Number Two: The Magic of Joy
JOY… that’s what Christmas is all about… sharing our joy with others. It’s what makes the holiday season so special. Everyone has just a bit more spring in their steps and their hellos are a tad bit brighter. The season embraces us with its own magical view of the world. We want to be just a bit more than our ordinary selves...to stretch to new heights, to reach out to others, and to be like Tiny Tim NOT Scrooge. Thinking of ways to bring comfort and joy to others is something Magic Elves are good at. So as we move into the holiday season…let’s think of ways that the elves can bring joy to others.
Jingle Bell Joy: Make it a goal to pass on as many jingle bells to others as you can during the holiday season. Jingle bells are traditional holiday ornaments and a bag of bells cost very little. Tie red ribbon on some of them and green on others…Pass the Jingle Bell ornaments out to people you meet while you are shopping, neighbors, or friends. Leave one on a bench with a little note…”Wishing you a Jingle Bell Joyful Christmas” From Santa’s Elf. Or put one on a table at the library or some other place where it’s sure to be found.
Joyful Noise: Burn a CD of favorite holiday songs. Stick it in a CD case that you have decorated…either by hand (like a mini scrapbook page) or create an insert on the computer….make it colorful and call it “The Magic Elves Joyful Noise”. You might want to make several copies so you can pass them out to people that seem to need a little JOY during the holiday season.
ELF JOY JAR: Get a jar and decorate it to be your JOY JAR for your home. You can approach this a couple different ways. One way would be to put small slips of paper in the jar on which you have written things that bring YOU joy (soaking in a bubble bath, reading while snuggled under a blanket, sipping hot chocolate…well you get the picture)
During the hectic holiday season…pull one slip out each day and joyfully do whatever is written on the slip of paper. Another way is to write (or have family members contribute ideas) for the jar and make it a family activity each day. Or the elves can bring the jar already full of slips with ideas and the kids can pull one each day and do whatever it says on the slip.
JOY Bookmarks: Have the kids make up JOY bookmarks complete with elves on them. There’s plenty of clipart out there so it shouldn’t be too hard to find a suitable picture. They can color and decorate them as they desire…just make sure there’s an elf and the word JOY on them. These can be passed out to classmates and friends in much the same way as the Jingle Bell ornaments.
JOY… that’s what Christmas is all about… sharing our joy with others. It’s what makes the holiday season so special. Everyone has just a bit more spring in their steps and their hellos are a tad bit brighter. The season embraces us with its own magical view of the world. We want to be just a bit more than our ordinary selves...to stretch to new heights, to reach out to others, and to be like Tiny Tim NOT Scrooge. Thinking of ways to bring comfort and joy to others is something Magic Elves are good at. So as we move into the holiday season…let’s think of ways that the elves can bring joy to others.
Jingle Bell Joy: Make it a goal to pass on as many jingle bells to others as you can during the holiday season. Jingle bells are traditional holiday ornaments and a bag of bells cost very little. Tie red ribbon on some of them and green on others…Pass the Jingle Bell ornaments out to people you meet while you are shopping, neighbors, or friends. Leave one on a bench with a little note…”Wishing you a Jingle Bell Joyful Christmas” From Santa’s Elf. Or put one on a table at the library or some other place where it’s sure to be found.
Joyful Noise: Burn a CD of favorite holiday songs. Stick it in a CD case that you have decorated…either by hand (like a mini scrapbook page) or create an insert on the computer….make it colorful and call it “The Magic Elves Joyful Noise”. You might want to make several copies so you can pass them out to people that seem to need a little JOY during the holiday season.
ELF JOY JAR: Get a jar and decorate it to be your JOY JAR for your home. You can approach this a couple different ways. One way would be to put small slips of paper in the jar on which you have written things that bring YOU joy (soaking in a bubble bath, reading while snuggled under a blanket, sipping hot chocolate…well you get the picture)
During the hectic holiday season…pull one slip out each day and joyfully do whatever is written on the slip of paper. Another way is to write (or have family members contribute ideas) for the jar and make it a family activity each day. Or the elves can bring the jar already full of slips with ideas and the kids can pull one each day and do whatever it says on the slip.
JOY Bookmarks: Have the kids make up JOY bookmarks complete with elves on them. There’s plenty of clipart out there so it shouldn’t be too hard to find a suitable picture. They can color and decorate them as they desire…just make sure there’s an elf and the word JOY on them. These can be passed out to classmates and friends in much the same way as the Jingle Bell ornaments.