So, last year I was stunned to discover a series of crumpled Christmas cards at the bottom of Maxi’s school bag. “Oh no! They’re doing a card for every kid in the class?!” I panicked. I then went a bit crazy to make up for not being the first one out with the Christmas cards. As you do.
Which of course means that my panicked reaction has set the bar and this year the little faces were saying “what are we giving to every kid in the class this year, Oh Mum Who Should Know Better?”
So I stole this idea from Zoe at A Personal Touch via Pinterest and on the weekend we took breaks from decking the halls to fill bags with reindeer noses. As you do. We were like a little conveyor belt, churning out reindeer noses. Putting the kids to work was immensely satisfying.
There is a little personal Christmas message on the back of each label for each child. I started delicately clipping love heart holes and gently tying each label on with ribbon, but I was totally over that $%#@# fiddly job by about bag 12 so out came the stapler, snap, snap, snap. Is it wrong to, um, choose the kids who would get the special-ribbon noses?
Regardless, to say these little bags of festive cheer were a hit with the kids would be an understatement.
* Please, please say “a card” or “what are you, crazy, you stupid woman, I’m doing absolutely nothing. NOTHING.”
If you want to make your own reindeer labels, you can download the ones I made here.
Other ideas for Christmas gifts for little friends
We do a card for each kid – written by my kids – and add something non edible as they get eighty million candy canes and choc santas. last year we gave everyone temp tattoos and this year stickers!
love the reindeer noses though!
You are a crazy woman. Please send some reindeer noses to the Fibro – they are SO cute. I offered the children the opportunity to hand out cards, they declined. The bar is low round here.
Thank God that even your sister doesn’t do stuff for whole classes…that’s not to say that you aren’t crazy wonderful and I’d love to be in one of your kids classes at school when the gifts are handed out!
genius, you clever thing you! I will be doing these – http://pinterest.com/pin/155303887119606952/ – for kindy class, bagged and tagged. I am crazy too and have to give a bit of homemade – it’s like a disease!! x
NOTHING!!! …but my child is in Kindy and can’t write yet & we Mums all discussed it and decided nothing was ok, but also understood that the children with older siblings would probably want to do it.
Love what you have done! Very cute.
You crazy woman you! (sorry just following your orders). I am doing absolutely nothing this year! We have left school before all thus craziness set it. But this is why I love you. Love the noses. Love all your ideas. And my kids would be over the moon excited to be a recipient of this awesome Christmas treat.
saw this as well – so cute! might have to steal the idea too – if I can be bothered! just afraid I’ll then be setting the bar too hight for next year! lol maybe it can just be a special kindy thing?!
I am lucky only my son’s celebrate Christmas in thier classes but there plenty more holidays.
I was all set here to make and bag Christmas shaped cookies – but I’m seriously considering reindeer noses instead now.
Thanks.
🙂
School’s out! And I got away with NOTHING … not many in his prep class did cards so I didn’t raise it with Mr 6. Would love some of those noses though!
This is my first year and i think i have set the bar a tad high. we made reindeer cards with candy canes goggly eys and button nose’s. will have to keep this idea in mind for next year. 🙂
I think I’m stealing your idea of reindeer noses…that you uhm borrowed as well! Sharing is caring. It’s a lovely idea.
I was planning in nothing, but now you made me think…
We’ll be doing cards. I love this stuff, but I have to say yes, you are insane. In the loveliest possible way. 😉
These are beautiful. As class teacher for 30 11 year olds I’m in the process of crocheting 30 mini stockings to fill with wee sweets for my class. I feel ever so slightly insane! I may use your reindeer nose idea for next year!
Great idea, love it – we are yet to get caught up in the peer pressure of giving every kid in class something, but im sure my time will come; )
Bluey wrote a card to each child in his class and then I asked him if there was anyone else he wanted to give one to, which there were a couple of other kids, so he wrote them one.
We only handed our’s out on Monday. The cards started rolling in in November, like mid November. Not cool. I refuse to do that shit before December.
I suspect I run the risk of being school mum social outcast leper at this time of year. But I really don’t care.
You know what we do with all the crumpled and slightly damp cards and lollies that get sent home with my three? Straight into the bin. The kids are not interested and neither am I.
I made a loud declaration that, yet again, the Mulvany kids, nor their Mummy, would be writing cards/sending lollies to any kid in the class, let alone every kid in the class. No way.
If that makes my three, or me, “unpopular” so be it. (I suspect it won’t actually make a jot of difference.)
Who the fuck can be arsed?! CRAZY lady!
I will, however, probably steal this idea for the cake stall shenanigans, if that’s OK?
xx
Wow! That is an awesome idea! I have done nothing about anything to do with Christmas yet, but that’s only because we wait till after my daughter’s birthday. Which reminds me – I really should start thinking about getting cupcakes sorted for preschool on Friday! Eeeep!
Why does this time of year always land on me like a ton of bricks????!!!
Cute but no way..no time,no money with 3 school kids….but it would make for a great stall…
Oh my god, please tell me this is not going to be expected of me when my son hits ‘real school’ 🙁
I’m not doing anything for every kid in class…but before I moved when I was working in a children’s day nursery…we made reindeer dust for the children which they took home and then threw out onto their back or front garden to light the way for Santas Reindeer…It was really simple to do and my 2 years olds loved it….
Lou 🙂
I picked up packets of pencils and rubbers after xmas last year (you know festive ones) and have cello’d them up, they worked out at 15 cents a gift so pretty happy with that. I’m trying to teach my kids it’s a kinder thing and when we go to school it will be cards.
