Home Sweet Simple Home

Week of Welcoming

This is the week of Welcome.
I tell you the truth, anyone who welcomes my messenger is welcoming me, and anyone who welcomes me is welcoming the Father who sent me. John 13:20

Here we are in our final week of Advent preparations. I have truly enjoyed more quiet reflective time and less busy-tizzy time this year.
To celebrate this week, we will:
Spend time talking together as a family about how we prepare ourselves for big events and how we should also, every day, be preparing ourselves for Christ’s coming.
Deliver Christmas goodies to our neighbors.
Spend time with extended family.

The Week of Preparing

This is the week of Preparing.
The prophet Isaiah was speaking about John when he said, “He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming! Clear the road for him!” Matthew 3:3
To celebrate this week we will:
a Read about John the Baptist and discuss how he prepared the way for Jesus.
a Ask grandparents to share a favorite memory from childhood.
a Ask parents to share a Christmas family tradition that has been passed down at least two generations.
a Make bird feeders for the birds--- spread peanut butter on pinecones, roll in bird seed and hang from a string on trees and bushes.
a Help Mama prepare a meal for the family this week.
a Sing a favorite Christmas carol.
a Spend time praying for each member of your family.

Getting Creative with Gift Giving

My Tips for keeping from the Rush

Advent: Week of Hope

This is the week of HOPE.
Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have HOPE. Romans 15:4
To celebrate this week we will:
a Do something nice (and unexpected) for someone else.
a Make a card and send it to someone who needs to feel hopeful.
a Pray for people who won’t be with their families this Christmas.
a Send cards to wounded soldiers.
            A Recovering American Soldier
            c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
            6900 Georgia Avenue, NW
            Washington, DC 20307-5001
a Gather gently-used toys and clothes and donate them to the local free store.
a Help put together care kits for the local domestic assault shelter.
a Spend time praying for people who don’t feel hopeful.

Celebrate Advent- how?

Celebrating Advent.
Advent is to be the sober, reflective, preparatory time- a period of 21 to 28 days before Christmas Day. According to different Advent books I have on hand- this is the time the Church, traditionally, sets aside to prepare itself for the coming of Jesus- past, present and future. Past- His coming as a helpless infant into the darkness of a crowded stable. Present- His coming, personally, into each of our lives- our Redeemer, Savior, Healer, Deliverer and Friend. Future- His coming again as King of kings and Lord of Lords, the Messiah who will set up his Forever Kingdom- to reign forever and ever.
It doesn’t have to fancy or incredibly involved, taking up tons of your time- that is not what Advent is about. How can you spend time reflecting when you are terribly busy doing?
My suggestion is if this is the first time you and your family will be celebrating Advent to Keep It Simply Simple.
There are tons of wonderful Advent devotions out there and you can find oodles just by googling.
Some things we have done:
A Jesse Tree- I use Ann Voscamp’s- as I love the ornaments and the devotionals are well written. The devotions will take approximately 15 minutes each day. (Go here.)
My absolute favorite Advent resource by far is an Advent trilogy by Arnold Ytreeide that will take 3 years to complete- and is so well worth it!  The Family Advent stories are as follows Tabitha’s Travels, Bartholomew’s Passage and Jotham’s Journey. These books are simply amazing. The story pulls you in-- you sit on pins and needles waiting to hear what happens next. Last year we finished the series so this year we are doing something different but will revisit this wonderful trilogy either next year or the next.
As I understand it, the books may be hard to find because it is currently out-of-print. My advice is to check Amazon.com (they have it- pricey as all get out though!), your local library or ask around- you just may find you have a friend who has the series and will let you borrow from her! (That’s how we got started!)
But wait . . . . .
Egads! You say- We’re already behind. We can’t start now!
To that I say Pahshaw! Don’t be so bah-humbuggy.
Please tell me what exactly is wrong with starting a few days late? Don’t worry about “playing catch up” and trying to read the 3-5 previous daily devotional. My advice- simply state what the ornament represents, hang it on your Jesse Tree and move on. Start right where you are- which ever day it is to be with the devotional guide- that is where you start- don’t back track! You will inevitably fall further and further behind, become frustrated and bah-humbuggy and the Advent feelings you were to be experiencing will go straight out the window.
Take it easy- be kind to yourself and your family and don’t try to do everything.
And yes, I’m learning to take my own advice too.
So just start where you are at- celebrating three weeks of Advent is better than no weeks, isn’t it? I think so.
Remember this is our time to be preparing our hearts- you can do that without a lot of hoopla or even a specialized Advent devotional.
The easiest and best way to prepare our hearts is with Prayer.
Lord God, Thank you for this time of waiting that I am experiencing. Please continue to teach me patience and long-suffering. Remind me that there is joy and special experiences in the midst of waiting- help me to see and not miss these special gifts from You. Lord, I also ask that you would work in my heart and the hearts of my family during this Advent season. Help us prepare ourselves to celebrate You. Show us Lord in the quiet what this time is really about.
Amen.

