Last December we took the whole month off from schooling. It was glorious. We spent the whole month celebrating Christmas: baking, making Christmas crafts and reading Christmas stories.

This year our schedule has been a little different so we will just be doing 2 1/2 weeks.

Our plan is to read a short Christmas story everyday then do an activity: decorate a tree outside with popcorn/nuts/seeds for the birds, make gingerbread houses, paper snowflakes, ...

Last week we made salt dough ornaments. How easy and fun! We actually extended it into two days. One for making and baking and the other for painting. The girls are very proud of their decorations. Kate even went beyond the cookie-cutter versions and molded her own Baby Jesus in swaddling clothes. The little girls in the neighborhood have taken to him so fondly, that Kate made another batch this week and cloned him.

Recipe from about.com

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

1/2 cup water

Mix the above . Roll out 1/4 inch thick. Use cookie cutters or use a knife to free-hand your own shapes. Be sure to poke a hole in the top. (We used the back end of a paint brush)

Bake 250 degrees for 2 hours. Flip every 20 minutes or so to prevent curling.

Cool and paint!