This craft wasn’t planned at all, it was one of those ” Oh oh I have an idea!” moments, in the shower of course! I was thinking about Christmas dinner then 5 minutes later I was grabbing sequins with dripping wet hair. You could make so many variations of this craft with felt cloaks, pipe cleaner arms holding gifts… but we kept it simple today.  As I write this they are sparkling on my mantle , shampoo bottles never looked so good!

1. Gather your materials. You will need 3 empty clean travel size shampoo bottles, specifically Dove . Sequins, glue, sparkly sticky back foam, scissors and a paper towel.
2. Start by peeling the labels off. Ours came off without leaving yuck behind.
3. Add glue, spread it with your fingers.
4. Add the sequins. I use a paper towel to keep the sequins on to keep them from sliding and frustrating my son. This is great fine motor practice.
5. This is not – but it works too.
6. While they do that cut crowns out of the foam.
7. Pop them on the caps.
8. Let the glue dry and screw the caps on.
9. All done!

Books

Din Dan Don, It’s Christmas by Janina Domanska is one of a kind. The books follows the pilgrimage to the manger to see the infant Jesus . It starts with a single duck playing bagpipes, but it builds on it self until they spot the manger and the infant Jesus wakes. The story is simple because there is no need for lots of text , the illustrations are amazing. Every page looks like a cross between a stained glass window and a ornate mosaic in a Orthodox church somewhere in Eastern Europe. My son exclaimed “WOW” many times as we turned the pages of this book, and I know I let out a gasp or two as well, simply beautiful! * When I did a search for a photo I could not find this book in print , so you may not be able to find it in store, try your library though!

Only a Star by Margery Facklam is a calm beautiful book about the first Christmas. A little girl asks her dad about the decorations on that very first Christmas day and readers are reminded that the true origin of the holiday.  The illustrations by Nancy Carpenter are stunning, they vary in perspective and unlike so many manger scenes, this one looks like a mom and a baby. They gave me chills coupled with the simple but profound text. A great holiday read .

Cock-A-Doodle Christmas by Will Hillenbrand is a really unique Christmas story. A little rooster is at the center of this book, he is so little that his cock-a-doodle doesn’t wake anyone up.  He is very sad about his inability until that night he finds himself in the manger with Baby Jesus and finds his voice. It’s a simple book, with profound meanings. This is a great book for a Christan family or to read at Sunday school.