“What’s next, what’s next? What do we decorate for next?” Hayden begged to know when Christmas decor came down. Once he figured out Valentine’s day could include a few decorations- he’s been all about it. My mom sends packages for him full of Valentine’s day activities, so he hasn’t exactly been discouraged.

As the title describes, this is more of a post for the kids. Some fun things I had to share in case you wanted to amazon or order a few things online. Also, my mom managed to find some things that work for ALL holidays. She’s trying to keep my storage unit to a minimum. LOL. Last year, mom sent Huck and Hayden these singing and dancing stuffed animals… SEE POST HERE…..still a hit today. We’ve had them all year. More ideas coming, but wanted to get this up in case you wanted to get your click on today for a mid-week delivery;) Also, these are BASIC ideas. Nothing too hard. I’m not up for anything too elaborate…I’m more in a decluttering mode!

Starting with this lamp for you. I’ve talked about it before but never on the blog. This collector’s acrylic lamp (on sale right now!) that has proved brilliant for decorating for any season. So, if you get it in time or St. Patty’s day or Easter, you will use it year round for your child’s “collector’s items” of the month. It’s held cars, mini dinosaurs, “treasures” and now… we have heart stick-ons. If I had a girl, it’d be all sparkly things. lol. You’ll quickly realize this lamp is worth every penny after you use it for a few months. It was pretty genius during Elf on the Shelf. That Elf got sneaky leaving little prizes in there;)

The heart stick ons are just a given for your kids to have festive fun. Easy to apply, easy to peel right off. We have them on mirrors (bathroom mirror shown above) and windows and back of doors right now. I do NOT like things that are hard to remove. I’m crazy about that… these particular ones are tested. And there are so many, you’ll be sharing with neighbors. There’s also THIS SET that is a bit cheaper.

My family lives in Texas and BELIEVES in snail mail. So, Hayden receives many a note from his Aunt and Nana. We have this adorable note holder on his chair. This will stay here for a while cause Hayden just loves seeing if he gets mail!! I have the heart one, but the actual mailbox is adorable.

We have banners and Valentine’s day Pez (duh, if you follow me) and he just loves it. My mom and I try to find prizes that are either 1) inexpensive, 2) durable, or 3) educational.

She got him a Valentine’s day card tree, but it is sold out. However, a cute idea is to use a tree holder and let your child put their V-day cards or “love notes” on it. I also like the idea of a little lighted clothes pin string for hanging notes.

STAY TUNED:

Found this shaving cream activity off of pinterest. We’re trying it this week!

ANY IDEAS TO ADD? Please let me know… or send pinterest links;)

HAPPY MONDAY, HAPPY FEBRUARY. as my instagram post said today… “find the wonderful” this week.

XOXO

AAJ

Originally written Dec 2019. Some things have changed, and some are still a work in progress (I won’t weigh you down with all the personal stuff right now!). BUT SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE! LIKE the best traditions. PLEASE LEAVE FUN IDEAS, especially since we are now in lockdown again… our usual experiences are on hold.

What are your holiday traditions? I’m hoping to share some ideas here and want to add ones you guys suggest, keeping this post up to date. Hayden and I have to stay here due to my situation with his dad, so my amazing parents are joining us in LA for Christmas. I want to make Christmas Eve and Day memorable. Would love ideas of your traditions. Since this post is older, i’m updating links today… bare with me if some things are not working or sold out, I’ll add alternatives asap.

In the meantime, I’m answering a burning Q right now from you all (lol):

WHAT DO YOU PUT IN THAT COFFEE OF YOURS? LOOKS SO DECADENT.

