Not Needing to Limit the Glut of Christmas

One of my friends wrote a post about Limiting the Glut of Christmas. She's pretty awesome; one of those amazingly open and honest, caring and sharing folks. Yeah, check her out.

We've been in the same boat, of teeter tottering between what's enough/ too much, focusing on the right things, giving (and receiving) with the right heart.

My intention this year was to do the Four Gift thing again: something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read. But we'll see what happens with that. I have not bought any presents. Not one. (well, okay, one if you count the kid tool set that I bought at a yard sale 5 months ago, and hid under my bed.) I'm usually VERY good about buying little things throughout the year, for Fred, the kids, and all of the extended family. But this year, I put those extra quarters into scrimping and saving for gas money to go on that family vacation. Totally worth it. The kids won't miss the "extra" stuff under the tree... but that family time this summer will stay in their memories.

Anyway, Fred switched jobs, after years of indecision and prayer over the issue. And, while this job is actually much better, it's a temp-to-hire position... plus they moved him to a 12-hour night shift, which totally stinks. Being a temp means we have no insurance (for the first time in our 13-year marriage!) and we get no vacation pay. So the 9 days that he is scheduled off for Christmas, is all without pay. *gasp* In case you haven't guessed, any money is going to pay our next house payment and utilities.

Now, before you worry about us poor folks not having gifts, let me assure you that we have TOO MUCH stuff. This little "cottage" is crammed with books, clothes, toys, and trinkets. I'm constantly purging. We're not going without. We're still rich, by the world's standards. For crying out loud, we have two running vehicles. Amazing, really.

The kids will also get their normal gift-time with my parents... and the other grandparents send money, so we'll pick out some gifts with that.

All this to say, being totally broke really takes the pressure off. :) I don't have to worry about getting to the stores at a certain time to get the "magical gift" that will make Christmas a success. There's no debate about how much is too much, because we know we'll get a little of what we can, and that's enough. More importantly, the kids know that. They don't make Christmas lists. They don't ask for things (in part, probably because we don't watch TV, therefore they don't see commercials. Ah, the power of movies over shows!)

Best of all, I'm spending less time worrying, wrapping, spending, planning... and more time being with them. More time thinking about the Real Reason. More time being thankful for what we already have. More energy into celebrating Advent, than teetering on the commercialism that surrounds Christmas.

We have years of abundance, and that is nice. We do buy gifts for the kids, and extended family and friends, when it's possible. But it's nice to relax and be okay with the lean years, too. Rejoice in every circumstance, right? And, somehow, even though this seems like such a risky time for us, I feel very at peace with it. I can only assume this is a supernatural peace, as I'm usually a rather anxious person. ;)

How do you handle the glut? Is the balance hard for you? Are you having a year of abundance, with full grain stores, or a lean year?

A pictureless post

Folks, this is a BUSY time of year. Man. And I'm doing my best not to get caught up in too many things that will take me away from my family and/or my focus.

Trying to make this about Christmas.

Now, I love lights and decorations... but I'm not doing it this time around. I'm actually in more of a spring-cleaning mood...purging the house, rearranging rooms so that I can get rid of extra furniture. I WANT LESS STUFF. Yeah, I'm singin' the same old song.

I've also been thinking- again - about how I want to be who God made me to be. Not keep up with the Joneses. Not do anything just because it's "normal." But do what I am supposed to do.

Lots of great nights finishing furniture, painting pictures while I recuperated from sickness...

Good stuff coming. Good stuff happening. Good things to celebrate.

Paintings and Buttons

Still sick. *cough cough*

The world is coming through a fog of cold medicine, Echinacea tea, cough drops, and Tylenol. Bleh ;/

That puts a damper on my normal activities, to be sure. School slllloooo-ooowed way down this week. We did our "normal stuff" but on low gear, without the bells and whistles. i miss the whistles.

Crafting has also taken an easy turn.

The other night, I cuddled my honey on the couch, watched a movie, and sewed buttons all over this Christmas tree pillow, for my LittleLad to use. The "ornaments" are just felt hearts, with slits in the middle, for buttoning. Easy and relaxing work, for someone who can't sit still.

It was a big hit.

Meaning, he left me alone for a full 30 minutes while he buttoned ornaments! Great fine motor practice, too. See, I did have a benefit in mind for him. He struggles with buttoning his shirts, and I figured some extra "fun practice" might help.

