Christmas Jar Memories-2012

Today I am excited to tell you about our Christmas Jar Memories!! Some of you are will remember it because it is the third year for the old jar!  It is one of my favorite things to prepare waiting on December to arrive! It has been so much FUN coming up with things to do AS A FAMILY during this special season.

As a busy mom I try to keep things very simple during December to avoid missing the real meaning of Christmas.  Having things our family does together (key word here!) seems to slow us down to enjoy each other as well as what this season has to offer.

A couple of years ago I wanted to make memories for and with the boys. Something the boys would always think about when it came time for Christmas. So I started what we call "Christmas Jar Memories".

I am positive you will have everything you need to begin this tradition this year! 

First off gather your family together. Have a pen and paper on hand. Talk about, discuss and write down ideas/things you want to do during the month of December. As a family.

Some of the boys favorites are watching Christmas movies, going to look at Christmas lights in our PJs (one of my favorites too!!!) or baking cookies.  Last year my favorite was going to downtown Fort Worth to see the big tree and Christmas displays. 

When you make the memory really doesn't matter. It could be during the week, only on the weekends or both. We do both, but keep them very simple......another key word here is simple!

Now when you have all those FUN ideas it is time to put them on paper. I print them out on the computer, cut each one and fold.  Find a jar or some sort of container and put all the ideas into the jar. A pretty bow is optional, but I insist you add something to it to make it special.  I think I have changed the bow each year.

Now decide how often you will take an idea from the jar. I prefer to get all our ideas from the jar on Sunday evenings. This year we will have 3 FUN things to do during each week in December. By having our ideas on Sunday it allows me to not only plan our week, but also gives me time to make a trip to the store for supplies and such if needed.  This year a couple of our memories actually have a specific date so for those weeks we already know something we will do.....make a memory.

The one thing I strive to do is make it FUN! And not spend lots of money!! 

Memories are of the heart and you do not have to spend a lot of money to make them. My goal as a mom is to leave the boys a legacy of FUN, loving memories that our family did together at Christmas.........not a legacy of "stuff" under the tree.

I hope I have inspired you to make a "Christmas Jar" this year and fill it with FUN memories for you and your family.

Advent Calendar 2012

The Advent Season is just days away. You still have time to prepare!!! 

Advent is nothing new to me, but we just started a calendar last year. I'll get to that soon, but just a few thoughts on what I think Advent is truly all about.

Growing up going to church I can remember the beginning of Advent season from the lighting of the candles each Sunday leading up to Christmas.  It was a special time.  Families would be picked each year to light a candle and someone read a scripture about that particular candle. It was a spiritually time.  It was time to stop and remember The Gift.

NOTE: I'll cover candles on Sunday, December 2nd. It being the first Advent Sunday. I'll share our own lighting of the Advent candles each Sunday leading up to Christmas.

Now not to go off on a rant, but I am not sure how I feel about what some people call their "Advent Calender" these days.  It seems more like a countdown to Christmas when it is full of toys and candy.  I see so many cute ideas all over the internet for Advent calendars and yet so many do not mention one word of God's gift.  Maybe they do a separate calendar for that??? Or maybe I am confused about Advent. I always thought it was a time for preparing/looking forward to Jesus' birth.  Feeling this way I had to find an answer so I looked it up.

Wikipedia says this...........

Advent is a season observed in many Western Christian churches as a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas.
 

 With that being said,  when I decided last year to make our own Advent calendar I knew without a doubt it had to tell of what God's plan was going to be. I did not want a countdown to Christmas! Although there is nothing wrong with those and are FUN to do with your children. And in fact Matthew is working on one now. But for the boys I wanted to pay special attention of what the REAL meaning of Christmas is all about. 

Most of the these pictures are from last year when I made the calendar.  I have had to change it up just a tad to fit in our smaller home. And I'll show those pictures further down.

Since I don't sew I knew I would likely be using paper products. And I love how it turned out! 

This was an inexpensive project.  Simple and easy!  Older children could easily help or make this.

I used small envelopes and added a strip of scrapbook paper to the bottom for color. Printed out the numbers 1-25, cut them out and simply glued everything on. Then I punched a hole in the top and added a ribbon. That is it!!! The ribbon was added because they hung on shutters last year. 

I'll share the link below.

Inside each envelope I wanted a story leading up to Jesus' birth.  I knew exactly where to go for help! 

