lately: Christmas for the win

Last week was a little rough.

It started with a short (praise the Lord) flu bug for James and ended in a nasty case of mastitis for me. In between there was lots to do and lots of busyness, lots of messes piled on messes, exhaustion, and some frustration.

Nothing horrible. Just a little rough.

It is all a sacrifice, which we moms know, of course. The sacrifice of our bodies with so many little people constantly needing it- needing to be fed, to be held, to be carried, to be cared for. The sacrifice of our time, when there seems so much to do, but no time to get anything done. The sacrifice of our home being clean and orderly and beautifully decorated.

You more experienced mother's don't have to tell me. I know: it is a season, it will be gone in the blink of an eye, I will look back on these days and miss them...

And so I sit down in the middle of the mess to play dolls, or build Legos, or read one more story. I ignore the dishes, the laundry, the clutter to have a wild dance party. I give another hug, have another snuggle at five'o'clock with no dinner in the oven and two children laying on me. I wake up to the cries of three littles wanting to get into bed with me, or eat, or go potty, or needing a drink of water, or their sheets and jammies changed due to an accident.

I throw open the Christmas decor boxes and let the kids go to town, resulting in a very busy mantel, lights everywhere, and a tree that was clearly decorated by people well under five feet tall. (I told a friend recently: "It looks as though our house got in a fight with Christmas, and Christmas won.")

I know that there is no better use of my body, my time, and my house. The Lord gave these things to me to give to my family. And despite the lack of sleep, the frustrations that may come, and the disorderly state of the house, my family is the greatest earthly blessing and joy I could ever have.

Happy second-to-last-weekend-before-Christmas!
Ashley

Some posts from a year ago:
our Advent activity calendar
wonders of His love
and (what a nerd) trying to decide what to wear for date night

the great christmas take-down of 2013

If your Christmas was anything like mine, it made its way to the far reaches of your home- seemingly erupting in every nook and cranny. And if you are like me, you looooooove Christmas and all the decor it brings, but when it's over you are more than relieved to take it all down.

Last night I decided to de-Christmas our home after the kids went to bed. I also decided to reorganize the four gigantic boxes of holiday paraphernalia that we have accumulated.

In my organizational fantasies I have large, well-labeled, stack-able plastic boxes, perhaps with compartments or more well-labeled boxes within them. Truthfully, I actually just have some big cardboard boxes that are falling apart.

In order to keep organized and to keep things from breaking I had to get creative with the resources left to me (aka the recycling bin and wrapping paper still strewn all over the floor). I want to share just a few tips, but really I am hoping that I can gain some tips also. So, here are a few of my decor packing ideas that you may want to utilize:

Pack ornaments in beer boxes. The little compartments are perfect for breakable ornaments and you can load lighter, more durable ornaments on top. The little tins and sturdy boxes everyone gave you cookies and candies in are also great for ornaments.

Wrap strings of lights around toy boxes. James' duplos set and new art supplies came in just the right size boxes to wrap lights around. This way, they will be all ready to unwind and string up next year.

Wrap fragile decorations in used tissue paper and wrapping paper. I don't know a lot of people who still receive the newspaper, and I usually don't have packing peanuts lying around. What I do have the day after Christmas is loads and loads of crumpled wrapping paper. Perfect for wrapping the fragile ornaments.

I would love to hear your holiday put-away ideas!
Ashley

the inconvenience of christmas

Yes, this is yet another introspective Christmas post. Brace yourselves.

I have (obviously) been thinking a lot about all that goes into Christmas. And, if we were all quite honest with ourselves, we would have to admit that this holiday is extremely inconvenient.

In the midst of getting stuck in traffic, absurdly long lines at Costco, thinking of gifts to buy, putting up a bunch of ribbon and lights and an entire tree in our homes only to take it all down a month later- we begin to lose sight of why we are putting all this effort in and going to such great lengths. Can't we just bake a cake on the 25th, sing "Happy birthday Jesus" and be done with it?