Then, this evening, Papaw surprised us with wooden unfinished nutcrackers from Hobby Lobby. We spent a good long time painting our new decorations...
Check out Dash's concentration! Man, if he would get that motivated about handwriting, we'd really be in business!




And LittleLad, before he ditched the paintbrush and decided to fingerpaint his nutcracker...and the table...
The Artist, working slowly and carefully, as she always does...
NatureMan's work in progress. Somehow I missed getting a picture of him working.

Don't you just love the tongue? When the kids were put to bed, and the house grew amazingly quiet this evening,

I decided to take advantage of the extra paint on the plate.

Never waste paint!

My picture, still untitled:

What do you think it "says"? Any guesses?

Close up

I'm a texture girl

Now I need me some tea and soup, a wool blanket, and some tv time. Must get well.

Reason to Celebrate; A Mini Testimony

I've been sick for a few days, hopefully on the recovery slope now, but that means less crafting in the evenings, and more reading, sleeping, pondering.

I believe that God desires for us to do all we can with what he has given us-- our time, talents, gifts, energy, personality, life experiences, and material resources. Yet I'm the servant who buried what I could have used, so afraid of doing the wrong thing or being judged, that I did nothing at all. I was pulled from ...a pit, and people should know that that's God's business.He specializes in saving those who looked like they had no future. When I see people now going through similar things... it hurts my heart...
Remember Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

When I think about the things I hide ... my past experiences, who I was... I realize I'm also hiding the redemption. I can't very well celebrate his forgiveness, if I hide the very things I've been forgiven from. What would Paul's story be, if we never knew of the person he was. How would that show God's mighty power, and unbelievable forgiveness? Paul's former life is a testament to the awesomeness of God, and the power of His transformations. Every life saved is a miracle, but some seem a little more miraculous than others, am I right?

I was raised in a wonderful, Christian home, by parents who spent a lot of time with us. We played family games, had devotions, went camping often, spent winter evenings reading by the fireplace. It was a fabulous childhood. I know so many people who didn't get that. :( I took it for granted. It's all I ever knew, so I assumed it was the norm. I became a Christian early in life. I grew up in the church, and spoke the Christian lingo.

As a teenager, though, everything changed. Our family went through some troubled times, and I turned my back on God. It was a purposeful decision to walk away from what I had known. And, in those several years, my life went from being "perfect" to living in my own personal pit. I smoked, drank, partied, lied to my parents and caused unbelievable grief to them, and to myself, even though I wouldn't admit it at the time. I don't even know what possessed me to walk so far away. But I do know what caused me to come back. Love. Pure and simple. My parents were angry and hurt, sure. They did everything in their power to pull me back, and nothing worked. But, in spite of my the things I did and things that were done to me, their love never wavered. They never withheld it. And through that "test" I could clearly see that God, too, never stopped loving me. I was grieving Him. He wanted to pull me back. He had the door open, waiting. And, finally, I stepped through, sobbing with repentance, already forgiven. It took longer to learn the "casting off of the old self." I continued, for awhile, to put on "my slave's clothes" rather than walk as His daughter. It's still a daily battle sometimes, to act like the person I am, in light of Him.

I share this-- granted, rather vaguely-- because whoever is reading this has likely never been worse than me. Yet I'm forgiven. I'm loved. Christ came to this earth to save ME. If He can forgive and love me, then He can also forgive and love you.

And, if you already know that, then let's start really living like it. I, for one, am tired of living a life full of fear-- fear of judgment, fear of what people will think, fear of being who I am. Those who have hurt me the most in life aren't those who left physical and emotional scars when I was a teenager-- no, it was a few Christian women in my life since then, who have judged, gossiped, criticized, demeaned... while pretending to live their own "perfect" lives. {shudder}

Let us NOT be like that!!

If we're full of His love and forgiveness, then it should overflow from our lives, onto those around us. The petty little things don't matter. Our pasts don't matter now. How many kids we have, whether or not we work outside of the home, whether we homeschool or public school, if we drink or abstain, how we dress, if we clap when we worship, have tattoos, which denomination we belong to, or if we go to church at all... none of that should be an area of contention.

Only God's opinion matters.

And, so help me, I'm *trying* to live like it. Which is why I'm telling you how horrible I was-- because God doesn't hold it against me, so why should I care what anyone else thinks?

