Making paper lanterns
Paper lanterns can be a beautiful decoration, indoors or out, but they’re also very easy to make.
Making lanterns with kids
For preschoolers, you will need to help with the cutting but otherwise kids can pretty much do this themselves.
- decorate a piece of A4 paper
- fold the paper in half length wise
- cut 1cm strips across the paper – start cutting at the fold and stop about 2cm before the edge of the page
- open the page out
- spread glue along one short edge
- roll the paper to overlap the short edges, sticking them together
- cut a strip of paper and glue it on as a handle
- use your lanterns as you will – you can hang them or stand them on a table or window sill
handy lantern tips
- you can use other sized paper, just be sure it is rectangular, not square. A4 is a good size for little fingers to work with
- decorating the paper with crayons, stickers and textas is more effective than pencils!
- colour paper is a good basis
- remember they are made out of paper – you can put a tea light candle inside but the fire risk is high. Don’t leave them unattended or near kids, and be sure the paper is firm enough to stand first (cheaper printer paper isn’t!) A good compromise is to use a candle inside a glass jar or a battery operated tea light candle.
Thompson St Northcote for Christmas lights
Have you ever seen the Christmas lights in Thompson St?
(Love Santa image, not from Thompson St)
While not as extensive as Ivanhoe’s Boulevard (3km of lights is pretty hard to beat!), there apparently are a lot of lights there – over 50,000 LEDS between just three houses according to one report! And residents think their display is better so it could be worth a look if you’re in Melbourne during December.
Personally I love the story of the Francis family at number 49 – they decorate the house for the Hindu Diwali festival of lights and add to it for Christmas. Mixing religions and celebrations, to me, is a great way of building peace and showing Melbourne is a multi-cultural place.
What do you think – could a small collection of lights be better than Ivanhoe’s huge display? Have you seen both and have a preference?
Christmas gift sharing time…
So it has to be asked… what did you get for Christmas?!!
It’s fun to share what we got and it’s good to see what others got (just for fun and for inspiration!) so I’d love you to answer the following questions in the comments section…
- what is the best present you got this year?
- which present were you least happy with?
- of the presents you gave others, which got the best response?
- which present was the most special?
Whatever you got, I hope you had a Merry Christmas and are spending Boxing Day relaxing, reflecting on the Christmas that was and enjoying yourself.
Boxing Day traditions
What do you do on Boxing Day?
Between the cricket text at the MCG, Boxing Day Sales and extended family celebrations, many people have a set activity each year while others have a quiet day resting from the excitement of Christmas Day.
Does Boxing Day have any special meaning or memories for you?
Merry Christmas, Love Santa
It is now Christmas morning, kids across Australia are waking up to find their Santa stocking and check out what is under the tree so it’s time for everyone at Love Santa to wish you a…
Merry Christmas!
Have a great day with lots of laughs and love!
Delving into Santa sacks on Christmas morning is FUN!
Incredible lights in Forest, ACT
(Love Santa image, not from Forest, ACT)
We saw some amazing lights last night in Forest – 3 Tennyson Court. You actually walk under a canopy of lights that is just beautiful.
Gotta love living in Australia to spend warm evenings strolling amongst lights like this.
Oh, I found a video of these lights, too, so you can get a glimpse of it.
Last minute preparations now underway!
Christmas preparations – wrapping gifts, cooking, setting the table and cleaning.
With only days to go, do you feel ready for Christmas?
Some tasks have to be left to this week (cooking the roast in November or making a cheesecake two weeks ago may spread the workload but I don’t think the results would be quite so good!) but hopefully you feel everything is under control.
For many Australians, today or tomorrow is the last working day of the year so finishing work tasks can overshadow Christmas preparations – which makes for a very busy weekend and Christmas Eve unless you were organised in advance.
Many state school children are only just finishing up the year, too, so it’s a busy week with final reports, clean ups and school concerts, etc.
Coping tips
Obviously, planning ahead is the best tip but it is easier said than done much of the time so if you are running out of days for the mountain of tasks ahead, here are just a couple of ideas I hope will help you (and me to be honest!)