Let's look at how convenient it was for Mary: She got married, and then an angel came to her and explained that she would have a painless birth of a non-colicky baby boy in an elegant suite at the Heathman, with multitude of medical professionals surrounding her... right?

Oh, wait, let's look at what really happened.

First of all, Mary wasn't married. It may be more acceptable in our culture, but in those days we know that this was a little more than an inconvenience. This was something that society ridiculed Mary and her husband-to-be for, and I'm sure it didn't end when she had the baby.

So then, let's look at the birth and the time leading up. Ladies who have been pregnant, we all know what we want to do at 9+ months: we want to lie on the couch until the labor begins. Would we want to be traveling long distances on the back of a donkey? I think not. And what about the labor and delivery? How about in a barn, surrounded by animals? I am so surprised by how many of James' Christmas books say that Mary and Joseph found a "warm, clean stable". I actually had to go check my Bible. Nothing about "warm" or "clean" in there. Truthfully, I doubt the inn-keeper, in the madness of people coming from all over and needing places to stay, thought to go turn on the space heater and throw in some clean hay just in case someone were to give birth in his barn that night.

The circumstances surrounding Jesus' birth were exceptionally inconvenient for his parents. They had to travel, the delivery took place in a pile of hay surrounded by livestock, and then some men who had been sleeping out in the fields wandered in, saying they had been told to come check out the newborn baby. How frustrating and annoying for Mary and Joseph, right? God tells them that they are going to have a baby and then He seemingly makes it as difficult as possible on them. And what does Mary do?

"But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." 

Luke 2:19

Do you suppose Mary began to put the pieces together? The Lamb of God was born in a stable, where sheep are kept. The Lamb of God was visited by shepherds.

These inconveniences all had a purpose: to bring a Savior into the world and to reveal His identity as the Lamb.

So as we battle the parking lot of the mall, and plug in all the twinkle lights again, and stay up late making cookie dough and wrapping gifts, may we look to it not as an inconvenience, but may we treasure this time in our hearts- the time to celebrate the Savior's birth and to reveal His identity as the Lamb to the world around us.

Happy five days 'til Christmas!
Ashley

ten things I do to make my kids' christmas magical

Christmas is huge for me.

It always has been. I love the smells, the sounds, the sights, the joy, the hustle, the bustle. Growing up I always knew two things about my adult life: I wanted kids and I wanted my kids to love Christmas as much as I do.

Christmas in itself does not need to be made more special or more magical. It is already of extreme significance because we are celebrating the birth of Jesus.

I want my kids to get that.

I want them to feel the relevance and joy of the celebration. I want them to realize that it is about our Savior's birth, and that He was born for them. I want the festivities to center around Jesus, but be for my kids. This means a little laying down of my own desires (isn't all of parenthood laying down of our own desires?)- the desires for an elegantly decorated tree, money to buy fabulous gifts for everyone I know, beautifully wrapped packages, gourmet dinner parties- these all must be surrendered in order to show my children that the season of celebration includes them.

Here are a few things that I believe make Christmas a little more magical for them:

1. let them deck the halls There is no perfect, themed Christmas decor around here. Colors abound, ornaments are primarily shoved into one main section on the tree, a countless amount of small cloth stockings are daily scattered across the floor by Eleanor... But it is all worth it to hear James proudly declare to me: "I decorated our whole house for Christmas!"

top photo: a lego airplane was added to the mantel display

bottom photo: James' understated, yet tasteful, holiday table centerpiece

2. display their Christmas crafts around the house James' snowflakes are on the windows, his finger-print light strand on the wall, homemade ornaments on the tree, and his graham cracker house displayed atop the fridge so that he can't eat it.

3. cultivate thankful hearts The best way for me to do this is like everything else: model it for them. So I express my gratitude for what I have, and I do not harp on what I would like. (The truth of the matter is that I really do have all I could want or need.) I protect their hearts from consumerism by not putting an emphasis on the gifts. I have an idea of what James may want, but he doesn't write lists and we don't talk about all the gifts he will receive on Christmas day. Instead, we talk about how fun it will be to see our family and spend time together celebrating Jesus' birth. When he does receive gifts, we write thank-you cards and talk about how special the gifts are, and how grateful we are for the people who gave them to us.

