Christmas Series

This was originally posted on September 27, 2007. Wow! Over three years ago! Since Christmas is fast approaching, I wanted to revisit this series of posts:

Yes, I know it is early. But for some reason, I am one of those people who begins to thing about Christmas in August, maybe even earlier. I did purchase my Christmas cards in August this year. I actually began jotting down notes for this new series of posts several weeks ago, but I wanted to hold out a little before actually posting on it. So, to begin with, I will share why I enjoy thinking about Christmas so early.

First of all, Christmas is so fun! I like to savor it and I like to start savoring early. Second, the more I plan ahead and do things early, the more enjoyable the holiday season is. I like to give gifts that are a true reflection of my love for and appreciation of a person. It is hard to do that when rushing around at the last minute with pressure to “just find something.” And, budgeting is easier for me, when I spread gift buying out over several months.

This series will be full of Christmas ideas that may be “outside the box” for some people, then again, it may not be anything new to some. Feel free to add ideas or comments. I would love to read them.

My focus will be on several areas, including, but not limited to, reducing the materialistic focus of the holidays, encouraging finding gifts that the receiver will really use and enjoy, focusing on gifts that encourage family unity, and on gifts that are environmentally friendly.

Why am I writing about this? Well, several years ago, at a Christmas at our house, there were so stinkin’ many gifts that C was complaining about opening the remaining gifts she had received. It was ridiculous and obnoxious. There was so much stuff that she was not able to even enjoy anything. Plus, we (M and I) tend to go lighter on gifts, so the gifts from mom and dad weren’t even appreciated once lost in the pile of other gifts that were sent.

After that experience M and I were motivated to make some changes. These changes had to be done delicately because gifts are an important expression of love for some people. We did not want to take away from that, but we knew we needed to set up some direction so that future Christmases were not a greedfest. This series will include many ideas that grew up out of that as well as some new ideas that we are considering.

Stay tuned…more coming soon…=)

Love You Forever

Papa (my dad) and Great-grandma

Great-grandma was reading Love You Forever to the boys when A asked, “Great-grandma, can you hold Papa?”

This post was originally posted on May 31, 2007. Last night my grandma passed away. Due to dementia and the decline my grandma's health, I feel I have been grieving for the last couple of years. Here are some posts about her:

This one is about the pillows I recently sewed.

Our visit to her last Christmas.

A memory that makes me smile.

A memory that makes me cry.

Another memory that makes me cry.

Okay, this one makes me cry too, but I am so thankful that I wrote this stuff down! It is so precious to read today as I am grieving.

This one is sweet and reminds me that the best is yet to come.

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

My Grandma's health has been declining for about 2 years now. In many ways I feel like I lost her quite awhile ago. And, yet, there is still a surprise, a shock when learning that it is done. My parents were alerted on Tuesday afternoon that she was close to death. But what does close mean? It can mean minutes or days or even weeks. In this case it meant a couple of days. She was elderly, her death was not unexpected, but there is still the sting of death. With every death there is the reminder that this isn't what we were created for. And there is the hope, through Christ, that death will one day be no more.

WE ARE ALL WINNERS!

In the past I have had a hard time doing flash cards with my kids. Flash cards don't motivate me. One of my goals this Fall was to regularly do flash card drills with the boys. So far, it is going well. Is it that they are older? Is it that I really want them to be quick with their math facts now? Not sure. But we are working with flash cards on a consistent basis.

The only downside is my hearing loss. What is it about flashing a math problem that makes my boys scream the answer? They don't scream at their math worksheets, but I flip a card and it is full volume. And they stay at full volume and insert other noises (all variety of noises) between cards.

Today, I paused, asking, "Why do you say the answers so loudly?"

"You go faster when you are loud!" Both boys nodded in agreement.

Oh, is that so. Speed is their goal. I can't argue. The point of flash cards is to be fast. Although, maybe sometime we will have a "quiet answer" competition. "Who can whisper the answer the fastest?" Nah. That wouldn't work.

Yup, the entire flash card drill involves lots of noise and movement. The boys swing, bounce, jump all while shouting answers. It is crazy! It drives me up the wall sometimes. But we carry on. Why? Because they are learning math and loving it! They actually ask to do flash cards.

At the end of our flash card drills both boys say, "We are all winners!" Actually, they yell it. It sounds more like, "WE ARE ALL WINNERS!" And it is true. When asked who won the flash card drill, non-competitive me always answers, "Everybody wins. The goal is to improve our math skills and we all improved, therefore we are all winners." For now, they are satisfied with that. Someday, I am sure they will jokingly mimic my voice and say to one another, "We are all winners." But that is okay, there are worse things they could mimic. And since they are satisfied and enjoying math, guess what? We all do win!

For the Love of Tuesday

Tuesday afternoons are when our local food group does deliveries. That means Tuesdays have become the day we go to the library and pick up groceries. I love picking up our groceries, I love planning meals based on what we get, really, what don't I love about it? This simple routine has taken Tuesdays to a new height. A formally average weekday is now a favorite day. And yes, I am aware that I am posting this on a Wednesday.

