Our 10 Favorite Christmas Picture Books (& one of our frugal yearly traditions!) and more...

Making memories together doesn't have to be complicated and costly! One of my favorite Christmas traditions is to read picture books with the kids. And even though they are 11, 9, and 7, they still humor me and listen in. […]

Here's what's new: Our 10 Favorite Christmas Picture Books (& one of our frugal yearly traditions!) Reader Tip: 10 Ideas to Teach Children to Give Free Printable December Potluck Favorites Menu Plan Our 10 Favorite Christmas Picture Books (& one of our frugal yearly traditions!) Making memories together doesn’t have to be complicated and costly! One of my favorite Christmas traditions is to read picture books with the kids. And even though they are 11, 9, and 7, they still humor me and listen in. I think they enjoy it, too! 😉 When they were younger, we’d get a stack of books from the library, wrap up the books individually, and they’d get to unwrap one per day during December to read. (You could also turn this idea into an Advent Countdown Activity, too!) This year, we’re skipping the wrapping part since it’s not the thrill it once was when they were younger, but we’re reading one Christmas or winter-themed picture book together every night — either after dinner at the table or right before the kids go to bed. We stopped by the library earlier this week and checked out a big stack of Christmas books (our library has a limit of 30 books checked out at a time!) I was excited to find some new-to-us library books to read this year along with some of our longtime favorites and am looking forward to making more December read-aloud memories together. This is such a simple and frugal tradition, but it’s one we’ll probably always look back on in years to come with so many fond memories. 10 of our Favorite Christmas Picture Books: The Christmas Story The Gingerbread Boy Gingerbread Baby Gingerbread Friends The Mitten B is for Bethlehem The Baby Born in a Stable White Snow, Bright Snow The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey Great Joy What is one of your family’s favorite Christmas books? Leave a comment so I can check to see if our library has it!   I share more about this tradition here on yesterday’s YouTube video. By the way, you can subscribe to my YouTube channel for new money-saving ideas, simple recipes, and practical home management ideas every week! More Posts to Read: Looking for more frugal Christmas activities? Check out the Simple Christmas series I did back in 2012 for lots of great ideas! Don’t have a good library nearby or can’t find Christmas books at your library? Check out my post on 8 Ways I Get Books for Almost-Free. (Note: The links in this post are affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy here.)        Reader Tip: 10 Ideas to Teach Children to Give Jennifer emailed in the following tip: As a parent, we want our kids to be kind and generous with others, but we all know this does not come naturally to most children. So, how do we teach them to give to others when they would rather focus on their own needs and wants? Here are a few ideas…  Lead by example (obviously listed first for a reason!) Pay them for doing chores or use an allowance system and teach them how to give, save, and spend wisely (give 10% to a church or charity, save 10%, and give 10% to missions every week). Help them think about where they would like their money to go (homeless shelter, an orphanage, missionary children, etc.) Find a specific project you can all work towards as a family (make scarves or collect food and supplies for a homeless shelter). Save money for a specific need. Do yard work for a widow or elderly neighbor. Make a meal for a shut-in or someone who is ill. Buy Christmas presents for children of military personnel or people in prison. Prepare an Operation Christmas Child box. Make birthday or Christmas cards for people in a nursing home or hospital and deliver them in person. Don’t forget to ask you family for their ideas… and write them down. You might be surprised by some of the ideas your children think of and how excited they might be! Do you have other ideas? Share what your family has done! Jennifer Brannon is a wife, mom of three kids, and a former missionary kid with a passion for helping kids and their families become interested in missions. She is the author of "Missionary Kid Stories" and blogs at Families For Missions. photo source        Free Printable December Potluck Favorites Menu Plan Download a free printable December Potluck Favorites menu plan.        Latest finds on Pinterest 10 Guaranteed Ways to Never Run Out of Blog Post Ideas -- fantastic suggestions, practical tips, and so much more in this series! Free Printable December Potluck Favorites Menu Plan This is the world’s easiest make-ahead chicken – just chicken breasts and salad dressing cooked in the crockpot. People ask me for the recipe every time I make this! Latest finds on Pinterest 10 Guaranteed Ways to Never Run Out of Blog Post Ideas -- fantastic suggestions, practical tips, and so much more in this series! Free Printable December Potluck Favorites Menu Plan This is the world’s easiest make-ahead chicken – just chicken breasts and salad dressing cooked in the crockpot. People ask me for the recipe every time I make this!     Click here to safely unsubscribe from "LITE Feed, Money Saving Mom®." Click here to view mailing archives, here to change your preferences, or here to subscribe • Privacy Email subscriptions powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 365 Boston Post Rd, Suite 123, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA.