Congratulations to Our Door Prize Winners! 

Thanks to Everyone Who Visted the Online Christmas Party  http://www.squidoo.com/OnlineChristmasParty

What Is The Online Christmas Party?
The Lilliput Station Online Christmas Party is a blog meme hosted by Melissa Telling of Lilliput Station Adventures. It is a way for homeschoolers all over the world to get together and share some Christmas spirit. It is a place to gather new ideas, new recipes, and maybe a few new traditions. It is a time of fellowship and fun, a time to share the love of Christ with all of our online friends. It is our way of making the season a little brighter for those we have never met, but still feel as if we know. Due to the "busy"ness of the season, the Online Christmas Party will take place during the month of November this year. Hopefully this will give everyone more time to participate, and give us all more time to do the neat crafts and activities that everyone shares.

How You Can Join Us
1. Create a blog post or Squidoo page which fits into one or more of the categories listed.
2. Mention the Online Christmas Party in your post and include a link back to the Squidoo page.
3. Add your post to the link list (on the Squidoo page) for the appropriate category or post a comment with your link and I will add it to the list.
4. Spend some time "mingling" and enjoy the great stuff that everyone has to share.

We have some great doorprizes this year! Everyone who contributes a post following the guidelines listed above will be entered into our doorprize drawings.

 Don't forget to pick up your goodie bag before you leave the party!

Visit the Online Christmas Party

When I was growing up, traditions were always a big deal, but especially at the holidays. My parents loved holidays. Not only did we celebrate American holidays but, being Dutch, we celebrated Dutch holidays too. We even threw in a few Jewish holidays for good measure.

It was a tradition in our house to put up the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. My parents, being Dutch, were very frugal, so our tree was plastic. Every year that tree looked sadder and sadder, but we still continued to use it. I really hated that tree.

One year an opportunity came up to go cut our own tree. It was hard, but I convinced my parents that it really was worth the ten dollars.  But the next year, the plastic tree was back. "I like the plastic tree," my mom said. "It looks just fine after the ornaments are all on and it doesn't shed like a real one." Ah, yes, our rag tag hodge podge of ornaments.

One of the traditions my parents started was to buy an ornament for each family member every Christmas. This was, in theory, so that we children would have enough ornaments to decorate our own trees when we left home.  In reality, twenty or so ornaments don't do a whole lot on their own. However, when you multiply all those ornaments by four children and two parents, adding in all the assorted hand made ornaments that four children can produce, it makes for a very cluttered, er, festive tree.  A festive tree that leaned slightly to one side.  A festive tree that leaned slightly to one side and looked more like several ratty green bottle brushes stuck into an old broom handle.  I really hated that festive tree.

In spite of  my pleas for a perfect, artistically decorated tree, the ratty, overly decorated one continued to make its yearly appearance. Rather than professional decorations, the "boughs" were loaded with our own childish works of art .  And each year, six new ornaments fought for a place on its crowded wire branches. It was a mess. And, yet, in it's own way it was beautiful. It may not have looked like a traditional tree, but it was a tree that made memories.

I love that beautiful old tree!

Wow! I can't believe we are only a few days away from the start of the second annual Lilliput Station Online Christmas Party! I hope everyone is ready to join in the fun. We have some very nice prizes for our doorprize drawings and some special discount offers too.  And freebies!!! I've created several "goodies" just for my party guests, including a new set of Skip Counting Drillsheets, some recipe cards, and a Christmas activity book. You never know what else may show up there as the party progresses! So, head on over to the party and see what all the excitement is about. (The party starts November 1st.)

Visit the Online Christmas Party!

A few days ago, I was telling my mom my strategy for Christmas shopping and she told me I should write about it. So, this entry is dedicated to my mom, who doesn't have a computer and will probably never read it. LOL!

1. Shop the back to school sales.  I know, telling a homeschooler to shop the back to school sales is like telling you to breath. But while you are drooling over those piles of fresh white notepaper, new crayons, and gluesticks, try to imagine a home where every closet is not packed with colored paper, markers, and paintboxes. Yes, such places do exist. And in homes such as those, a box full of art supplies will be welcomed with shrieks of joy. The recipients will be amazed at your generosity, since such items cost a great deal more in December, never suspecting that you were clever enough to stock up when prices were ridiculously low.  Don't  forget those homes with preschoolers. Preschoolers LOVE  a new box of crayons.

