Task it Tuesday - May 5

Originally created by The Geeky Blogger, Task it Tuesday is a weekly meme to help you--and me--get things done. The challenge is to post a task or list of tasks you want to complete before next Tuesday. These tasks can help you with your blogging life, reading life, personal or professional life.

This week's list looks similar to last week's. I didn't get to my planner, but I really need to do it. If I can make it through one year, I can stick to a planner every year, which is my goal. I'm not reading my Bible as much as I should either. My concentration for reading anything of substance is low right now. I do, however, make a point to read a verse or two each day.

The oven stopped working Sunday, so that has made suppertime more challenging. Thankfully, it has warmed up here (though we are expecting a teeny bit of snow on Saturday) so I can use the grill.

I've got some cute children's books to review for Friday at The Children's and Teens' Book Connection. I am also reading the next book in the Daughters of the Mayflower series.

Here are my to-do items:

1. Update my planner (need to get back to this)
2. Bible reading
3. Meetings 
4. Book reviews
5. Continue closing out my father-in-law's affairs (this might take a while)
6. Cooking (good thing I love it)
7. Order craft supplies (new content for A Christmas Kindness has crafts that I need to photograph)
8. Prepare for Friday's closing 
9. Clean bonus room

How are you doing on your to-do list? Do you have a productive week planned?

50 Fun Handprint Crafts You Can Make with Your Child

The holiday season is a fun time for crafting with your kids. I wish I had a chance to craft more than we do here. Homemade gifts around the holidays are so much more meaningful than what comes from a store. I still have gifts classmates made me when we were in high school.

The article, "50 Handprint Crafts You Can Make with Your Child" offers links with some great ideas for crafting with your kids. There are ideas for holidays other than Christmas, too. You can read the article at http://www.nannywebsites.com/blog/50-handprint-crafts-you-can-make-with-your-child/

Guest Blogger: Need Some Holiday Spirit? Try These 5 Crafts With Your Kids by Naomi Shaw

Sometimes, all of the shopping, the wrapping, the decorating, and the planning makes it tough to get into the spirit of Christmas. You may feel more overworked and stressed out than jolly at this time of the year. With everything that you need to take care of, it is important to remember what the real meaning of the season is about – happiness and togetherness.

If you find that you are in need of some holiday spirit this year, here’s a simple way to get into the mood and spread some cheer - by doing some holiday-themed crafts with your kids. Craft making is wonderfully therapeutic, it’s a terrific way to spend quality time with your children, and when the crafts are holiday-themed, they are a fantastic way for getting you into a cheery, holiday mood.

Image Courtesy of Shutterstock

Looking for some craft ideas to do with the kids? Try out these five simple, yet festive ideas:

Snowflake Ornaments

Use items that you probably have lying around the house to create some attractive snowflake ornaments. You’ll need:
● twigs
● glue
● twine
● white yarn
Your kids can gather the twigs for this craft themselves, right in your own backyard! Each snowflake needs three twigs. Arrange two twigs in a lowercase T-formation and glue them together. Position the third branch so that it crosses diagonally across the T-shape and glue it in place. Cut a piece of twine, form it into a loop, and glue it to the end of one of the twigs – this will be used to hang the ornament. Wrap white yarn around each of the ends of the twigs, creating the look of a rustic, yet magical snowflake.

Christmas Tree Decorations

This craft is so simple and the results are so cute! To make it, you will need
● three Popsicle sticks
● green paint
● some craft glue
● brown construction paper
● sequins
● ribbon
Paint each of your Popsicle sticks green and allow them to dry. Once dry, form them into the shape of a triangle, gluing the ends together so that they stay in place. Cut a small rectangle from the brown construction paper and glue it to the center of one of the sticks – this will be the tree trunk. Glue sequins the surface of each stick to create the look of ornaments. Tie a length of ribbon into a loop around the top of the tree, and there you have it!

Hand and Foot Reindeer

This craft doubles as a special keepsake, as it documents the size of your children’s hands and feet. Gather:
● differing shades of brown construction paper
● scissors
● glue
● googly eyes
● red pom-poms
Trace one of your child’s feet on your piece of darker brown construction paper and trace his hands onto the lighter shade of paper. Cut the hands and foot out. Glue the hands to the back of the top portion of the footprint - the hands will be the reindeer’s horns and the foot will be his face. Glue on some googly eyes and a red pom-pom for a nose. Display it in your home as a reminder of the special time you had making it with your child.

Fingerprint Snowmen

Make a family of snowmen from your child’s fingerprints. Simply gather:
● white paint
● blue construction paper
● markers
Paint your child’s fingers with white paint and have him press each finger down onto your piece of blue construction paper. Paint a snowy ground with the white paint underneath the fingerprints. Once the paint dries, use markers to draw faces, buttons, scarves, and hats onto the fingerprints, transforming them into snowmen.

Torn Paper Candy Cane

Talk about easy! All you’ll need for this craft is:
● construction paper
● glue
Draw the shape of a candy cane onto a piece of construction paper. Then, let your kids tear up sheets up red and white construction paper into small pieces. Let them glue the torn paper onto the candy cane shape. They’ll love recreating one of their favorite holiday candies!

Image Courtesy of Shutterstock

This holiday season, take a break from all of the craziness and enjoy doing some fun, holiday-inspired crafts with your kids. Not only will you create a few cute decorations, you’ll spend quality time together, which is really what this time of the year is all about.


Naomi Shaw is a freelance writer in Southern California. Christmas is one of her children’s favorite holidays and she loves making crafts with them at home. She contributes content to the CandyConceptsInc.com blog, where you can find more of her work.