4. set the mood I try to think of all the senses: Christmas music playing, bells on door handles, pine scented candles, fire in the fireplace, twinkle lights... James likes to plug the lights in for me, and he always requests Christmas music. (We also have a special Christmas dance party mix for when we needs upbeat music for doing "crazy moves".)
As always, the most important mood to set is my own. If I am cheerful and excited, they will be as well.

5. help them give This certainly goes hand-in-hand with #3. James has a gift to give to Eleanor and he helped me wrap the presents to give to his cousins. We made ornaments for neighbors and went around the neighborhood spreading Christmas cheer. I try to make giving fun for him, and I stress the importance of sharing the abundance of what we have with those less fortunate.

6. decorate their bedroom It doesn't have to be fancy. James has his cloth Advent calendar hanging on the wall, paper snowflakes on the window, and a ribbon hanging up that he helped me tape Christmas cards onto. It is simple, but festive.

7. activity Advent calendar It may seem a little overwhelming at first, but it actually helps me to have something special planned for each day.

8. involve them in the hustle and bustle (but don't burn them out) Christmas is not a season to get everything done without the kids so that Christmas day will be Norman Rockwell-picture perfect. It is a time to engage with my children and spend special time with the family. So I take them to the post office, have James help me wrap gifts, set him on the counter to help me cook... The busyness is part of the fun, unless it burns out the kids. If they seemed overwhelmed or get sick, we don't just continue to run errands and meet up for play dates anyway. Instead, we stick close to home, we adjust our schedule, and we rest as much as possible.

9. go walkin' in a winter wonderland Outdoor time is so important to me. It becomes even more important when it looks like Christmas may have thrown up in my home and I need a little natural simplicity. Also very important when beautiful, wintry weather hits. We had snow early this year and it actually stuck due to unusually low temperatures. It took me 45 minutes to get the kids ready to go outside. We stayed out for fifteen minutes. But the memories were made and the house felt even cozier once we were back in and dry.

10. tell the story of the first Christmas We do this each morning over breakfast (this is our usual Bible story time). I started to act it out with little wooden figurines that used to belong to Lane and his brother when they were kids. We have several story books of the first Christmas, but James' favorite has become a pop-up version which will most likely not survive this season without some maple-syrup fingerprints.
I do this because I want them to have context. I want them to know why we are sending out cards, giving gifts, decorating a tree we put inside our house, eating way more sugar than usual: because Jesus was born, and He was born for them.

What are some ways you make your kids' holiday magical? What were ways your parents used to make it a special time of year? I would love to hear!

Merry magical Christmas time!
Ashley

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6 

five gifts for the hostess

From Cup to Cup's 2013 Holiday Gift Guide: We believe that gift-giving should be done out of joy and excitement for the holiday season, and out of love for the recipient of our gifts, rather than the obligatory consumerism that so often plagues this time of year. It is our genuine hope that this guide will be helpful in finding just the right present to bestow upon the special people in your life. 

Growing up, my family was always invited to the most splendid Christmas Eve open house. The hosts were were caterers and vintners, meaning this party was completely centered around the kitchen. I looked forward to the warmth of their home, the incredible food, and conversations with people each year... and I secretly wished a cute boy would kiss me under the mistletoe!

Now that I'm a real grown-up (28 tomorrow- hello!) I am longing for the days that I can host a real Christmas open house, booze, hors d'oeurves, mistletoe and all, that no one really needs an invitation to because it is always on. For now, since we practically live in a shoebox, I'll have to content myself with hosting small gatherings and attending other people's parties.

So we don't all come empty-handed to these holiday functions we are all bound to attend at some point, I've put together a round-up of hostess gifts that I think any gal would love to receive.

Aveda Hand Relief, $22.50, for the very softest hands. It feels like velvet!

