Get in the spirit of the season with an LDS Christmas countdown paper chain. This easy-to-make craft is fun for the whole family. Remove one paper chain each day in December and read the corresponding scripture stories about Jesus. Check it out!

My kids love doing advent calendars for Christmas and as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Christ is at the center of our holiday celebrations. That’s why this LDS Christmas countdown is perfect. Complete with a scripture story about Jesus for each day, you can remember the Savior all month long. Here’s how to make yours today.

Download and print your countdown

I designed this cute Christmas paper chain on 8.5×11 paper. There are five paper strips per page with five pages total. Just print your countdown on your home printer or email the PDF to your local copy store. I recommend that you print your paper chain on cardstock so it’s a bit more sturdy.

Click on the link at the end of this blog post to purchase and download your countdown.

Cut your strips of paper

Once you’ve printed each page of the PDF, now it’s time to start cutting. I designed each strip flush with each other so you don’t have to make as many cuts. I like using a paper cutter since it’s a lot faster. But scissors work great too. You should end up with 24 strips of paper (for the first 24 days of December).

Complete your paper chain

Once you have your strips of paper, tape each strip of paper together to form a chain in numerical order starting with one and ending at 24. You can also staple them together.

Hang in your home and start counting down

Find a high-traffic area in your home to hang your Christmas advent chain. We hung ours right next to our fridge and our garage door.

You can also use your countdown as a centerpiece on your kitchen table, counter top or side table.

Many of the scriptures included on the countdown are not only about the birth of Jesus Christ but also the many accounts in the New Testament and the Book of Mormon about his life. This is a wonderful way to remember the true reason for the season.

Click on the link below to purchase and download your LDS Christmas countdown paper chain:

LDS Christmas countdown PDF

If you would like to learn more about Jesus and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, click here to set up an appointment with a missionary near you.

More from My Silly Squirts: DIY word Christmas tree wall hanging

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I love a good gingerbread house party, but if you’ve got kids, sometimes it can become a bit chaotic. That’s why I’ve created a fail-proof list of tips to make the entire party a success. So take a look!

So, we have four little boys. Every year when we make gingerbread houses, it never fails that I have four kids asking for my help at the same time. I felt like it was a night full of chaos, tears and frustration. But this year, our gingerbread house party was going to be different. With a few small changes, our party ended up being super fun and frustration-free. Here’s what we did.

Tip #1: Assign guests to bring some candy

There are tons of different candies you can buy for your party but it can get expensive. If you are having guests come to your party, ask them to bring a bag or two of candy. Don’t limit yourself to items just in the candy aisle. There’s tons of different candies you can buy to make your gingerbread houses sugar-packed. Here’s some fun candy suggestions:

• Fruit by the foot
• Skittles
• Oreos
• Vanilla wafers
• Gummy bears
• Mini candy canes
• Neccos
• Pretzel sticks
• Andes mints
• Chocolate balls
• Hershey’s kisses
• Whoppers
• Sugar cones
• Twizzlers pull n’ peel
• Twizzlers nibs
• Melted Jolly Ranchers (for ponds and windows)
• Gum drops
• Cinnamon Imperials
• Spearmint wedges
• Santa candies
• Cinnamon bears
• Dots
• Tootsie rolls
• Mike & Ikes
• M&Ms
• Sixlets
• Holiday sprinkles
• Airheads
• Starbursts Minis
• Fruit leather
• Cracker Jacks
• Coconut flakes
• Christmas nougats
• Life savers
• Dum dums
• Reese’s Christmas trees
• Christmas candy corn
• Peppermint rounds
• Christmas gummy rings
• Old fashioned Christmas hard candy
• Peanut brittle
• Werther’s
• Rice Krispy Treats
• Milk duds
• Sweet Tarts ropes
• Smarties
• Peppermint bark
• Christmas nougats
• Nerds
• York Peppermint Patties
• Gum
• Tic Tacs
• Teddy Grahams

Tip #2: Separate candy into bags for each child

If you place all of the candy out on the table, sometimes it become a free-for-all. Little Tommy ends up not getting any M&Ms while Little Katie’s houses in covered with them. Avoid the tears and give each child an equal amount of everything.

Tip #3: Don’t use real gingerbread

Hosting a gingerbread house party is already a lot of work. So, don’t stress yourself out by making your own gingerbread. Sheesh! Graham crackers do the trick just fine. Or, if you want, you can buy a gingerbread house kit.

Tip #4: Use cardboard for the base

I just went through our recycle bin and cut up some old cardboard boxes. Then I just covered them with foil. That’s better than a paper plate which can be too small.

Tip #5: Assemble your houses BEFORE the party

It took me and hour and a half to assemble my kids houses before our party started. Then when we started the party, the kids could start right away on decorating their houses. It was perfect and I didn’t have four kids asking me to build their houses at the same time.

