A Virtual Card for You

The card will go out late this year. It's one of those things that I wasn't going to stress over. But, we got it done. I bribed the kiddos with a frosted sugar cookie at 11:00am yesterday and they did pretty good in letting me take a few pictures.

"Happy Holidays" encompasses Christmas and New Years (and was the only word combination that would fit in that narrow strip). So just to be clear, I'm not avoiding the word "Christmas." Because you know me by now, right? Christ is most definitely who we are celebrating in just two days!

So although many of you may not receive this card in your mailbox, know that I am grateful for all of you who stop by this blog, who encourage me, and who inspire me through your blogs.

Thank you.

And Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours...

Just saying hello with a few of my favorite things this time of the year...and although none of it is perfect, it is beautiful.

Christmas in the morning...

Christmas at night...

Father and son...

First taste of snow....

 Building a snow man without help...  

Sun going down...

These four...and fun in not getting the perfect picture....

 

 Wishing you all a joy-filled Christmas!

Sharing with Katherine's Corner, Imperfect Prose and Grace Cafe

Experiencing Christmas with All Five Senses

Sitting on the couch wrapped in your hubby’s arms or with a little one wrapped in yours, peering at the Christmas lights with the scent of a pine candle burning, sipping eggnog, and the soft sound of Christmas music filling the air.

Bundled up in outdoor gear feeling the crisp cold air on your cheeks, noticing the smiles on little one’s faces and listening to the laughter and squeals that fill the scent of fresh air as you run through the snow with them, then trudging back into the warm house for a cup of hot cocoa.

Feeling the warmth of soup cooking and hearts giving by serving in a soup kitchen, with the aroma of savory abundance; hearing the chit chat of the string of people as they walk through the line, looking into the eyes of a stranger, and tasting the same communal soup that each one in the room partakes of.

It’s not just in baking those cookies, or putting up the tree, or listening to angelic music, or going to that party that truly brings us in step with the spirit of Christmas. What I have found helps in experiencing a spirit of Christmas, in calm or chaos, is experiencing these moments fully, with all five of our senses working together.

Because our senses are how we experience our world and, with them, we can experience more fully the spirit of this season with those around us. And isn’t that what the spirit of Christmas is truly about? relationship? Engaging in family and community, what ever that may look like for you, in celebration of the greatest gift of all – Jesus – so that we can be in relationship with God through him?

However, we can only fully experience this when we choose not to let the tidal wave of the season carry us away from being present to the moment. And in order to do this? to experience Christmas with all five senses? We have to be willing to slow down, cross out a couple unnecessary demands, and engage in the moments that are offered us.

I heard a message last week, where the speaker shared this scripture and reiterated that God wants to "bless our socks off!" He emphasized that where our wildest imagination stops, God's blessings begin:

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ...Ephesians 3:17b-18

God is so much bigger than our hustle and bustle, and in spite of ourselves, He wants to bless us this season more than we can even imagine, let alone make happen!

We have six days to anticipate Jesus' coming and then another twelve to celebrate His birth. Are we possibly at a point where we can slow down enough to be intentional about receiving Him?

My prayer for us this season is that we all may experience peace and joy as we engage all that we see, hear, smell, taste and feel fully in the moments. And may we recognize it when our Savior takes these moments to bless our socks off!

Sharing with Finding Heaven, The Wellspring, Graceful, Seedlings in Stone, and Chatting at the Sky

Finding Joy in the Moments

It's just after lunch when I say to the three-year-old, Drew, and 20 month-old, Madeline, who are aimlessly wandering at this point, "It's nap time!" Instantly both squeal and run away from me. And normally I might simply catch up to them, snatch them up and get them to where they need to be.

But today, I begin to run after them, a little too slow to catch them, taunting them, because I am finding delight in their squeals and sudden ambitions. We run in circles through the house, all with big smiles and anticipation.

They finally run into a dead end in the guest room bathroom, a walk-in shower, and hide behind the shower curtain. I peak in and they scream and I leave enough room for them to run past me again.

Another round, then I slow down and ask if they are ready to go to sleep now. Madeline, with as much enthusiasm as she had running, throws her arms up toward me. And Drew, he grabs his blankie, pops his thumb in his mouth and walks into my open arm, resting his head on my shoulder.

All is quiet now--

 and a bit joyful, simply for these moments. 

{photos could be better, but I grabbed the camera while running past it and it really wasn't about capturing the picture, just the moment...even though I like to try...}

Sharing with Chatting at the Sky, Imperfect Prose, and Grace Cafe

On Community and (in)RL

It amazes me how much our world is evolving i.e. ipads, texting, kindles, and blogs and I tend to poo-poo on change because I'm less in the know and I don't like not knowing what these advances will bring. Will they bring families and communities together or will they push them further a part?

But, then there is this, (in)courage. A community of women - thousands of women, who are striving for the same things I am, are passionate about the things I am, and are encouraging and supporting one another through their blog space.

This blogsphere has been an eye-opening experience for me. As soon as I think I must be the only one who is thinking, doing, or believing something, I see over and over again, through other amazing women across the globe, how wrong I am. And I'm encouraged, and mentored, and inspired by them repeatedly.

And it reminds me that you and I can make a small difference in this ever-changing, yet present world we live in today.

So although I value speaking to, seeing, and feeling a person in real life, this advancement simply cannot be ignored because it is making an impact on my small world and what this community, (in)courage, is offering now can make in impact on yours, too, in real life.

