CoCoa ~ 2016 Elf on The Shelf

Shewwwweeee, guys I can't even begin to articulate an appropriate opening for everything that has taken place since my last post.  I have so much to share, so much to recap and truthfully I'm trying to decide what to share and what not to share - along with how in the world to put all of these photos together! So, while I'm working to put all of that together, I'll go ahead and give you a little bit of insight into our Elf on a Shelf and his shenanigans this past Christmas season. Our Elf, CoCoa, joined us last year in 2014 for the first time. To be honest, Bennett was probably too young for it ... but we were in the Christmas spirit and when Hubs and I became parents we wanted to root family traditions so we started early. And I'm honestly glad we did.

It was a great warm up ... and when CoCoa arrived this year Bennett was much more in tune with what was going on. And my oh my has a year made a difference in little man's excitement about his elf. The first couple of mornings he was a little reluctant. He was a but unsure if CoCoa would move, or what the deal was ... but once he got the hang of how things went down he was all in. And his bright eyes every morning on the hunt for CoCoa and him running to our room to tell us what shenanigans he was into the night before are great memories!

Here's a look on CoCoa's visit to our home in the year 2016:

November 30 - Our Elf Arrived with a special M&M message

 December 1 - CoCoa got stuck in the sucker jar!

 December 2 - CoCoa was up all night making the kids Christmas PJs with his face all over them!

December 3 - swinging on the dining room light 

 December 4 - CoCoa climbed to the top of the cabinets

 December 5 - Just Be Claus

 December 6 - Candy Cane Crush

 December 7 - Do you wanna build a snowman?

 December 8 - Snowball fight!!

 December 9 - Enjoying a light read and new book for B: Merry Christmas Daniel Tiger

 December 10: Bubble bath and bath fizzles!

 December 11 - watching the clock - is it Christmas yet?!

 December 12 - Chillin in the U

 December 13 - Bay window blues

 December 14 - Anna Kedrick on the brain

 December 15 - Sugar overload!!

December 16 & 17 - we were out of town having Christmas round 1 + 2 ... so we have no idea what CoCoa was up to. However, we came home to this on December 18 - Nerf gun war!

December 19 - watching over the kitchen again

December 20 - CoCoa got into a bit of a "sticky" situation with the washii tape ... but he left behind some awesome Snowman "stick"ers

December 21 (totally forgot to snap a pic - booooo)

December 22 - CoCoa and Bennett's elf, Mint, from the Galt House Christmas got into a silly string fight and even left some extra cans for us to play with that day!

December 23 - CoCoa took a ride on the mistletoe.

December 24 - and CoCoa's final day he left letters for the littles before heading back to the North Pole letting them know they had made the nice list :)

We had so much fun with you this year CoCoa! We can't wait for you to come back next year and see what mischief you get into. And Lainey will have a great time playing next year too. Yay Christmas!

CoCoa Christmas!

Guys, did you know? Did you know? It's officially Christmas!!! December 1st is here!! It's here!! It's finally here!! And just like last year our Elf, CoCoa, has arrived!!!

The doorbell rang last night and Bennett's eyes were huge! "It's probably the mailman," he said. But when he got to the door he was pleasantly surprised. He's been asking when CoCoa would arrive to our house for weeks and when the time finally came he was so excited! Christmas magic is in the air and having littles makes it that much more magical.

The kids walked out to find this little bit of fun on the porch ~ and B was amazed he spelled words with M&M's! He looked up to the sky and said "I think Santa dropped him off!" Yes he did little man, yes he certainly did!

They practically ran to the couch so we could snuggle up on the couch to read our book to help us remember how everything goes down.

Bennett was hanging onto every word and per usual, Lainey just couldn't stop moving.

 That ponytail cracks me up! Stop reading and pay attention to me Daddy!

After we read our book we screened The Elf's Story because I think reiterating the story and letting them both read it and see it helps at this age to really comprehend the full story.  We bought it on Apple TV last year and again, Bennett hung on to every word. And honestly, I love the movie. Plus, I've been singing Extravaganzalorious ever since so I know everyone in my house is super stoked! Ha!

 And again, Lainey can't stop moving.

Bennett was extra good at bedtime tonight. At bath time Lainey was patting Bennett on the head (her version of a hit) and Bennett sternly looked at her and said "Ouch Lainey, you know CoCoa is watching and would not like that very much!" Hehehe. Christmas magic in all forms.

We're so excited to play Elf on a Shelf this year!  I found this great post on making the elf bendy and I think that will add an extra element of fun. And in the meantime, CoCoa, that silly elf, got stuck digging his way through the candy jar. I can't wait to see the mischief he gets into this year!

In addition to our newest visitor tomorrow also kicks off 25 Acts of Christmas Kindness.

Sweet miss Emily over at Three Boys and a Girl shared this adorable Christmas Challenge that her friend, Ashley, from Everythings Hunky Dorey is doing.  Just like her, I want to be sure I'm working to continually teach Bennett and Lainey the real meaning of Christmas. Our elf, Santa Claus, the presents, etc. are all awesome, but there is so much more. Jesus is the reason for the season, and being a Christian in every since of the word should always ring true. So we're jumping on the band wagon and adding the Christmas Challenge to our plate. Feel free to join us! It's easy and kid friendly! I don't plan to do them in order, but I'm keeping the list with us and going to check them off as we go!

Merry Christmas everybody!! Let's spread some holiday cheer!

Lollipop Ghosts

Mister Bennett and I spent Monday evening crafting a fun Halloween treat for his classmates. As a kid we always made these in school with tissue paper and rubber bands. But as an adult, you utilize your leftover white fleece from Halloween costumes and get to work! (Apologies in advance for the terrible dark iPhone photos, it was Monday night, forgive me?)

You'll need the following items:

- Lollipops (any variety, but large types like blowpops or tootsie pops often work best)

- String, yarn or something to secure fabric 

- White fabric or tissue - cut in roughly 6x6 squares

My fabric was fleece, and I measured it by making it about the size of my hand. 

Next, you place a sucker directly in the center...

Then you simply wrap the fabric all the way around the top of the sucker.

And secure with string (or whatever you're using) around the base of the lollipop and on the stick. 

Last but not least, you get to make them all cutesy! We drew faces on with a Sharpie 

And added fun embellishments and name tags on the sticks for a festive addition! 

This little three year old was super impressed suckers could be turned into ghosts and was so excited to share them with his friends at school. 

Give us a holiday and we'll find a craft, having kids is so much fun! Otherwise I'd be eating a lot of ghost suckers all by myself!