Family Tradition at Holiday Time

By Sharon Rose
     Starting a family tradition at holiday time can be fun and result in lasting memories for years to come.  An inheritance is usually thought of as something monetary, but family traditions can be handed down from one generation to another, word of mouth, through our children as an inheritance would be.  We can create an invaluable inheritance for our children through tradition.

      When my three children were quite young I started a Christmas tradition with them by creating a hand- made Christmas decoration.  Sounds simple and it was; very easy to make, even for the children.  What resulted was a beautiful hand-made decorative piece displayed in our home each Christmas for many years after.  It kept its vibrant look a long time.  I love using my hands; I am a big arts and crafts fan.  When school children are out for Christmas break, it is a great time to do a family arts and crafts project.  I started our project by gathering pine cones and cutting branches of pine in our back yard with my children.  In between throwing pine cones in our bags I answered all the, “What’s this?” nature questions from my little ones.

Ouch! Pine cones are prickly and can hurt.  Children should wear gloves to gather them.

     Once back inside I stripped them of their warm winter clothes and gloves; the gloves a must have for handling the prickly pine cones, and started some Christmas music. Then we sat at our round work table and got busy.  I had placed our other supplies in the middle of the table, to include the one that brought the most excitement and squeals of joy; colorful glitter.  All children love glitter, though it can get messy; therein the fun, for kids and kids at heart.  We proceeded to decorate our pine cones, curl and make bows from colorful Christmas-wrap ribbon, and arrange it all in my favorite straw basket.  I purchased the large, natural-colored basket from a nomadic couple selling straw goods on the side of a road in Darmstadt, a small town in Germany.  Even as it sat in the leaves and dirt among many other straw items, I could see its beauty.  Now, I again surrounded it with nature as our pine cones claimed it for their home.  Over the years, during the Christmas season, our beautiful decorative piece, consisting of pine cones; ribbon; pine branches; and the large, prized basket sat at our door or the fireplace.  It announced our family tradition to all who entered.  For our family, the tradition of taking it out to warm and decorate our home each Christmas season, brought smiles, excitement and a feeling of pride and stability in what we accomplished together, and at what had not changed.  We looked forward to seeing it each Christmas season, as you would a cherished friend.  Years later, when we moved to a new home, we took that decorative basket arrangement, our tradition, along with us.

How to Make Christmas Basket Decorative Arrangement

Use tempera paint that will be absorbed into item you are painting.  A child's water paints will not work for this project.

          Use tempera paint that will be absorbed into item you are painting.  A child's water paints will not work for this project. 

Supplies: pine cones, small pine branches, washable glue, scissors, various colored ribbon, various colored glitter, various colors of tempera paint, artist paint brushes, popsicle sticks, straw basket, newspaper to protect furniture and floor.

Procedure:  Gather pine cones and cut fresh pine branches outdoors in advance.  Cover surface of work table and under the table with newspaper. (Instruct children to handle prickly pine cones, gingerly.) Place each pine cone on a work piece of paper when working with it.  Paint pine cones various colors.  Spread washable glue on some areas of the pine cones with popsicle sticks.  Sprinkle glitter on pine cones, using various colors for each.  Catch extra glitter with work sheet of paper to make use of as much of the scattered glitter as possible. Continue to sprinkle glitter until a large area of pine cone is covered.  Place pine cones in a designated area to dry. Take different length Christmas-wrap ribbon and tie into bows. Curl ribbon by placing the sharp part of one half of scissors against ribbon, starting at point nearest your finger, and scrapping across, to the end of ribbon.  Children should use blunt end scissors and be assisted with this part of project according to what is age appropriate.  Arrange pine cones, pine branches, and prepared ribbon in basket. Display in a choice area of your home.  This is a family project and tradition that can be passed on to each generation. 

Use a sheet of paper under the pine cone to catch the excess glitter.  The excess glitter can then be re-used.

    

Easy enough, with supervision, for our 4 year old.  

Supplies: School glue and glitter.

You can make this tradition your own with a basket of your choice.  Add other decoration, like ribbon. 

Learning Skills:  Use this project to teach children colors, memory (encourage children to remember which color pine cones are the ones they decorated); handling of scissors; numbers (count pine cones); creativity; and working with a group.

Ages:  3 years and up.  Some 2 year olds can help, with assistance. (My youngest child was 3 years old when we did this project.)    

Make additions and/or variations to this project to make this tradition your own.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! 



Copyright, Family Tradition at Holiday Time, Sharon Rose, Parents Want to Know 101, December 19, 2011, all rights reserved.