2. Visit the dollar stores. There are two reasons you should be shopping now. First, you will find a lot nicer merchandise than you will at Christmas. Second, the crowds are smaller. Be sure to look for some coloring books to go with those crayons.

3. Yard sales, Goodwill, and other second hand or discount stores are a great  place for Christmas shopping.  Baskets and jars can be purchased cheeply for creative packaging. Also look for craft supplies and get statred making a few gifts. Toys can often be found in very good condition. Even if you don't feel comfortable giving a second hand gift to someone else, your own children probably won't mind. My children enjoy buying affordable gifts for each other.

4. Hit the clearance racks on November 1.  Halloween clearance items make great gifts.  Also, look for clearance candy that you can use in your holiday baking. Put it in the freezer to keep it fresh.

5. Take advantage of the bounty of nature. Keep an eye out for plants and flowers you can dry which would make nice additions to your holiday decore.

6. FOR NEXT YEAR: Stock up on Christmas clearance items for next year. If you don't want to store things that long, at least look for stuff you can use for other holidays. Red for Valentines and fourth of July, green for Easter and Saint Patricks.

I'd like to once again thank the wonderful individuals who donated door prizes for our contests:

• Betsy from Notebooking Nook. For a great deal, check out her "I want it all" package.But hurry! This sale is good only through the month of December.
• Debra from Notebookingpages.com. All her combo sets & her full package set are an additional 15% off their already discounted prices.
• Kimm, Niki, and Katie from In The Hands of A Child. Be sure to visit their brand new website and pick up your copy of their quaterly freebie, a lapbook on Deer! And while you are there, check out some of their great new products. I can't wait to get my copy of their new Veterinary Science and Animal Care lapbook.
• Jimmie from One Child Policy Homeschool. Visit Jimmie's Ancient China Unit Study page for some great information and free printables, or visit one of her other great lenses on Squidoo. 

Finally, in this week's door prize drawings the winner of the $15 gift certificate from In The Hands of A Child is colbylobrien. And the winner of the much coveted package from China, courtesy of Jimmie from One Child Policy Homeschool is Karen's Corner. Congratulations!

I am having so much fun reading everyone's entries for the Online Party! I wish we could have Christmas all year round! This week our new guests have prepared some special activities to keep your little ones busy. 

Yavonn from The Journey Continues shared some adorable (and very funny ) joke mini books to add to a Christmas lapbook.

Valerie from Little Blots of Faith fixed up some cute Bingo Dauber Coloring pages. These will keep your stamp happy kids busy for a while!

And Gerky from Wiked Pickles shares some fun Christmas traditions, including a special "TV dinner."

Speaking of traditions, I love the tradition which colbylobrien  of The Prairie Family Chronicles shared with us. Just take a look at these special stockings she hung to decorate for the party!

Finally, here's a great gift idea from Ami: a cookie of the month club! Save time on the shopping and you can spend more time here at the party!

The winner of all four quarters of the Mystery of History Volume 2 notebook and activity pages is Amy from Homeschool Highlites! Congratulations!

We have more delicious offerings for you this week. Core Foundations is fixing us a Middle Eastern dinner to remind us of the place where Jesus was born. Make sure you try her baklava. It looks yummy!

While you are eating, you can enjoy a little entertainment. Karen's Corner  has some wonderful holiday music to go with your meal.

The kids are getting really excited as Christmas gets closer and  Everything's Coming Up Roses has a great idea for counting down the days.

And I'm excited about the gifts Lynn is passing out at Eclectic Education. She has five sets of free Christmas Notebooking pages she is giving away!

This week we are also a bit sad as we mourn the loss of Betsy Stout's house to a fire. However, we praise God for keeping her and her family safe, and even preserving a few of their priceless treasures. For those of you who don't know, Betsy is the owner of Notebooking Nook and one of the sponsers of our door prizes. You can read more about the fire at Sonia's blog and if you'd like to do something to help, please consider patronizing Notebooking Nook. Betsy has some wonderful notebooking products.