Here is the nuts and bolts of it (would you pause the music to the left before watching this clip and maybe even grab a tissue):

It's this wild idea to take community seeded online through (in)courage and find a way to grow it into real life friendships off line. So on April 28, 2012 we're planning a day of worldwide (in)courage meetups for women to bravely step into new friendships right wherever in the world they are. {There are already 164 meetups planned globally!} And (in)courage will be providing a webcast for everyone to tune into.

For more details click here.

How We Incorporate Santa Claus

I didn't grow up believing in Santa Claus. For us, it was all about Jesus and that was good. It was necessary. and it was the hard times that taught us what Christmas was really about.

Sisters wrapping our own favorite toys in shirts and night gowns to put under the tree because there was nothing under the tree that year and Santa wasn't coming. But we had each other and we had Jesus, and still do.

Yet, we were kids - mere children - and we felt the weight of the world that year, and learned early on that Christmas was not about the luxuries, but about being together and giving of ourselves.

It was in those tough times that the gift of Jesus was made most real to us.

And I want my children to know Jesus more than anything in this world. But I also want them to experience the joys of childhood; the excitement of the unknown, the mystery of Santa Claus. Yes! We do that here. I enjoy my children using their imaginations, believing in possibilities and impossibilities. A luxury that doesn't define Christmas for us, but one we delight in giving.

Is it a lie? Will they think Jesus a lie, too?

To the contrary, I believe that when our children figure out that Santa Claus does not really ride through the sky and swoosh down chimney's, that they will understand that Santa may not be the real mystery but in the same way they put a child's faith in the unseen with Santa Claus, they can put their faith in the unseen King of kings. and He will be seen on a cloud in the sky and He is miraculously right here with us.

How do I know they'll believe that Jesus is real after the bomb of Santa Claus is dropped (I hear it is much more subtle than that)? Because we live it every day in this house. And I believe they know from the very depths of their being what and who is real even at their ripe, young age. Especially at their ripe, young age.

And maybe that is why it is not such a let down when they are old enough to know Santa is not real. Maybe somewhere deep they've always known or at least longer than they have wanted to admit.

And so, yes, we do Santa Claus here. But, we do Jesus bigger. We work harder to remember He is the reason for the season and it really is his birthday we are celebrating. And we talk about why we give gifts - because Jesus gave us the greatest gift of all. And just like we give others wrapped presents, we can give others Jesus, too.

We talk about St. Nicholas and how Santa has evolved from this real man who lived a life of serving Christ by looking after the children and giving to the needy.

And right now, we have a tree full of wrapped presents underneath. Nothing yet that we have bought, but rather our children's own things that they have wrapped for each other. Because, yes, they like to see gifts under the tree. But, also because they, too, know the joy of giving.

And we understand that there are needy in this world, and that Santa may not be able to reach those who are the very most in need. And we try to do our part by giving to a family. And we pray for those who do not have the luxury of simple childhood joys. And we realize this all just points right back to Christ anyway because without him, in spite of all of the gifts we receive under the tree, we really have nothing and in him we actually have everything.
::

continuing to count gifts of gratitude...

these times where money has no measure
finding the joy in giving
completing Christmas shopping
a game of Sorry with the 5 and 7 year-old
our Jesse Tree devotions
early morning couch time
creating the opportunities to listen to hearts speak

chaos...this...and finding peace in the moments

Working my way to 1000 gifts of gratitude and beyond and sharing with A Holy Experience,  Finding Heaven, On, In and Around Mondays, and At The Wellspring

On The Fruit of Our Labor

I need milk. Get me milk, mom.

How do you ask?

I need milk.

Say 'Please.'

Please.

Say 'may I please have milk?'

May please I milk?

Over and over, day after day, I gently coach the just turned three-year-old on how to ask politely and it doesn't seem he's ever going to get it.

And so many things we teach and train our children can seem in vain. Things less obvious than "please" and "thank you" and more treacherous and draining in persistence. The seeds we plant don't appear to be growing and it is easy to give up or to let it go for a while.

Growing anything from soil or dust just doesn't seem to be the business of instant gratification like we want, even expect sometimes.

And it is I who may see a dry and shriveling plant in my house that I had let go and it is my inclination to toss it out, be done with it, start over. Yet it is my husband who has taught me that watering and nurturing will bring life back to any plant that has roots grounded in soil.

And so we do the mundane. the ordinary. the repetition in the watering. nurturing. training.

And then yesterday morning the boy offers me a piece of fruit so scrumptious that I forget my labor.

May I please have milk, mommy?

I about jump out of my pants and I cannot praise him enough.

And I delight in that small fruit and am thankful that I didn't expect less because I thought my child incapable, but rather expected more because I believed it, that watered seeds in good soil will produce fruit in due time.

And it's the fruit of our labor, as parents, that is worth every mundane, ordinary, and repetitive action. This is what we must do. This is our sacrifice. We offer up the mundane and believe that the fruit will come.

::
continuing to count gifts of gratitude...

the repetition of the boy potty training and now going to the potty on his own
spills on the floor, carpet, counter, table that I teach him how to clean up
putting the tree up
advent devotions
truly trusting the fruit beyond please and thank you
a man that I deeply love and respect, to share in all of the beautiful sacrifices we choose to make

Plugging away to 1000 gifts of gratitude and beyond and sharing with A Holy Experience,  Finding Heaven, Graceful, On, In and Around Mondays, and At The Wellspring