2014 Calendar Dishtowel, $36, because it's pretty and practical.

Handmade felt mistletoe, $21, because it's prettier than the real thing, and who doesn't love getting kissed?

Tiny triangle earrings, $12, to adorn her ears with geometry.

An ash wood cutting board, $20-$56, because how cool is that?

go make someone happy (and order quickly because it's almost Christmas!), Katie

ten on ten: december

It's so easy, especially as a mama of a young one, to let the days blur together and get bogged down in the mundane: the diaper changes and feedings and oh no! the pacifier fell on the floor again. It has been a challenge for me to find beauty even in these moments of life, to recognize that God has engineered each day and is there in the midst of it all, and to thank him for it.

Have you read One Thousand Gifts? This book really spoke to me: the concept of eucharisteo, of letting every breath be one of praise and thanksgiving, that this might be the posture from which we live our lives. Not easy to do but so worth the effort, if we can only find a way!

My friend Rebekah who blogs at A Bit of Sunshine has a very lovely exercise accomplishing just this that has kind of blown up on the internet, which I have been meaning to join in with for about a year but kept remembering at the wrong time. Her challenge is to take a photo an hour, for ten hours, on the tenth of each month to capture the beauty in the every day (what we here at FC2C call ordinary joys). Read more about Ten on Ten here. 

I finally remembered, and had such a fun day capturing the beauty all around me! Here is my set from today:

Would you ever join in? I would love to see your photos!

xo Katie

toddler gift guide

From Cup to Cup's 2013 Holiday Gift Guide: We believe that gift-giving should be done out of joy and excitement for the holiday season, and out of love for the recipient of our gifts, rather than the obligatory consumerism that so often plagues this time of year. It is our genuine hope that this guide will be helpful in finding just the right present to bestow upon the special people in your life. 

Rule number one about buying gifts for toddlers (apparently I am dishing out rules in this “guide” because I’m bossy like that): Do not buy flashy toys.*

I know what you are thinking. “Say whaaat? Loud, light-up toys are what every toddler dreams of, asks for, and loves to receive.” And you would be correct. They love to receive these toys. They love to tear off the wrapping paper and look at the sweet action pictures on the box and imagine all the cool things their toy could do. Yet, once the adult in their lives has hacked away at the eighty five twisty ties and plastic wrap –impenetrable by human hands- with keys and pocket knives, and has finally delivered the toy into the eager grasps of the child, it will be played with… for, maybe a day. Then the child will become bored with the toy and wander around the house to eventually find the box the toy came in, and then proceed to play with the box for longer than they did the toy.

So, moral of the story, give the toddler a cardboard box. The End.

No, just kidding.

In my opinionated opinion, the best gifts can be put into three categories: memories to be made, gifts that keep giving, and practical stuff.

Category #1: Memories to be made. Oh the possibilities! I will try not to go too far into my own imagination on this one, since this post is getting too long already. But this can include a special day or outing with the little one, or passes to anywhere: zoo, children’s museums, aquariums, Lego Land Germany… For Portlanders there is OMSI, the Children’s Museum, the Oregon Zoo, or the increasingly-sketchy Portland aquarium. Last year we gave my cousins and their two young children a day pass for the four of them to visit the Children’s Museum. I considered myself an awesome gift-giver for that one.

Category #2: Gifts that keep giving. This could be a subscription to Kid’s National Geographic’s (James is a society member, and loves receiving the magazines in the mail, then immediately pouring through them), books, or a gift you make. I adore children’s books to an odd degree and could go on for quite some time about all the titles you should own and read, regardless of your age or parental status. Another post perhaps. An added bonus with books is that you can find them inexpensive online, or even used. A gift you created could include photo books, art, or a blanket or item of clothing. The toddler will enjoy them now, but really cherish the value and effort in these homemade gifts later in life.

Category #3: Practical stuff. Ask parents what the child needs- particularly in the areas of clothes and art supplies. This stuff can be fun to pick out, but not always fun for the parents to have to buy, so gifts in this category are greatly appreciated.