Perfect Afternoon Snack

This is quite possibly the most delicious filled cookie ever! I think I need to go over to Trader Joe's and buy a few more boxes. Two boxes were apparently not enough...

Art For All Ages

For awhile I have wanted to do an update on our Classical Conversations group. BUT, I have been too occupied doing the CC curriculum to write about it! Truly, I have enjoyed CC, it is an excellent fit for our family, but the first few weeks about knocked me senseless! But I already wrote about that. We are now settling into a swell school routine.

Our routine even allows my kids to attend the Friday homeschool group that they enjoyed last year. It also means I have to squeeze basically all of the CC stuff into three days at home, plus the day we actually go to CC classes. At times, a touch overwhelming. But, overall it is working and we are getting used to it all. I still don't love doing school past noon, but it is okay. I am accepting it. What I do love is that we are finally covering all the subjects I have wanted to cover! In the past, several subjects went by the wayside because I had a hard time fitting everything in in a manageable way. CC is very organized and is superb at making challenging subjects teachable. It has been a huge help to me to have a plan that includes all the essential subjects as well as things like art.

We have done some art in the past. I value it. I wanted to include it more, but didn't always know how to fit it in. Now, we have a weekly art project. It motivates me to make time for it. I no longer feel like art is this random subject that I am trying to grab onto but not sure how to keep a hold of. Now we have a direction, a purpose and a manageable project. C is in a challenge level program, which means that her curriculum is different from the younger kids. Yet, this week during our art time, she still was able to work on her own art project during art time. In fact, I did my own project. That was so fun! In the past, I was so busy directing and managing things that I was able to teach, but not participate. Since CC tutors do the planning, I just set everyone up, turned on an audio story and we all went to work. It was a blissful moment in the midst of crazy full days.

So, school is coming together in a workable way, now if I could only figure out a way to keep up on housework, exercise...and all that other stuff. All that other stuff is not getting done in the way I would like. Sigh...but for today I will strive to be happy with the school routine. I will try to ignore all the stuff that isn't getting done around our house. And when I have a moment maybe I can chip away at all that other stuff. Or maybe I could just sit and read for a bit.

Reflections on Psalm 19:7-12

"The law of the Lord is perfect,

reviving the soul;

the testimony of the Lord is sure,

making wise the simple;

the precepts of the Lord are right,

rejoicing the heart;

the commandment of the Lord is pure,

enlightening the eyes;

the fear of the Lord is clean,

enduring forever;

the rules of the Lord are true,

and righteous altogether.

More to be desired are they than gold,

even much fine gold;

sweeter also than honey

and drippings of the honeycomb.

Moreover, by them is your servant warned;

in keeping them there is great reward.

When the apples fall off of our trees in Autumn, honey bees are right there, diligently nibbling away at the sweet goodness. I love to watch them. It amazes me how close I can get get to them. As I move in to observe how complex even a small little bee is I am amazed at the creativity of God.

This particular bee turned my thoughts to Psalm 19:7-12. Do I pursue God with a diligence even close to the tenacity with which this bee is pursuing this apple? That bee didn't loose focus on the apple, even when I moved in quite close. My assumption, based on past experience, is that if I grabbed the apple, the bee would fly off but hover in the same spot, looking for the apple. Am I that focused in my desire for Christ? Do I look for Him with tenacity even when life is challenging? Do I fill myself up with His truth on a regular basis knowing that He will use my obedience to create a stronger faith?

Just like that bee enjoyed the apple, God's Word is good to take in now. But there is more! The bee will go back to the hive and honey will be produced. My enjoyment of God's Word today, will also produce benefits later. A situation will arise and scripture will come to mind to comfort and guide me. Or I will surprise myself by responding with patience in the midst of frustration. Or I will find myself able to laugh at a situation that previously was too depressing to laugh at. Those surprises are like the honey. They are the benefits that come later after faithfully taking in the Word of God. Those are the surprises that remind me to be humble and grateful, knowing that any of that good stuff in my life is the grace of God in the midst of my daily battle against my own sin.

Stupid People

Last Friday we saw a man driving an old car, in town, with his passenger side door open. At one point he reached to shut it, but it bounced back open. We speculated about what had happened, maybe the door just broke, maybe it had been broken for awhile and the cord he used to keep it shut snapped...then, in a matter of fact tone A said, "Maybe he is just one of those stupid people."

Now the word stupid is not a word that is generally permitted in our home, and I am not passing judgement on this particular individual who was driving with his passenger door open. Maybe there was some problem with the door that he was on his way to attend to, but A did have a point. Sometimes people act stupidly. The word stupid is not to be tossed about carelessly or in a manner that unnecessarily hurts others, but the fact is, sometimes it is the most fitting term to describe what is going on.

Who Needs Shampoo or Deodorant?

