Handprint Christmas Tree

Today I'm sharing a very simple and fun project for kids of any age to do. I got the original idea for this from Earning My Cape. 

All you have to do is trace your child's hand onto a sheet of green construction paper, then cut it out. Use the handprint to trace 5 more hands, so you then have 6 total. Next, glue the handprints onto a separate piece of construction paper into the shape of a tree like in the picture below. You can add a trunk with marker, or by cutting out a rectangle shape out of brown paper. Have your kiddo add decorations such as stickers, pom-poms, small pieces of paper, foam shapes, etc. to the tree, then put a star on top. Very easy and kids ages 2-12 should have fun with this. Younger children will obviously need assistance with the glue and scissors. 

Lily and I started making some new glittery bell ornaments last night, but she wasn't really into it, so we'll try again tonight or tomorrow, depending on how she's feeling. Here's a little sneak peek of how far we got before she had enough of the glitter glue:

Other than crafts and such, I've been busy making cookies to give as gifts, finishing last minute Christmas shopping, and getting the house ready for the little holiday party we're having Sunday. I've also been a bit under the weather- courtesy of Lily's sickness last week, most likely -but, I'm holding it down and drowning my yuckiness with vitamins, tea, hot soup, and healing herbs propolis and echinacea. I'm excited for the holidays and that's all I can really focus on at this time! I'll have something up for Sweet Saturday this week, so please come on back Friday! I won't be doing a Meatless Monday link-up Monday, but may share a Christmasy post just to wish you all happy holidays :)

 

Sweet Saturday #31: Cottonball Snowmen Decorations

I meant to post these simple, kid-friendly projects on Wednesday, but my little sweetie has been sick this week, thus placing me into Mommy Overtime. She's on the mend now, though, and the other day we did have the time and energy to make these cute and easy snowmen using cottonballs, construction paper, glue, and a few other things...

Happy Cottonball Snowmen

Materials:

Cottonballs
Construction paper
Glue
Glitter glue
White paint
Q-tip

Step 1: Paint white dots with Q-TIP
Step 2: Glue on cottonballs
Step 3: Add stick arms and face with glitter glue
Step 4: Add some random splotches of silver glitter with an extra cottonball (Lily's addition)  

The large piece of cotton came from the inside of a vitamin bottle

Voilá! Cute little happy snowmen to hang up in your home. Due to my lacking craft skills, it looks as if my 2 1/2 year old did this one all by herself. Martha Stewart has nothing to worry about.

In continuation of our DIY decorations, Lily and I also made these cottonball snowmen ornaments-

She could not be bothered to stop doodling in her doodle pad while sticking on the cottonballs

For these babies you will need:

Cottonballs
Construction paper
Scissors
Googly eyes
Glue
Glitter glue
Pipe cleaners
Ornament hooks
Add-ons: yarn for a scarf, felt top hat, mini pom-poms for buttons, actual buttons (all things I did not have handy, but wish I had to make these snowmen look less like fluffy fat ducks)

The images above should clearly show you how to make them- and, yes, the "carrot nose" is a very small piece of orange pipe cleaner. I used red paper thinking it would create a nice shadowy effect on the snowmen, but in hindsight, I think white paper would've been better, just a tip. What do you think?

Now for last weekend's most-clicked holiday features!

 

Our most-visited link last weekend were these sweet little trees from With A Blast. And they're edible! Thanks, Linda!

New linker, Mellywood's Mansion, shared this super cute bauble hair clip. Simple to make and the perfect adornment for the holiday season. Thanks, Mel!

I found Finely Ground via Full Hands, Full Hearts' Christmas Link-up and fell in love with this thrifty and original DIY wreath- I just had to invite her to the Sweet Saturday party! Thanks for joining, Marissa!


Thanks to all the new linkers! We had quite a turn-out last week, and I greatly apologize for not getting to visit everyone yet and personally thanking them, but I promise I will as soon as I can! I'm sure you all know where I'm coming from to at least some extent when I tell you I was busy with a sick toddler all week :( 

Grab a button if you were featured!

 

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Now on to the party!

Just follow these simple rules:

1. Link up something sweet to really WOW us all- your blog, Etsy store, Pinterest, Facebook, whatever you want! 

2. Link-up as much as you want and please follow me if you are not already via GFC, Linky Followers, Networked Blogs, or subscription. Leave me a comment if you are a new follower so I can follow you back!

3. Don't forget to hop around and say hi!

4. Share my button so more people can join us (not required, but it would be nice!)

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Thanks for stopping by, this little get together really makes the weekend even more enjoyable for me, and gives me the encouragement to keep my little blog going :) (as difficult as that can be sometimes!)


