Feeling the Love

I have a weird thing about seasonal decorations. I don't like to put them up (in what I consider) too early. I feel like three weeks is about good for Christmas decorations, and I shorten the time for other holidays, the ones I deem less important. I do, however, truly love Valentine's Day.

It is probably because it is in such close proximity to my birthday. I also love that it is not a high demand holiday. I love helping the kids choose Valentine's to exchange, I love the colors, and it is just fun! I have decided, though, that I want to simplify. Fewer decorations, fewer boxes, less unpacking, less re-packing...you get the picture.

I have realized that some of my favorite decorations are the disposable kind. Candy, window clings, flowers. So I kind of went that direction and came up with some really simple things. I made the wreath above from cheap-o ornaments I bought at Target. Talk about re-purposing! I paid $0.30 for a pack of three, and they came in purple, red, white and fuchsia. What could be more Valentine"y"?

The wreath was super simple. I wrapped a foam wreath from the dollar store in dollar store ribbon (beware, it did take two rolls). I pinned the ribbon on with my trusty floral pins-I am loving those things!

Then I used more floral pins to spear the hearts on. I should have started from the outside edge, but I didn't realize that I would prefer it with two rows until I was finished. Still it was easy-peasy, and you could cut plain hearts out of felt for the same effect. And it only took about 15 minutes! Love.

I used the same hearts to make a garland for my fireplace. String the hearts on some ribbon, and insta-garland. I love having a fireplace to put garlands on. When I was taking the photos Carson asked me, "Mom, do you want me to be in the pictures?" How could I say no? Of course I want him in my pictures! Please ignore the jammies...it was 8:00am.



This is what I am talking about with the disposable part. I got this white dish at Pier 1- I love it! My mom suggested filling things with conversation hearts, and I knew this would be perfect. I can toss the candy when the holiday is over, no storing stuff, but I still get the cuteness factor!

One thing leads to another... I bought this candle at Bath and Body Works for $1 with the little glass hurricane. The candle looked too small for the holder, but I put a layer of conversation hearts on the bottom, put the candle in and then filled in the space around the sides. This would be easy to do with any type of candle! I don't plan on burning mine near the conversation hearts-I can't say how that would work.

I am planning on having flowers more often. My mom bought these for Josie at Walmart of all places. Shoved into my square vase that she bought me at Goodwill (it once held more expensive, but not cuter, flowers) it makes for a darling $3 arrangement. And I can toss them!

I  used a couple of too-short flowers to fill this little purple vase and I had to display the "love bugs" the kids made at church. I am pretty happy with my little things. They fit right into my desire to simplify and have multi-use and disposable decorative items. And now we are all set for Happy Hearts Day!



A Little Past Due Christmas Post

We celebrated Christmas at home this year. There is something to be said about a little "just our family" Christmas. I love a big, extended, every relative you have kind of deal, but I also love how easy it is when it is just the four of us. Our little tree became less sad sprig and more real Christmas pine when it was surrounded by a bounty of gifts.

Everyone know that Christmas really begins on Christmas Eve. We always attend the Christmas Eve service at our church. The kids were feeling rowdy and this was the best photo I got. I wanted a couple after we got home, but that was poor planning on my part. Carson's outfit didn't stay clean that long!

I tried getting some pictures at the church, but that didn't work either. Carson was not in the mood to be photographed. I also put my camera on the wrong setting and ended up with zero decent photos of  the kids opening their gifts that night. It was still a really nice night, though. We always go out to dinner. That is one of my favorite parts! The house is always spotless and so I get to come home after a great dinner to a clean house and just enjoy the evening. Joel and I ended up exchanging our gifts to each other after the kids went to bed. We loved that so much we decided we are going to do that every year.

We are the only people I know who have to wake their children up on Christmas morning. We had two sleepy heads for sure! I actually love when Christmas is on a Sunday. There is something so appropriate about spending the Lord's birthday in His house. However, it did make for an early morning since we wanted the kids to open their gifts before church.