NEW MATCHING BEANIE SET (CAN MATCH WITH YOUR MINI-ME)

I love my coffee in the morning. Love it. If you follow my stories, you’ve seen what looks like a whole concoction. I get asked every time I do a story what it is exactly that I do to make my drink. I often just say “add hot cocoa and steamed milk” but that then garners more questions! It’s so silly and basic, but I’ll spill the beans anyway! (Pun intended). I do change it up a bit at times. When I had to leave my home quickly, many appliances went missing, so… I had to start again. (PLEASE NOTE, ONE CHANGE I MADE IN 2020 is to remove the hot chocolate on a daily basis and switch to steamed Oat milk!), but when I want something decadent for the holidays, keep reading.

Here is current routine:

Half a packet of hot chocolate mix (I get Nestle hot chocoalate with mini marshmallows) in large 12oz cup. Add 10oz of coffee (I do Keurig right now with light breakfast blend pods). Stir. Steam 1% or 2% milk (I am OBSESSED with this milk frother. I tried several and this is the one that makes it the way I prefer- lots of foam). Add the froth on top, stir again. If I’m making it more of a traditional holiday drink, I add a dollop of whip cream and a peppermint spoon. I know, I take this really seriously. Now, here is my order for Starbucks. This is in no way sponsored but you guys have asked what I order if I’m out. Since Starbucks is in so many places (even Thailand and Russia)!! I figured it’d be a good place to share my order. Venti non-fat MISTO with 3 pumps of mocha. If the barista doesn’t understand, tell them this: 3 pumps of mocha at bottom, 2/3 hot coffee, 1/3 steamed nonfat milk with extra foam.

While I’m here, sharing a few ideas for simple DIY holiday fun from my mom:

What my mom did for Hayden this morning making him Santa pancakes! Sooooo super fun. We saw the idea on pinterest (where I’m sure there are very elaborate ones, but I think my mom’s is pretty fab).

GINGERBREAD HOUSE: Michael’s has little pre-built. We made a haunted ginger house at Halloween from a kit and I swore never building one from a kit again. It finally stayed together with a heft glue gun! This year, we got a larger one from World Market (HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS- GOING TODAY TO GET MORE) and two from Michael’s, along with small figurines for Hayden to create a village. We are loving it. World Market also has the fun candy that is different and whimsical looking…our Whoville Village;)

MAKE PAPER SNOWFLAKES for the kids’ rooms. I youtubed how to make a 6 point snowflake. My mom’s version came out better… but we all got to participate. Hayden is a tad young, but Huck is the perfect age, for a reference.

Mom reminded me of a few ways to make the HOUSE SMELL DIVINE.

Bake cinnamon sticks and cloves (order HERE on amazon) on foil on a baking sheet at 275.

Get those pinecones that smell like Christmas at the market and incorporate them in your tree.

Get a water bottle sprayer. Use mostly water, but add a few drops of peppermint oil or cinnamon oil. Spray the pinecones or your wreaths to keep them fresh and fragrent.

Ohhhh…. I’m adding one more idea that I remembered from my instagram community. Lisa Malnory (@lisa_mal805)! I LOVE this candy cane hors d’oeuvre idea! Totally copying you. Add red tomato to buffalo mozzarella and basil. Such a statement!

And here are ideas for experiences:

Take a Ride on the Polar Express: If you are near a location, it’s a very fun way to kick off the holidays. We’ve been using our bell from Santa every day (except with that silly Elf hides it;) See my post below. Ideal ages around 3-7. Huck got to participate in the show for a bit, doing a small scene with the little boy and Santa. That was pretty special. Hayden loved the music and meeting Santa. We sat at the tables, but I hear the real seats are just as fun.

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Are you feeling that holiday spirit yet? Swipe for pure joy at @ThePolarExpressSoCal! 🚞🚞❄️☃️ . . Get $10 off your ride till Nov 29th only with code PCREPF10 link: http://bit.ly/AshleyPolarExpress #Haydenjh #polarexpress #magicofchristmas #immersiveexperience #christmas2019 #ashleyjones

A post shared by Ashley Jones (@ashleyaubra) on Nov 23, 2019 at 12:01pm PST