It's almost Christmas. My Saviour was born into this world because He loves me-- and you-- so much. He couldn't just let us die. He didn't let justice prevail, or we'd all be goners. He poured out unconditional love, in the form of His own life. I want to remember that Every. Single. Moment, not just at this time of year.

Here's hoping we can all remember the Reason for the Season, and not get our panties in a wad if the pastor doesn't wear a tie. Put blinders on, if you need to, in order to see the manger and nothing else. Embrace those around you, differences and all.

{{hugs}} from one daughter (or son) to another.

Teaching Greater Than > Less Than

Like so many other things, I don't really see the point of waiting to teach certain concepts until a particular age or grade. When kids are ready to get it, they're ready.

And they're usually ready before most people think they are!

Right now my kindergartner and 3-year old are at about the same academic level, (Dash is way ahead with his gross motor skills, storytelling, humor, etc. but a bit slower in fine motor skills and attention span )

So I'm embracing this, and am now grateful that I can teach double-duty for these little guys.

In case you haven't guessed it yet,

I simply start by telling the boys that the hungry alligator wants the side with more food.

He always eats the bigger number. Simple, right?

(below, my 3-year old LittleLad draws his "monster teeth," to eat the number 9)Within 30 minutes they progressed from manipulatives (poker chips and number rods, in this case) to number puzzles playing cards, dominoes, Skittles...

I should have taken pics of the Skittle Lesson. We had to turn the alligator around several times, depending on how many of their 10 skittles they ate. Soon, of course, there were no Skittles left, and we moved on to marker board "worksheet" practice.

Playing is the best way to learn!

Paper trees

Anyone wonder why we have Christmas trees? After all, the season is about the birth of Christ... and I've never seen any Evergreens shown in the nativity scene.

I look it up every year, it seems.

"The origin of the Christmas tree is obscured by uncertainties of oral histories
of pre-literate European cultures. For example, according to Christian lore, the
Christmas tree is associated with St Boniface and the German town of Geismar.
Sometime in St Boniface's lifetime he cut down the tree of Thor in
order to disprove the legitimacy of the Norse gods to the local German tribe.
St. Boniface saw a fir tree growing in the roots of the old oak. Taking this as
a sign of the Christian faith, he said "...let Christ be at the center of your
households..." using the fir tree as a symbol of Christianity."

The tradition of the Christmas tree as it is today known is fairly young. It was established by Martin Luther as a Protestant counterpart to the Catholic Nativity scene. Luther established the Christmas tree as a symbol of the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden."

To read more... Christmas Tree- Wikipedia

We made simple scrapbook paper trees,

decorated with buttons and sequins.

Must show a pic, too, of our lovely mostly-pregnant Cooking Club

They've been growing since last month! Here are 4 of the 6 pregger CC ladies, lined up by due date (and height!)...

Giving Thanks & Making Felt Flower Headbands!

We had a wonderful meal with Papaw at his house, on Thanksgiving Day. He made ham, double duchess potatoes, homemade bread, salad, pies... so much good food. We talked about and remembered Mimi. I'm finding that I can miss her terribly, but think about her now without feeling sad. We have so many wonderful memories.... So very much to be thankful for.

After supper, we made cinnamon rolls and the played with the kids while the bread rose...

and read lots of stories, of course.

On Black Friday we avoided the stores, as if they were a plague, and gathered at Mom and Dad's house, with my sisters and their families for the big event. The meal was amazing! Thank you, Mom, for so much hard work and incredible food.

Excuse our bad manners.

(Green beans hanging from my mouth, and turkey from Fred's. mmmm) Then off to the park. It was freeeeezing, but they ran off some energy and went back a bit calmer.

Plus it gave the guys some football bonding time. ;)

Love this one. My LittleLad cowboy strolling along with his great-grandfather, hand in hand.

And now, because this is super-long-post-time, I'll go ahead and share my felt flower projects. While Fred and I watch movies at night, I do laundry and then sew.
It's our evening routine lately.

I handsew them, and add pins to the back of my flowers, so they'll be interchangeable on
jackets, headbands, shoes, what have you.

This is the one I'm wearing to Cooking Club tonight.

Ta Ta, my dears! Hoping and praying that your household stays warm and safe,
full of thanks and joy,
creativity and excitement!