Simple Felt Ornament - Santa Belly

Every year, I come up with a simple felt ornament that I can send out with my Christmas cards.  Because I make so many, I always design something that is easy, inexpensive, and lightweight.  Here is the felt ornament I am sending out this year.

Cute, right?  My 4 year old calls it a "Santa Belly" ornament.  

Here's how easy it is to make your own:

1)  Cut two identical circles from red felt.  {Mine were about 3 inches in diameter.}

2)  Cut a black strip of felt, and stitch it onto the middle of one of the circles.  {Mine was about 1/4" wide.}

3)  Sew a yellow button onto the middle of the circle with the black stripe.

4)  Attach a ribbon hanger, and stitch the 2nd red circle onto the back of the front circle.

This year, I made 60 of these ornaments.  I think they make sending out Christmas cards a little more fun, don't you?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Elf on the Shelf Donuts... free printable box

Look what our Elf on the Shelf brought us!  Aren't these teeny tiny "Elf Donuts" adorable? The little Elf on the Shelf donut box is simply the cutest... and I'm sharing a free downloadable version below.

These donuts are actually Cheerios topped with icing and sprinkles, and they came in an adorable box that you can download for free here*.  

*Due to a google security update, it is making people request access to the download. If you want to click on the link and request access, I will give it to you.

Or, you can click on the picture of the box (below), right click, save the image to your computer, and print it like a regular photo. As long as you don't change the dimensions, it will work perfectly.

Lately, I've heard some people complaining about Elves that bring expensive gifts... but who wouldn't love this idea -- a few Cheerios in a free box? 

What flavour "Elf Donut" would be most popular at your house? I think they would be fun with iced Froot Loops too. What do you think?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

You can find MORE easy and inexpensive Elf on the Shelf ideas here.

The Polar Express Mini Van Adventure... with free printable golden tickets

Last night, our family continued one of our favorite Christmas traditions -- The Polar Express (mini van edition).

The adventure started when my boys headed to bed and found tickets to "The Polar Express" golden tickets lying on their pillows.  (You can download a copy of the ticket I designed here.)  Excitement ensued, and everyone got on their coats and hats as fast as they could.

When they got to our van, I punched their tickets (wearing my conductors hat), they had a snack of hot chocolate and cookies, we listened to Christmas carols, and we toured our town in search of our favorite Christmas lights.

Then, when we got home, each boy found a bell (from Santa's sleigh) on his pillow.

Fun, right?  Have you ever gone on a Polar Express adventure with your little ones?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

PS - (Click here for a cute printable tag for your bell.)

Find more easy and inexpensive ideas for Christmas family fun here.

Snowman Soup - Simple Gift for Classmates - with free printable tags

My boys and I always like to make little Christmas gifts/treats that they can share with their classmates.  Here is what we came up with this year... snowman soup.

To make snowman soup, we filled bags from the dollar store with a bag of hot chocolate, some mini marshmallows, and a candy cane.  You can download the tags I designed {for free} here.

I sent the tags {which are a 4X6 jpegs} for one hour photo processing, cut them out, punched holes in the corners, and attached them to the bags with ribbon. 

This is a fantastic easy and inexpensive DIY gift idea.  It would be fun for neighbours too.  My boys and I made 90 of these bags to share with their friends.  That's a lot of snowman soup!  :-)

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

PS - If you are looking for more classroom treat/gift ideas, you can find 5 more here.

Elf on the Shelf - Candy Cane Scavenger Hunt

Look what our Elf on the Shelf brought last night -- it's a rhyming candy cane scavenger hunt.  "Elfie" brought us eight cards containing clues to the locations of hidden candy canes.  Fun, right?

Here are the clues that "Elfie" came up with... and you can download them here OR you can:

Click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print.  (PS- The answers to the clues are:  bed, shoe, tree, car, bin, sink, hat, sink.)

And.... if you want to come up with your own clues, you can download blank cards here.

Do you think your little ones would enjoy this Candy Cane Scavenger Hunt? My boys had a great time running around the house collecting candy canes. I love this time of year! :-)

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Find more Elf on the Shelf ideas here.

Easy Elf on the Shelf Idea {Quick Tip Tuesday #29}

Our Elf on the Shelf is soooo good to us.  He knows that we have special Christmas activities that we do every year, and sometimes he helps us get them done.  For example, last week he brought us a gingerbread house kit.

Fun, right?  The boys were super excited to see it sitting next to "Elfie" when they got up in the morning, and I was thrilled I didn't have to go out and get one.  ;-)

Do you make gingerbread houses with your little ones?  Maybe you should tell your Elf on the Shelf that you need one.

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Simple Gingerbread Man Ornament - Preschooler Craft

Sometimes you just need a simple Christmas craft to make with little ones, and this adorable gingerbread man ornament fits the bill perfectly.  It's easy to craft, it uses basic supplies... and it's totally cute!

Want to make one?

1)  First, download the gingerbread man template here, and cut it out.
2)  Color the gingerbread man.
3)  Using white glue, add google eyes, buttons, and yarn embellishments.
4)  Punch a hole in the top, and add a yarn or ribbon hanger.

That's it!  Cute, right?  What kind of homemade ornaments do you remember making when you were a child?  Do you still have them?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)