 A wonderful blog I follow and have found lots of great ideas in the past, Mustard Seeds .
Janna always has amazing tutorials! You must check out her blog. Sorry I do not have the direct link. Go to November 12, Advent Countdown on Janna's blog and find the PDF file to download and print out the Advent activity instructions.  

HERE is the link to our Advent calendar last year.  Same calendar, but it will show you how I hung the envelopes on shutters.

And here is how I changed it up this year. Yep, that simple. Tossed them all in a basket.  Genius!

With no wall space to hang the shutters (said shutters in pictures) I had to come up with something different for our envelopes.  The basket was perfect!  Each day after opening an envelope and reading the text we will then hang it on the tree.  A Christmas tree can never have too many ornaments!

Does your family observe Advent?  How are your preparing for it? I am all set up and ready for Advent season and December to begin.

Come back tomorrow to see our Christmas Jar Memories for 2012......if you do nothing else this Christmas season make a point to make memories your children will talk about for years to come.

Wordless Wednesday-Homeschooling is never dull!

Christmas Sweet Treat Favorites

Get those beloved recipes and Christmas tins out!!  It is time to make those special or favorite treats for your family and friends.

Part of our Christmas memories are making certain sweet treats.  All of these we reserve just for this time of year.  Most I make myself, but a few I allow the boys to help with.  A couple of these are in our Christmas Jar Memories that we will begin next week.  And I promise to share what "Christmas Jar Memories" are this week!

Many of these sweet treats I have been making for years....long before having children.  And a few the boys have been watching me make for years. But now they actually help.  I love as they get older and can participate in kitchen fun.

Some I have shared before on my blog. And will share again.  If you can't wait check out the recipe section or search for it here on my blog.

As I said yesterday this time of year is all about making memories for our family.  Or a tradition.  I encourage you to start something new this year.  Maybe it is simply making sugar cookies (I use a mix....shhhh don't tell!) that you decorate with all the frosting and candies.  Whatever it might be make it a family affair.  Make it something your children will look back on and smile. 

Something they will say, "Do you remember how we always did ____ during the Christmas season?"

So here is our list of Christmas Sweet Treat Favorites:
-Granny Snacks
-Holiday Pretzel Treats
-Peppermint Fudge
-Easy Holiday Cutout Cookies
-Espresso Fudge

ALL very easy or I would not be making them year after year!!!  I'll share them as December begins and I am busy in the kitchen.

What are some of your favorites to make for or with your family?

Moving on to Christmas!!!!

Happy Monday to you.  I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. It was enjoyed by all here!  But now it is time to move on to another holiday. 

CHRISTMAS!!!! 

A holiday my family LOVES!!!  As I am sure yours does too. For us, first and foremost, it is a celebration of our Savior Jesus Christ's birth.....The One True Gift!!! And for FUN it is a time for making a ton of memories in less than a month!

Around here you see lots of red and berries galore!!!  Little touches of Christmas everywhere you look, but not overdone.  The boys' room lacks some Christmas decorating, but my crafty one is sure to help in that area. Today we start back to school and he has plenty of ideas to make their room a winter wonderland before the week is over!

The tree is up and the boys once again won for picking out the lights and ornaments. It is a little tree, but it fit perfectly!  A smaller home calls for a smaller tree.  It has character that is for sure!

My "department store" tree will come one day, but for now the boys have a memory tree.  You know the kind....where each ornament has a story, a memory.  Plus if I had that dream tree the boys would not be able to help decorate it. Decorating the Christmas tree is part of the fun and where memories are made at this time of year.

Speaking of memories.........
We worked yesterday on our Christmas Jar Memories.  I'll be sharing that this week along with our Advent Calendar. 

It is all about memories and following through with traditions for our family this time of year. 

I hope you have a good start to your week.

Happy Thanksgiving Week!!!

Happy Thanksgiving Week to YOU!!!  We are just days away from all this being over and moving on to a new season.  Savor it, enjoy it and take it slow!!!

 

Happy Monday too!  Today starts a busy week for many.  The week where you work your butt off for a meal that lasts all of about 20 minutes, 30 if you have slow eaters, and then it is all over!

I often thought it was such a let down from spending all that time preparing!  But anyhoo it is all good and everyone enjoys the big feast.  And all the leftovers too!!!! 

BTW, what is your favorite leftover?  Hands down mine has to be my Momma's cornbread dressing with her sweet potato casserole!!!!!!  Each bite must have just a tad of those insanely sweet tators with the dressing!!!

