'Tis the Season!

 I love Christmas...it's a time to get crafty, visit local attractions, spend precious time with friends and family and give to others, as well as celebrate our guy, Jesus!  And let's not forget the magic of Santa and sugar plums (hold on, does anyone actually know what a sugar plum is?) and candy canes and presents...it's an excuse to act like a kid, and having a little one makes it even more special.  LB is starting to understand how to show gratitude when opening presents (gasping with delight at each one, which I think she is just copying me but it's SO stinking cute) and has an interest in the big bearded guy (you'll see an awesome website below that I'm using to help her get aquainted with him).  She also loves looking at/ rearranging all of the Nativity scene figures and it's fun to tell her the story of each one.  I can tell that the Christmas season is going to be really fun from here on out.

In honor of December and the start of the Christmas season, I wanted to post a couple of sites that might be helpful as you begin to plan your fun!  I have to give credit to my mom for the first one; she posted it on her FB page.   

www.northpole.com

  It's like an entire North Pole experience in a website!  It's completely interactive for kids, i.e: little games, tour of the North Pole, weather station and much more.  There's also a lot for parents to browse: recipes, e-cards, printables...and then coolest feature---you can upload your kiddo's name, picture, location, what they want for Christmas, etc. and Santa himself will send the little one a personalized video.  LB LOVED it and I'm hoping if we watch it, he won't be quite so scary.  Or maybe he still will be, but the video is fun either way. 

Next, I've mentioned her site before and I believe it's listed in my link page, but if you're in the NoVa area be sure to check out the "Winter in Northern Virginia" page on www.supernovamommy.com.  This, in addition to her daily calendar, will pretty much highlight every holiday and winter activity happening in our area.  She is the BEST! 

Also, I am going to put a "button" on the blog to link to "Creative with Kids" 2011 Creative Christmas Countdown.  They are compiling various bloggers' activities, one for each day leading up to Christmas.  How lucky we are to live in a time where it's so easy to network and get great ideas from people all over the country?

Speaking of lucky, please remember to think about helping others during the holiday season.  I love taking time to make sure it's a special time for my own daughter, and I would love for every child to have something special happen for them at this time, even when it might not be possible for their parents to make it happen without a little help.  We will be filling a stocking for the Salvation Army's stocking program and donating some food to a local food bank.  I love this idea:  it's JCPenney and Salvation Army's Angel Tree  program.  You can visit their site and "adopt" a kiddo for Christmas, and do all of your shopping through JCPenny's online.  Very cool! 

Hope everyone has a wonderful season!

Chloe at Christmas in 2010