Can You Sleep Your Way to Conception?
Expert Q & A
The TTC Community
Sing, Sing a Song? 
Real Mom Tips
Celebrity Parenting
Your Baby Book
1st Birthday Recipes
Baby Shower Fun
Good Toddler Apps
Gifts for Newborns
Baby Slings
Snooki Says... 
Work-Life Balance
WAHM- Cut out pictures from previous year's cards that you've received. Let each child select photographs, words, and images that they like to glue to the front of folded cardstock (available at most craft and office supply stores). Write a verse inside.
- No one ever knows what to do with that last piece of wrapping paper that is too oddly shaped to wrap even a small gift. Don't throw it out; save it and use it to decorate a card. Little snippets of ribbon and fabric left over from other projects add a third dimension to the card. Even toddlers can help choose materials and glue things onto paper.
- Store-bought stamps in seasonal colors make special greeting cards. Before stamping an envelope, children should practice a few times on a separate sheet of paper to get the feel of how much pressure to use. This activity is better suited for older children who have the physical control and patience to apply precise pressure so that the design is clear, not smudged.
- Design your own stamps using sponges. Flat craft sponges are the best for cutout designs because they're so easy to work with. Simply draw the design freehand or trace something (cookie cutters are great!) onto the sponge and cut it out. When sponging, make sure that the kids don't use too many different colors on one card or it will turn a murky brown.
- With very young children and babies, handprint cards can be a lot of fun. Do just one simple upright handprint or create a design. Coat your child's hand with green finger paint and rotate the paper after you make each print, making three or four prints of the child's hand in a circle, to create a wreath. When the paint dries, you can draw on a red bow or glue on a red ribbon.
- Cut simple shapes from construction paper: the outline of a Christmas tree, a wreath, or a candle. Or, if your family celebrates Kwanzaa, use the outline of one of the seven symbols. Let your child paste the shape onto the front of the card and decorate it. Write a simple verse related to the holiday on the inside, and it's finished.
- If you plan to send out cards with a family picture on them, print out border templates on quality card paper. Allow your children to paint or color the borders before affixing the photo so that it doesn't get decorated, too!
Create Your Own Holiday Cards
by Janel Atlas