Day 5 of the 12 Days of Christmas!!

Another ornament. This one is all about the real meaning of Christmas, and your children will love to make this one.

You will need:
Round or square wooden toothpicks
Glue
An old Christmas card with a picture of the nativity OR
A stamped or hand drawn nativity
Scissors

Using the toothpicks for size, pick a picture that will fit into your "stable" that you are going to make. Glue a toothpick across the bottom and one on each side, overlapping the ends of the toothpicks about 1/2" like Lincoln Logs. Glue two more toothpicks to the top, making a roof shape and again overlapping the ends of the toothpicks. Let this part dry.

When its dry, trim around the toothpicks as close as you can get without causing your stable to fall apart. Now start adding toothpicks to your structure. Glue them in the same order that you did to begin with...bottom, sides, roof, bottom, sides, roof. You can move the sides out just a little bit each time if you want it to really seem like you're looking into the stable. Make your stable three or four toothpicks deep.

Now find another card with a picture of a Christmas tree that will fit in the shape of your stable. Trace around your stable onto the card and cut it out. Glue it to the back of the stable and glue toothpicks to frame it. Use fine gold cord or embroidery floss to loop through the toothpicks at the top and form a hanger.

As you make these little nativities, you can tell your children the real Christmas story, or discuss the real meaning of Christmas. You will be able to plant in their hearts the true joy of the birth of our Savior, and what it means to us as individuals, families and the world. Activities like this help our children learn without even realizing it and they will remember these times for years to come.
Remember...a happy memory is a hiding place for treasures. "Night, Gramma G.