Even though those days are long gone for me I do remember them. Mini marshmallows make great build your snowman gifts too, FYI! 😀
My kids are too little so can get away with nothing for a little while. My work colleagues are the type to buy for everyone so am going to do it for them…
You are a bit nuts for doing it for every kid but bet there are dozens of other people as grateful as I am that you’ve passed on a brilliant idea!
@Lou, I love the reindeer dust idea!
Okay here goes “what are you, crazy, you stupid woman, I’m doing absolutely nothing. NOTHING!!!!!”
If the KATs are doing anything it’s all being done WITHOUT my participation – the only thing I’m doing is dumping the ratty, tattered cards that keep appearing each afternoon dumped around our bag box!!!!
I’m not a grinch really…I just choose what to be ‘festive’ about 🙂
These are soooo cute you clever girl.
I know what you mean about not leaving anyone out in the class. I just made 120 gifts for my boys to give out. They wanted to do both classes as they have friends in both clases. Arghh. Lucky it is fun and I enjoy it.
I am going to save these reindeer noses for next year 🙂 xx
Such a great idea. Any kid would love these. But what a pain to have to do so many:(. I do think perhaps you have lost the plot in committing to making so many. Either that or you are just a great Mum <3.
You know I don’t think you’re nuts – or perhaps I am just as nuts! Great minds think alike! Actually I think I stole your idea via pinterest….. 😉 This is exactly what Goose is doing for her class mates this year. I actually just sold some of these on Monday night at a school Christmas market – big hit!
We tried handmade cards one year – she loved making them, but actually writing on them was like drawing blood from a stone – the kid hates to write, so last year, you may remember, we did reindeer food – http://froggooseandbear.blogspot.com/2010/12/kids-christmas-craft-reindeer-food.html –
Not so much of a pain to do when you get the child to do them themselves!
I don’t even think my ids did cards this year – but if we’d seen this earlier they would have been all over it! Maybe next year… thanks for sharing!
I had my eye on these too! Don’t you love Pinterest? Kids are already starting to talk cards and I had them earmarked for next week in the old advent calendar!
Ha! What you said – in italics that started with “what are you crazy” and ended in “NOTHING”
She’s only 3 so I’m doing well to remember the names of her fellow preschoolers when we run into them at the supermarket. Hats off to you!!
Hey – just getting in early, because it popped into my head while working away the other day that maybe 2012 could be 20-delve? Random!
This will be me next year – the big girl starts Kindy next year. Except I will be doing absolutely nothing. I don’t think I can be arsed. I am impressed with your mammoth effort though!
Ancient cards that almost qualify for vintage. I found them in a box in the ‘study’. With a candy cane. AND a huge serving of guilt for myself for not providing something awesome like reindeer noses, or individual home baked gingerbread men like that that other mother did. I have a lot of hope for next year…hope that I’ll get my act togethor.
x
This is an extremely fantastic idea, but you are obviously a LUNATIC for cobbling these together for the whole class.
Oh my heavens you set the bar high woman!!
I need to know what’s in the choc balls? (or more vitally – where do you get them?)
We do cards – if the kids can be bothered!
I liked the table lay out of yours.It looks so colorful and happy!You’ve got a creative mind.
Check this if you want –
Am I Creative?
Do you have the ability to generate new ideas, use imagination and make new decision?
http://www.3smartcubes.com/pages/tests/creative/creative_instructions.asp
You are a goddess, Maxabella. You’re not real! <3
Little Bit made just 6 cards on the computer for her closest friends and everyone in the class got a mini candy cane, all happy. Gone are the days when the twins and I wrote out cards for everyone in the class (separate classes) and tied candy canes on to the envelopes. Candy canes rule!!
Ally – they are 8 x malteasers and 1 x jaffas. I think jaffas might be an Aussie thing… not sure! x
such a good idea!!!
thankyou!!
can I steal for the little stall we have next week?
no way am I doing this for the class – but maybe for the stall
:-))
Well last year I did this http://neenaballerina.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-treats.html but this year I just sent them all in a tupperware container without bagging them up first. Three classes this time, oodles of nagging for Christmas cards to be written, something had to give! Turns out primary kids would rather just hoe in, they don’t seem to notice how it was handed to them anyway!!!
hahah i blogged about this on friday i think – you beat me to it! i did reindeer food! hey, your noses and my food could be great together – an hey….i didn’t even think of ribbon, i was straight to the stapler!!! xx
WHAT??? Are you crazy you stupid woman?? I am doing NOTHING! N.O.T.H.I.N.G.!
hehehe
seriously.
I thought these were your TEACHER gifts.
I DO do those.
Man, way to raise the bar REAL high Maxabella!
Love it! We’ve only just signed on for preschool starting Feb so I’m off the hook for now.
Well you mad woman I was doing nothing but now I will clearly be doing something.. reindeer noses it could well be ;).. I had stolen Leanne at Sweet Styles idea for the teachers..hmm the kids, far out brussel sprout!!
We milked the “Do you want to build a snowman” phenomenon for all it was worth. I had seen the little bags with marshmallows and choc chip buttons etc but decided on a non edible version with white glittery playdoh, orange pipe cleaner noses, pipecleaner arms, buttons and googly eyes. So easy, so cheap and a massive hit. Looks a lot more effective than how simple it really is.(Cant seem to add a photo). have done a similar one with green playdoh, gold star, tiny tinsel and sequins to make a xmas tree. We generally do store bought Bon bond for each child with a xmas balloon and Santa choc stuffed in to add to the hat joke and stickers. Then just write from “child’s name” on the outside. Even the too cool grade five kids go nuts for them.
What do you use for the red nose?
A store-bought pom pom. Easy!