12 Days of Christmas – Day 2 – Peace, Love & Joy

Glitter crafts always seem like such a good idea – until halfway through the craft when you realise the glitter is somehow all over the house and in your hair and under your nails, and you know you’re going to be sparkly for days.

But, who doesn’t love a bit of sparkle?

For this craft, I drew the letters spelling out ‘joy’, ‘peace’ and ‘love’ on A5 pieces of cardboard, words that are often found on Christmas cards.

Then the girls got busy decorating.

When they were done, we hung the letters on the wall.

Do you do glitter crafts with your children? How do you minimise the glitter fallout?

Princess Lessons: Sisters Are Special

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Poppet and Pixie may have been late to the Frozen party, but they are now hardcore Frozen-philes. We have daily karaoke sessions and re-enactments of various scenes, and sometimes the girls refer to each other as Elsa and Anna. Poppet even says certain words (“can’t”, for example) with an American accent because Elsa speaks with an American accent. And, while their devotion (read: obsession) with all things Arandelle drives me a little bit nuts, I have to admit that Elsa and Anna are pretty good role models.

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We’ll start with Elsa, since she’s the firstborn and Queen, and whatnot. She’s Poppet’s favourite character, though not actually the protagonist of the story. She’s a protective older sister, to the point where she’ll remove herself from Anna’s life to keep Anna safe. Despite being warned by the most adorable trolls ever that fear leads to the Dark Side – wait, what? – Elsa is so afraid of hurting anyone with her powers that she lets her fear consume her. Instead of embracing who she is, she hides her powers until one argument with her sister leads to an eternal winter. Overreaction, much?

Image credit: the-disney-roleplay.wikia.com

Anna is desperate to be close to Elsa, and her lifelong rejection sends her straight into the arms of Prince Hans, Mr. Too Good To Be True. (Spoiler alert. Sorry, not sorry.) She’s the typical second child: slightly wild and fearless. Anna will do whatever it takes to bring her sister back, and to save her life.

What I want my own Elsa and Anna to learn from these princesses is simple: love your sister unconditionally; share your secrets with each other; protect each other.

I want my girls to explore their talents, to be comfortable with who they are, and not be afraid to make mistakes.

I want my girls to know that love is more powerful than fear, that the bond between sisters must be cherished, and that singing your heart out to a power ballad can actually be as liberating as the movies make it seem.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s karaoke time and I hear the opening beats of “Let It Go”.

What do you like best about Frozen?

Princess Lessons: Live Your Dream

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“Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair . . .”

When I was a little girl, I always wanted long hair like Rapunzel’s but I lacked the patience to let it grow. When my hair reached halfway down my back, I started begging to have it cut. Poppet, at the age of four, is well on her way to having Rapunzel-length hair When wet, it reaches her bum. (In addition to living vicariously through her curls, I’m now living vicariously through its length.)

Tangled‘s Rapunzel is not just a girl with fabulous (magical) hair, though. She is surprisingly well-adjusted for someone who spends her entire life with just a chameleon as a friend. She likes to read and paint. She’s playful and creative.

And she’s brave. When a strange man enters her tower, she takes action and whacks him over the head with a frying pan. She takes the chance to follow her dream, and she stands up to Mother Gothel when she realises the truth about who she is.

Image source: disney.wikia.com

Part of what makes Rapunzel so appealing is that, although she’s not 100% content with her life, she doesn’t pin her hopes on a man to make her life better. Her dream of seeing the floating lanterns is what drives her and she does whatever she can to make it come true. Sure, she happens to fall in love along the way, but her romance doesn’t make her lose focus.

I don’t want my daughters to pin all their hopes and dreams on finding the right man. I want them to have adventures and chase their dreams, whether they’re single or not. I want them to be secure in who they are as Poppet and Pixie, to know that it’s not a soulmate who will complete them and make them happy.

Image source: princess.disney.com

And when love comes along, I want them to be brave enough to embrace it.

What do you like about Rapunzel?

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Princess Lessons: The Hard Path

I never watched Pocahontas when I was a child. I don’t know why. Perhaps I was only interested in the fairy tales I was familiar with from my story books, as opposed to actual historical figures from other countries. The first time I watched Pocahontas was a few months ago with Poppet and Pixie. The only reason we’d hired it was because there was a picture of Pocahontas on Poppet’s princess dominoes and I couldn’t tell Poppet a single thing about her.

Zombies, you totally need to watch Pocahontas. Here we have a heroine who isn’t beautiful according to Hollywood norms (i.e. she doesn’t resemble Barbie. Yes, I’m looking at you, Aurora.) and we definitely need more of those. Pocahontas is dark-haired, dark-skinned, independent, strong, playful, adventurous, and the very definition of a free spirit. She is beautiful, for all those reasons.

Image credit: disneystoryoriginspodcast.com

Pocahontas respects her father. He wants her to marry one of the warriors in their tribe. Instead of throwing a hissy fit, Pocahontas seeks advice. She turns to Grandmother Willow, a spirit in a tree, and listens to the voices in the wind. Okay, I don’t want my daughters to talk to trees or hear voices, but I do want them to think before making decisions. I want them to know it’s good to ask for advice, and that they can rely on the Holy Spirit to guide them.

Pocahontas initially runs from John Smith, or John Smurf as he’s known in our house. “See,” I said, pointing at the screen, “that’s what you do when strange men try to talk to you.” (I had to clarify that ‘strange’ meant ‘stranger’ and not ‘weird’.) I want my girls to know that the first guy who seems interested might be the right one, but he might not be, so it’s wise to be cautious when opening their hearts.

Probably my favourite part of the movie is the song “Colours of the Wind”. It gives me goosebumps. Seriously. It may even be my favourite Disney song. Pocahontas is a nature girl. She swims. She canoes. She climbs trees and runs barefoot. I want Poppet and Pixie to enjoy the outdoors too, to be active and healthy.

Pocahontas doesn’t get her happily-ever-after. She chooses the path of love and finds that it leads to more hard decisions. She shows us that the right path is not necessarily the easiest path, and that ‘different’ does not mean ‘bad’. Pocahontas shows us that sacrifice requires courage and that sometimes you just have to let love go.

What do you like best about Pocahontas?

Princess Lessons: Love, Love, Love

Beauty and the Beast is probably my favourite of the classic Disney princess films. Of all the princesses, I relate most to Belle – the bookworm and the dreamer.

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One of the most romantic gestures I can think of is the Beast giving Belle that amazing library. I get breathless just thinking about it. All those books! (I hope Belle did all the reading she wanted before she became a mother, because children have a negative impact on a parent’s recreational reading.)

Probably Belle’s most impressive quality is her heart. She is devoted to her father and gives up her freedom for his. She turns down Gaston in a remarkably graceful manner. She feels compassion for the Beast and becomes his friend, then falls in love with the man inside.

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Another thing that makes Belle so cool is that she shows us you can be a beauty and a brain. Poppet and Pixie are both gorgeous and smart – biased mother alert! – and I don’t ever want them to feel that they should play down their intelligence in order to impress or be accepted.

Beauty and the Beast shows us that a person’s outward appearance does not necessarily reflect what is in the heart. Gaston, the village hunk, is also the village jerk. The Beast has a good heart but he has to learn to love.

I want my daughters to look deeper than the surface when choosing friends. I want them to value the person’s heart above their appearance, reputation and social status. I want my daughters to have hearts that are filled to overflowing with love and compassion – hearts like Belle’s.

What do you like most about Belle?