Tip #6: Glue houses together with hot glue

This is a must! Frosting takes longer to dry. Hot glue dries instantly and makes for a quick building process. Just make sure you have enough hot glue sticks because you’ll use a lot. Plus, we didn’t have one gingerbread house fall over the entire night. Success!

Tip #7: Use the right royal frosting recipe

You’ll still need frosting to glue all of the candy to your houses. But not all recipes are created equal. You need a thick royal frosting recipe that dries quickly. I found the perfect recipe that only calls for cream of tartar, powdered sugar and eggs white. We had eight gingerbread houses and I quadrupled this recipe. And make sure you make the frosting ahead of time.

Tip #8: Invest in frosting bulbs for kids

Of all my tips, I would recommend buying these frosting bulbs the most. They are perfect for little hands and easy to use. Just fill them up, screw on the cap and start frosting. No more dealing with sandwich bags or frosting bags. These are the bomb and will make your life so much easier.

I couldn’t have been happier with the way our gingerbread house party turned out. I wasn’t frantically rushing to help each child. Everyone was able to decorate their own houses without any drama. It was wonderful. Here’s house some of our houses turned out. So cute.

All in all our party was a huge success and it will quickly become a Christmas tradition in our home. What tips and tricks do you have to hosting a fun gingerbread house party? Leave your comments below.

Related link: 15 Kids Christmas Crafts

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I love kids, Christmas and crafts. That’s why I put together this list of 15 kids Christmas crafts that are inexpensive, simple and tons of fun. All of these crafts require minimal supplies but provide loads of fun. Take a look. Your kids will be asking for more!

The crafty mom in me always wants to do a fun project with my kids during Christmas time. But the stressed out mom in me doesn’t want it to be too complicated or expensive. Voila! Here’s 15 great ideas that are cheap, easy and fun.

Christmas sand art

Little Debbie Christmas craft

Paper plate Christmas tree

To start of our list of kids Christmas crafts, all you’ll need for these cute paper plate Christmas trees are:

• Paper plates
• Christmas pom poms
• Green paint

Craft stick snowmen

Supplies for your craft stick snowmen are pretty basics:

• Craft sticks
• Googly eyes
• Christmas pipe cleaners
• Ribbon

Button Christmas tree ornaments

This adorable craft is the simplest of them all. Here’s all you’ll need:

• Red and green buttons
• Elastic string

Paper straw wreaths

This craft is so creative and colorful. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Pipe cleaners
• Christmas paper straws
• Red and green beads
• Ribbon

Grinch slime

Every kid loves slime (even if parents don’t). So, I had to include this one. Here’s the supply list:

• Elmer’s clear glue
• Baking soda
• Green food coloring
• Saline Solution
• Glitter
• Red foil confetti hearts

Waterless snow globes

The sky is the limit on this fun craft. But here’s the main supplies you’ll need:

• Glass jars
• Artificial snow
• Mini Christmas trees
• Mini snowmen
• Hot glue gun

Tealight snowmen

These a too cute not to mention. Here what you’ll need:

• Tea lights
• Black fine tip Sharpie marker
• Ribbon, pom poms, pipe cleaners

Elf Pencil Holder

So easy. Super cute. So fun. Your kids will love these pencil holders.

• Empty soup can
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue

Santa card

Cotton balls are the best for crafts and Santa’s beard. Check out your needed supplies:

• White cardstock
• Cotton balls
• Christmas pom poms
• Googly eyes
• Red glitter paper

Pine cone reindeers

These are super cute and simple. All you need is:

• Pine cones
• Googly eyes
• Pom poms
• Pipe cleaners
• Glue

Paper snowflakes

Supplies:

• Paper
• Scissors

Clay pot gingerbread houses

These clay pots can become a work of art that your kids can be proud of. Supplies are:

• Mini Terracotta Pots
• Paint Pens

Reverse Christmas Tree Fingerprint Cards

These are the perfect Christmas card to send to family and friends. Here’s the main supplies you’ll need:

• Tempera Paints
• Blank white greeting cards
• Christmas tree cookie cutter
• Painter’s tape
• Cardstock

Christmas paper plate string art

This can be done for any holiday. Just cut out the holiday shape that you like and start crafting! Here’s your supplies:

• Yarn
• Sturdy paper plates

Holiday Toilet Paper Roll Crafts

Start saving your toilet paper rolls. This is one of the best kids Christmas crafts.

What other ideas do you have for kids Christmas crafts? Leave your comments below.

Related link: Mystery Christmas Stockings Game

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I love things that are tiny, so this gnome garden is right up my alley. But the best part is that it’s super easy and I got most of the supplies from Dollar Tree! So, take a look.

