Getting out the decorations, decorating the inside of the house, decorating the tree, and finally decorating the outside of the house was a multi-step process. No attention span of our toddlers was long enough to do too much at a time. But we finally have most of it finished and even have had some time to do some Xmas arts and crafts!
Cora was very happy to see her xmas movies were in the boxes. We told her that Santa picks the decorations up in January and drops them off the day after Thanksgiving (don't think that will work this year because she is way too observant) so Santa finally brought back her movies and music!
I have been trying to include more arts and crafts time in the evenings. Cora loves it and will tell you that Santa is bringing her more "arts and crafts." I am getting better about allowing her to do more on her own and worry about the mess when she is finished so I think she is enjoying it more.
Decorating the tree was a lot of fun. I actually let them put the ornaments where ever they wanted (and adjusted after they went to bed. . .after all, we don't need five ornaments on the same branch :-). We played Christmas music and decorated for about 30 minutes. I was proud of their effort and loved hearing them laugh and smile at the ornaments. I still need more "fun" and "kid" ornaments. My Waterford crystal ornaments aren't really kid/dog friendly. . .
We read Christmas books at night and sing Christmas songs in the car. I am trying to teach them that it is the holiday season that makes this time of year so nice - not just the presents. We like to look at the holiday light displays in the neighbors' yards and watching Christmas shows has been fun! The "Elf on the Shelf" is also an enjoyable game as the kids run around and look for him each morning! The holiday season with children is amazing!
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