Santa Hat Brownies

Make these Santa Hat Brownies with the kids!

• 1 box brownie mix
• Fresh strawberries
• 1 tub Cool Whip 

Step 1: Mix and bake the brownie mix according to directions on the box. Let cool completely.

Step 2: While the brownies are cooling, wash the strawberries and cut the top of the strawberry off so it is flat.

Step 3: Take a round cookie or biscuit cutter and cut the brownies into circles.

Step 4: Now take a small amount of Cool Whip or frosting and spread it on the top of the cut out brownie circles or mini muffins.

Step 5: Now place the strawberry upside down on top of the cut out brownie circles or mini brownies. Then put a tiny drop of Cool Whip or frosting on the tip of the strawberry to resemble Santa’s hat.

Santa Fun!

Here are some great ideas to make your Christmas morning magical!

 Image(s) courtesy VintageHolidayCrafts.com


 1. Put gold bells around the yard and tell the kids that they fell off Santa's sleigh! How much fun would it be to have the kids running around the yard on Christmas morning picking up "jingle bells"?

 2. Put out carrots and apples for the reindeer - leave a few pieces with reindeer chomp marks.

 3. We make reindeer food (glitter and uncooked oats) and sprinkle it on the front lawn. The oats are food for the tired and hungry reindeer and the glitter guides them to our house.

 4. Sneak outside and shake jingle bells. Just enough to get the kids thinking they hear Santa's sleigh.

 5. http://reindeercam.com/ Is also an AWESOME site to go to!! It's a 24/hr web cam of Santa's back up reindeer, Mr & Mrs Santa come to feed them every day at 11, 6, & 9 EST.

 6. Take glitter (white glitter of course) and sprinkle it around the Christmas tree, over the presents and pets, around the cookies and milk and even sometimes into the bathroom showing Santa's magic!

 7. Are the kids driving you nuts? Have 'Santa' call them up and talk to them about better behavior. Have someone call your house, ask to talk with the kids and tell them exactly what 'naughty' things they were doing, with details, and that if they worked hard they could still make the 'good' list. How convincing would that be?

 8. Take some boots and dip them in the ashes from the fire place and leave boot tracks on the fire place.

 9. Leave a torn piece of Santa's hat stuck in the fireplace.

 10. Santa brings family gifts (Wii, etc). Kids get ... Something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read!

 11. Start a "santa trade" , have your child put 3-4 toys of his under the tree before Santa comes so that Santa is can take them to kids in need, so that they can grow up knowing it truly is better to give than receive...

12. On Christmas morning leave a thank you note where those delicious cookies once were. Be sure to write it on stationary that hasn't been used before and disguise your hand writing!

Fun Santa sites on the web- make Christmas even more exciting for your child!

Little kids everywhere are so excited about Santa visiting. Make this experience into an even more exciting adventure by doing the following;

Track Santa's Progress!

Create a Message just for your child from Santa!

Learn more about St. Nick

Visit the North Pole

Listen to Christmas music online

Watch the ReindeerCam!

HOW DO THEY SAY "MERRY CHRISTMAS" IN....

Here's a great way to explore language with your kids. With Christmas just around the corner, think about  how those that live in other countries wish people a Merry Christmas. Take it a step further and go to the library, find books on one of these countries and learn about their Christmas or other holiday traditions!

CANADA- Merry Christmas

CHINA - Sheng Dan Kuai Le

FRANCE - Joyeux Noel

FINLAND - Hauskaa Joulua

DENMARK - Glaedelig Jul

SPAIN- Feliz Navidad

MEXICO -  Feliz Navidad

SWEDEN - God Jul

PORTUGAL Boas Festas

JAPAN - Meri Kurisumasu

ITALY - Buon Natale

GREECE - Kala Christougenna

BELGIUM - Vrolijke Kerstmis

POLAND - Westolych Swait

NETHERLANDS - Zalig Derstfeest

GERMANY - Frohliche Weinhachen

LEARN TO SAY "HELLO" IN 15 DIFFERENT LANGUAGES

1. AMHARIC: teanastellen
2. ARABIC : Marhabah
3. FRENCH : Bonjour (bone-joor)
4. HEBREW: Shalom (shah-lome)
5. ITALIAN: Boun giorno ( Bon-zhee-or- no) or Ciao (Chow; can also mean goodbye)
6. INDONESIAN: Halo (Hello), Selamat pagi ( morning) Selamat siang ( afternoon) Selmat malam (evening)
7. FRENCH: Salut ( silent "t")
8. GERMAN: Hallo ( informal) Guten Tag ( formal; pronounced gootan taag)
9. MANDARIN CHINESE: Nea how ( nee how)
10. NORWEGIAN: Hei (hi) Hallo (hello) Heisann ( Hi there) god morgen ( Good morning)
11. RUSSIAN: Privet (pri-vee-et)
12. SIGN LANGUAGE: http://www.signingsavvy.com/sign/HELLO
13. SPANISH: Hola ( Oh-la)
14. SWAHILLI - Jambo ( sham-boh)
15. WELSH: Shwmae ( pronounced "shoe-my"

Want to learn more sign language? Here is a great site!
http://www.signingsavvy.com/

PAINT A SNOWMAN!

We all love to make snowmen but here is a way to make it extra special and it's sure to get your neighbors attention!

SUPPLIES

Snow (it's a must for this project)
Squirt bottles
Food coloring

WHAT TO DO

Build a snowman- get the entire family involved and make it a big one!
Get your squirt bottles and fill them with water, letting each child add food coloring to make their desired color
Go out and paint your snowman! You can paint his face, eyes, clothing, hat, mittens. Let your imagination run wild.

You could also do this with an igloo or any other type of snow creation you wish- go crazy! Have a great time!

COOKIE COMPETITION

Here's a way to have a little fun with your friends and family!

Cookies are a part of the holiday season. Many of us bake cookies but here's a twist that is guaranteed to be fun!

• First- find at least 3 family members or friends that love to bake. Each "contestant" will bake their favorite holiday cookie recipe.
• Next- Each team spends the day baking their favorite cookie recipes with their kids!
• Each team makes recipe cards to share with everyone that attends the competition
• Then- have a cookie bake off party. Invite family and friends! Feature each type of cookie that was baked by the participants. 
• Everyone that attends votes for their favorite cookie and the winning team gets a special prize!
• Hand out extra cookies to guest along with recipe cards
• MOST OF ALL HAVE FUN!