Snow Day in Berkeley

Last weekend we pretended that we get real Winters here in the Bay Area and spent a day playing in the snow and ice. We spent Sunday morning making a snowman and having snowball fights, and the afternoon ice skating at an outdoor rink. A perfect day of Winter fun - without having to actually experience Winter!

I'll be sharing our ice skating fun soon but first let's have a look at our morning of fun in the snow...

Peter Rabbit Organics Giveaway

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Peter Rabbit Organics. All opinions are my own.

Mathilde has been eating solids for over two months now. Twice a day, lunch and dinner, my hungry little piggy guzzles down a bowl of mushy food. Apples, custard, rice cereal, pumpkin, peas, kale... we're yet to find a single thing she won't eat!

Elf on the Shelf: Week 1

Elfie Pokie Nokie, our Elf on the Shelf, is back in our home again for the holiday season.

Just like last year he's been moving around the apartment and doing all sorts of different activities. I've got to admit that he has been a little lazy at times. So far there have been three days when the girls have woken to find him still in the same spot as the day before, but he has made up for it by flying back to the North Pole to visit Santa and coming back to a different position while we've been out during the day. The first time this happened he left a note saying it was due to the rain but we've come to the conclusion that maybe it has something to do with me being up throughout the night feeding Mathilde. He can't move around when Mathilde and I are still up, can he?

Anyway, here's a look at what Elfie Pokie Nokie has been up to the first week of December...

On the first day Elfie appeared along with the advent calendar just like he usually does. He fits nicely into the big pocket for day 25. This is always his starting and ending point in our home.

Our Little Christmas Tree

As if visiting Santa on Friday night wasn't exciting enough, we upped the Christmas spirit on Saturday by taking the girls to choose a Christmas tree.

The past few years we've visited a Christmas tree farm and cut our own tree. This year we kept things simpler and visited a nearby Christmas tree lot and bought a pre-cut tree. 

Visiting Santa at Macy's

Friday's advent voucher was the one that the girls' look forward to the most out of the whole calendar: the voucher to visit Santa at Macy's.

We headed into the city in the evening after Ava's skateboarding class and the girls couldn't wait to see Santa. As usual Ava and Lola were a little nervous when it actually came time to go talk to Santa but Mathilde was pretty intrigued and happy to go sit on his lap. The big girls warmed to him pretty quickly and in no time they were telling him about all the things they'd like for Christmas: a tv, puppies, American Girl accessories, a computer, a chess set...

Clay Leaf Ornaments

Autumn is almost over but here in the Bay Area it's finally in full swing. The trees are golden, the sidewalks are covered in leaves and the cooler, rainy weather is finally upon us.

Autumn is my favourite season for being creative. Actually, it's my favourite season in general. I really enjoy creating crafts with Autumn leaves and I'm lucky that I have two little helpers who are just as keen. Ava and Lola love to collect colourful leaves as we walk to and from school and they're always excited to make something with them - although admittedly most do end up crushed in the bottom of the stroller!

Most of the crafts we make with leaves are temporary. At some point down the track the leaves get crumbled and whatever we've made ends up in the trash. I thought it would be nice to make something with leaves that lasts a little longer, so inspired by the nature impressions in clay that we made over the Summer (which you can see here on Popsugar) we got to work pressing leaves into clay.

The girls and I have worked on all sorts of leaf crafts in the past but this one has to be my favourite.

I'm really happy with how well they turned out. They really do look like leaves. I hung them up in the living room for Thanksgiving but I'm actually thinking of just leaving them up as they look so pretty.

Letters to Santa

December is Christmas crazy all month long in our home. The advent calendar goes up on December 1st and every day the girls find a voucher for Christmas activities. Vouchers for ice skating, choosing a tree, Christmas crafts, Christmas movies, visiting Santa...

Every year the first activity in the advent calendar is the same: writing a letter to Santa.