homesickness, in a strange way. But they're easy, and frankly, if the little ones break into the gifts, there's a lot less re-wrapping and re-taping needed.

Because I use bags, I also don't have to rely on bows or ribbons on my gifts, which just go in the trash anyway. If you're dead-set on using ribbons and are feeling crafty, you can find out how to make your own bows here.

Find more ideas for greener ways to wrap your gifts here.

Gifts to be shipped

As we can't be in every city for the holidays, we have to ship gifts to at least one home each season. You can be smarter in how you ship things by following these tips:

Pick flatter or modular sized gifts. Odd-shaped gifts are challenging to find packaging for and often require a larger box - meaning more freight costs and fuel to send - and extra "stuff" to pad the package.

If you must buy an odd-shaped gift (such as the guitar my sister-in-law bought my child last year), consider either padding the package with newsprint, plastic bags or leftover packaging from something received at home at work instead of buying new packing materials. In our office, we're notorious for hoarding boxes and packing materials for such occasions.

Or, buy the uniquely shaped or fragile present online and have it shipped directly from the store. It saves you the gas and hassle of trying to find appropriate shipping materials, and they typically have resources on hand to ship them effectively.

If you have several families in one city, designate a "point person" to receive and distribute the holiday gifts. Chances are they're share a celebration at some point in the Christmas season, and the gifts can be distributed at that time.

Hopefully, as Black Friday approaches, this gives you a few options to consider to make things easier on your family.

Happy holidays!

Going handmade this holiday season? Start now!

Handmade holiday gifts - it's surprising that they didn't take off much last year, following the gas crisis, the credit crisis, etc.

This year, though, the idea seems to be everywhere - from a host of environmental blogs to Paula Deen's Christmas magazine.

If you're a shopping slacker, the key to remember is you can't start most presents on Dec. 23. You have to plan ahead.

Crunchy Chicken recently had a discussion on this topic, and the readers posted some very creative ideas, including:

• gift certificates to a CSA
• market bags made from repurposed denim jeans
• buying vintage

Determined to make gifts on your own? Check out sites like www.oneprettything.com, or if you're looking for other ideas, check out last year's posts:

• Easy hand-sewn gifts
• For man's best friend
• For the chef in the family
• Gifts in a jar
• Painted mugs (pack with the gift of choice - chocolates, coffees, etc.)
• Photo gifts
• Quick from the kitchen ideas
• Spa baskets
• Snowman kits
• Wrapping ideas

Not the crafty type? That is completely OK. There are plenty of people who are willing to sell handmade goods that you can pull together for a holiday gift. Check your farmers markets for vinagrettes, sauces, soaps or candles; visit the multitude of holiday fairs; or check out etsy for ideas from small business owners.
Of course, the one gift idea I can't beat - or ever dream to replicate - is from Abbie at Farmer's Daughter:

my then-boyfriend (now husband) gave me a 4-poster cherry bed that he built
on Christmas Eve, then proposed on Christmas morning.

If only all of our gifts had such meaning!

Homemade Holidays: Wrap it up

You've made your list and checked it twice. Whether you're gifts this year are store-bought, homemade, recycled or regifted, one thing remains the same: You've got to wrap it up.

And if you're like most people I know, you're reading this instead of getting those gifts ready to go.

Relax. Even if you're waiting until Christmas Eve to do you're wrapping, you don't have to take an emergency trip to the store to buy another roll of wrapping paper. As it's just a few days until Christmas, I won't overwhelm you with Martha Stewart-esque ways to jolly up your packages; it's 11th hour and just time to get it done.

Here are some easy ways to bundle your gifts, save a few cents and be a little friendlier on the planet this Christmas season:

Gift bags. On the surface they may not seem green, but these laminated paper bags can be used multiple times before they meet their demise. My family depends on them, and they go back to the depts of the closet after birthdays or holidays. I can't tell you the last time I actually bought wrapping paper because of it.


Green bags. I saw on a scrapbook message board that reusable shopping bags were being used instead of the traditional holiday wrap. Some message board users were even jazzing up the bags. It's a way to be practical. Go traditional green or a holiday red (such as Target).


Holiday towels. Wrap food gifts in holiday kitchen towels or other linents.


Use your leftover plastic grocery bags (I know you've got them!) to cushion packages for last-minute shiping. Either stuff as-is or blow them up into air pockets.


Re-gift your gift tins. Who says holiday tins have to be used for food gifts? Reuse them to hold smaller items instead of wrapping it in paper.


Enlist your budding artists. Reuse kid art as colorful wrapping paper, or have your little ones stamp or paint on scrap paper or newspring.


Turn holiday greetings into gift tags. My husband's aunt years ago introduced me to the idea of trimming Christmas cards to make gift cards the following year. I have to admit, it makes finding the "to" on a large gift far easier!

