~3~

"At Christmas, all roads lead home." ~Marjorie Holme

Isn't this so true?! I know for me, at Christmas time I always reflect on my childhood. I miss it, and if I think hard enough about it, it is as if I go there somehow. There are no memories quite like the fond memories of Christmas as a child.

~4 Days To Go!~

"Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fire-side and his quiet home! "~Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers, 1836


This quote really stands out to me. There is no memory and  no time like when I was a child at Christmas time. Sometimes I really miss those days and the excitement and joy this time of year brought to me. But, now I can enjoy it through my children's excitement!

A Simple Holiday??

Is it even possible? 


The thought of a nice simple holiday for some families is a far off dream :-)  I know for my family , we have always done a big Christmas dinner with all the family coming to one house. Usually my Mom's house since her home is the biggest. It is always a fun time and I really love being with all the family on Christmas...since we do not see each other much throughout the year. However, it can be a bit much at times with hosting, cooking, cleaning, decorating, dessert...you name it. By the end of the night...my folks are wiped out and so are we! A fun time for sure...but is there ANY way to still get together with everyone...still have a lovely time gathering for gifts and laughs and food..without all of that stress? 


Before today, I would not be able to create this post...due to not really knowing how to simplify the holiday other then staying at home. I know some families that do that. They go to one parents house on Christmas eve...then to the other the day after Christmas or even the following or previous weekends. But on Christmas Day they stay put. I would LOVE to do that one year...but alas we must see family , it just would not be right! Well, some things will be a bit different this year for our family on Christmas Day. 


Due to my folks being unemployed for almost 2 years now and the stress that goes along with that, they are not up to hosting Christmas dinner this year. My mom expressed just wanting a "simple" holiday with a light dinner. Well, we came up with a "simple" plan and I am actually excited about it! 


We moved to a new town this year , so we are about 1 hour and 30 mins from each of our parents homes. There is no way to have a nice calm Christmas morning at our house and then get to each parents house for a lovely dinner and gifts. We would be so rushed and stressed and this would go against everything we want and value in our family. So, with the graciousness of my Mother-in-law who is one of the kindest gentlest women I know, she is ok with having our family visit her on Christmas eve day! We will have our Christmas on that day with her. I tell you, I am so blessed by her! I only hope and pray I can follow in her lead and be that kind of mother -in-law to my future Daughter in laws.  We will be able to have a nice calm Christmas morning with our boys on Saturday and then head off to my Mom's house for a relaxing dinner with just our family and her and her husband. Calm, simple, easy. She has invited the rest of my family members to join us at her house for dessert anytime from 6pm on. We will be cleaned up and finished with dinner by then. They can just sit down, eat dessert, enjoy the family time and gifts. Calm,simple, easy. 


Can a holiday be simple, you ask? Actually, it can!! With a bit of compromise and planning. With making sure that each parent or family gets adequate time, even if you have to split up the days...you can achieve a pretty simple holiday after all! It does take some scheduling and letting go of old traditions and ideas of how Christmas should be spent. But, if everyone can work together then there will be a very Merry Christmas for all!! 


Another challenge. Ask yourself...do we really NEED to do the big huge dinner? Now, if your family has a great time working together in the kitchen and cooking that big dinner then by all means, do it!! It's fun and delicious! But, if your family is anything like mine, the big dinner is more of a stress and hassle. If this is your experience then try proposing the question of "Do we have to do all of this? Could we simplify it a bit?" And you can! You could forgo the turkey and just do something simpler like a baked lasagna dish or something like that. Or do a turkey but just a have a few sides depending on how many people you have joining you. If it is a smaller bunch, don't do the 10 , 000 side dishes and gigantic turkey.  What about turkey sandwiches? My grandmother told me that when she was young...her family always had Christmas dinner at home. They would go to one grandparents in the morning ...head home for dinner and have turkey sandwiches. Her mom would cook the turkey the day before and they would have the sandwiches on Christmas Day. Then , in the evening they would head to the other grandparents house. This sounds pretty simple to me! 


I will post again after Christmas has passed to let you know how Simple and/or easy it really was:-)


Oh...and they are predicting snow on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day for us....so....we may end up having a more simple holiday then we really desire!! :-)

~5~

"One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day.  Don't clean it up too quickly."  ~Andy Rooney

~9~

"Did you ever notice that life seems to follow certain patterns? Like I noticed that every year around this time, I hear Christmas music."
Tom Sims

~11 &10~

"Christmas gift suggestions:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect."