The Week of Waiting

 

For the next few weeks I’ll be sharing a bit of what we are doing for our Season of Christmas here on the homestead. How we are working to make things quieter and reflective for the Advent weeks leading up to Christmas and then how we’ll celebrate like crazy for the 12 Days of Christmas and our plans to wrap it all up with a special conclusion on Epiphany.
Let us start with week one.

Advent
This is the week of Waiting.

Be patient . . . . until the coming of the Lord. James 5:7

To celebrate this week we will:
a List things it is hard to wait for
a Write a poem, story or draw a picture about how it feels to wait
a Write out the above verse and memorize it
a Pray for others who have to wait for things they need
a Donate outgrown and gently-used holiday clothes to the local free store

It's okay to be different

This year we are making the decision to celebrate a bit differently.
Christmas is not just a day. It is a season and, as I recently learned, it has three traditional parts.
The first part is the sober, reflective, preparatory time of Advent.
Then comes Christmastide, the twelve days of celebration beginning with Christmas Day.
And thirdly is Epiphany. January 6^th. The day we celebrate the arrival of the three wise men with their special gifts for Jesus.
Each part of the season is important. Advent is the quieting of our hearts and minds, the silence and solitude, the clearing out of the old to make way for the new. Then we are quickly swept into the joy and merry making, the glorious light and rejoicing that is Christmas. Which leads us into the wondering conclusion, Epiphany, the giving of gifts to a needy world.
We are celebrating the Season of Christmas. Our little family will be spending this week and the next three weeks in Advent. Taking time to celebrate the time of waiting, the time of hoping, the time of preparing and the time of welcoming in special unique ways.
I am, right now, working on our Christmastide celebrations- something special and significant for the 12 Days of Christmas that doesn’t include pear trees and drummers drumming.
We’ve already decided that we will celebrate Epiphany by taking our boxes of non-perishables to the local food bank.
There is so much we could be doing, perhaps should be doing in the midst of this Season. But I have also come to realize that the bigger and grander, “more meaningful” I try to make things- and all at once- in one big gulp—the higher my rate of failure.
This is something I don’t want to fail at. Over the last few Christmases we’ve really changed our attitude here in our home and so this is simply the next step for us. And next year we will add something more- building on the foundation we are creating as a family.
And in the process, I hope,
Making New Traditions.
Meaningful Traditions.

No Frizzy Tizzy- at least I'm trying not to

TACKY or frugal smarts?

Tackiness vs. simplicity
poor etiquette vs. saving $$ and a tree or two
We send out quite a few Christmas cards each year. Last year I was able to save some pennies by making Christmas postcards to send out- saved by making them myself and saved on postage.
This year the budget is even tighter.
So------ I’m thinking of sending Christmas greetings via e-cards through Dayspring.
I must ask- Is this a big no-no on the etiquette scale?
Will I be vilified?
Of course, I can’t do all my cards this way as there are still some people on my list that don’t have email but I could cut my list way down.
By my calculations, I could save myself $20 easily.
I don’t know about you but $20 is a lot of cash here—in fact, that’s half the weekly grocery budget!

photo- last year's postcard Christmas cards.

