hanging our Christmas stockings

Every year I fall in love with photos of beautifully decorated mantles with Christmas stockings carefully hung up ready to be filled with little gifts. I have always always wanted to have a fireplace just to hang pretty stockings on at Christmastime {oh yeah, I'd enjoy the warmth in winter too, if I had one!} but sadly we don't have one in our home.

Over the last 2 years I have just kind of skipped the stocking hanging as our new house just didn't have anywhere for it and I was searching and searching for some beautiful weighted stocking holders to hang them from on one of our 'half walls' that separates the dining and games room. {Have you seen, if you can find them, they are like $40 EACH?} 

But this year I found my forever stockings - I have been looking for stockings like these for years and I finally found them at Pottery Barn. Yay :o} I bought them in Ivory and I bought the 'pet' version which are slightly smaller! 

So of course I had to work out a way to display them. I wanted it to be gorgeous. I wanted to love it. And I didn't want it to break the bank.

We moved our lounge room around when I did a big spring clean of the house a couple of months ago and I hadn't gotten around to figuring out what to do with this wall ... The TV used to be here, and the photos used to frame the TV. Without the TV there, it looked awkward with such a big white space.

So I bought a RIBBA picture ledge from IKEA ($20) and hubby hung it up on the wall for me. 

We hung it upside down so the 'lip' would semi-hide the 3M hooks I was going to use to hang the stockings.

I decided to use 3M hooks so that I could remove them later and use the shelf for photos for the rest of the year by flipping the shelf so it is right side up and then as a mantle again next Christmas :o}

And then I decorated using decorations I already had + a new glass jar from Target this year filled with gumnuts spray painted gold. I decided my round wreath would look better here so I swapped them.

And added a little bit of light using a small battery operated light set from Ikea. I have also seen them at Kmart and Big W all for around the $2 mark. The gold santa is actually a tea-light holder so I was able to shove the battery pack in there so it was out of sight :o}

One of my favourite decorations on the 'mantle' {aside from the wreath which I bought from Myer last year} are these pinecones the kids and I collected and hubby spray painted with a hint of gold - so as just to add a little bit of shine but not too much. 

I added gold ribbon to the stockings to pretty them up a little bit {they are just plain white otherwise} but have not yet finished the little wooden letters that are to be attached to each stocking. 

So I am in love with our 'mantle' and am happy happy that I have a gorgeous place to hang our stockings. I stare at this wall while I am in the kitchen so I have to be happy with it! The kids love it too - and to be honest it's just perfect for what I wanted and can be used all year round. Now if only my couch wasn't blue ... can't wait to replace those ... one day!

 How do you display your stockings? 

Feel free to share photos on my Facebook wall! 

snow playdough

I know it not cold at Christmas here in Australia - but it is still super fun to 'play with snow'. I made this snow playdough for the kids and they loved it. White, glittery and whimsical for playdough time :o}

It was super easy too - I just used my favourite cooked playdough recipe {below - courtesy of a lovely friend} without food colouring. And then I added silver and white glitter and LOTS of it. Next time I will put in even more white glitter and less silver :o}

Pretty!

Cooked Playdough Recipe:

1 cup of flour

1/2 cup of salt

1 cup of water

1 Tb cream of tartar

1 Tb cooking oil

{food colouring if you want to colour it}

glitter etc if you are using

Mix all the ingredients {except glitter} in a saucepan over low heat until it becomes thick. Allow to cool a little before handling to mix in the glitter.

I find it helps A LOT if I use a whisk while the mix is still very liquidy at first, this helps to avoid lumps and to evenly disperse the colour, if using!

Store in the fridge in an airtight container for a few weeks :o}

advent calendar cards + christmas activity planner printables

Yay!

They are finally ready :o}

I am so excited to be sharing these with you. I have been using Advent Calendar cards for our Christmas Countdown for a few years and last year I showed them on the blog. I was not able to share those due to the terms of use of many of the little graphics I used being for personal use only.
I am happy to report I can make these ones available to you! Yay!

There are: 

14 printed cards

and 4 blank cards

The activities include:

Bake some yummy Christmas cookies

Christmas movie night

Go and look at Christmas lights

Make Reindeer Food

Write a letter to Santa

Think of 10 things we are thankful for
Leave a gift under the Wishing Tree

Go and visit Santa

Leave out cookies and milk for Santa, and food for the Reindeer, too

Do some Christmas crafts

Read some Christmas stories

Sing Christmas carols
Give to Charity
Enjoy hot chocolate together

+ 4 blanks cards

I laminated ours so they'll last.

