#LIGHTtheWORLD: Free Printable Kit - Garland, Recipe, Gift Box

I'm so excited to finally share the special project I've been working on! It's a service kit I designed for the #LIGHTtheWORLD campaign! Learn about my kit, two more kits, and other ideas of how to use them on The Red Headed Hostess.



Special thanks to Made by Madie for filming my video! She's amazing. I edited it myself. It was my first time using the software and it was actually kind of fun. Thank you, Kristie for letting me use your lovely new home to film in. (She put up her Christmas decor early, just for me!)

The purpose of the kit is to help families follow Christ's example of service this Christmas. It doesn't take a lot of time, just pick one night to do this with your family. The kit I designed has 4 main parts:

PART #1: FAMILY DISCUSSION & GARLAND ACTIVITY
The first part is a discussion paper and gingerbread garland. Print out all the printables. Then, sit down together and talk about how Jesus served His loved ones. Think of your own examples, or use the examples from the discussion paper.

Have each family member share ideas of how they can serve. Each person can choose a gingerbread person from the kit, cut it out, punch holes in the hands and string them together with string, ribbon, or brads to create a cute garland.

My kids like to design their own. So, we printed the blanks ones and had each person color their own. It's fun to see their personalities shine through! Even me and my hubby got in on the fun. The only one missing is our 10 month old. He doesn't color yet. He'd probably eat the crayons! ;)

PART #2: GINGERBREAD COOKIE RECIPE
My photographer friend, Sarah, made these cookies for a Christmas party several years ago. They are so soft and yummy, I had to ask for the recipe! They are one of her family's specialties, she got the recipe from her mom, Linda. They like to put raisins on them, which is quite tasty.

My kids love to eat and decorate cookies. So, I knew I had to incorporate this into the kit. My kids are usually so excited to make some special cookies for themselves. But, this time I asked them to make some for someone else. They loved it! It made me so happy to hear them talk about the friends and cousins they were making them for.

If you haven't made these before, don't be intimidated by the fact that it starts out a little different than other cookie recipes. You boil the molasses and shortening together. Then, add baking soda dissolved in water. It's not hard! After that, it's just like any other cookie recipe. If you have helpers, like me, they are really fun to roll and cut out too.

PART #3: COOKIE OR GIFT BOX
This little cookie box was so fun to design! I knew I wanted to make a cookie box. I was trying to decide what it should look like. Then, it hit me! It needs to look like a gingerbread house, of course. Gingerbread people would live inside a gingerbread house. Ok, maybe I'm cheesy. But, I thought it was clever.

It's really simple to make! Just follow the directions on the sheet (print, cut, fold, glue & attach your ribbon). When you're done, you'll have a cute little box to put your cookies in to deliver. Really, you could put any gift you want inside.

PART #4: CHRISTMAS TAGS
Add a tag to your gingerbread cookie box or if your kids want to deliver their special cookies individually, you attach the tag to a little sandwich bag.

After you share your cookies and serve others, you can add more gingerbread people to your garland and see how long you can make it. I'm so excited to see what everyone does with this kit! I hope it will help other families serve this year.

Don't forget, to get 2 other service kits and ideas of how to use this kit, hop over to The Redheaded Hostess's site. More kits can be found on Sugardoodle and Lolly Jane soon. I hope you enjoy my gifts to you this year. Merry Christmas!!

*UPDATE: You can now download the files directly from my site, using the individual links throughout this post or DOWNLOAD THE ENTIRE SERVICE KIT HERE. Thanks for your patience!