I'm organizing my girls' Holiday classroom parties. They're in kindergarten, so the activities have to be fairly easy. Wanted to share what we're planning in case any of you are "room moms" and need some ideas for your little ones. These are also great ideas just to do at home, or for your own home holiday party. (These are combined ideas. We are not doing ALL of these ideas in one classroom!) The headings are the names I plan to use on signs for each station.
REINDEER GAMES:
How psyched was I when I found this Pin the Nose on Rudolph printable?! It's perfect! And young kids love this game. I'll use my circle punch to create round red noses with each of the kids' names on them to play. You can find the printable
here. If time permits, we're also going to have a "snowball relay" game ready. A twist on the classic "egg relay" game. Kids will have to carry a styrofoam snowball on a small spoon and place into a bucket. Then the next person will push a snowball around a cone with the spoon to the bucket. Photo source
here.
SANTA'S WORKSHOP (Craft):These are both great for little hands. The how-to for the beaded ornaments can be found at
One Artsy Mama. The bell door hanger is from
Martha Stewart.
Mrs. Claus' Kitchen (Snack Station):The kids made and ate "spider cookies" at the Halloween party. They had a lot of fun building their own snacks. So, this time we're going to be building "snowmen" and "reindeer." The snowmen photo is my own. I made them for a Christmas brunch last year. So easy, using powdered donuts, baby carrots and black decorating gel. For the reindeer cookies we'll be using frosting to assemble the pieces. (Photo source for reindeer cookies
here.) For a drink, I was planning on making cute Rudolph beverages using apple juice bottles, but now with the discovery of arsenic in apple juice (did you hear about that?!) I nix'd that idea. Can't do milk since there's no refrigerator in the class... so I think I might go with something like this cute Santa made using Kool Aid blasters. (It's a party--what's a little more sugar?!)
Elves Work Room (Activity):
Decorating "Christmas Trees" with sugar cones is a much easier alternative to gingerbread houses. With little ones there is a risk of the house falling apart. Plus, we're not allowed to bring in homemade cookies, so the houses would have to be purchased which can get pretty pricey for 21 kids. But this will be a fun take-away and addition to any gingerbread house made at home! (Photo source
here.)
If you're still looking for more ideas, come visit my board of ideas that I've been collecting on Pinterest
here. Or let me know what you're planning - would love to hear!
If the loud popping is too much for the real little ones, you can use the same game idea with bags. These count down bags are from Hoosier Homemade
Here's a craft we did a couple of years ago and is very easy to pull together--probably with stuff you already have at home. A water bottle noisemaker from Kaboose.
I have to admit I have a love/hate relationship with wine glass charms. I like the intent behind them, but frankly, does anyone ever remember which one was on their glass after a couple of drinks?? BUT they are an easy way to dress up glasses for a party! 
If you're throwing a New Year's Eve shindig, here's a fun invitation to get guests excited about the night. A printed glassine envelope filled with confetti and streamers. It's like giving guests a small taste of the party before it even starts. This is a fun idea for any party. 
Here's a great DIY gift if you're still looking to make something handmade for someone on your list. These holiday shadow boxes from That's What Che Said remind me of snow globes without the water. If you're making one for a grandparent it would be really cute to use a photo of the grandkids playing in the snow and then fill the box with "snow" to help bring the photo to life. 
Find the original post at pen n' paper flowers here
We went to a holiday party last weekend, and the hot spiced wine the hostess made was the hit of the night! Warm alcohol–perfect for a party on a cold evening. I've had variations of mulled wine, but I think this one here at Jane Spice, that uses cranberry juice, is close to the one she made and one of my favorite versions. And for some reason, it's even better with an inexpensive red wine like Carlo Rossi. Make sure to add this to your beverage bar over the holidays!
I haven't featured a "Tip-off" for a while, but here's a decorating tip for you: When it comes to decorating, quantity can mean quality. For instance, one pine cone tree would look lonely and boring, but a collection of different pine cone trees like this can look fabulous! Using different candlestick holders and some shimmer, these pine cones can really dress up a table. They would even look beautiful as a backdrop for a snowy village. Source here.
We're definitely getting a lot of use out of the pumpkins we picked back in October! First, they helped decorate our front porch, along with the carved ones we made for Halloween. 
Now, the remaining two have been turned into a snowman to decorate our front porch for the winter holiday season! All I did was paint the pumpkins with some old white paint we had in the basement. Then used black and orange craft paint to make the eyes and nose. I cut the stem off the bottom pumpkin so the top pumpkin could sit comfortably on it. The weight of the top pumkpin is holding it in place. 
SANTA'S WORKSHOP (Craft):
Mrs. Claus' Kitchen (Snack Station):
If you're still looking for more ideas, come visit my board of ideas that I've been collecting on Pinterest here. Or let me know what you're planning - would love to hear!
Happy crafting!
We made our teacher holiday gifts this past weekend. Always looking to make something useful for teachers, we made these cute canvas book bags stamped with apples. Renee and Siena had fun making them and are so excited to give them to their teachers. We're also going to attach a small gift card to Michaels to help the teachers fill their bags. 
I have passed by craft ornaments in Michaels and Hobby Lobby hundreds of times and never thought to use them as drinking glasses. Dur! Love this idea from Poca Cosa. Best of all, her's are filled with an adult chocolate milk. Visit here for the original post.
For the music and book lover! The first one from A Diamond in the Stuff would look great on a piano. I love the unconventional look of the next one from Craftaphile.
And one more from Landee see Landee Do cause they're just too cute! Find the tutorial for these little trees here.
