Tag: christmas


Dec
2015

Easy Gift Giving with Zoës Kitchen

categories: Christmas, dining out, giving

Giving Zoes Kitchen Gifts this Holiday Season

The season of giving can be so joyful, but can also come with the stress of choosing the perfect gift for all the people you care about in your life. When the folks at Zoës Kitchen (my favorite lunch spot) contacted me with opportunity to share their deliciousness with some of my favorite people, I jumped at the chance. They challenged me to find three folks in my life who deserved a special treat this holiday season.  Narrowing it down to three was incredibly difficult, but I decided on three women who serve with me in Young Life and YoungLives. Each of these ladies give so much of their time, energy, and love to this ministry and I wish I could give them so much more. Read on to find out more about them and about how Zoës Kitchen can simplify gift giving in your life.

(more…)


Nov
2015

10 Gifts for a Christ Centered Christmas with Your Kids

categories: Christmas, holiday, jesus

10 Gifts for a Christ Centered Christmas with Your KidsEvery year it is the same struggle. Will I let the busyness of the season overwhelm me or will I focus on the real gift of Christmas – the birth of Christ? Gift giving can me stressful and expensive, and as I watch my kids’ wish lists expand as quickly as my own I worry that we are drowning the joy of Christmas with our wants and desires. Gift giving is an important part of how we celebrate the holiday, so today I’m sharing ten gift ideas to help your family have a Christ centered Christmas. As a bonus, the generous folks at Zonderkidz are giving away five of the books I’m featuring to one lucky reader. Read on find out more, enter the giveaway, and then hop over here to find 75+ Gift Guides and Holiday Ideas for Kids from my favorite Kid Blogger Network friends.

(more…)


Nov
2015

Ten Tips for a Joy Filled and Stress Free Holiday with Your Family

categories: Christmas, family, holiday

The holiday season can be a hectic and stressful time, so much so that joy and excitement and love can get shoved aside while anxiety and busyness and even depression take their place. We build up our favorite holidays and dream they’ll be Pinterest perfect, and when our to do list doesn’t get done or our perfect tree is lopsided or our family member makes a scene it can be a crushing blow. Today I’m sharing ten simple tips for a joy filled and stress free holiday with your family. At the bottom of this post you’ll also find holiday themed posts from some of my favorite bloggers, as well the amazing Festive Family Holiday Gift Guide Giveaway featuring a prize package worth over $1500 that contains gifts for everyone on your shopping list.

Ten Tips for a Joy Filled and Stress Free Holiday with Your Family

(more…)


Dec
2014

Three Ways to Celebrate Epiphany with Preschool Kids

categories: holiday, kids, preschool

Three Ways to Celebrate Epiphany with Preschool Kids

I’ve always loved the way Epiphany (the coming of the 3 kings/wise men) is celebrated in Spanish culture. Most Americans don’t make a big deal out of the January 6th holiday that is the traditional end of the 12 days of Christmas. I studied abroad in Spain in college and fell in love with the culture, and was *this close* to moving there in my mid 20s. I thought it would be fun this year to celebrate Epiphany with my kids and teach them about the holiday. This post is a part of the Christmas Around the World Series hosted by my friends over at Multicultural Kid Blogs. Visit the main page here and the Pinterest board here.

(more…)


Nov
2014

Advent with Kids – Reading Song of the Stars & Playing with the Nativity

categories: holiday, jesus, kids

Advent with Kids Reading Song of the Stars and Playing with the Nativity

The Advent season is one of my favorite times of the year, as we celebrate the awaited arrival of Jesus. My goal this year is to involve the whole family in our Advent traditions to make the joy of Christmas real and full for our kids. We will be using a Jesse Tree and the Jesus Storybook Bible each day starting November 30th, along with a fun activity each day. I’ve joined with a group of other Kid Blogger Network bloggers to bring you a special Storybook Advent series to help you incorporate books and kid activities in to your holiday celebration, as well as a Christmas Read and Play series all about our favorite holiday books. I’m sharing a quick and fun way to bring the Christmas story to life with your kids using The Song of the Stars: A Christmas Story along with a children’s nativity set and a few extra friends.

(more…)


Nov
2014

20+ Ideas for Preschool and Toddler Christmas Fun

categories: holiday, kids, preschool

20+ Ideas for Preschool and Toddler Christmas Fun

The most wonderful time of the year is here and we are so ready to create special Christmas memories with our family. With a toddler and a preschooler in our house, the wonder and magic of the season is in full effect. I’ve spend time gathering the best ideas for preschool and toddler Christmas fun to share with you and your wee ones. Pick a few ideas and spread holiday cheer in your home. Don’t forget to enter to win one of 4 $500 CASH prizes we’re giving away at the bottom of this post to make your holiday extra special. If you’re looking for gift ideas for your favorite toddler, you’ll find our gift guide for 1-3 year olds here.

(more…)


Nov
2014

Ten Fun & Festive Family Christmas Traditions

categories: family, holiday

Ten Fun and Festive Family Christmas Traditions to start with your family.

Holiday traditions can be full of joy and meaning, and are different for every family. You may bring in traditions from your own childhood as well as from your spouse’s family of origin, and combine them to make new ones for your own children. As I shared in this post about Ways to Simplify the Holiday Season, we make a list of all the things we want to experience during the holidays at the beginning so we make sure to prioritize and not get caught up in the busyness. Today I’m sharing ten of our favorite Christmas traditions with you, and I’d love to hear about your own in the comments section. Don’t forget to check out the links at the bottom of this post to find more Festive Family Fun ideas from the Festive Family bloggers. Our MASSIVE Holiday Gift Guide Giveaway ends tonight (11/17) at midnight, so be sure to enter at the bottom of this post. (more…)


Nov
2014

Ten DIY Holiday Keepsake Ornaments

categories: crafts, diy, holiday

10 DIY Holiday Keepsake Ornaments

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is creating DIY holiday keepsake ornaments each year to remember important events, stages in life, and vacations. The next year as we decorate the tree as a family we are reminded of those precious memories by the ornaments we hang. I’ve compiled a list of 10 easy DIY holiday keepsake ornaments you can make yourself. They are simple and frugal options and I hope they will become family favorites at your house as you create them. At the bottom of this post you’ll find links to other DIY holiday posts from the Festive Family bloggers as well as the entry form for our HUGE Festive Family Holiday Gift Guide Giveaway with over $1800 in prizes that ends November 17th.

(more…)


Nov
2014

Gifts for Toddlers ~ Educational, Active, & Fun Ideas

categories: holiday, kids

The Best Gifts for Toddlers Educational Active Fun Ideas

Toddlers are fun all year round, but especially during the holidays. They can be a handful, but fill my heart with joy as well. Their eyes aglow with wonder at the lights on the tree, singing carols with the words all wrong, throwing a fit during that visit with Santa, caring more about the gift wrap than the present itself… all of it makes for a special holiday season. If you are looking to be strategic with your toddler gift giving this year by choosing gifts that will grow with your child and benefit them throughout the year, I’ve got the list for the best gifts for toddlers with options for every budget. With an 18 month old and 3 year old in our house, we are not looking to pile a bunch of stuff under the tree, but want to give our kids meaningful, useful gifts they’ll love. At this age you get to choose the gifts you want them to have rather than the latest toy they’re obsessed with, because they don’t really know any better. Read on to find our ideas and share your own in the comments section.

(more…)