 

Sweet Saturday #30: Happy Holiday Wreath

This year has been the first time that I have gotten so into decorating for the holiday season since I was a kid living at home. Obviously, this is mainly because I have my own family now and I want Lily to get to enjoy all the fun things I did when I was a little girl. I have been having so much fun right along with her, too! This week we made some ornaments out of paper, glitter glue, and paint, and this weekend we'll finish up the Christmas table I've been working on for her (check back next Wednesday for that!). 

The holiday wreath, though, was all me :)

I love making wreaths :)

It cost me around $12 to make this one. I got the wreath base for $2 from Target, then the decorations came from A.C. Moore, Dollar Zone, and from my own collection of re-purposed materials. I love the little cardinals, they really bring a lot of cheer to me whenever I walk through the door...

Now it's time to see our most-clicked holiday features! 

 

Angela of Tartan Tastes in Texas shared this yummy holiday cake. It's no wonder this Scottish, spongy holiday cake with candied cherries was the most-clicked on. Thanks, Angela!

Winnie from Something Sweet shared these tasty little cinnamon treats. How hungry do those cute cupcakes make you?? Always a pleasure, Winnie!

Ana from carpe diem always has such creative ideas! Take a gander at this adorable under-the-tree nativity scene! What a great idea! Thanks, Ana!

And our most-clicked honorable mentions are:

 Banana Pancakes from Our Neck of the Woods (from last week's guest hostess!)

Interrupted Star Stitch Scarf from Earning My Cape

 Gingerbread Mountain from Jazzy Gourmet  

Thanks to everyone who joined-up last week! I loved reading all of your posts! So many great ideas going around! Grab a button below if you were featured!

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Now on to the party!

Just follow these simple rules:

No guest-hostess this weekend- yeah, it's been one of those weeks!

1. Link up something sweet to really WOW us all- your blog, Etsy store, Pinterest, Facebook, whatever you want! 

2. Link-up as much as you want and please follow me if you are not already via GFC, Linky Followers, Networked Blogs, or subscription. Leave me a comment if you are a new follower so I can follow you back!

3. Don't forget to hop around and say hi!

4. Share my button to get more people to join us (not required, but it would be nice!)

<a href="http://jessica-healthymommyhealthybaby.blogspot.com/search/label/sweet%20saturday" target="_blank"><img alt="Healthy Mommy, Healthy Baby" src="http://i1184.photobucket.com/albums/z327/ruffandcut/sweetsaturdaybutton-1.jpg"/></a> <br> <br> <br>

It is officially Christmas time and I intend to post at least 1 holiday-themed post each week, along with the weekly Meatless Monday Recipe Hop and Sweet Saturday Link Party. Let's hope I can keep it together and stick to that schedule!

Thanks for stopping by, this little get together really makes the weekend even more enjoyable for me, and gives me the encouragement to keep my little blog going :) 

 

Paper Ornaments for Kids

I have decided that for the month of December I am going to do at least one holiday-related project with Lily (and then blog about it). This week we made ornaments! It took me a bit to think up a way for a 2 1/2 year old to make her own ornaments, but this is what I came up with, and she did do quite a bit of the work all by herself!

Paper Ornaments

Materials:

Green construction paper
Red washable paint
1-2 Q-tips
Scissors
Cotton balls
Stapler 
Twine or other string

First, get a smock on that kid if you want less mess to clean up. Give them the paper, paint, and a Q-tip and instruct them to make little red dots on the paper- these dots will represent ornaments on a tree, or berries on a wreath. (Lily insisted I make one, too. You can see the side-by-side of our dot work in the top right corner of image below). Allow paint to dry, then using something to create the desired shape, such as a stencil (I used a wooden shape), trace a Christmas tree or wreath onto the polka-dotted paper. Or, if you have some artistic talent, draw it free hand- the shapes just have to match up exactly so that they can be stapled together.

Next, place a couple of pieces of cotton between 2 of the cut-out shapes, then staple closed, as if you are making a little paper pillow. Staple a looped piece of string to the top so it can be hung from a tree branch. Add glitter glue, sequins, or other adornments if desired.

Lily added some glitter glue drops, and she really had fun with that- so much so, that she decided to decorate the packaging from said glitter glue.

Decorating her ornament

Decorating her piece of trash

I made one shaped like a wreath, but as stuffing I thought it would be clever and less wasteful to use crumpled up scrap paper, and it turned out just as well. So feel free to stuff your ornaments using either method. 

This is a fun and easy project for kids 2 years or older. Have fun!     