- write lists of what still has to be done – not only does this free up your mind, it makes is easier to prioritise and for others to see what needs doing so they can help you
- clean floors before moving furniture around – it’s much easier to sweep a clear space than getting in under the chairs and tables. You can then do a quick sweep/vacuum where the furniture was
-
Christmas Eve cooking is important
book some time (even if it is only in your diary or mind!) for important traditions. For instance, no matter how busy I get I will spend time on Christmas Eve cooking with my children so they can leave out a snack for Santa. If that means I set the table after guests arrive or don’t get to sweep the front verandah, it’s okay as the cooking is once-a-year-special and will be done.
- ask for help. Seriously. Don’t be a martyr and do it all yourself. Don’t worry if your kids take 5 times longer to do something than you would – they are still saving you your time (my suggestion is to give them tasks you don’t need done in a particular sequence as that can get frustrating).
- be practical – if no one can see your laundry, don’t stress about tidying and cleaning it; if you haven’t made magic reindeer food, get the kids to collect a bucket full of grass for the boomers instead; buy shredded carrots and cabbage to start your coleslaw, a shop cake to create a trifle, etc – you don’t have to cook everything from scratch.
What other tips have you got for these last few days before Christmas?
How do you manage? I think the ideal is to get things done alongside relaxing and enjoying Christmas and family/friends. But would love some tips on how to fit all that in…
* Images courtesy of kozzi (get 10 credits when you register via this link)
Working as Santa’s Elfs
It had been a rough year money wise. Christmas Eve was here and there wasn’t going to be anything under the tree. Luckily the kids were all small and probably wouldn’t even realize that Christmas had come without a visit from Santa.
I decided to at least bake some cookies for the holiday. Mainly to lift my own spirits.
I was just taking out the last pan when my brother-in-law showed up. He helped pack up the 3 children and fresh baked cookies so we could spend the night and Christmas day with the rest of the family.
After getting all the kids asleep for the night, he proceeded to open his closet which was piled to the ceiling with boxes. He started to pull stuff out handing it to us. It was toys! He worked for a donation center. All the toys had been donated but rejected because they weren’t in very good shape.
Until the wee hours of the morning we fixed and rebuilt cars, dolls, stuffed bears and tricycles.
When we were finished there was more toys than all our kids needed. My husband and his brother loaded the extras in the car and using a list my brother had gotten ahold of, took off and left presents at doors of other struggling families with small children.
The next morning watching the kids tear open the gifts made me happy but the fact of what we had accomplished made me feel the happiest. Really felt like one of Santa’s elfs.
Santa, music, lights – Glen Iris has it all!
We went to Ferndale Road last night and saw Christmas lights and Santa.
Santa on a balcony and triangle tree lights
30 Ferndale Rd, Glen Iris has quite a lot of lights in the front yard and over the house – and they are synchronised to music! The music was a bit quiet to hear it in the park over the road where we sat, but the lights were still pretty.
24 Ferndale Rd, Glen Iris has a few lights on the fence and candy canes along the path and a HUGE Santa in a chair on the upstairs balcony.
What was cool was sitting on a park bench and being able to admire both houses while we had a picnic tea 
Ivanhoe Christmas lights are stunning
If you are in Melbourne and like Christmas, visiting the Boulevard in Ivanhoe is a must.
This is not about one fantastic house of lights, or a couple of hours near each other. It is a street full of lights with a few houses nearby!
Drive along the Boulevard
One option is to drive along the Boulevard, entering from Lower Heidelberg Rd. The street is officially blocked to incoming traffic at Burke Rd during December and early January so the street is one way.
A lot of cars travel down the road in peak times (ie in the first couple of hours after sunset) but they move at a crawl so there is time to watch the lights and decorations as you pass. It is probably the rare event of crawling traffic that no one minds being stuck in!
It is about 3km from start to finish for the lights. True not every house is decorated, but more than 95% are so there is a LO T to see!
Walk along The Boulevard
Your other option is to walk along the road – we walked most of it last night (the kids got tired so we skipped the last stretch).
As the traffic is flowing one way, very slowly in one lane, it is safe enough to walk along the street , and occasionally step back to see things from a bigger perspective.
Most people walk the same direction as the cars – everyone going the same way makes it easier to stop and gaze at places that take your fancy.
One advantage to walking is that you can see more than the main strip. A couple of courts and streets off The Boulevard are also well-lit and it’s easy to divert and see them when you are walking – the cars miss these side streets.
Walking also means coming through other side streets to reach the Boulevard from wherever you manage to park.