Re-use that wrap. I admit it, I've rewrapped items in still-good pieces of wrapping paper from a gift trade this weekend. It feels a little strange, but it's likely going to that same landfill anyway. And if you're not comfortable using previously loved wrapping paper on the outside, use it on the inside: as packing material for shipping packages or packaging fragile items for the next holiday season.

Homemade Holidays: Quick from the kitchen

A quick and easy gift always seems to be needed. Whether it's a quick hostess gift for a small get-together or a last-minute exchange you hadn't planned on, we're always scrambling to get "one more" little present for someone this holiday season.

This year, relax, and just travel to your kitchen.

No time to cook? Nonsense. If you have time to battle traffic, fight for a parking space, dart in and out of stores, battle your way to the register and then home, you have time to make a homemade food gift.

Here are a few easy ones to get you started:

Mulling sachets. Warm arms cider sparkles with a few added spices. These cute individual bags of mulling spices is an easy idea from MarthaStewart.com. (Sorry, Martha, for lending us your photo!)

Bring out your favorites. Make a double batch of your grandma's cookies, and package in a tin tied with a copy of her treasured recipe. Recipe favorites are meant to enjoy!

Make them do your baking. Those "cookies in a jar" recipes have been around a lot, and I've actually seen them sold for as much as $15 each(!). But they're simple to make. None, though, are as absolutely beautiful or as colorful as Food Network's recipe for "Sand Art Brownies."

Make a meal. Put together a themed cooking basket: Pasta, a nice jar of sauce and wine for an Italian lover; teriyaki and soy sauces, spices, rice noodles and more for the person who craves Chinese.

A little liquer. Blogher.com has links to recipes including limoncello and chocolate liquer.

Promise more. Strapped for time as the holidays approach? "Sign up" your recipient for a homemade "Treat of the Month Club" that you can make good on when life settles down in January.

Shipping your gifts? Find tips for shipping your food gifts.

What other edible gifts have you made?

Getting creative with evergreen scraps

When you buy a fresh tree, it seems that little branches always find their way onto the floor of the car or your home.

Sure, you could toss it in the trash or compost it, but you can also use the rogue branches to inject a little more holiday spirit in your home.

Head on over to Money Saving Mom for creative ideas to use leftover evergreen branches, including to decorate packages, your mailbox decorations, chairs, your kitchen table and more.

Even if you don't buy fresh trees each year, Monica from The Homespun Heart writes that you can likely get free clippings from retailers that sell trees. Monica writes:

Beginning right after Thanksgiving, weekends are a perfect time to stop by and pick up some free greens. I've found it's helpful to stop at the tree trimming spot on our way in and say we'd like a load of clippings and then go pick out our tree as I've had employees start a pile for me and have it ready when I come out.

Photo from MoneySavingMom.com.

Homemade Holidays: A stitch in time

Some of us actually know enough to be dangerous with a needle. If you're like me - you know how to thread a needle and tie a knot - you may still be able to stitch up a holiday gift or two this season. (Or at least start for next year!)

Here are a few ideas that require limited sewing knowledge:


Personalized slippers: With a template, a simple stitch and knot are all it takes to create a personal design, whether it's flowers, initials or other patterns. Find directions on MarthaStewart.com



Painted towels, bibs, T-shirts or onesies: Use fabric paint and some patience to create a one-of-a-kind design.


No-sew fleece blankets. and scarves Sure, you could buy a "pre-cut" set, but you can save a lot of money by hitting a sale at the local fabric store. Find directions for making no-sew fleece blankets and scarves.

Homemade Holidays: A cup of love

Painted pottery stores may have come and gone in today's economy, but a heartfelt mug of a favorite blend in a personalized cup is a personal (and inexpensive) gift that even children can make.

Solid china cups can easily be found at most stores, or, if you're really feeling green this holiday season, scavenged from a resale shop (adding a "retro" touch.)

MarthaStewart.com suggests these tips if using china:

• Use food-safe ceramic paint, such as Pebeo Porcelaine 150, and add white to make lighter shades of a color.
• Remove any painting "oopses" with a baby wipe.
• Let paint dry 2 hours, then set paint by heating china in a 300-degree oven for 30 minutes. (Put plate or cup in oven before turning on).

Those with less time on their hands can easily update a travel mug. My daughter created a personalized travel mug for her uncle last Christmas by drawing a picture on a traced copy of the insert. It's one-of-a-kind, and perfect for the uncle who's not at all proud of his favorite niece.

Of course, if you are giving personalized dishes or cups this holiday season, fill it up! Toss in some chocolates, holiday candies, coffees, tea bags or even create a "custom" coffee bean mix by mixing together several different varieties.

Homemade Holidays Bonus Project: Gingerbread house ornaments

Christmas gifts from the children are those that come most from the heart.