Carson was so cute this year. He was very grateful for all his presents and was so excited to have gifts for everyone. He bought his dad some "dude spray "- that is what he calls cologne. He was so pleased with himself and even more pleased when he got a very nice thank-you hug from Daddy.

We got both the kids new robes and Carson absolutely adores his. He wore it all day for two solid days-over his clothes, even! He makes such a dapper little dude.

Jocelyn looked pretty cute in hers too. She made some of the sweetest faces over her presents-she is so expressive and excited. She loved her set of Kit books from Grammy.

Carson loved all his presents. I had to laugh over leaving the clearance tag on this one! I bought most of their presents back in July for great deals-but I didn't intend to document that in photos.:)

Jocelyn loves making a tower out of her presents every year. This is 2011's pile of loot!

I couldn't resist taking a photo of Carson with his favorite stocking stuffer: Lego Star Wars undies. He is going to make threats over this photo in later years. And his future wife will love it!

We finished all the festivities in time to get prettied up for church. This photo is an absolutely perfect representation of my children's personalities. And please note that yes, those are pirate ships on my son's socks.

 And for the finale: a fairly decent family photo, considering this was the second time we have used the timer on my camera and it was precariously perched on the sofa arm since we do not have a tripod. Someday... a tripod and a DSLR to go with it. But for now, I will settle for an okay photo of a wonderful family on a very nice Christmas morning. I know it is January, but better late than never, right?

Rest is the Best

Somedays, I just don't want to do the right thing. I know, you are aghast, that I would not always enjoy and seek to do the right thing. But sometimes, I just want to tuck my feet into the sofa cushions and watch reality tv to make me feel better about my own life. Sometimes, I don't want to exercise, or homeschool or choose the healthy snack. The last one, well, pretty much I never want that one. Just being honest here.

I want to be more like Jesus, I just wish sometimes it were a little easier. Doing the wrong thing just doesn't require the same amount of effort. They lie when they tell you it is less work to smile than to frown. Physically, perhaps yes, mentally...well, I think we all know that sometimes it is just pure torture to put on a grin and bear it.

There is no denying that executing the myriad of tasks that I have each and every day, due to the fact that I am a wife, mother, teacher and involved in my church, takes time, energy, organization, patience and then a little more time. And there is also no denying that grabbing the box of chocolates that Carson bought me for Christmas, propping my feet up and zoning off to the most recent episode of Project Runway: Allstars would be a lot less effort.

But unfortunately, at least that I know of, the Lord does not issue calls to watch Project Runway. He does, however, issue a call to rest:

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

I think that is the key that I am missing. I am bearing my own burdens and refusing the rest that I have been offered. I want to create my own rest because I am selfish and power hungry. I want to do things in my own strength so that I can receive the credit.

And there is no denying that following Christ *does* involve taking up a yoke, albeit an easy and light one. It does involve sacrifice on my party. And sacrifice is not missing the latest episode of my favorite show. It involves daily dying to myself, the part that wants to hold onto my pride, and my need for recognition. That part that wants all the good stuff to come from me and all the bad stuff to be someone else's fault.

And it often means doing the right thing, for the right reason, even when I have the wrong attitude. I am a firm believer that when we focus on doing God's will, even without a "cheerful heart" that He will reward us by moving our heart to the right attitude. It is like running: it isn't fun when you get started and are in terrible shape, and out of breath and your knees hurt and you know that the 60 year-old lady who keeps passing you is laughing behind her hand. But you "keep on keepin' on" and you find that it isn't quite as bad as it was. That you are getting faster. That your 13 minute mile shrinks to a 10 minute one and you are proud to wear the title "runner". It might not be fun, even then, but you are seeing the benefits.

But then you (and by you, I mean me) face some hardships. Your knees keep hurting and they won't stop. You give up running and slowly, all the ground you had gained is lost. And you are frustrated. And you decide you are giving it up for good because it isn't easy and you are tired of trying. Because doing the right thing never gets easy- it just can become more of a habit. It is truly a discipline.

