need an idea for a christmas present for that little one in your life? a strider bike. your little one will learn to balance and wheel around on this two-wheeled contraption and then, the concept is, skip training wheels and go straight to being comfortable pedaling on two wheels. ramona got this balance bike for her first birthday, which was probably a bit young, but she has slowly gotten the hang of it and is certainly more comfortable on it.
i did have the idea recently to bike to get tacos — about ten blocks away. it took ten minutes for us to get to the corner. so we scratched that idea. one day. for now we’ll just tool around the block.
if you live in denver, consider getting your strider at salvagetti. they have most, if not all, the colors, and you’ll be supporting a local, small business!
this is not a sponsored post. strider bikes just really rock.
i don’t start decorating the house for christmas (except for hanging my mistletoe when it first arrives to me by post mail) until december 1. but i know there are many of you out there (including my hubby’s dear family) that kicks off christmas festivities the weekend after thanksgiving. 12/1 and the weekend after thanksgiving coincide this year so i had to get a jump on planning for our family advent activities. last year i posted the tutorial for our DIY advent calendar. using that same calendar, i’ve come up with some different activities, tweaked now that ramona is older and more enthusiastic about celebrating. here’s what we have planned for each night of advent.
- decorate the house for christmas. not too hard since our home is teeny.
- make paper snowflakes while watching it’s a wonderful life (don’t forget the popcorn!)
- make a list of christmas wishes, including non-tangible things.
- read about the birth of Christ.
- call pops (ramona’s grandpa) to wish him a happy birthday!
- find the treats that old st. nick left in our shoes.
- declutter for christmas — what can we donate, regift, toss, upcycle?
- pick out the perfect christmas candle. watch a christmas story.
- let’s do some sledding (after praying for snow first!)
- make a christmas wreath for the front door
- make gingerbread homes with her buddy max.
- make saffron buns
- have a candlelit dinner in honor of sta. lucia day
- make christmas cards for ramona to send out to friends and family.
- take a morning winter hike. watch the remake of miracle on 34th street (jp’s in it!)
- head out to see zoo lights or go on a family drive to see neighborhood lights.
- dance party to christmas albums.
- definitely splurge on a sweet treat for breakfast
- spend the evening drinking hot cocoa and reading our christmas and winter books.
- make pepperkakor cookies and enjoy them with eggnog.
- let’s walk downtown and put money in strangers’ meters!
- hot cocoa, popcorn, and another christmas movie. let’s do elf this time!
- establish thoughtful new years resolutions. follow up with home alone.
- swedish dinner w friends, grasshopper pie, leave cookies & milk out for santa, and open one small gift.
- merry christmas! stockings, story of christ, strata, and presents.
what do you and your family do to make the lead up to christmas morning special and significant?
well i don’t have many photos of the goodies we consumed bc it was all just so yummy and we were having too good of a time to remember to snap a shot besides the group one you see. but lashley, koan, kimmy, ramona and I made our way up to silver plume (just a short drive west out of denver) to visit the increasingly popular bread bar, a functioning bar that also operates as a tasting room for dram apothecary. we were quite pleased. it’s adorable and quaint and classy. shea really makes a mean cocktail using her bitters or soda with her handcrafted syrups.
i brought home one of each of the bitters and have been putting dashes of the honey chamomile in all of my cups of raspberry leaf tea (regular consumption of this tea is recommended for pregnant women).
if you’re looking for an easy and worthwhile day trip, head on over to silver plume. make sure to check their facebook page for hours and any random closings.
she calls this “cheesing.” and i’m curious if this is how i look to her smiling bc smiling is what she thinks she’s doing and i’m assuming she learned it from us from when we ask her to smile and then demonstrate what she should be doing. terrifying, hilarious, and adorable all at the same time. my nephew does this too. my niece does not. i’ll take what i can get and, either way, i think she’s the most fantastic thing ever.
how does your kid fare in front of the camera?
that being said, i couldn’t help but hang up the real live mistletoe that arrived at my doorstep tout suite. i’ve made sure i catch jp under there at least a handful of times a day. smooch!
i’ve got lots extra! interested in some? i can send some to your doorstep for $5 (includes shipping!). just email me with your paypal email address and i’ll invoice you and, most likely, get it out that same day.
welcome