Granted, perhaps not as much "from the heart" as my husband's cousin's son was a few years ago. Inspired by a diamond commercial, he insisted his father let him buy his mom diamonds because mom was the woman he loved most. It's hard to argue with an eight year old's logic.

For those with a little tighter of a budget - and for those who desperately need an activity for kids this Thanksgiving weekend, consider letting them make homemade presents. Cookie tins or ornaments are two easy solutions that can keep your kids out of trouble and make them feel the holidy spirit.

I found these cute gingerbread cards online at Kaboose.com and decided it might be fun to adapt to homemade ornaments. The "recipe" for the cards state that they are for ages 3 and older, though that may depend on your child's ability. It does require parental help.

Here's what I did:

1. Downloaded the template and cut out the house part only out of cardboard that was included in a bag from a scrapbook store to keep papers from bending.
2. Let my 3 year old go wild! First step: Painted "frosting" with leftover acryclic paint from a long-ago project.
3. Glued on buttons and slide mounts, long-ago acquired and unused for scrapbooking projects.
4. I punched holes and inserted eyelets in the top of each ornament so the holes wouldn't rip.
5. Threaded each ornament.

Total out-of-pocket expenditures: $0. (Not including the eventual replacement of the tablecloth, which suffered a few holes from my Silent Setter.)

The great thing is, the project allowed me to use up scrapbook supplies that I hadn't used in years but was hesitant to just throw out.

A bonus: My 3 year old was happily occupied for an hour and a half! And she's eager to share her creations with everyone she knows.

Homemade Holidays: Spa baskets

Those easy-to-buy spa baskets at the local pampering store are cheap, but they don't offer much when you're trying to stay within a shopping budget. Plus, there's a lot of packaging involved - from the clear plastic that envelopes the entire basket and contents to the individual bottles and tons of shredded packaging inside.

Instead of running to the Body Shop or Bath & Body Works this holiday season, make a few spa baskets of your own. Create and bottle a few handmade items, and you can create a custom basket for your friend (or you!) in no time.

Here are some recipes to get you started:

For the bath:

• Colored bath salts
• English lavender bath
• Homemade bath bombs
• Homemade bath salts
• Milk and oatmeal bath bag
• Scented bath salts

Other items:

• Bathtub finger paints
• Christmas chunk soap
• Cocoa butter body lotion
• Green tea and lemongrass soap
• Homemade body lotion
• Rosewater and glycerin hand lotion
• Shaving soap
• Whipped body butter
• Lavender and mint soap
• Lavender and rose hand cream

Not enough? Check out Natural Beauty for All Seasons for other ideas.

Homemade Holidays: For man's best friend

Perhaps in your family, you've got a grand-dog instead of a grandkid. If your favorite pooch needs to be spoiled this holiday season (or for any other reason), there's little reason to dash to the store to buy a box of treats, or, even worse, a "pet stocking" filled with treats.


Here are some recipes for your favorite pet:

• Holiday Doggie Bagels
• Minty Dog Bones
• Pumpkin Wafers Dog Treat
• Peanut Butter Dog Treats
• Basic Dog Biscuit Treats
  

Read other Homemade Holidays ideas.

Homemade Holidays: For the chef in the family

For every person who struggles to get food quickly on the table, there's a family member or friend who thrives on the cooking process. Finding a gift for your favorite chef may on the surface seem easy. After all, there's always a new gadget on the market.

But if you're in a cost-saving mode or aiming to green your holiday gift-giving, you may want to consider creating a cooking basket.

Throw together a basket filled with locally produced or sustainable coffees, teas, sauces, or other cooking treats. Add in a bamboo cutting board, which is more sustainable than the plastic or silocone counterparts, or an out-of-print cookbook from a used bookstore.

You could also include homemade spices or rubs in bags or jars. Here are a few recipes to whet your appetite:

• Cracked Pepper Seasoning Blend
• Emeril's Creole Seasoning
• Herbs de Provence
• Rustic Rub Spice Blend
• Other Homemade Spice Blends

Read other Homemade Holidays ideas.

Homemade Holidays: Making memories

Memories fade over time, but preserving those memories can make for treasured gifts for Christmas, Mother's Day, birthdays or other special occasions.

Photographs of the grandchildren are prized possessions, but for both my parents and in-laws, keeping up with the kids creates a lot of clutter. Instead, we've come up with more creative ways to give them the latest cute kid photo without pushing piles of photographs upon them.

Photo calendars: These are a practical way to share photographs of the past year (12 to 18 or more). You can be creative and make your own with photo kits at local scrapbook stores, or if you're time crunched, a few drags-and-drops in online software can complete an order. Services that offer photo calendars include Snapfish, Walgreens, Shutterfly, Kinkos and most photo processsing studios.

Brag books: Buy or make small photo albums large enough to hold wallet-size school photos in.