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Meatless Monday: Yummy Side Dishes

This super-yummy potato side dish recipe from Little Mommy, Big Appetite was recently shared here a couple of weeks ago, and I just had to try it. She has so many delicious recipes to choose from, but this one is already a new favorite in my home now. I changed it up just a bit according to the ingredients I already had at hand, but I'm sure any way you make something with the words roasted, cheese, and potato in the name, it will turn out good!

I also came up with a new way to enjoy Brussel sprouts (well, there are other similar recipes out there, but this is my version) that I really liked and will be sure to try again. I normally just roast them with a little olive oil and salt and pepper, but this time I steamed and sauteed them. My Meatless Monday last week really felt like a gourmet meal, and I was joined by one of my besties who ate every bite up with Lily and I.

Cheese and Onion Roasted Potato Stacks
(serves 4)

Ingredients:

2-3 medium-size potatos, Russet or Idaho are good
1 small onion, grated or finely diced
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp parsley flake
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup cream cheese
Grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix olive oil, onion, and seasonings in small bowl. Clean and peel potatoes, if desired, then slice width-wise as thinly as possible. Brush bottoms of muffin tin with a little olive oil (or you can use cooking spray). Place one slice of potato in 1 muffin tin cup, then drizzle a little of the onion-olive oil concoction on top. Next, place a dollop of cream cheese on top, just about 1 tsp in size. Repeat process until 4-5 potato slices are stacked up in each muffin tin cup, topping it off with a little of the olive oil mixture and no cream cheese.

Place on center rack in oven and bake for about 25 minutes. Remove tray from oven, and sprinkle grated cheese on top of each potato stack, plus a little extra parsley. Put back in oven, and broil for 5 minutes more, or until cheese is melted to your taste. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Brussel Sprouts with Toasted Almonds and Lemon
(serves 4-6)

Ingredients

1 lb Brussel sprouts, cleaned and trimmed
1/4 cup sliced almonds
3 tbsp butter or oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Cut Brussel sprouts into quarters, like in the picture below. Fill a large frying pan's bottom with water, just enough so that the bottom is covered and is only about 1 cm deep. Place sprouts in pan, cover, and cook on medium-low for about 5-7 minutes, or until tender.  Meanwhile, you can toast the almond slices on the "Medium" setting in your toaster oven, or on a baking tray in your oven at 350 degrees until lightly browned (about 5-7 minutes).

Drain sprouts, then melt butter in pan. Put sprouts back in and saute for about 3-5 minutes. Add in the lemon juice and almonds, plus salt and pepper to taste, and stir until well-covered. Serve right away and enjoy the delicate flavor combination. 

Mommy's and Lily's plates

Potato stack cut open

If these sides don't entice you, then I don't know what will! We ate it all up and nobody complained. The cream cheese was such a nice touch to the potato stacks, I can't wait to make these again. I had three servings of the Brussel sprouts! We also had some rice pilaf from a package of Near East brand sides. I normally avoid pre-packaged foods like that, but Near East is pretty all natural to my knowledge and doesn't contain anything artificial. 

Hopefully picky eaters in your household won't have any problem with these tasty sides. Even babies over 6 months can enjoy some of the potatoes mashed-up and some extra-mushy brussel sprouts. I hope your family likes these as much as we did :)

We all know brussel sprouts are super-good for us, but they are also one of those classic ick foods we all remember mom and dad forcing upon us as kids. I have actually always enjoyed them, probably because my mom would steam and butter them until they were like buttery mush in my mouth. Yet, most kids don't like them, but that shouldn't be. They are so yummy and versatile- you can steam them, roast them, bake them, add the to soups and stews, mash them up, chop them up...really, there is just so much you can do!

They are chock full of vitamins and nutrients like vitamin K, vitamin C, manganese, and folate. They support a healthy immune system, fight cancer-causing free radicals, and also support a healthy heart and digestive system. They are in season now, so remember to have them with Thanksgiving this year!

Now it's your turn to share your Meatless Monday dish below! Share your turkey-alternatives or other yummy Thanksgiving favorites. No rules, other than please only link-up meat-free recipes. No other un-related links or I will remove them. Sorry to sound so harsh, but let's keep it true to what it is, ok? Link up as much as you want, and feel free to spread the word with the button below. Thanks, and have a great week! 
          

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Have a Happy Thanksgiving, everyone, and be safe wherever you are! Thanks for linking-up and supporting my blog, I greatly appreciate it ALWAYS. Btw, if you missed it Friday and are still looking for an alternative to a full-sized turkey for your main course this year, here is an easy and tasty turkey loaf recipe. I'll be away for the holidays, so I may not post again today after this, but I'll do my best if I can find the time. :)