Our prize winners this week were

• Lynn from Eclectic Education, winner of the $10 gift certificate from Notebooking Pages.com
• Teresa from Matz Monkey Farm, winner of the Very Hungry Caterpillar Interactive Notebook and Nursery Rhyme Notebook Pages from Lilliput Station Adventures.

Congratulations!

I also sent out copies of my new Salvation Army Interactive Notebook to all participants. (Let me know if I missed you.)

I hope you all are enjoying the party. Please spread the word. The more the merrier!

Are you all having fun? We are now entering the second week of celebration here at Lilliput Station. I hope you have all enjoyed my blog party so far. Remember to spread the news to all your online friends. The more people we get involved, the more fun it will be for everyone.

Have you all had time to tour all the wonderful blogs participating in the party? If you're feeling crafty, head on over to Mom's Mutterings to see the adorable gingerbread decorations Pam has cooked up. I love gingerbread! I plan to make some of these to add to my collection.

Tina has been cooking pumpkin spice bread over at Morningstar Academy. She's also been crafting up a storm. Be sure to scroll through her old posts for more fun ideas. My favorite are the Cookies Recipes from Around the World. I just love edible geography lessons!

Have you ever wondered what to do with all those promotional CDs that companies like AOL like to hand out? At A Glimpse of Sonshine you can learn how to turn them into adorable Christmas decorations! What a great craft for the little ones, and a great way to teach recycling too.

SchoolinRhome shows us another simple way to include little ones in the Christmas decorating. Her festive critter craft is "beary" cute! Or, you can have the children make some of these easy beaded ornaments.

You must see the gorgeous Quilted Christmas stockings at Notebooking Pages (& More). Debra has also made up some FREE Christmas Notebooking Pages, Foldable Cards, Recipe Cards & Labels which are available at her website. Visit the Notebooking Pages Store for some wonderful free and affordable notebook pages to add to your studies next year. (Her Presidents and first ladies sets are absolutely wonderful!) New customers will receive $5 off their first order through the month of December. Use discount code "thankyou". (One coupon per customer / may not be used with other coupons.)

Rebecca is getting in the spirit over at ~Some kind of crazy!~ She has a great selection of EASY Christmas cookies for us to sample. Aren't those wreaths so clever?

Sonia shares another delicious recipe at My Homeschool Treasure Trove. She also gives directions to make an adorable NO SEW  felt advent calendar. The patterns for this are available in the files section of her Yahoo group Homeschool Treasure Trove as well as some wonderful free Christmas notebook pages.

I love the cinnamon dough ornaments that Amy of Homeschool Highlites teaches us how to make. They are pretty to look at and they smell wonderful! The gingerbread houses her children made are too cute, and what a great tradition!

You can read about my family's St. Nicholas tradition here and learn how to make papernoten. Don't worry, they only look like dog bisquits.  Also, don't forget to pick up your copy of my free Christmas notebooking set with matching lapbooklets and two pages of Christmas cookie recipes.

The topiaries Sara of Knitting Prose made look great and I bet they smell great too! I plan to try making some of these with white flowers to spice up our January decor.

Thanks to Angela for the wonderful gift of a free Nativity lapbook. This is available in both a black and white and a color version! 

Ami from Homeschool Share has also gifted us with a free lapbook. Hers is on the Gingerbread Baby. You can find out all about it on her blog, Walking By the Way, and learn about some other free Christmas lapbooks available online.

Jodi over at My Two Small Boys lets us take a peek at her Christmas Around the World studies.  And tlpgina shows us how they celebrate by taking five days off just for fun. Be sure to check out her collection of delicious one bowl microwave candy recipes to make with the children.  It doesn't get any easier than that!

And Teresa of Grace Abounding   has crafted up a festive handprint wreath. (Do you think I should give her a prize for linking BOTH of my blogs? LOL) I just love papercrafts!

Finally, it is my pleasure to announce the winners of our first prize drawings. The Proud To Be An American notebooking set from Notebooking Nook goes to SchoolinRhome. And the winner of the $10 gift certificate from HomeschoolEstore is Pam at Mom's Mutterings. Congratulations!