Okay, so I need deodorant and with hair that is on the oily side of things, my locks have to be cleansed on a regular basis. The One Change Per Month topic for October is making hair cleanser and deodorant with baking soda. This post contains two more changes that are effective and super cost savers. So, who says being green is expensive or makes you greasy and stinky? Although today my hair is a bit greasy because I did an oil treatment on it. I am home all day, so I tossed it into a ponytail and am letting it absorb the moisturizing goodness.

Some months back, I decided to use baking soda to cleanse my hair. I didn't tell anyone, just gave it a try. It worked really well. But my skepticism remained. It just seemed weird. Even weirder than my switch, a few years ago, from regular shampoo to a shampoo bar. But I kept at it, cleansing my hair every other day with baking soda, rinsing with an apple cider vinegar rinse and using my shampoo bar about once a week. This routine is working well. I do still use commercial hair products on my hair after cleansing it and I have no plans to give them up. My hair needs a little something to help it out.

Here is a post that gives a cool video tutorial on mixing up baking soda and water to use for hair cleansing. At this point, I mix mine up each time I use it. I take a cup, shake a little baking soda into it, add water, mix and pour over my hair. Easy. But, I like the idea of mixing it ahead of time and maybe even adding some essential oils or herbs. This post shows the hair of Stephanie, from the video above, one year after making the switch to cleansing with baking soda. This one year later picture gave me hope that I wasn't doing long term damage to my hair.

In less than 3 years I have gone from this to now having 5 items (shampoo bar, vinegar rinse, facial soap, scrub and a bottle of conditioner that I use once a week) that are just mine in the shower. Guess what? My hair is fine and my life is simpler and my budgeted amount for personal products has gone down. Way down.

While on the subject of baking soda...I mixed up my own deodorant. Again, I was skeptical. There is only one brand of natural deodorant that works for me. And by works I mean it keeps me from being stinky. Natural deodorants don't work as antiperspirants. So, if you want to go natural in this area, you have to accept that your body sweats. For a reason. It isn't natural to stop that. If you want to stop sweating, natural deodorant products may not be a good choice. I save my antiperspirants for special occasions.

Here are a couple versions of the deodorant that I made:

• This post shares some initial skepticism about this recipe and a final positive verdict after 12 weeks of use.
• Pretty much the same recipe, but less wordy.
• Nice photo tutorial using the same basic recipe. This version includes 10 drops of essential oils. Any combination of essential oils can be used. I used lavender, a touch of patchouli and a touch of tea tree and a touch of a citrus. I think I used sweet orange.

Call me a coward, but I mixed up the deodorant and stuck it in my cupboard. I didn't think it would work so I was waiting for a day to test it, a day when I wouldn't mind stinking. Finally, I tested it out. It seemed to work. Really well. I kept using it. I packed it when I went to Vegas, used it on a 97 degree day where I spent several hours sight seeing, walking in the heat and followed that with a work out in the hotel fitness center. NO STINK! Honestly. M even did a sniff test after much pleading on my part. I needed a second opinion. What if I just couldn't smell my own stink? He agreed, no stink!

The downsides:

• This deodorant leaves white marks on clothes. Let it sit on the skin a bit to minimize this. Any white can be wiped off with a damp washcloth.
• DO NOT apply to freshly waxed armpits. Just don't. Trust me. It burns like CRAZY. I wait about 24 hours after waxing before using this. If you are new to trying this, test out a small bit to make sure your skin is not too sensitive.

A Brief Episode of Eco-Friendliness and Exercise

This morning I awoke, went through the typical morning routine of getting dressed, dressing kids, eating, putting a load of laundry in the washer and preparing the kids for their Friday homeschool group. I put 2 coffee tumblers into my bag. The kids and I hopped on our bikes and I took the kids to their group. After saying goodbyes, L and I went to get drinks in our own coffee tumblers. A pumpkin spice latte for me and a pumpkin spice steamer for her. Happy October 1!

What a beautiful eco-friendly scene we were. Yet, how rare this sort of event is. I like the idea of biking whenever we can, but more often than not we take the van. It is habit. It is faster than biking to errands with young children who may struggle to keep a consistent pace on their bikes. It is less hassle than hooking up the bike trailer if it needs to be hooked up. Sometimes it is too hot to bike, sometimes it is too cold. Other times there isn't a convenient place to lock up the bike while I run errands. Then there are the situations where the bike trailer isn't large enough to haul items I need to buy. Excuses, some legitimate, some not.

I like the idea of taking our own tumblers when we get coffee. But, honestly, we rarely buy coffees. And this is the first time I actually brought my own cup. I hope I do it again sometime.

The only reason we biked today is that M took the van to work. His car is in the shop. That left me and the kids with our bikes. Me, who complains that I often don't have time to squeeze in exercise. So, out of necessity, we biked. As a result, I got a nice bit of exercise. The kids were thrilled to be biking to their class and I was once again reminded that sometimes inconveniences push us to live the life we really want to be living but aren't motivated to live on our own when a more convenient option sits in the driveway.