Homespun to homemade- foodie gift

Friendship Bread
Recently my sister shared a friendship bread starter with me and I’ve quickly gotten to the point where there is no one left to share starter with. Friends don’t make eye contact when they see those baggies . . . . . .
So when it was baking day I decided to make a double batch of bread. I measured and calculated and found that after I divided the starter into the four bags I needed two of the bags for the double batch. So that only left me with two bags of starter (one I was able to give away- doubt I’ll be so lucky next time). We had some small sized aluminum bread pans from a previous project so the kids and I made three regular sized loaves and four mini loaves. Since it is friendship bread we gave away two mini-loaves and one regular loaf. We froze the rest.
We plan on doing the same thing when it’s baking day again (and then I believe I will freeze the starter and give myself a break for awhile . . . .). These little loaves will then be dressed up with ribbons and tags and given away at Christmas.
I believe the trick to making this a one-of-a-kind gift is the little additions you make to the friendship bread.
Here’s some that we’ve tried:
dried cherries
dried cranberries
raisins
chocolate chips
butterscotch chips
Chocolate and peanut butter chips.
We find the bread to be very delicious- it doesn’t last long around here.
So what does it come out to in cost? Calculating is a bit difficult since what you pour in also makes the starters (that you are suppose to give away) but by my calculations it costs $4.16 to make a double batch which will yield 2 regular sized loaves and six mini-loaves. This comes out to just over $1.00 for each regular loaf and 50 cents for each mini-loaf.
We’ll wrap the bread good and tight and store it in the freezer until closer to Christmas.
Dressing it up with ribbon from our ribbon stash and tags made from scrapbooking scraps . . . . . voila!
Who will we give these gifts to?
The Neighbors
Sunday School Teachers (along with small packages of trail mix)
Extended Family
And who knows?
By my calculations I’ll need 7 to 8 mini-loaves and 3-4 regular loaves. So if I make 2 double batches between now and Christmas that will yield a dozen mini-loaves and four regular loaves. That is a little bit more than I need but I’m sure I could find someone else to give to . . . . .
So- calculating some more- two more double batches will cost me $8.32.
I’d say that’s a pretty good deal.

Putting my own spin on it

Homespun Holidays
This theme has been floating around the web for awhile.
I like it.
It suits me.
So what will we be doing for the holidays this year?
Each year I wish to simplify a bit more than the year before.
I doubt the holidays will ever be as simple as I would like them to be but I’m okay with that.
There is nothing simple about having approximately 25 people in your house on Christmas Day.
One thing that can work against simplification for me— the tightwad budget. Sometime’s its more simple to purchase already made, precooked and pre-whatever, but this year that is not in the budget.
Yet- I am determined to work within my budget without chaos.
Last year my siblings and I all agreed that we did not need to continue a gift exchange- instead we make each other a little something handmade and by no means expensive. I have a wonderful sweet trail mix that I make and it is so well received that it has become the standard homemade gift- it’s so expected that everyone would be disappointed not to get their trail mix. I love it when a gift works itself out that way. I plan on doubling my recipe this year and packaging it up in smaller amounts to share with those “extra” people on our list- Sunday School teachers and such. Even with doubling the recipe, I have budgeted $25 for the mix- including the packaging. I’ve got some cellophane bags here at home that I’ve had for years--- which will be great for the smaller individual serving size packages- tied with festive ribbon and a tag. I’m on the hunt for cheap containers- I’ll be stopping by Goodwill to see if I can find some 25 cent tins or some such steal of a deal.
In our immediate family- Mr. Steady, the kiddos and I- we have a very special gift giving strategy.
For Mr. Steady’s family- the grandchildren all draw names between each other.  His family is large and this works for us. Mr. Steady and his siblings usually pool money together to purchase something his parents’ need- one year it was new carpet, other times it’s been needed home repairs (a roof, insulation etc.), a recliner, a set of dentures, paying for a fill-up of their propane tank . . . . . things they need but can’t or won’t purchase for themselves. Sometimes the money needed is a bit more than we budget for Christmas so we’ve learned to make it a year’s worth of giving- rolling into it what we would pay for gifts for each of their birthdays and their anniversary- thank goodness they don’t mind that we need to do it this way.

Of course, things never go as smoothly as we plan- either someone we didn’t expect gives us a gift and we feel a need to reciprocate or I misplace something I had purchased earlier in the year or fillintheblank. . . . . it’s Murphy’s Law you know.
But this year there is no stretch in the budget- no extra padding to cover a little extra here and a little more extra there. There is comfort in the fact that we are not the only ones facing the ever tightened budget belts.
There is also a bit of challenge in it. A challenge to myself to be extra careful and mindful.
I do like a challenge.

New Year's Centerpiece- A How To of sorts

We have a special breakfast on New Years Day and I decided that a special breakfast calls for a beautifully set table. Isn’t that a wonderful way to welcome the New Year? I want my family to know how very special I think they are.
Here’s what I did—my Mama gave me this lovely table cloth (from Goodwill, of course) to use for Christmas but when I saw it I just knew I wanted to save it for New Years. I wanted a simple centerpiece that would draw from the colors in the cloth- the colors that say New Year to me- white, blue, green and silver. I don’t know why it has to be these colors- I just know they are the colors that speak to me! Crisp and clean and New!
I rounded up a few glass candle holders, 2 glass candle sticks, some cute little tins, 5 Fresh Linen votives, the greens we tucked in here and there around the house for Christmas and some silver ribbon I got on clearance for 47 cents.

