Treasure Bags for Imbolc

I have intentions of following the Earth based holidays, surprising my family with little gifts in recognition of them. Somehow, after the wondrousness of Yule, January tends to fly by. Imbolc sneaks up on me, and I resign myself to giving Valentine’s gifts, instead.

This year, however, I’m doing much better. Imbolc did not sneak up on me again. I secretly ordered a copy of Rick Riordan’s The Red Pyramid, along with a reference book. I wanted to make something to go with it, but without having read the book yet, I was at a loss of what to make. I finally decided to knit some little drawstring treasure bags. Every great archaelogist, or child, can use a treasure bag.

When the kids woke up on Imbolc, they received a double surprise. Not only were there gifts awaiting them in the living room, we were in the middle of a huge snowstorm. That meant another home day with Daddy, who was very excited to watch the kids come into the living room.

February brought many heroic crafts to Our Family Creates! Check out some of the wonderful posts from last month’s participants:

• The Artsy Mama made a personalized birthday hat for her son’s first birthday. Learn how to make a Hero’s Birthday Hat for your hero or heroine with very few sewing skills.
• Mandy at Living Peacefully with Children found inspiration in books for some I-Spy items in her post, I Spy Items – The Last Olympians and The Lost Heroes.
• Megan at Purple Dancing Dahlias found out how one random act of kindness can shower the world in kindness in the book Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed.
• It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Super Kieran! Dionna at Code Name: Mama shares the Superhero Capes she made to celebrate her son’s heroic qualities.
• At Z Everyday Things, Mama G made easy and quick Super Zs!, personalized superhero appliques on shirts, for her children. Easy and quick!
• Lauren at Hobo Mama has a son who loves to dream up stories and one heroic imaginary friend. Read her post about Space-Alien Hot-Dog Monster & Silly Guy .
• Heroes are often everyday people. Mandy at Living Peacefully with Children was inspired by the gift of a sock in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, prompting her to make Dobby’s Sock as part of her Harry Potter ornaments.
• Galit Breen at Three Little Waves used the book Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes as a springboard for a sensitive discussion and a fun origami project for her whole family in her post Families Create: Heroes and Heroines.
• Need a creative gift idea for a toddler or preschooler? Dionna at Code Name: Mama shares a simple Tutorial for a Two-Sided Felt Playmat (one side is outer space, one side is a jungle scene).
• Literature and adventure inspired Mandy @ Living Peacefully with Children to make these Treasure Bags for Imbolc.

Visit Code Name: Mama and Living Peacefully with Children to find out how you can participate in the next Families, Create! Carnival. Our March theme is “Animals” – what animals are your favorites and why? Get creative and share with us how animals are a part of your and your children’s lives.