Slowing things down:

If your family has a habit of racing through this day/meal make a special point of slowing things down.  Plan meal time by throwing in the old "we are thankful for" around the table. Because really we all have SO MUCH to be thankful for!!!!

Discuss past Thanksgivings.  Maybe even share your favorite one with your children.  Talk, make the meal time around the table last!!!!!

And take pictures to remember the day by.  Go so far as to tell someone else to help you remember. Set the camera out...on the table if you must! 

I know for me I always have great intentions of taking pictures.  But I end up so busy, especially if I am cooking, that I soon forget. Since I am not cooking this year.....well I am charging my batteries for Thursday!  Lookout family!!!

Thanksgiving 2009 at our home in Fort Worth

We have lots planned for the week.  A special 3-day week of school with lots of Thanksgiving fun!
We plan to read a special Thanksgiving book, science with pumpkins, crafts for Thanksgiving, make desserts galore and wait for my younger sister to come down for the big day. 

Due to the busy, but FUN week ahead I am taking a short break from my blog.  At least for a few days. But you can be certain if something FUN, super DELISH or cRaZy occurs I will be back to share!!

So without further ado.......

AND

AND because they are SO cute and I am making two pecan pies with chocolate!! 

Happy Thanksgiving from The Fontenot Family!

FUN Friday, Favorite links and more!!!

Thank the Good Lord it is FRIDAY!!!!!!!   Happy Friday y'all!

What do you having cooking for your FUN Friday?  For us it is going to be a slow day of school and PIZZA night!!!  I have not made homemade pizza in months!!!  Seriously it has been at least over four months since we had a homemade pizza night. 

So this morning I had to get out my cookbook with the recipe because I couldn't remember how to make the dough for the pizza crust.  I use Pdub's recipe for the crust and just wing it the rest of the way.  You can find that recipe HERE . Her recipe makes enough dough for two pizzas. 

I plan to do a plain cheese pizza with lots of sauce.  The other I make cheesy garlic bread.  I melt a crazy amount of butter and mix garlic powder with it.  While that is going on I blind bake my dough.  Once the dough is a itty bitty brownish color I spread the crazy amount of butter and garlic all over the dough/crust.  Next I add an insane amount of mozzarella cheese and sprinkle Italian seasoning over the top.  Bake until cheese is nice bubbly and light brown.  Or however you like it!  

As usual we will work on home projects around the house.  And then I plan to start putting away my fall and Thanksgiving stuff.  Now hold on, I did not say I was putting up Christmas stuff, but I will confess, I am ready. 

Especially after yesterday.  We went tree shopping!  To a real Christmas Tree Farm!

Searching for the "perfect" tree.
 

Because we are in a much smaller home now, with limited space for a tree, it was not easy finding a slender tree, but they did a have few.

And we found one!!!  We tagged it and will go pick it up next weekend.  The boys loved running around  looking for our tree! 

The perfect tree for this little house!
*Notice sticks for ninja fighting*

I also confess I am getting really excited about decorating for Christmas!!!  It will be fun to see how all I have comes together in a much smaller home.  And to decorate the front porch too!  No worries though. I will give Thanksgiving it's day and hold off until after the big feast.   Speaking of.........I saw this on FB yesterday and think it is most fitting.

I could not agree more!!!

Now for just a couple of my favorite links from the week!!  The little Thanksgiving treat bags are precious!  And I am hoping I can find the candy and Bugles to make these for next week.
The table runner may be intended for a kids' table, but I want to make one for our family table.  And not for Thanksgiving.  For a rustic Christmas table runner.  I'll share if I do.

                                                                     Cornucopias

 

Table Runner

 

 

Enjoy these two super cute ideas!  Have a great weekend and get OUTSIDE and have some FUN!!!!!

Thankful Thursday-Little things

Today I am thankful for the little things in life. So often I take the little things for granted.  Here are a few on my mind today.......


-Quiet mornings after Brant leaves for work. At 5am the house is really still and quiet. I love making lists for the day, drinking my coffee, catching up on emails, FB, my blog and other blogs.  Now if I could only learn to remember this cherished time when things get rough at 10am this morning!

-That little pill!!!  Oh thank you Heavenly Father for the man or woman who discovered allergy medications!!!!  I could not make it through some days without allergy meds.

-My shabby fingerless gloves!!!  I know they look awful, but what you are seeing is a whole lot of love wrapped around my cold hands. My hands get so cold in the fall/winter months.  These little gloves are a blessing to me as I can't just keep my hands in my pockets to stay warm.  These help me in carrying on with life.
*Target-dollar section!