I started by arranging the candles- I put all the votives in the glass holders then turned the candle sticks upside down and fit a glass votive holder in each one. I placed the other 3 votives in the little tins like so:

Next I cut a length of ribbon and just wound it around, twisted and tucked it in here and there. The final step was to tuck the greenery in . . . .

I like the simplicity of it. Everything was found here at home- no purchases necessary. I would have liked to put a bit more silver in- like some silver beads or berry picks or even some little sticks painted silver. I have some silver spray paint somewhere around here . . . . but I’m thinking this is good for this year. No need to go overboard. I’ll keep the other ideas for next year. Maybe I’ll be looking for a short length of mirror at yard sales/Goodwill . . . . I’ve seen it where short candle centerpieces are placed on lengths of mirror and it looks oh, so lovely.

A wonderful FULL weekend

Random thoughts

What is Happening- reclaiming Holy Days

I’m disgusted with myself- I had been doing so well focusing on simplicity and wrapping myself in the wonder of the season and then came Monday. I don’t know why it had to be Monday- it just was. I’ve spent the past 3 weeks enjoying and relaxing and such and then Monday--
On Monday I completely got lost in the shuffle, the hustle and the bustle . . . . more like sinking in it, really. While my heart is shouting out for a need of peace and quiet, simplicity and most of all a need to dwell, simply dwell in the waiting, the hoping, the preparing and the welcoming of Christ . . . . I’ve just sunk faster into the quicksand that is the holiday season.
A decision must be made- I am not liking all this whirring activity, to do lists that don’t end and pressures from here, there and everywhere. Does it matter that I trimmed our commitments and as well as the gift list this year? Nope- its amazing the stuff and fluff that’s crowding in and shutting out that still small voice. Ugh. And it happened quite simply in a matter of a day or two- all that I was holding to and enjoying was swept away . . . . . and chaos came in, making himself quite comfortable.
I must reclaim the quiet and peace- I must get back on track preparing for CHRIST not Christmas.
Doesn’t the word holiday come from Holy Day? And if it doesn’t . . . .well, it most definitely should! And so- going with that thought- if these are the holidays Holy Days then shouldn’t I be acting different? What exactly got me off track? Simply put- others expectations of me which I allowed to influence and change my own expectations.
Truly the only thing I should be expecting is Christ. It is time to kick other expectations to the curb and get back to the holy pieces of the days.
How do I reclaim the Holy Days?
I started this post on Wednesday- determined to overcome this bah-humming and yet it did not happen. It is amazing all that is coming up against us right now that is trying to grab and steal my CHRISTmas joy. We were to go caroling with some of our church family yesterday evening. We show up and my father is the only other one there- and he is desperately scrubbing and cleaning the church bus (that we were taking caroling) because a cat had taken up residence inside and left what amounted to a 2/3 of a 5 gallon bucket of “deposits”- oh and the odor- it was noxious! He cleaned as best he could- using the claw part of a hammer to break apart the frozen-to-the-floor deposits. Only a handful of people showed up- but we went caroling anyway and we took the bus. It was wonderful to carol shut ins and such but I have to admit that my heart just wasn’t in it as it has been in the past.
And today- a letter in the mail that about sent me reeling- except for the simple fact that I would not let go of the desperate hold I had on the Lord’s goodness and mercy. No matter, no matter WHAT- I will praise Him. Even if this financial crisis increases I will praise His Incredible Wonderful All Powerful Name. And that has brought me here . . . .
To the reclaiming.
A letter that Satan expected to use to deal another blow against me and my CHRISTmas joy—and God heard me- He heard me cry out- He heard me pour out my heart in pain and sorrow—He helped me stand firm and my heart shouted “No matter what I WILL PRAISE HIM.”
I walked away from the envelope and the computer and the to-do list and decided to clean the kitchen because, as my mama taught me, some good brisk scrubbing and cleaning does the heart good- both physically and spiritually. I prayed and prayed and prayed as I washed the table and scrubbed the stove. And God met me in my kitchen and I was able to let it all go . . . .
I have no one’s expectations to live up to but His and what does He expect? My love and devotion- my whole heart- my heart preparing for His coming nothing more, nothing less.
And it brought me to worship. My home is my haven, my safe harbor in the midst of so many storms- God has blessed us here and here is where I can find solace, rest and renewal in sweet worship. I have been able to reclaim that worship in the tasks of my ministry- the ministry of my family.
And so- I worshiped as I ironed the napkins for Christmas day dinner- spritzing with my favorite ironing spray- praying and reflecting on how this was once a disliked chore. I prayed and hummed praises as I did the dishes- a once despised chore! My heart became light as I praised His glorious name will beginning dinner prep and getting out the ingredients for our Christmas trail mix and the makings for Oreo truffles.

