four gifts

have you heard of this christmas gift giving tradition? a friend introduced me to it a few years ago. It is such a simple, beautiful idea for the holidays.

something you want
something you need
something to wear
something to read

i found these beautiful tags to go along with each gift and they can be reused year after year.

image {dandee}

image {dandee}

what is your gift giving tradition?

advent elves

i received my first advent calendar when i was a little girl. it was handmade by my grandmother "fritz" who lived in wisconsin. i only saw her every few years as we lived in pennsylvania. she was a wonderfully creative woman. her advent calendar was a simple red felt banner with 24 hershey kisses tied to it with a bell at the bottom. she included a poem to go along with it (i don't know who the original author is):

december 1st to christmas
is the longest time of year

seems as though ol' santa
never will appear

how many days till christmas
it's so mighty hard to count

so this candy ribbon
will tell the exact amount

untie a candy every night
when the sandman casts his spell

christmas day will be here
by the time you reach the bell

Sadly that advent calendar is now long gone. I wanted to continue the tradition with my children. Instead of candy ribbons though, each child has an elf with the little pockets for trinkets and treats.

love their little feet

you don't have to spend a lot of money
these little treats were bought at party city, most for under 10 cents

the kids are so excited for december 1st and their first little treat. what kind of advent calendar do you have?

frosting for the cause

i'm guest posting over at frosting for the cause today. you can read my post here. thank you, paula, for letting me be a part of your wonderful project.

a charlie brown thanksgiving

every year i co-host a charlie brown thanksgiving at our cute little library. the kids make a cute thanksgiving craft, watch "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving", and then gobble up a feast just like ol' chuck and the gang.

the library all decked out in its thanksgiving best


some vince guaraldi really sets the mood


happy thanksgiving!