Homeschooling when kids attend traditional school requires thinking outside the box.

Since the girls are not homeschooled any longer I cherish the time we get together. 

My friends and I get together once a month for some sort of craft.  This month we headed over to Pila's pantry for a gingerbread house class. One of my friends, lady macgyver couldn't make it and generously offered to pay for one of my girls, so I paid for the other! 

Remember, things like this = school! Ha ha I tricked those girls and in moments like these I still get to homeschool them! As you can imagine the boy wanted nothing to do with it! 

Collecting Ornaments kids can take with them

I call it the Ugly Tree. 

I'm the only one who thinks it's ugly...I dream of the perfect tree, with color coordinated ornaments like you see in magazines...but this is what I get. . . A tree filled with mismatched ornaments and so much LOVE! 

MANY of the ornaments are handmade by the kids over the years. Others are characters they were into at that particular time... Hannah Montana, Camp Rock, Ben 10 to name one time period. 

Because I was home for Christmas break each year, making ornaments is a little touch I was able to keep up with. When the kids outgrew that, they still got a new ornament each year. 

Aunt TB has given them personalized ornaments with their name and the year too! I even happen to have 3 exact ornaments from my MIL somehow. 

The plan is to give each bug their ornaments when they move out. . . So, eventually I will get that "perfect" color coordinated tree, and who wants to bet I hate it.... 

What Christmas activities do you incorporate into your homeschool?