Every year for the past 10+ years we decorate a porcelain plate, cup or some kind of dish with the kids. It has been a fun tradition and the kids still look forward to it each year. I never have to ask them twice to come and decorate their plate; even the Teen’s jumped right up and wanted their plate. This year, even hubby jumped in on the fun.

I try to make the wait for the Christmas Angel (or Santa in your house) a little sweeter and go by quicker, so Christmas Eve is all about family, traditions, crafts and baking. It always is the best time EVER!!

The best part, you can keep the fun decorated plates or bowls for years to come and it’s always a fun way to show off how the kids have grown from scribbles to a beautiful picture. Decorating a Christmas plate isn’t just for the older kids, my kids started as soon as they could hold a pen and now looking back, they are priceless.

So grab yourself a white porcelain plate, cup or bowl and a pack of the Porcelain markers and let the kids make a new Christmas Tradition that will be fun for years to come. It’s really simple, once the kids color, paint or whatever you want them to do with the plate and the markers, it needs to dry for 24 hrs; then you bake it in the oven for 35 minutes and once the baking is done they are permanent; you can eat from the plate, put in the microwave or even the dishwasher…..They will never loose their color.

We have some of our plates from 2000 and 2001 that we use a lot during the Christmas Season to eat dinner on and to remind us how much fun it was when the kids were little and get the laughs “I did that..really”… It’s really a fun tradition that we cherish; simple but will bring many many joys along the way.

The pens that I use are about $10 for a pack of 4, BUT they will last you years; I’ve been on the same pack that I bought when the Teen’s were little. You can also purchase separate colors of your choice. I usually grab them at Michaels or any other local craft store with a 40% or 50% coupon to make them even cheaper. But  you can also purchase them through Amazon.com

The plates I either buy in a box of 10 for $1 a plate at Bed Bath and Beyond, Walmart or even the Dollar store and they will last me a few years as well.

Merry Christmas