We think of discipline so negatively: grounding, writing sentences, all those "tortures" we endured as children. But what we didn't realize is that discipline is something to seek, to desire:

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:11

When I run, I am disciplining myself. When I choose, consciously, and sometimes painfully, to do the right thing, I am allowing myself to be disciplined by the Lord. When I focus on having the "right attitude" I decide that if my attitude is bad, I just shouldn't do something. This says the opposite. It is sometimes painful to do the right thing. I have to sacrifice what the almighty "I" wants and buckle down. When I focus on doing what the Lord has told me is right, then He will bring my attitude back into line through His loving, perfect discipline.

So, it is really about a balance of rest and discipline. Doing the right thing is about focusing on the reward of righteousness and peace that lie on the other side of the pain and frustration of wading through being disciplined. But while I am in the midst of the all the "not funness" of that- I can also remember that I can rest. I am allowed to breath and gather strength through the One that can enable me to do all things. And maybe, like a little child who doesn't want to take a nap, it is realizing that rest is sometimes part of the discipline. Because the rest prepares me for the work that I need to do- and I don't know about you, but sometimes a little nap just makes me a nicer person!

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

(So, today, pretend to sit down with me, and pick your choice: hot chocolate or peppermint mocha, and I will subject you to the wanderings of my mind...)


I am strange. I tried to deny it, but I really have learned it is better to just own it. I love this time of the year. And I am not talking about Christmas. I do love Christmas, but I really get in my groove the day after. It is not just the clearance shopping, either.

I am ready to be refreshed. I spent a whole year working, scheduling, making, breaking and generally just trying to get everything done. I need a new start, a clean slate. I am not much one for making New Year's resolutions-mostly because it is more likely that I *won't* do what I resolve to do, than actually accomplish it!

However, I do really feel like I am getting a wonderful, unblemished gift. If, as Anne of Green Gables would say, "Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it.", then surely a whole year of new tomorrows is as vibrant as a vegetable growing in the garden-full of possibilities!

I know that I don't need the numbers of the year to change to make a fresh start, but there is so much putting away of the old at the change of the year. Throwing away old calendars, packing up Christmas decorations, which leads to house cleaning and a general decision making time. What will I keep and what will I give up to make room for something better? Even stores are making sweeping changes, clearancing out everything from clothes to bathroom soap.

And it just is a whole new year to envision living better and more fully than I did the year before. If this year has been good, how much better can I make the new one?

 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins.”  Mark 2:20-22

I want to pour new wine into my new wineskins! I want to have new clothes, so I don't need to patch the old ones. And I love new- new jeans, new towels, new packages of candy. And that is how the new year feels to me. It is a significant point of change- all perfect and unblemished. And that makes me excited. I get to make changes and learn from the mistakes of the past year. Yes, of course, the coming year will have its share of trials and imperfections. But I get another chance.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43:19

Last year, is so, well, last year! I serve a God of not just second chances, but eternal forgiveness to those who seek it. I am overjoyed at the prospect of my 30th new year- one full of chances, choices, and completely unblemished, fresh with no mistakes in it. I am excited to see all the ways that will be made for me, all the streams that will bubble up unexpectedly. This really is, to me, the most wonderful time of the year. I love a new year!

I will leave you with my favorite "after Christmas" carol (by the way, Boxing Day is celebrated the world over on December 26th)

Boxing Day
(Relient K)

Take it all down
Christmas is over
Do not despair but rather be glad
We had a good year. Now let's have another
Remembering all the good times that we had

Oh no more lights glistening
No more carols to sing
But Christmas it makes way for spring

The hearts of men are bitter and weathered
As cold as the snow that falls from above
But just for one day we all came together
We showed the whole world that we know how to love

Oh no more lights glistening
No more carols to sing
But Christmas it makes way for spring

Oh, remember that Christmas, it makes way for spring.