Christmas memories book: Create a small album with room for photos, descriptions of family traditions, special food served, memorable gifts and more. Include pages for family members to highlight their favorite memories of Christmas. Even if you're not a scrapbooker, this can be simply done with a journal or even in your word-processing software.

Other photo-related gifts: You can plaster your photographs of the grandkid or granddog on just about any item these days, from coffee mugs to T-shirts to stamps.

Read other Homemade Holidays ideas.

Homemade Holidays: Put a lid on it

Gifts in a jars are sometimes seen as a folksy gift but are fairly practical, especially in tough financial times. If you are naturally a canner, you may already have the start of food gifts stacked in your pantry. If you're not, no problem.

You could spent $10, $12 or more on a "cookies in a jar" kit, or you could make your own, as I did on one particularly lean year after I was married. There are a number of sites featuring cookies in a jar recipes, or you could simply layer dry ingredients from any cookie recipe. Salsas, pestos and dried soup mixes are other easy options. One caveat - If you're interested in jarred food gifts, be sure to clean and sterilize them.

These recipes are from Irena Chalmers' An Edible Christmas. While I haven't tried them personally, they do seem interesting.

Rosemary Lime Vinegar
4 cups white wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic
6 large sprigs fresh rosemary
1 lime, thinly sliced

Use stainless steel saucepan when heating vinegar to avoid producing a metallic taste. Bring vinegar slowly to a boil over moderate heat. Peel garlic cloves but do not cut them. Place clove in each of two one-pint hot, sterilized bottles. Carefully strain hot vinegar into bottles and add three sprigs rosemary to each. Divide lime slices between bottles. Seal each bottle with its cork or cap. Heat more vinegar and add to bottle if needed to fill completely. Store in cool, dry place for at least two weeks before using. For best results use within six months.

Five-Alarm Salsa
Makes 2 pints
1 28-oz. can whole tomatoes in tomato puree, undrained
2 fresh hot chili peppers, seeded and minced
1/2 cup finely chopped white or yellow onion
2 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons lime juice

In medium saucepan, bring all ingredients to simmer over medium-low heat, then cook for five minutes. Spoon salsa into hot, sterilized jars and attach lids. Process jars in a boiling water bath for five minutes. Remove from water and cool at room temperature.

Coriander and Pumpkin Seed Pesto
Use up those pumpkin seeds!
Makes 1 1/2 cups

4 cups loosely packed fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves, rinsed and dried
2/3 cup olive oil or vegetable oil
3 medium garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 cup unsalted pumpkin seeds
1 fresh hot chili pepper, seeded
zest of one lime
1/4 teaspoon salt

Put all ingredients in blender to form thick paste. Transfer to hot, sterilized jars. Label "Keep frozen" and make a "Use By" date of six months after pesto was made. Cover tightly, cool to room temperature and freeze.

Read other Homemade Holidays ideas.

Homemade Holidays: Snowman kits

Tucked up in our closet, waiting for winter, is a snowman kit we received a Christmas or two back. Now that my oldest is old enough to enjoy the snowman-building process, the box will likely be dusted off this winter and come out to play.

You can buy "snowman kits" from many, many sources online, but it's nearly as simple to make your own, taking advantage of some of the things you may already have on hand:

• A baby formula scoop, cleaned and painted, for a pipe
• Rocks or old circular play pieces (random, homeless poker chips?), painted, for eyes
• Old hat or scarf (which you could easily find in good shape at Goodwill or another resale shop)
• Lids from soda bottles (again, painted) for buttons
• Plastic or wooden carrot for nose

Package in a box or tote labeled "Snowman kit."

Homemade Holidays: Nostalgia baskets

"I know this year is going to be much more about needs than wants," my sister e-mailed me the other day.

I'm sure our family is far from alone. Each day brings more news of financial crisises on a worldwide scale and how retailers are bracing for a tighter-than-usual Christmas shopping season.

Still, I know gift-giving won't go away as part of holiday traditions. Sure, this year, our gift-giving will be severely amputated. In fact, I think what we do give will be more about what's heart-felt than a treat.

This week starts my "Homemade Holidays" series. Each Monday, I'll feature different ideas for greener gift-giving on a budget. If you have other ideas, please post them as well!

A little nostalgia
Remember those fabulous treats Grandma used to make? Create a gift basket of homemade goodies for your loved ones, packaged with cards featuring the treasured recipes. If you're feeling very creative, hunt down photos of the grandkids in the kitchen or the family around the holiday table to include in it.

A few years back we compiled my Grandmother's recipes, which had found homes at random relatives' houses. After a few weeks of effort and some time with the word processor, we created a 100+ page cookbook. We printed a copy, which included family photos, for her, and e-mailed a PDF to the family, so they all had copies on hand for the future.