 

 

-Good books that inspire creativity in children!!!  We have been reading two different books for school.  Which by the way I absolutely LOVE "My Father's World" curriculum!!!  The two books, American Pioneers and Patriots and Squanto Friend of the Pilgrims, have definitely caught the boys attention.  They beg for more after each chapter!  And last night the boys had a full table of crafts going on.  They were making a headdress like Indians wear.  I loved hearing them talk about Squanto and other Indians that have only heard about in BOOKS!  No TV or video games. 

Just them using their good old imagination!!!   

 

 

Ryan mastered cutting!! FINALLY!
That is a post to come....children and learning. Stay tuned!

 

And last but not least is food.  I am so thankful for food and special little sweet treats!  There are so many families that do not have the simple pleasure of baking/have money for extras.  I love baking something sweet for all my guys.  It not only brings me peace to be in the kitchen, but puts a smile on all their faces.  Today I am thankful for pumpkins, pecans and butterscotch chips.  Boy oh boy were these muffins DELISH with coffee yesterday afternoon.  I usually add cinnamon chips to pumpkin muffins/bread, but can not find them anywhere.  Butterscotch was a grand substitute!

What are the little things you are thankful for today?

Fall/Christmas Simmering Potpourri

Happy Wednesday!!!  How is the weather in your neck of the woods?  We have had cold mornings and nice chilly days.  I love this kind of weather!!

When the days are cool outside I love to create a warm setting inside.  For me that includes a warm smell.  Something my very sensitive nose can tolerate.  My two favorites are a fall one and then one for Christmas, but they are both good at anytime of the year.

Hope you enjoy!


Fall Simmering Potpourri
Three cinnamon sticks
Three or four whole cloves
Two pinches of ground cinnamon
One pinch of nutmeg
Two or three apple slices, including the peel (optional, but really nice!)
Mix all ingredients in medium saucepan. Simmer on low heat. Add more water as needed.

Fall Simmering Potpourri

You can go here  for the Christmas Potpourri.  The picture below is before it is simmering.

Christmas Potpourri

This makes a great little gift for Christmas! 
Or maybe someone else is cooking the feast next week and you need a little sussy. This would make a lovely hostess gift to take to the cook.

Now go make your home smell good!!!!

Thanksgiving Tradition-From the Archives...5 kernels of corn

Are you looking for a Thanksgiving Tradition to start this year? This one I have pulled from the archives.  And did last year too.  We have done this several times in our own home and even shared it at my parents home one year.  This year I plan to do this the day before since we are eating the feast elsewhere this year.

And this year more than the past I feel like we have SO much to be thankful for!!!!

From April of this year until August our life was in total disarray!!! Things were crumbling all around us and FAST!  It was not in any way, shape or form the way we had planned it to be.  We were literally days away from being out on the streets and not having a dime to our name!!!!!  Thankfully we have an amazing support system through our families!!!

By the Grace of God so many things fell into place at just the right time!!!!  And things worked out for our good!  And they worked in ways we never would have imagined. God led us to a place we were not ready for yet. A place (back home) we had often talked about moving back to, but just not yet! And then He opened doors that we never knew we would walk through!

Through those hard times, through those days of discouragement, through the pain and tears we were never hungry.  We always had a warm, safe place to sleep at night.  We always felt love from family and friends. 

And most of all we ALWAYS knew God had a plan for our lives!!!!!!

We have been blessed!  He has always provided!  And our faith has grown through it all.

Even if we had not gone through those hard months, we still have some many reasons to be thankful. 

 

The 5 kernels of corn:
The Pilgrim fathers who landed at Plymouth Rock over 300 years ago knew nothing of the affluent times which you and I enjoy in the this great country of ours.

The next time you and I are tempted to complain about inflation and the state of our economy, remember the following:

During that first long winter at Plymouth Colony, seven times as many graves were made for the dead as homes for the living.

The ship which was to bring food and relief brought 35 more mouths to feed, but not an ounce of provisions.

Touching indeed is the picture of William Brewster, rising from a scanty Plymouth dinner, consisting of a plate of clams and a glass of cold water, to thank God "for the abundance of the sea and the treasures hid in the sand."

The Pilgrims didn't have much, but they possessed a great gratitude and it was upon this very thing that America was built. These stalwart people, strong, devout and sincere were the timbers upon which our nation was founded.

They had a custom of putting 5 kernels of corn upon each empty plate before a dinner of "thanksgiving" was served. Each member of the family would pick up a kernel and tell what they were thankful for. It was to remind them that the first Pilgrims were in such dire straights that their allowance was only 5 kernels of corn per person each day.