I cried out and God not only heard my cry but He reached down and pulled me up. He nurtured that spot inside me that longed to experience CHRISTmas and Holy Days. He and He alone made this day Holy.
The following are the words to the song Emmanuel written by Michael W Smith:
You are the Rock that will not fall
You are the God above us all
O Lord You are Emmanuel
You are the Messiah Who has come
You are the long awaited One
O Lord You are Emmanuel . . . .
. . . . . You are the Healer of our Hearts . . .
O Emmanuel We Praise Your Name

Amen

Baking and Making and deoo-rating!

Yesterday evening was our night to decorate our CHRISTmas tree. It is a long standing tradition in my family to eat certain cookies and guzzle eggnog as part of the festivities. Never in the past have I deviated from this tradition- until this year.
Why? Well, I didn’t purchase those special cookies while on my last shopping trip (the traditional cookies have always been a certain ritzy store bought brand)—I didn’t want to make a special trip just for the cookies and I really truly didn’t want to pay the horrid price of said cookies. So, I- me the traditionalist to the extreme when it comes to Christmas, bucked the system.
BUT- one cannot decorate a tree ‘til its branches scream for mercy unless one has proper sustenance.
So, what’s a girl to do? Go to the pantry. I found an Amish store gingerbread cake mix (just add water- marked $.88) and a container of cream cheese frosting. Mr. Conductor heard me scrounging around in the pantry and came to investigate. He then agreed to be my chef.

One cannot be a good cook unless one taste tests. A-okay! It passes the test.

The boy and I decided to be totally fancy and make it a two layer cake on a pretty Christmas plate. I let him dig out the Christmas sprinkles . . . .  He wanted his Nutcrackers in the photo too.
Made with Love.
Perhaps we’ve also made a new tradition?
Hmmm.

Making Christmas Cards

I am making my Christmas cards this year. No not stamping or scrapbooking. I’m making them on the computer and I’m making postcards.
Simple.
Ta Da.

The back says, “May God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy and peace. 1 Timothy 1:2”

Ah, the simplicity.

Getting away from it all

Meredith has been discussing (and linking) to some great thoughts on Christmas.
Go on and check them out.
For our little family the holiday is even more crammed because of Maiden’s birthday on the 13^th. It seems that no matter how open we try to keep our schedule it gets overloaded that week before Christmas (thanks in part to my job in youth ministry) and I am always left wishing we could just sneak away to a remote cabin in the wild wilderness for the entire month.
So- since I’m always wishing for this cabin in the wilderness- I’ve been trying to bring that idea into my home this year. How?
Well, one of the reasons we want to sneak away is because the month just seems to get crammed full of this and that with us running here and there and everywhere. Most of the extra activities are all church related- which for me is job-related and therefore can’t be shirked. So how can we make it feel like we’ve snuck away? Well, we can’t do much but we can do a little bit . . . . we’ve made our regular Friday nights (which is usually family movie nite) mandatory. We aren’t going out anywhere and we aren’t answering the phone—we’ve lined up some great Christmas DVDs and family games and planned low key comfort food dinners. We’ll put on our flannel jammies and pile the floor with pillows and blankets. We may even roast some marshmallows on the gas stove (just like I did growing up) and make smores. Mr. Steady and I have also vowed not to add one more event to our calendar. Two nights of caroling, a Christmas cantata, Christmas band concert, church program practice & youth skit practice plus the program AND Maiden’s birthday is enough. Thankyouverymuch.
I let the kids in my youth group know that if they had an event they wanted me to attend- I needed to know by Dec. 2^nd and I put Xs on the youth calendar marking “Amy’s black-out dates”.
As for that cozy cabin feeling here at home . . . . . I’ve pulled out every fleecy warm blanket we own and placed the folded stack in a corner of the living room for easy access. We’ve got Christmas music piping very softly through the house for most of the day and evening. Spruce candles are lit and adding that oh, so Christmas-y smell to the air as well as that cozy twinkle. The wonderful little electric fireplace (my belated anniversary gift from Mr. Steady) is moved from room to room where we can bask in its glow. I pull my knitting out each night as we read our advent devotional and have family time. It just adds to that cozy feeling for me.
So while I can’t actually sneak off to a cozy little cabin in the wilds- I can bring a bit of it right here- where I’m at.
Which is better than not at all.
Yeah- that's my house in the picture . . . . not a cabin but its home.

Its got me to thinking