Oren Arnold

~12~

"Peace on earth will come to stay, when we live Christmas every day." 
Helen Steiner Rice

~15, 14 & 13~

I always get behind on the weekends! :-)




"Once again we find ourselves enmeshed in the Holiday Season, that very special time of year when we join with our loved ones in sharing centuries-old traditions such as trying to find a parking space at the mall...We traditionally do this in my family by driving around the parking lot until we see a shopper emerge from the mall, then we follow her, in very much the same spirit as the Three Wise Men, who 2,000 years ago followed a star, week after week, until it led them to a parking space."
Dave Barry

~16~

Here is a funny one..

"I never believed in Santa Claus because I knew no white man would be coming into my neighborhood after dark."
Dick Gregory

~Fantastic Friday~

There are two things that make this Friday pretty special....

1) I slept GREAT last night and so did Isaac and I praise God for that!! I feel much better today and feel ready to tackle the list of things to do :-) 

2) Ever since we started cyber school with Logan this year, I have been searching for a home school group of some kind in our area. I have been looking via internet, newspaper, word of mouth...you name it. And have come up with nothing. I am sure something is out there but I just have not found it yet. Most groups involved with his school are about an hour away in West Chester where his school home base is located. Logan has one friend he plays with in the neighborhood and besides that and Church (which we have not been very regular due to Isaac causing a ruckus in the nursery) he has little interaction with other children. I had the idea to email the president of our community organization and he willingly put out an email to everyone in our neighborhood for me. We have quite a large neighborhood! So far, two families have responded and one family has children close to Logan's age! I am very hopeful about this. I will be contacting them this weekend and I am excited about the possibility of having other like minded families to connect with, and for Logan to have other children to interact with :-)

Many things to Thank God for today. I pray you all have a fabulous friday and a wonderful weekend! 

Love,

Megs

~18 & 17~

"I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month."
Harlan Miller



"The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other."

~Thankful Thursday~

There are times when it hits me hard just how fortunate I am that I can stay home with our boys every day. I am grateful for this every day, but some days it overwhelms me just how much of a blessing this really is. Today is that day. For some unknown reason, I tossed and turned in bed last night for hours. I refused to get up and do something as I was tired but I just could not fall asleep. I do drink coffee during the day but I always stop around the same time, early enough that it will not effect my sleep and usually it does not. Isaac is mostly sleeping better now so he was not the one keeping me awake. I prayed and prayed and tossed and tossed and finally fell asleep probably somewhere around 2:30 or 3:00 am. Not sure exactly but it was after 2am. Since Isaac has been sleeping better at night for the most part, he wakes up anywhere between 5 and 6:30am wanting to be up for a while and see Daddy before he goes to work. Sometimes Matt will take him and let me rest for a bit, but other days if Matt is running a little late I get up with Isaac. Normally that is no problem because I slept well the night before. Not the case today. It is a tough day and it's not even lunch time. I am hoping Isaac will want to lay down soon and I may try to catch a snooze with him!  It is such a challenge for me to not be selfish and impatient on days like this, due to how exhausted I am..so I need prayer with that!  As you  can see, on days like today, I do thank God for at least one thing...that I do not have to get up and go to work all day after only sleeping for about 3 hours! Thank you Lord !!

~19~

"Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love."
Hamilton Wright Mabi

~22, 21,& 20~

"Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall."
Larry Wilde.

"Let us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wide open heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesus stands as the most significant event in all history, because it has meant the pouring into a sick world of the healing medicine of love which has transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousand years... Underneath all the bulging bundles is this beating Christmas heart."
George Matthew Adams

"If there is no joyous way to give a festive gift, give love away."

 

~24 & 23~

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful."
Norman Vincent Peale

and

"Santa Claus has the right idea. Visit people once a year."
Victor Borge

~ Day 25~

25 Quotes To Christmas!

"There is no ideal Christmas; only the one Christmas you decide to make as a reflection of your values, desires, affections, traditions."
Bill McKibben

How true! We all have our different family traditions and celebrations on Christmas! While it is a time to celebrate, remember and praise God for the gift of his son, Jesus, to us- the ways we celebrate vary greatly! And this is a simply beautiful thing!!