{including the blank ones - so I can use a whiteboard marker and reuse them}

I used this Christmas Activity Calendar to help me work out which days are best for which advent activity. It does mean being really organised about December but since it is so busy and the calendar fills up early it is easy for me to see which day would be best to go and visit Santa and which day I block off for a 'home day' so we can do crafts etc. The last thing I want to do is stick the "Christmas Movie Night" card in a pocket for a day that it is just not going to happen.

Of course when something needs changing it's easy, this just helps me see everything in one place.

You can download your own calendars from here. :o}

Last night, after working out everything using the calendar, I placed all the cards in the corresponding pockets of our advent calendar {pictured at the very top} and placed some other treats in some of the pockets, too.

Some days don't have an activity card and just have a little treat or tiny gift. This year I've done some hair clips, lego men, mini bubbles, little chocolates, baby gingerbread men and some little peppermints.
I also reuse some of the cards {like the Read a Christmas Story and Do some Christmas crafts} and just put them back in the pockets for another day because we do those things a lot more than once!}

I hope you enjoy these Advent Calendar cards and that they help bring some joy into your home this Christmas!
They will be available to buy in my etsy shop next year so grab them while they're FREE!

I have decided to keep these free this year (2012) too, so please feel free to download! :o}

Download the a little delightful Advent Calendar Cards here

For A$10 you can have these cards custom made for your family to suit your own holiday traditions and rituals :o} Just leave a message for me on Facebook or e-mail me and we'll get to work right away :o}

x

As always, these printables are free for personal and classroom use only. They will only be free for a limited time. 

Please do not use for commercial purposes.

They are © 2012 - a little delightful.

No derivatives of this printable are permitted. Please do not alter these and share them as your own.

Freebie printables are offered 'as is' and cannot be changed without incurring a personalisation charge.

Please contact me with any queries regarding this {or other} printables.

I am more than happy for you to share these, but please link to my original post {this one} and not to the direct download file. Thank you.

Graphics used under licence from 

misstiina.com

Goodness&Fun

SheryKDesigns

Clementine Digitals

christmas playdough labels and christmas tags - free printables

Sorry for my lack of posts lately! We've been busy busy and enjoying having family visit from over East. We also went on a road trip for a mini holiday and have been having the best time :o}

 I have been working on getting my Christmas card designs finished and printed out to check sizing and colour etc and I am hoping these will be ready for sale from tomorrow! 

For now I am sharing with you printables from last year. 

First up are these awesome playdough labels designed for Jade - Super Organiser Mum. We have decided to share these again this year :o}

image courtesy of Super Organiser Mum 2010

You can download them from here :)

Last year I also shared these cute little Christmas tags. Leave them as squares or use a 2 inch punch to cut them out and add them to anything to instantly Christmasify! I know that's not a word ... 

Download them from here.

It is going to be fairly printable heavy on the blog this week.  I'm sure you won't mind though!! Christmas crafts coming up too.

:o} 

As always, these printables are free for personal use only. They are © 2011 Bianca - a little delightful.

Please contact me with any queries regarding this {or other} printables.

I am more than happy for you to share these, but please link to my original post {this one} and not to the direct download file. Thank you.

xx

The printables above feature Miss Tiina's 'Dear Santa' font which you can download for free here.

goodbyn bynto winner!

Hi lovlies!

The winner {as drawn by random.org} of the Goodbyn Bynto Giveaway thanks to the delightful Suki of Sukimama is

Comment #4 from KAT :o}

Congrats Kat, email me with your contact details and we'll get this off to you straight away!! 

Thanks everyone for entering! :o}

printable santa letter

 CHRISTMAS IS COMING!! :o}

Yesterday we sat down and wrote our little letters to Santa.

It is a nice time and the start to our Christmas fun. 

I baked chocolate chip cookies and we sat down after their nap / rest time and thought about what he would like to ask for this year. Chloe just drew on her list. :o}

I cut them out and will glue them onto pretty Christmas scrapbook paper to keep in their scrapbooks. 

Noah is such a sweetheart that he asked for things for his sister too, not just himself. He also asked for a toothbrush! I just had to giggle. 

I made two printable Santa letter versions and couldn't choose which to share, so I've decided to share both :o} 

They print 2 per A4 page :o}

 download here

 graphics for this printable from www.misstiina.com + Sherry K Designs 2011.

download here

and this is my 2010 Santa Letter, which you can also download if you prefer the very clean and simple design :o}

As always, these printables are free for personal use only. They are © 2011 Bianca - a little delightful.