There you have it: the official Toddler Gift Guide for the holidays, 2013. Did I nail it? Was this helpful for you? What do you give (or planning to give) to the toddlers in your life? I would love to hear your thoughts!

*I should probably state for all of you who take offense to Rule #1 that I believe there are exceptions to all rules. When all that your little grandson Jackson or niece Ava has been talking of and pining after is something that was made in a plastics factory in China and requires multiple batteries, well, I understand.
In fact, my children have been given many light-up, singing, bright toys with moving parts that I keep on rotation. What I mean by “rotation” is that these toys stay up in closets and are brought down every once in awhile until I can no longer stand the music they make. Or until my kids stop playing with them, which, surprisingly, often happens first. More evidence to my theory that backs Rule #1.
My advice is to ask the parents before buying a toy like this, even if the child has you convinced they need it. Also, there are some wonderful, non-flashy toys out there. James has been given many great toys, such as his stick horse, Ever Earth wooden workbench (similar here), and some well made cars and trucks that are not obnoxious, he plays with all the time, and he will have for years to come.

Happy Gifting!
Ashley

and wonders of his love

Our family decided to brave the cold and go in search of a Christmas tree Tuesday night. Conveniently for us, anything south of where we live is Damascus, which is farm land and tree farm territory. So we had to drive about three minutes to get to a you-cut tree farm.

The sunsets have been pretty spectacular around here lately, and Tuesday was no exception. We arrived at the farm as the sun said its farewell in pink and gold. After explaining what we were looking for to the friendly tree farm owners, they pointed out the best spot in their yard (because the farm was, in fact, their yard) for us to search. Undoubtedly they knew what they were talking about as we chose the first tree we came across. Lane quickly chopped it down and we took it back to the barn to have it shaken and baled.

As we stood in line we chatted happily, James drank hot cider, and Christmas music played over a loud speaker. I danced around to try to keep warm and keep Eleanor entertained in the front pack (she decidedly does not like cold weather). The song "Joy to the World" came on. I sang along:

He rules the world with truth and grace

And makes the nations prove

The glories of His righteousness

And wonders of His love...

Suddenly that line hit me.

"Wonders of His love." I feel like they are all around me, all the time. These wonders that display His love so subtly and yet without a doubt, and that is the perfect term for them.

a beautiful sunset.. the smell of freshly cut doug fir... an excited toddler and snuggly baby... hot cider...

...and wonders of His love...

The next day Eleanor woke up early and still tired from her nap. I brought her out to the living room and sat down on the couch. James cuddled up next to me with a book for us to read and she fell back asleep on me. We spent a rare, but sweet half hour curled up on the couch together- Elle sleeping and James and I reading stories. He put some stickers in his story-coloring book while I basked in the moment.

The tree made me smile. For obvious reasons, all the ornaments had to be hung three feet and up (especially silly looking on a five foot tree), and they are mostly clumped in one spot due to our decorator being three and a half years old. Our home is certainly not glamorous, but as I sat and looked around at our family photos, James' art, and toys everywhere, I felt an overwhelming gratitude for that place and that moment.

my sleeping baby... our hideous Christmas tree... James' art... our warm home... a moment of rest...

...and wonders of His love...

And then that night, after a long day, I was in the basement attempting to keep the kids' occupied while I waited for Lane to get home. He was late, dinner was late, and I was exhausted. We were throwing beach balls and running around to get out some energy when I glanced outside.

One brilliant star and a perfect, bright crescent moon shown in the sky, lighting up the pond behind our house. I called James over. "Look at the moon and the Christmas star." I said (it could have been a satellite for all I know). "Do you think it is the same star that guided the wise men after baby Jesus was born?" His eyes filled with wonder, he nodded and smiled his big goofy grin.

the moon to light up the night... an awe-filled child... the star of Bethlehem, telling of our Savior's birth...

...and wonders, and wonders

of His love.

Here's to a wonder-filled Christmas season,

Ashley