Mom's turn: Christmas Crafts

Christmas is a time of joy and love and not shopping. I think the world has gotten away from this concept with the commercialism and “consumer” mentality that strives in the US today. As a mom, it’s more important to me now than ever to share my beliefs and hope some simple traditions carry on in my daughter’s heart as she grows and comes to find the meaning of Christmas for herself. One of the main things I try to do is make gifts – as old-fashioned as this concept is, surprisingly many people still cherish it. What a truly meaningful way to show you love someone by spending several hours putting your heart into a gift made by your hands instead of purchasing something quickly. A few I did this year are the Swedish weave towels, Christmas tree ornaments (the one shown was for a specific gift…my favorite were the snowmen I made),a paper tree,

Adding the finishing touches

personalized gift boxes for tiny treasures,Christmas music CDs, and some acrylic Post-it note holders with matching pen.Thankfully, my daughter already seems to enjoy this tradition. Her personal contribution to the annual gifts has been her famous persimmon bread from the fruit she harvests every year from her grandfather’s tree. Hers seems to be the favorite of the recipients, as they generally start asking about it around September!!

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ‘till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.” – Dr. Seuss