We have many reasons to be thankful.

At Thanksgiving our family places 5 kernels of corn on each plate. Brant reads Psalm 103:1-5 as a basis, and then we think of 5 things to praise God for.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious,slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
Psalm 103:1-13

Feeling poetic....

You all know how much I adore nature and all God has given us in it.  If not you will soon learn that from my blog.

Anyway this morning as I sat drinking my coffee listening to the wind and soft rain I began to feel poetic.

And as I shared my poem with my FB friends I am also sharing it with YOU!  This will give you an idea of my morning and Texas weather.

Happy Monday!!!  Enjoy your day!

Monday Morning by Tasha Fontenot

I woke this morning to the sound of the wind,
A much cooler, welcomed friend.
Rain comes next to greet me today,
If it were not dark outside I would go play!
AUTUMN! I feel AUTUMN in the air!

Jackets, sweaters, boots if you dare!
Cocoa, apple cider or anything HOT,
Soups, stews, chili in a big pot.
I thank God for this week of fall,
Because I am pretty certain next week will be summer!

 

What's for breakfast?

Well this actually was a mid-morning snack.  And has also been part of my breakfast all week. 
And a sweet one!  Satsumas!

Earlier in the week we were able to go pick our own satsumas and lemons with my sister-in-law and one of my nieces.  The boys thought it was a grand time.

Hope you are enjoying the fruits of the season!

Happy Saturday!

FUN Friday and Pumpkin Pecan Crunch!!!

Happy Friday all!!!  Another successful week of school! DONE!!!!!  By successful I mean no major meltdowns and no one getting into major trouble.  Which means we can indeed have a FUN Friday!

Speaking of FUN did you see my poll over to the right?
"What is your family's must have for the Thanksgiving Feast?"
Make sure you enter your answer!! No prize......just for FUN!

Now back to our FUN Friday! 

We are off to Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center.  They have been having a Scarecrow Festival for a few weeks and we have yet to go.  I am anxious to get some cute pictures of the boys.  Plus see Shangri La in the fall.  I have only seen it in the spring time. 

This picture below was in March 2009.  I am going to try to remember where exactly this is in Shangri La and see how it looks in November.  Isn't this picture AMAZING!!  It whispers peace in my ear just looking at it.

Then back home for a little school work to document our studies from Shangri La.  Fridays seem like a free day from school, but we always do a nature study.  Right now the boys are required to draw something they observed in nature that day.  They can use pencil, crayons and or colored pencils.  They then label what they drew and it goes in their notebook under Nature Study.  One of my goals is to expose them to nature daily.  But Fridays are when we really dig deep.  We usually browse the internet or find books here at home and read as much as we can about what we saw. Then they draw. I don't give instructions on how they should draw it. I want to see what they saw with their own eyes by their drawing.  Nature is an amazing gift from God and if we do not show that to our children, expose it to them daily, they will truly miss this gift.

As Charlotte Mason said.....
It is infinitely well worth the mother's while to take some pains every day to secure, in the first place, that her children spend hours daily amongst the rural and natural objects; and, in the second place, to infuse them, or rather to cherish in them, the love of investigation.

 Sorry I went off.  Nature does that to me. 

The fun continues........sleepover for the boys and another FREE night for me and Brant.  You know I could really get use to these FREE Fridays of home projects.

Finally for YOUR FUN Friday or weekend................

I want to leave you with this OH SO YUMMY recipe!!!!  You may remember it was one of my favorites I shared on Monday from blogs I found the week before.  You MUST give it a try!!!  It is a great, somewhat healthy snack for you and your family to enjoy.  A perfect snack for the season!!! 
This week I made THREE recipes of it and all are gone!  That says it is a keeper!

And it makes a sweet gift too!  I simply put some in a jar from my stash (around four dozen Mason, pickle and jelly jars).  Hey, you never know when you might need a jar!  I love jars about as much as I love acorns!
I added scrapbook paper to the top, jute and string for the ribbon, a tag and cute pumpkins.  A perfect gift!
WARNING: IT IS ADDICTIVE!!!!!

Pumpkin Pecan Crunch
(This recipe is actually from Chex and they call it Pumpkin Pie Crunch.  It could easily be done without nuts.)

I hope whatever you do this weekend you get OUTSIDE and have some FUN!!!! 