The Most (Im)Perfect Tree in the World

I have one simple requirement for our Christmas tree. At some point it must have been alive-read: I want a real tree! I don't have a problem with other people having fake trees, but they are not for me. I love the "trouble" of watering the tree every day, I love vacuuming up the needles, I love the irregularity that can only come from having a tree that grew, in the sun and in the rain, until I brought it home.

And this year, I had the perfect plan for obtaining one. The last three years we have been gifted a tree from the Trees for Troops program. The trees have been beautiful- full, tall, gorgeous trees that probably would have cost somewhere between $45- $70 each. One year we even got a Noble fir! Anyway, now that Joel is no longer in the military, we aren't eligble, so I had to re-group.

I had heard that you could cut your own tree through the Forest Service. The permits were only $10! It would be so great, we would all go out together, tramp through the woods, select a wonderful tree and bring it home. I had done it once before with my parents, and it was fantastic memory. Joel purchased our permit and we were all set. It would be Christmas card perfect.

And it all went downhill from there. We had planned to get our tree on Friday, but when I looked at the weather on Wednesday, (when the temperatures were in the 50's) I saw that on Thursday the weather service was calling for the bottom to drop out: temps in the 20's, snow, and lots of wind. Not exactly ideal tree-cutting weather!

So, we decided we would hurry and go on Wednesday afternoon after Joel got out of school. My first mistake was forgetting my camera. Fail. Then we drove up to the forest, and it was beautiful. I wasn't expecting "perfect" trees, so I wasn't surprised by the sparseness of the growth, I was confident we would find a wonderful one.

The kids were not impressed by our nature trek. It was during nap time, so Carson, usually my outdoor lover, was crabby. Jocelyn was tired of walking up and down-it was very hilly. We were having zero success. All the trees were wrong: too small, too tall, too sparse, bare on one side, crooked... I could go on and on. There were a number of other tree hunters out there and they did not seem to be struggling. They were chopping and strapping trees on cars, no problems.

Part of the reason was that they did not seem to have any problems breaking the rules. The permit specifically states the areas where you can cut trees. Also, trees cannot have trunks thicker than 6 inches in diameter, and you are not allowed to "top" trees- they must be cut off near the ground. I was determined to obey the rules (I must have had a greater fear of the $5,000 fine than they did!).

But that was making it hard. Actually impossible. Finally, we found the most likely candidate we had seen. It was the right diameter, although it was far too tall. But we figured we could pare it down once we got it home. We looked around for a while longer, but not having any more success we decided to go for it. Once we cut it, I realized it was even more sparse than I had originally thought. I chose to be optimistic, though.

It was the PRICKLIEST tree I have ever handled. Jocelyn started singing "O Pokey Tree" on the way home! Both Joel and I sustained various injuries- the tree seemed to be fighting to stay in the forest. But we wrangled it onto the truck and got it home.

Where I realized, that to make it fit in our living room, we would need to cut off about three feet. Of the best part. My little sparse tree would be even more sparse once we cut it down to size. We fought to wrap lights on it, getting poked the whole time. And it wasn't like the Christmas movies. It did not magically become more full once the lights were on.

However, I realized something. Our poor little Charlie Brown tree has character. And we had fun getting it. And it is real. So, I can give in to the imaginary expectations that I so often let rule my life, or I can be happy with what I've got.

And I am. I realized that is what I want all of Christmas (and my life for that matter) to be about. Getting to the true meaning and not being ruled by everyone else's expectations- real or imagined! In the end, I have to live with my tree AND my choices. And I want to know that I pleased the Lord and went with the "real" thing (not that I have anything against other people having artificial trees- I am really applying this to other areas of life!) in all areas of my life. Because I have to live with my tree-and my choices-not everyone else.

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:11-13

In the end, I will be called into account for my choices, and I want to know that I have the strength of character to make such wise decisions that I will be proud to defend them when I need to. And also, to have enough confidence in Christ to know that I can be happy being different- even if that sometimes is a little prickly...