Please contact me with any queries regarding this {or other} printables.

I am more than happy for you to share these, but please link to my original post {this one} and not to the direct download file. Thank you.

More free printables coming - including some new ones but I will also be uploading some of last year's free printables for easy download. Last year I accepted requests via email but as you can imagine my blog has grown a lot in a year and I can't keep up with all the emails! If you've emailed me in the last couple of weeks, I am so sorry and I will get back to you really soon. If you're after the fab playdough labels designed for Jade {Super Organiser Mum} they will be available for free download soon, as well as my Christmas labels. 

I will also be uploading a range of Christmas cards to my etsy shop / facebook page really soon!

:o}

x

As always, these printables are free for personal and classroom use only. Please do not use for commercial purposes.

They are © 2012 - a little delightful.

No derivatives of this printable are permitted. Please do not alter these and share them as your own.

Freebie printables are offered 'as is' and cannot be changed without incurring a personalisation charge.

Please contact me with any queries regarding this {or other} printables.

I am more than happy for you to share these, but please link to my original post {this one} and not to the direct download file. Thank you.

goodbyn bynto giveaway {closed}

Today I have an awesome giveaway for you.

It is the 

Goodbyn Bynto Lunchbox

in Orange :o}

This is a very cool lunchbox. Most importantly to me, it is BPA free and Phthalate free. I am careful with the products I choose for my family and so I like that I know these are a safer alternative to some other plastic lunchboxes. It is also top drawer dishwasher safe. Awesome.

What I really love about the Bynto is that it is 3 containers, but only one lid. Nice and easy for you, nice and easy for your kiddo. 

It comes with a water bottle that can also act as a cold pack if you freeze it filled with water. You also get some stickers so you can personalise the look of your Bynto! 

The lovely Suki of Sukimama so kindly and generously provided this fabulous lunchbox and you can see more of them here - they are available in a range of fun colours. Thank you Suki! 

Sukimama is going to be a regular online shopping stop for me, I love being able to choose from a range of gorgeous products that I know are safe for my kiddos.

How to Enter:

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED, THANK YOU

1. 'Like' Sukimama on facebook

2 . Comment below stating you have 'Liked' Sukimama and tell me which product in the Sukimama online shop you love the most :o} 

Please make sure to include your email address in the appropriate field. You don't have to place it in the actual comment :o}

Open to Australian Residents Only Please.

Easy :o}

Giveaway closes on Friday 18th November 2011, at 6PM WST.

Disclosure:

One Winner will receive 1 {one} Goodbyn Bynto Lunchbox in Orange

Goodbyn Bynto Lunchbox provided by Sukimama

RRP: 28.95

rainbow rice

A little while ago I made the kids some rainbow rice.

I used the same method I used when dying pasta.

If you're worried about the hand sanitizer some lovely readers have shared that you can use vinegar. I have tried this with some risoni pasta {looks like largish rice} but I didn't love it. I don't like the smell of vinegar and I found I needed to use more vinegar than I do hand sanitizer to help the food colouring spread nice and evenly, so it was pretty wet, some of the pasta got a bit soggy, and it took quite a while to dry. Try it out though if you don't like hand sanitizer or if you're worried your kiddo will put it in their mouth because it would still be worth it for the kiddos to have some coloured rice to play with.

I separated a 2kg bag of uncooked rice into smaller ziplock bags, added a few squirts of hand sanitizer and a few drops of colour to each. Closed them up and gently massaged the colour around to disperse evenly. It's best to do one colour at a time - so the stuff doesn't dry out while it waits for you to mix it through. 

After a little while left to dry it was all ready and I just had to pop it into a pretty jar. It didn't last long though as the kids were pretty exited to play with it. 

The first activity we did {after just shoving our hands in it! It feels really nice, the kids enjoy just that sometimes!} was transferring from one container {or cauldron, lol} to another. This is really good practice for hand + eye coordination. It can get messy. But rice is not so hard to clean up. :o}

Noah likes to use the rice as a medium for his cars and trucks to have to get through. He buries them and uses his small diggers etc in here too. It has provided him with hours of fun.

We also hide small animals in here and try to find them. Chloe especially loves this activity. 

I store it in a large plastic container with a lid. When we want to use it, depending on what for and who is going to be playing with it - I will decant into other tubs or they will play in the large container itself. 

:o}