Thankful Thursday-Energy, Smiles and Laughter

Today I am thankful for energy to keep up with these boys.  God given energy!  Because I pray for it EVERY single morning before putting one foot on the floor! 

And when I have used up all that energy I am thankful for smiles and laughter. Specifically THESE smiles and laughter!!!!   All three of these characters keep me smiling and laughing when things are tough.  And just to see and hear them laugh and smile (or make a silly face) makes me happy!!!
Laughter helps with life.  That and taking it one day at a time.....

 

 

 

What are YOU thankful for today?

Acorn links

 

 

I have added links below to some of my acorn craft ideas and those cute acorn donuts!!!

Have FUN!!!

Decorating with Acorns-Part 1

Decorating with Acorns-Part 2

Painted Acorns

Acorn Dough Nuts

Nature Study-Acorns and Hedgehog Galls

This past Friday we studied the tree in our front yard.  A White Oak.  Not only does it have some amazing acorns, but upon our study we discovered something else that White Oaks are prone to have on their leaves. Hedgehog Galls.  I'll explain.

But first about the tree and those sweet acorns!!!

The White Oak Tree

Quercus alba

The White Oak Tree

The white oak tree is probably the most majestic of all oak trees. This tree will spread out at the top even in heavy forest.
When found in an open area a mature white oak produces a picture-perfect fullness, and is sometimes wider than it is tall.

Identification

This oak tree is easily distinguished from other oaks, even in the winter.
The bark is much lighter in color than other oaks. It is usually a light gray color. The bark also has a "flaky" appearance to it. It can sometimes be peeled off in small pieces. Birds like nuthatches and woodpeckers will look for bugs under the bark.
There is one oak tree that can be confused with the white oak. In the winter this tree can sometimes be confused with the swamp white oak. The bark is almost identical. The leaves are the distinguishing feature between these trees. The swamp white oak does not have finger-like lobes.

Leaf Identification

The leaves of the white oak are also easily distinguished. They are multi-colored in that they are darker green on top and a lighter green on the underside. The leaves have 7 to 9 finger like lobes.
The acorns of white oaks can be quite large. They also can be quite abundant in the late summer and fall. White oak trees can produce very large crops. If you have a white oak in or near your yard you likely have cleaned up a lot of acorns in the fall.
(All info above from Northwest Ohio Nature)

Now here is our tree.

Old massive Live Oaks next door on the left....White Oak on right

 

Love the colors. And we have found the underside to be soft and fuzzy.

And then there are the acorns........

I have a fondness for ACORNS!!!  Any size will do, but the bigger ones are much more fun to me.  We were blessed to find our current home with a great tree in the front yard. And what made it sweeter were the acorns.  White Oak acorns are a bigger size acorn, but not as big as the acorns on a Burr Oak. 

Burr Oak acorns

If you are a long time reader you may remember our Burr Oak in the backyard of our Fort Worth home. Or maybe you remember more me going on and on about how much I loved them.  Now those were BIG acorns!  And that is where my love for acorns all began........

And even today I have some decent size acorns to play with.  Here are acorns from our White Oak and acorns from the Live Oaks next door. Nice size acorns for crafts from that White Oak!

Is this not the perfect little acorn or what?!?!

We have been collecting them since the day we moved in. I keep a couple of containers on the front porch for collecting. I love that people notice that and help with the collecting.  I find guests, family and even repairmen who drop acorns they find in the yard into our little containers on the porch.

After we oohed and aahed over the acorns we discovered something on the leaves.  I have seen these for years on leaves and never knew what they were.  Upon researching we discovered what these little prickly things are........

Hedgehog Galls!  Hedgehog what?!  Hedgehog Galls!

They're kinda cute, don't you think?

That's right, Hedgehog Galls.

These cool looking structures are galls that appear on white oaks as spheres that are covered with spines. Inside small cynipid wasps are developing. The galls can range from 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter and are often a yellow to red color. These galls, like many other galls on leaves of oaks, they cause no significant harm to the tree. Therefore, no controls are recommended.

I never knew!!  And I love the name......Hedgehog Gall!!!

Isn't learning FUN?!?!  Nature is amazing!  And every single time we do a nature study I am blown away by what God has given us!!!  I am a lover of all He created for US!  And when I get outdoors my spirits come ALIVE with the beauty and vast discoveries we can learn about!!!!

I hope you enjoyed our nature study!  If you are also a lover of acorns I have several posts I'll share later today.  So check back for crafts with acorns or search my blog.  Also acorn donuts!

Happy hUMp day!!!!