The wonderful thing about a gnome garden is there are so many possibilities to customize it. Plus, you can switch out the gnomes with Halloween or Christmas decorations for the holidays. Here’s how I did it:

#1: Gather your gnome garden supplies

First, you need to figure out how you want to display your gnome garden. I found a ridiculously cute six-tier pot holder at a yard sale for $10. Click here to find a similar one online. You could also use an old fashioned wheelbarrow planter, a whiskey barrel planter, a birth bath, or a tiered stone fountain. Use your imagination.

Then of course, you’ll need all the cute miniature gnome supplies to go in your garden. Dollar Tree sells all the mini houses, gnomes and other cute things during the spring time. But if you can’t find them there, here’s some other cute options of things you can buy online:

• 7-piece garden gnome set (house included)
• Wishing well
• Koi pond
• Enchanted miniature tree
• 25-piece fairy garden set

Then, I added some potting mix to eat of the pots. You could also just dig up some dirt from the garden too.

#2: Start decorating!

My kids loved this part. There are no rules. Each of my kids kind of claimed their own pot and placed the decorations wherever they wanted.

Mix and match your garden decorations. And don’t forget to find some pebbles in the garden to add as stepping stones. It doesn’t take much to make it adorable.

Here’s a cute video of my kids decorating our miniature garden:

#3: Change it up for the holidays

I have a bunch of miniature villages for Halloween and Christmas, so I thought I would see how they looked in my gnome garden. The results were adorable. Here’s the Halloween version:

And here’s the Christmas version …

Although I don’t have any plants in my miniature garden yet, I’m planning on buying them soon. Here’s a great link to some plants you can buy: Best Plants for Miniature Gardens.

Here’s some other amazing ideas for your next gnome garden:

• 31 Fairy Garden Ideas your Kids will Love
• 14 Cute Teacup Mini Gardens
• 100 Best DIY Mini Garden Ideas
• Planning out a fairy garden

What ideas do you have for your next miniature garden? Leave your comments below.

Related link: Mouth-watering acorn squash in 5 minutes

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No presents for Christmas? Yep. You read the title correctly.

We all know that Christmas isn’t about the presents. And although we are not opposed to giving our kids presents for Christmas, we wanted to give them the opportunity to be the gift givers instead of the receivers. Here’s what happened and how you can do it too.

Find a service opportunity

It all began a couple of months before our vacation to Mazatlan, Mexico over Christmas. It’s a tradition my husband’s family has had for years. I scoured the internet and found the Amistad Familiar Orphanage and Feeding Center. It’s an organization that provides children, who live in the impoverished neighborhoods of Mazatlan, two meals every day and a safe place to play, learn and grow while their parents are working. I thought it would be cool to collect some stuffed animals to give out to the children there.

Of course, you don’t have to go to Mazatlan, Mexico to find service opportunities. A good place to start is JustServe.org. It is is a website where the volunteer needs of organizations may be posted and volunteers may search for places to serve in the community. Another great way is to just start asking around. You’ll be surprised what opportunities are waiting just around the corner.

Involve your kids

Next, we told our kids that instead of getting Christmas presents, we were going to give presents to kids in Mexico. After the initial shock, they seemed surprisingly okay with it. Then we started collecting stuffed animals from friends, family and neighbors. You would be surprised how many stuffed animals people are willing to just give away. We received more than 1,000! The more stuffed animals we received, the more excited my kids got. Since we were driving to Mexico, the tricky part was fitting all of them in our camping trailer.

Enjoy giving out presents together

Finally, two days before Christmas, we loaded our kids and the stuffed animals in the truck and headed to the feeding center in the slums of Mazatlan. We entered the modest building with our four kids to find 60 children patiently waiting for our arrival. There faces were filled with smiles. None of them spoke English and none of us spoke Spanish but nothing needed to be said. It was an experience never to be forgotten.

Although my kids kept asking to keep the stuffed animals for themselves once we arrived at the feeding center, they couldn’t hand them out fast enough. They wanted to keep giving them away.

Do something small and see huge results

The director of the feeding center spoke to all of the children as well. Since this is a Christian, non-profit organization, she said, “This family doesn’t know any of you, but God knows you and He sent them here for YOU.” We were all amazed how a small toy could make a child so happy.

As we drove home that evening after giving out all the stuffed animals, my 7-year-old son said, “That was the best part of our trip. Can we do it again?” We all felt it. It was the feeling a doing something kind for something else and asking for nothing in return.

The remaining stuffed animals that we brought provided Christmas presents for about 400 children in Mazatlan at about 10 different feeding centers. It was definitely a very rewarding experience. But the best part of all was that on Christmas morning, our kids didn’t ask for any presents.

Although I don’t expect to have a present-free Christmas every year, it was an amazing experience that my children will never forget. So, when your kids give you their wish list this year and it’s longer that your Christmas tree, maybe you should consider giving Christmas presents a break for a year and see what happens. You might be surprised with the results. I know we were.

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