Snacks

I heard that you've been naughty
So listen, here's the scoop
I'm running out of coal this year
So you get snowman poop.
 Love,
 Santa

Reindeer Poop
Use small, round chocolate candies, like covered peanuts or raisins

I woke up with such a scare when I heard Santas call...
"Now dash away, dash away, dash away all!
I ran to the lawn and in the snowy white drifts,
those nasty reindeer had left "little gifts".
I got an old shovel and started to scoop
neat little piles of "reindeer poop".
But to throw them away, seemed such a waste,
So I saved them, thinking ~ you might like a taste!
As I finished my task, which took quite awhile,
Old Santa passed by and he sheepishly smiled.
And I heard him exclaim as he rose in the sky ~
"Well, they're not potty trained, but at least they can fly!"

Reindeer Faces
About this project -
This edible project makes two reindeer.
This project is rated VERY EASY to do.
Supplies -
*1 slice bread opeanut butter
*4 mini pretzels
*4 raisins
*2 mini marshmallows,
*maraschino cherries or red-hot cinnamon candies
How to assemble:
1.Cut bread in half from corner to corner, making two equal triangles.
2.Spread peanut butter over bread. 3.Decorate as follows: oLay in front of you, point facing you and long side of triangle facing away from you.
3.Place one mini pretzel on each upper corner (the antlers); two raisins in the center of each slice (the eyes) and one mini marshmallow (or maraschino cherry or cinnamon candy if you are making Rudolphs) on the
tip of each short point nearest you (the nose).
4.Presto! Two reindeer faces looking back at you . . . simple enough for a preschooler to make, fast enough for a daycare mom to make one each for a whole group, and nutritious.

SUGAR CONE CHRISTAMAS TREES
You Need:
- Sugar Cones
- Chocolate chips, white chocolate chips or candy melts
- Assorted candies for decorating* (especially gumdrops for the top)
- Waxed Paper
Get all ingredients out. Spread out sheets of waxed paper to work on.
Microwave chocolate or candy melts in shallow bowl just till starts to
melt, stir till smooth.
Roll cone in chocolate with two fingers inside cone (if possible) to
hold. Lift cone out with two fingers inside cone. Place a gumdrop on top
and press gently . Gumdrop should make it easier to stand cone up on
waxed paper. Decorate with assorted candies.
Let decorated "trees" stand until chocolate hardens. Store sealed in
cool place.
Note: White chocolate seems to harden much faster than regular
chocolate, so decorate the white "trees" right away and let the regular
chocolate ones set up a minute before decorating.
*Decorations: M&M's large and mini sizes, gumdrops, marshmallows,
cinnamon decors, silver ball decors, sprinkles, colored sugars,
decorator icing (see below).
Decorator Icing: Mix confectioners sugar with just enough milk (just the
tiniest bit) and food color to make a thick icing. It should be thick,
but still able to pipe through a decorator's tip. Too thick: add more
milk (a little at a time). Too thin: add more confectioners sugar. Pipe
either with a decorators bag and tips or put in the corner of a freezer
bag* & twist shut; snip off tiniest bit of corner and squeeze bag gently
to pipe frosting out.
* Make sure freezer bag has nice square corners and not pleated ones.

Easier version of the tree above
Ice Cream Cone Christmas Trees
Supplies: Ice Crean Cones - Sugar Cones, Green Frosting
Misc Candy Items
Take a sugar cone, turn it upside down & spread with thick, green frosting &
add sprinkles & candies on to decorate it.

Dipped Marshmallows
1 bag large marshmallows 250 ml
(1 cup) milk chocolate chips 10 ml
(2 tsp) vegetable oil
 Assorted sprinkles, colored sugar, coconut, crushed nuts, etc.
 Put sprinkles into various custard cups or small bowls. You will need lots.
 Melt chocolate chips and oil together over low heat (about 1 min. in microwave). Have the child dip each marshmallow into the chocolate (so about half of it is covered), then dip & roll in the sprinkles. Place on a cookie sheet to harden.

Christmas Candy Necklaces
Use cling wrap - maybe about 2-3 feet in length for each necklace, place candy in the center of the wrap
throughout the whole length of the cling wrap, fold the cling wrap over a couple of times to seal in the candy (keeping it long) & use red curling ribbon & tie both ends. Then tie it about every three inches (using about 4
inches pieces of curling ribbon) so there is different colored candy in each section. When done tie the two ends together.

CINNAMON SNOWBALLS
4 slices soft texture whole wheat or white bread
1/4 cup soft cream cheese
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 cup melted butter.
Trim crusts from the bread slices. Spread 1 tablespoon cream cheese on each slice of bread. Roll up bread slices with cream cheese on the inside. Cut each roll into thirds. Stir together sugar and cinnamon unti well mixed. Dep each cut roll into melted ubtter, then into the sugar/ cinnamon mixture. Do not dip the ends of the rolls. Place rools, seam side down, on an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 12 minutes, or unti light brown and crips.
Serve warm or cool. Makes 12

Jelly Relish
You need-a bowl of jelly,
a cup of icecream,
small fruit pieces,
cherries,
a loaf pan and knife.
How to do-Put the jelly in the loaf pan and turn it into a plate so you get a shape.
Cut it into small rectangles (not very small).
Top each rectangle with a cherry and small pieces of fruit (if you wish).
Freeze lighthly and serve.

Christmas Sandwiches
Take two slices of white bread and some red and green food coloring, a clean paint brush and some sandwich fillings. You pour a small amount or the food colorings into a small bowl, you may wish to dilute with a small amount of water. Then take your paintbrush and "paint" a christmas tree onto the bread, you can add colorful ornaments and even write "Merry Christmas". You can then paint the other slice of bread as well. Then you take the bread and toast them slightly in a toaster. Add the meats and cheeses, or peanut butter and jelly, and you have a great holiday sandwich. You can also have many variations on this idea to use in many ways!

Shredded Wheat Wreath
Supplies:
Cool Whip Type Lids
Shredded Wheat
Green Food Color
Red Hots
Crumble up shredded wheat and mix with some cool whip and green food coloring to coat. Put it onto the cool whip lid and shape it to look like a wreath. Press in the red hots for the berries and let set in the fridge for several hours.


Edible treats for the Animals

REINDEER FOOD 1
bird seed
poem
bags for seeds
It is the night before Christmas
And since every year
You feed Sant Claus
Now feed his reindeer!
Put out on Christmas Eve by sprinkling reindeer food on lawn. Put 1/4 c per
bag. Put the poem on bag. Can decorate with a cute bow.

REINDEER FOOD 2
Each child will need a small zip-lock bag, some dry oatmeal and glitter. You can add as much or as little as you like. We usually mix about 1/4 cup dry oats and 1 tsp. decorator sugar in the baggie.
"On Christmas Eve, before you go to bed,
sprinkle this magic reindeer food on your lawn.
The sparkle and the smell of the oats
will help guide Rudolph to your house!"

Here is an alternate verse:
"Sprinkle on the lawn at night
The moon will make it sparkle bright
Santa's reindeer fly and roam
This will guide them to your home!"