We loved the classy decorations on the corner of Warncliffe Rd and Wallis Ave – it’s a gorgeous house with a large front lawn decorated with a Christmas tree covered in lights plus some large characters (Santa included).
What to see…
There is no way I can describe every house for you!
Although the street is united in decorating their houses, there is no consensus on how to decorate so there is an incredible array of Christmas lights and decorations.
Some houses have a few subtle lights, some are ablaze with light; some have many large inflatable or plastic ornaments, others have only lights; some are themed or use a single colour, others are full of colour.
A few have a nativity scene (and one is basically only a huge nativity setting), many have Santa and one house has Santa on the veranda serenading all who pass!
Have you been to the Boulevard?
Can you remember any specific parts that you loved – or didn’t love?
Exciting sets of lights localy!
I love Christmas lights – they are beautiful and magical. So it’s very exciting to see more and more set up in our area each year.
If you want a drive to see some nice lights (and without lots of crowds, too) try this route…
High St Rd, between Winbirra Pde and Vannam Dve in Ashwood – lights on the south side with candy canes featured.
Turn into Vannam Drive then left into Ashwood Drive, seeing some small collections along the way. Park next to the playground (you’ll see why – the house opposite is AMAZING!)
Walk past the playground , across the bridge and turn right to see Santa on the roof as well as a train and Santa’s car. Wonder along Ashwood Dve a bit to see some other small sets of lights.
Back in your car, turn around to go into Baryn St and right into Vannam Dve to see a blue light display.
Turn again and then right into Arthur St.
On the left, past the kinder and shops, is a HUGE Santa and lots of pretty lights.
That’s it in Ashwood (for what I know – let me know if you spot more goods near by!) but if you turn from Art
hur St into Huntingdale Rd and head to Burwood Hwy (via Highbury and Station St) there is an awesome display near Benwerrin Reserve - they have lights, a massive Santa display AND visits from Santa and his elves.
Have a Merry Christmas and say hi if you see me along the way!!!
Who decorates your Christmas tree?
It may seem like an obvious or irrelevant question, but who decorates your Christmas tree?
I discussed this with some Mums at kinder yesterday as we watched the kids decorate their kinder tree – a real Christmas tree sits in their group area with baskets of tinsel and ornaments so they can decorate and redecorate it as they wish. It’s a simple and fun activity for them.
Allowing children to decorate a Christmas tree
One Mum doesn’t let her kids near the tree and decorates it all herself so it is done properly and looks perfect. And Dhrynio commented last week that her mother-in-law had always decorated their tree so Dhrynio’s husband didn’t know how to do it!
Other Mums let their kids decorate the lower parts of the tree however they want. The upper part is either done by the parents or is directed by the kids but with parental assistance.
A blog post I read recently mixed both these traditions (I can’t remember where I read it – I’ll add the link when I find it!). She let the kids go wild and decorate the tree in the evening. Once they had gone to bed, she pulled everything off the tree and started again, doing it her ‘control freak’ way! She gave the kids the fun of decorating and herself the reward of having a perfect tree she could enjoy. I’m just not sure how the kids would feel when seeing their creativity was replaced by Mum’s perfection.
Protecting special decorations
Most of us keep certain ornaments – fragile and particularly sentimental ones - out of the kids’ reach and put them on the tree ourselves.
One Mum said she kept nothing from her daughter to provide the lesson of caring for things and being careful. I love that principle and her courage (she even lets her touch glass balls imported from Europe!), but I just don’t want to risk some of my more precious decorations to a curious and lively two-year old!
Many of my more precious ornaments are actually precious because they were made by my daughters when younger – they are fragile at the joins, etc rather than because they are glass, and precious because they are not replaceable.
Child participation and perfection
Can you have it both ways – let everyone put decorations on the tree for fun and have a tree that is stylish and perhaps artistic?
It may be a bit hard to manage both on one tree (although I have this image in my head now of a tree done perfectly on one side and chaotically on the other, and just rotating it as suits the time or audience!)
To me, a solution is to have two trees or two rooms/areas and treat each differently.
For example, have a stylish tree in a formal lounge room and let the kids be creative with the family room tree.
Or maybe it can be a time share thing – let the kids decorate the tree on 1 December but redecorate it on the 19th or so so it is ‘perfect’ for Christmas Day photos and any gatherings you have in the house in the last few days.
So who decorates your Christmas tree?
Did you set your own decorating tradition or have you copied what you did as a child?
