Halloween kicks off the maker/crafter/seamstress time of the year, and I don't mind admitting it is my favorite holiday of the year.  Here are the projects I have planned:

1. Take Zoe to a pumpkin patch  (Pre-step:  Find out if they have a pumpkin patch in Central Texas)
2. Decorate the house, including some inspiring pumpkin ideas found on Pinterest
3. Not one, but TWO Halloween costumes for the 4 year old who has several party invitations piling up already.   Can you guess what Zoe wants?  Of course!  An Elsa dress and a pink princess dress.
4. Help plan the school party and make fun treats
5. Make cool flashlights for the neighborhood kids 

I'll be sure to link the projects as I get them finished -- help me stay accountable, will you?

xxx Anna

*** Update: New calendar uploaded.  Download our Dec 2013 calendar (Word)  ***

Original Post: November 10, 2012:  An Advent calendar is a special calendar which is used to count or celebrate the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Some calendars are strictly religious, whereas others are secular in content. Despite the name, most commercially available Advent calendars begin on December 1, regardless of when Advent begins, which can be as early as November 27 and as late as December 3. Many take the form of a large rectangular card with "windows" of which there are often 24; one for each day of December leading up to Christmas Day. One is opened every day during Advent.

This year, I started this tradition in our family with our 2 year old daughter, Zoe.  We focused more on activities with family and the family tradition of thinking of others.  And, since we have multiple families to visit, we extended the calendar to include a few days after advent.

  
Download advent present labels below.  They are sized to fit Avery® 22807 Easy Peel® Print-to-the-Edge in White Round Labels, Glossy, 2" Diameter. The EPS can also be reformatted to fit Worldlabel WL-5375.

Happy Thanksgiving! 

I made these simple treat bags for Zoe's classmates the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.  My hope was that they would be useful if families were traveling for the holidays, so the bags included snacks, activities, and stickers.  Feel free to jump to the activities I pinned and download the labels I created (below).

Labels in Illustrator, EPS or PDF format.
Free vector image was found here.
Fonts: Chunk Five, Ekologie Hand
Formatted 12-up to fit Avery® Easy Peel® Square Labels 22806, 2" x 2"

I dropped the ball on making Valentine's Day treats for Zoe's classmates, so I'm hoping to redeem myself with St. Patrick's Day goodies.  These are cute treat bags that were a snap to make. 

Supplies (found all at Amazon.com) you'll need: