Hot Cocoa Gift Jars

My not-quite-three-year-old and I made two of these hot cocoa jar gifts in about ten minutes this morning, which worked out perfectly, since a friend unexpectedly stopped by, and we had a ready-to-go, homemade Christmas present to send home with her!

Related Pages: Christmas Rice Krispie Treats, Christmas Sugar Cookies, Printable Christmas Gift Tags

You’ll want to pick up a few extra things to make this jar gift:

• canning jars (I got used ones from a thrift store, but you can find new ones at the grocery market)
• hot cocoa mix (you can make it from scratch, but I took the easy way out!)
• mint candies
• mini marshmallows
• wax paper
• ribbon
• embellishments
• hot glue

Find everything you need for this homemade gift right at the grocery store!

Start by cutting two wax paper circles that are the same size as the interior of the jar.  They don’t have to be perfect.  They’re going to help keep your ingredients separate in their layers.

Fill the bottom one-third to one-half of the jar with your cocoa mix and place one of the wax paper circles on top.  Layer the mint candies next, followed by another wax paper circle.

Mints are a great addition to hot cocoa, and they look gorgeous in this display.

The top layer is mini marshmallows to float in the hot cooca.

Fun, colorful, and easy homemade gift in about five minutes!

Finally, decorate the jar with ribbons and other embellishments.  I had some silk poinsettias around, so I hot-glued them to the top for a festive look.

Jar gifts are pretty and you know they'll actually get used.

What I Learned the Hard Way: Hm.  This kids’ craft really was as easy as it looks.  I guess the biggest lesson learned is that my husband is in trouble for teaching the little one that marshmallows are “snowman poop.”  I got to hear that term over and over again this morning!

Remember, this is Day 12 of Twleve Days of Gifts Kids Can Make! 12 down and NO more to go!

Happy Holidays, everyone! xo

So why do we only hear about pomanders around Christmas? This is a terrible under utilization of an exquisite fragrance, IMHO.

Behold: The Halloween Pomander

Fall Pomander Crafts

How to Make Fall Pomanders

Pomanders are incredibly easy to make – though I have to admit, I thought you could just poke those whole cloves into the orange skin wherever you wanted. This didn’t work so well, they frequently crumbled or broke. So I thought of using a toothpick to ‘pre-drill’ my holes in the orange, but those holes were too small. So instead I used a wooden skewer that you can find in any grocery store – perfecto!

Oranges and Cloves for Pomanders

Step 1 – Buy the most perfect round oranges you can find. Wash and remove the stickers.

Step 2 – Poke holes in the pattern of your choice with the wooden skewer – keep them slightly spread apart to leave room for the wide tops of the cloves.

Great fall themed picture ideas: jack o’ lantern faces, spiders, acorns, trees, witch hats, leaves, etc.

Insert cloves into the holes you made.

If you want to attach a ribbon to hang it, you’ll need to tie it around the entire orange. I tried several ways of attaching a ribbon just at the top, and none of them could hold the weight of the orange. That’s why my pomander is sitting on a window sill instead of hanging in front of my window. *grin*

Want more fall activities? Try these Applesauce Recipes, Halloween scavenger hunts, and all of our printable Halloween masks!