Christmas

One suggestion for keeping Christmas civilized, eliminating a lot of bad tempers and Christmas nerves (which also accompany the holiday) is to plan with the calendar the four weeks preceding Christmas. You might make a calendar from around December 1 to December 25 on a large sheet of cardboard and hang it in a prominent place in the kitchen. Arrange the projects you hope to accomplish something like this:

Children can participate in the following projects-

First Week. Shelled Walnuts

Crack and shell walnuts (or other nuts) and send each grandmother a jarful.

String Boxes

Cover the top and bottom of a shoe box separately with paper that the child has decorated with one of these three methods as described in the section Things To Do - potato stamping, finger painting, or spatter painting on either brown wrapping paper or shelf paper. Put three balls of string or ribbon in the box and unwind a few inches of each ball. In the top of the box, poke three holes with an ice pick and pull the string through the top of the lid an inch or so. Good gift for grandfathers or aunts.

Candle Holders

With a brace and a bit, bore holes the size of the candle in interesting pieces of driftwood. A candle board can be made by drilling holes in a piece of wood 2" deep, 4" wide, and 12" - 21" in length. Five-year-olds love to use a brace and bit

Bookmark

With scissors, cut the corner of an envelope to make a triangle. Even your two-year-old can color it or paint it

Decorated Shopping Bags

Paint or decorate with crayon five-cent shopping bags.

Knitting Boxes

Already described under section called Things To Save (see "Oatmeal Boxes").

Book

Staple together several sheets of paper in book form. Let the child draw with pencil, crayon, or colored chalk, or cut pictures from magazines and paste in the book. Any comments he makes should be written in quotes.

Telephone Pad Or Memo Pad

Attach scratch pad to one of the child's finger paintings which has been pasted to a piece of cardboard. Tie a pencil on a long string and attach to cardboard.

Napkin Holders

Children can paint ham-bone rings (which you have saved throughout the year) with bright enamel. Put a paper napkin through the ring so friends will know what they are for (see Things to Save and Why).

Planters

A piece of ivy, philodendron, or a bulb can be planted in a one-pound coffee can. Cover me outside of the can with some of your child's art work.

Burlap Place Mats

Burlap is easy for children to fringe, comes in gay colors, and makes useful gifts as place mats. After the child has unraveled one-half inch on all four sides, sew on the machine to prevent further unraveling.

Hot Pad Holder

Have the child decorate with crayons or paint the inside of one paper plate and the outside of another. The plate that has been colored on the outside is cut in half and stapled to the other plate to form the pocket. At the top of the plate, punch two holes and tie a bow with yarn.

Presents Mothers Can Make for Children.

This is what you do during nap time and after 8 p.m. Though it might be a good idea to start some of the projects during July, others will take very little time and all are inexpensive.

Sock Horse

Stuff a man's sock with cotton batting. After you have stuffed from the toe to the heel, stick a broomstick or mop stick in the sock and continue stuffing around the stick until it is full. Stick three or four thumbtacks through the sock to hold to the stick. Sew two buttons on for eyes. Sew two fingers cut from an old glove and they will look like ears. A piece of rawhide thong (from the shoe-repair shop) can be tied to look like a harness and can be used for the reins. You can make it fancy by adding a yarn mane. If you like girl horses, add eyelashes (felt or yarn).

Bean Bags

Any scrap of material can be cut into any shape and partially filled with navy beans. The material can be decorated or plain.

Money Bags

Sew three sides of the pouch together, leaving the top open.

Hem the top and run a shoe lace through it Fill with money and tie shoelace.

Shoe Bags

For toys or shoes. Sew six or nine pockets on a piece of sturdy material such as heavy denim or canvas. These are fun to decorate with textile paint

Glove Dolls

Cut off all the fingers and thumb of an old glove. Stuff all five with cotton. Using the thumb for the body and the head of the doll, tie a string to form the head. The fingers form the arms and legs. Sew parts together and dress with scraps of material.

Clothes-Pin Dolls

Paint a face on the top of the clothes pin. Stick the "legs" in modeling clay to hold. Decorate with scraps of material.

Surprise Balls

Cut crepe paper that comes in folds in one-inch strips. Unfold the strips and start winding in the shape of a ball. Have several small trinkets wrapped in tissue paper ready to be hidden inside the ball as you wrap the crepe paper. These could be a balloon, a dime, a ring, a chain, perhaps with small charms to attach to it Candies and a poem or some message to the child would complete the ball. Secure ball with sticky tape. The child will like the streamers as well as the gifts inside.

Jingle-Bell Bracelets

Sew three or four bells to a strip of eleastic or a half-inch width of ribbon long enough to tie around the wrist or ankle (see You Can Make Your Own Music).

A Billy Book

A "Billy Book" is about a little boy named Billy. It can also be about a girl named Jane, or for whomever you want to make a book. A book for a child about himself is very satisfying to his ego.