Sinterklaas Kapoentje

Sinterklaas Kapoentje,
Leg wat in mijn schoentje,
Leg wat in mijn laarsje,
Dank je Sinterklaasje!

Saint-Nicolas Little Rascal

Saint-Nicolas Little Rascal,
Put something in my little shoe,
Put something in my little boot,
Thank you little Saint-Nicolas!

St. Nicholas Day is a big holiday in the Netherlands and is also celebrated by many Dutch immigrants to America. You can read more about it here. St. Nicholas Day is more of a commercial holiday, while Christmas is reserved for religious observance.

In my family, the children put out wooden shoes on the night of the 5th. These were filled with "hay" (strips of paper- we were city kids) and a carrot for St. Nicholas’ horse. The next morning we would find the shoes filled with pepernoten and a letter (our initial) made of chocolate. The "horse" always left behind the end of the carrot to show that it had enjoyed its snack.

Pepernoten

(makes 90 marble size cookies)

1 1/4 c. flour

1 1/4 c. self-rising flour

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 eggs

2 T. water

1/4 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. nutmeg

1/4 t. ground cloves

1/4 t. powdered anise seed

1/8 t. salt

Knead into a soft ball. This will be VERY dry. Just keep squishing until it starts to stick together. This is a great job for little ones. If it doesn't start to stick, slowly add in a little sour milk. The less liquid you add in, the better. The finished cookies are supposed to be hard. Form into marble sized balls and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees Farenheit for 20 minutes or until "rather hard."

The thing about this recipe is that I never saw it made. My dad always made these after we were in bed, so I have the hardest time figuring out what the consistency of the dough should be. Since we don't "do" the whole St. Nicholas/Santa Clause thing with our kids, they have always helped me with these cookies.

I know they don't look really appetizing, but they are just slightly sweet and strangely adictive.

Come in, hang up your coat, and join us as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Christmas is our favorite time here at Lilliput Station, so we've decided to start the celebration a little early with a giant online party. If you'd like to join us:

1. Post an entry on your blog telling about the party.
2. Includes a LINK to my blog. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/amtell
3. Include your contribution to the festivities in that post. (See rules below)
4. Click on Mr. Linky (on sidebar) and add a link to your entry so everyone can visit you. 

Spend some time "mingling" and enjoying the great stuff that everyone has to share. You don't have to make a contribution in order to visit the party, but only contributors can win prizes.

RULES FOR CONTRIBUTIONS

Contributions should fall into one or more of these categories:

• music and entertainment- Record yourself or someone else singing carols, reciting Christmas poetry or scripture verses, putting on a play, or reading a story. This should be original material. Don't just link to something you found on You Tube.
• decorations- Do a craft, make a lapbook, decorate your living room, or whatever else you can think of. Be creative! Then post pictures and directions so other can duplicate what you've done. Your project doesn't have to be an original idea. However, it should be something that you have actually done. Again, don't just post a link to a craft someone else has done.
• food- What's a party without food? Make one or two of your favorite holiday recipies. Take pictures of the process or just the finished product. Then post them to your blog along with the recipe. 
• gifts- If you are talented at creating notebook pages, worksheets, ebooks and such, you could offer a special download as a gift to guests at the party. Or, if you own a business, you might consider a special promotion just for this occassion. (This is also a great way to get a little free advertising. Parties are a great place to make new contacts.)

If you think of something I haven't listed, feel free to ask. But remember, it should be something that you have done and something you can share.

And now, finally, here are my gifts to you:

Salvation Army Lapbook 
 
I will email this to FREE everyone who meets these four qualifications:

1. Post an entry on your blog telling about the party.
2. Includes a LINK to my blog. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/amtell
3. Include your contribution to the party in that post. (See rules above.)
4. Post a link to your blog entry in Mr. Linky on my blog.
 Be sure to tell all your online friends!

 free Christmas Notebook pages for everyone!

And visit my Squidoo lens for links to more holiday freebies!

If you would like to put a button on your blog promoting the party, email me for the code.