Graham Cracker Houses

I have made graham cracker houses every December since I was a child. These are used as center pieces as well as gifts to be given away while Christmas caroling. In high school, I had friends come for a house building party, and now as a mother of teens we continue to make it an event. There have been several years when I have built 25 houses or so to take into my son's class as a party activity, and once, I think my friends and I assembled about 75 for a church party.

Last week, I had my students decorate their own houses as part of our architecture unit. We watched a video about Frank Lloyd Wright's amazing house, Falling Waters, and discuss the importance of architecture in our daily lives. We talked about the parts of a house (eaves, balcony, columns, etc), and why building designs include floor plans and elevation plans. Each student got a pre-fab house with their own royal icing bag, and candy collection. There were plenty of extra graham crackers for garages, car ports, dog houses, chimney's etc. One student even decided to add on a second story. Experiencing the curriculum in 3D is very important to blind and visually impaired students, and making something edible ups student engagement quite a bit. Happy house building!

The Memory Tree

"Where's the glass fish from Chicago?" My daughter asked as we unpacked the Christmas ornaments Sunday. "And has anyone seen the tiny teapot from Chile?" I added. Each ornament carries a memory and so we search, find, reminisce and hang with purpose each year.

The family memory tree tradition, from my childhood, was featured in a 1970's  3/4 page news paper article. (My town was tiny enough for this to count as news). My parent's tradition of buying or finding an ornament on every trip, has now carried on to a third generation and it has been successful for several reasons.

You save money on souvenirs.

My family doesn't feel the need to buy $30 sweat shirts for everyone to prove we've been to Philadelphia. We buy our mini Liberty Bell for six or seven dollars, and treasure it, years after everyone would have grown out of the  shirts. We take lots of pictures and video, but in terms of tangible objects, it is usually just something that fits into one pocket. Spend less, travel light and see more sites.

The Search is Fun!

The quest for the perfect ornament on each trip feels like a treasure hunt. We look past most of the things in gift shops and focus on something that  would work as an ornament, like a small toy or a key chain. We may spend several weeks traveling to many states, but we are in search of thing that will represent our trip, something that we love. We've found  a tomahawk from the Smokeys, a tiny sock monkey from Vermont, and a celtic knot from Ireland.

Found objects are our often favorite things. My son found a piece of driftwood on a walk in Niagara Falls, NY that looks like a shepherd's crook. We collected a few sea shells from the beautiful shores of Tonga that now hang on our tree.

Happy memories bring more happiness.

We write the name of place and year on (the back or bottom of) each ornament and so as we decorate the tree we remember and discuss the trips we took. This is not a commercial tree to be admired once or twice for matching glass balls, but a meditative experience. During December, I often find myself staring and reflecting on the time I've spent with family, the amazing things I've experienced, and it brings me a great deal of gratitude and satisfaction.

Eclectic Tree give a home to odd-ball ornaments.

When I walk into someone's home and they have a tree decorated with nothing but pink balls ornaments and burgundy ribbon, I wonder what they've done with all the ornaments they've received from church and work ornament exchanges or gifts. What happened to all the homemade ornaments the children brought home from elementary school? Were they all tossed or put into indefinite storage because they didn't fit in?  Having a memory tree gives a home to all sorts of styles. Variety adds interest.

The Holidays are about People

My father-in-law died right before the holidays, last year, and we were overwhelmed at the number of collections he had, one of which was a wooden duck collection. Rather than feel the need to keep all of his things, we took a very small duck, put an eye screw on the back, and now each time we see it on the tree, we think of him and remember that "grandpa collected ducks."

My former teacher,and good friend, Jean, made homemade ornaments for my children for years. I think of her every time I look at the tree. Christmas should bring us closer to distant dear ones and their memories. Even if these aren't souvenir ornaments, they're still an important part of having a memory tree.

I create visual unity by by using red ribbon on most of the ornaments. And I use plenty of handmade, repeated ornaments too; (stay tuned for ideas on home made decorations.)

Decorating a memory tree brings more thought and meaning to the season and has become a favorite tradition of mine. In case of fire, I'm grabbing the ornaments.

The Christmas Card Tradition

Writers and illustrators, neuroscientists and full-time moms need to give themselves permission and time for creative projects that have nothing to do with their career. Homemade Valentines or birthday cards may be just the little selfless act to get one's creative juices going for weightier projects. I've made Christmas cards every year for decades and have given myself a few rules to keep it fun:

1. Do it for love.
Sometimes life can feel like a series of obligations. This should not be one of those times. Do it for the love of the process and love of the people who will receive the cards.

2. Don't procrastinate.
December is usually crazy busy at my house. Even things that I enjoy doing normally feel stressful if there's too much else to do. I like to have my cards made before Thanksgiving.

3. Limit the number.
I don't have time to make a card for everyone I love. I usually send cards to old roommates and friends with whom I don't have regular contact, as well as siblings and parents. I never get angry when people don't send me cards or give me gifts, so I can only hope that others feel the same.

4. Try new things.
This is a time when I don't feel bound to my artistic style. I try new media and I try to keep the card text, news letters and envelops thematically and visually united.

Here is a card I made for my parents when I was 5.

As a college student, I kept the card tradition, sometimes xeroxing sharpie drawings, sometimes using printmaking methods. Below is my husband's wood cut of a toy soldier (he made the year before we met) and my screen print minimalist Christmas tree.

Here is a little pamphlet book I made with a newsletter in the middle and a picture of our first child.

Another pamphlet book card, included a Martha Stewart style quilled snowflake ornament. It is a little smashed after 12 years in our card scrapbook. Again, the newsletter was in the middle of the card.

 When we first moved to Georgia, there was a pear tree in the back yard, so I did an wood engraving of a partridge in a pear tree that year.

And in 2004, I did our first Christmas video.  This tiny disk fit perfectly into another ornament/card.

50 pen and ink, water color, glitter, and calligraphy cards was time consuming but rewarding.

My easiest card was made by hot gluing a couple buttons for a snow man. 

Another year, I screen printed snowflakes but accidentally used screen filler instead of ink, which gave it a glossy surface with varied value. Gotta love happy accidents.

My then 3-year-old daughter's drawing (left) became our card one year. My Uncle Orval, who had done more than 50 consecutive years of Christmas card making himself, called this a "dill pickle Christmas tree." A sewing machine and fabric scraps made the above card possible.

In 2009 I made a gingerbread house and then took a picture of it. The acompanying family newsletter was a "recipe for a happy year" which served 5 and expired 2010.

I thought I'd use my Children's illustration style and do a little painting to show the joy of 2011.

Last  year, each card was unique. You can see the collage process below."Wishing You The Best of Gifts This Christmas" include gift cards that said things like, "forgiveness" "Friendship" etc. Inside the newsletter listed some of our favorite gifts of the year (like education, work, and fun) and a short paragraph for each.