Seeking God in simple ways this Advent season

 

 I so appreciate when Daily Grace Co. shares a seasonal graphic like this one on their Instagram.    It gives me a nice head start on a blog post.  This one is really great for the season of Advent.  These simple ways to seek the Lord in this season are easily within reach of all of us.

🎄Slowing down to reflect on the goodness of God.  This can be so simple.  Just maybe brewing a cup of Christmas tea and reflecting on God's goodness to us for the time it takes to finishing sipping that yummy beverage.  

 

Or it could be taking time to work on an Advent Bible study.  I'm doing Hope Has Come from Daily Grace this year and loving it!  I would have linked to it, but it seems it is no longer available. ( I received it as a gift last year.)  I did find this mug:

 
🎄 Finding ways to experience God's hope, peace, joy, and love.  The study Hope Has Come is giving me ideas for this.  Other ways might be to memorize verses that touch on these topics, or to sing songs, hymns, or carols that emphasize them.  Or simply ask the Lord to make you more aware of these wonderful gifts from Him.  You will be amazed at what He shows you.  A study like the one from Abby at Little Birdie Blessings (see example below) would also be helpful.

🎄 Displaying God's love through acts of service.  This could happen very naturally this time of year when we sing carols in our neighborhoods or at nursing homes, or in a number of other ways.  In our family we baked cookies and shared trays of them, often with a pretty Christmas booklet or card attached, with our neighbors and others who have served us through the year.  I have also taken large cookie trays to the staff at nursing homes or in the emergency department of our local hospital.

 
🎄 Singing Christmas hymns and carols.  Caroling with family, friends, or as a church family is wonderful, but how about also singing a carol as part of your quiet time each morning of advent?  Or read the words of a carol to yourself.  Some carols are based solidly on Scripture.  See how many Scripture quotes or concepts you can find in each one.

🎄Spending time in reflection and prayer for the new year.  This is an absolutely wonderful idea.  I try to do this every year, but am guilty of waiting until the last minute to do so.  Wouldn't it be even more meaningful to spend time reflecting and praying on what you'd like the new year to look like from a spiritual perspective, and to set a few goals to that end, ahead of time?

What a blessing it was to consider these simple ideas for seeking God in this Advent season!  I hope that these ideas were helpful to you, my readers, as well.

Poem: Song for Christmas

 

 Time for a Christmas poem.  I've shared so many of these, over the years, that I always have to do a search of my own blogs just to be sure I'm not inadvertently repeating one.  This is a poem I found in an Ideals Christmas magazine from 2010.  It's by Sudie Stuart Hager.

Song for Christmas

I love the Yuletide's radiant things --
The treetop angel's spun-glass wings,
Each scarlet ball and tinseled limb,
The tapers sputtering, soft and dim,
The light in happy children's eyes,
A bright-faced doll that talks and cries,
The log that sparkles on the grate,
The glow that follows through the gate,
A neighboring window's candle-wreath,
The snow, like burnished gold, beneath,
And the sky, bright jeweled o'erhead,
As on that night above His bed.

-- Sudie Stuart Hager

These poets always say it so much better than I could.  So many of them say just what I would like to say if I had only been able to put my thoughts together in verse.  When I read this poem I can vividly picture so much of what she has shared.  We have a glass angel -- not a treetop one, but a small glass angel playing a glass flute.  So pretty and a lovely reminder of our youngest daughter who plays the flute.

The phrase "each scarlet ball and tinseled limb" brings such clear memories of my grandmother's Christmas trees, with glowing glass balls and limbs liberally tinseled and icicled.  Oh, I could go through every phrase of this poem and conjure up a picture or a memory.  Think of that next-to-last phrase about the sky being "bright jeweled" overhead.  How many times have I seen the night sky simply sparkling with stars against a black velvet background?  My heart aches for people who have never seen this.

The other day when our grandchildren were with us, a John McDermott CD was playing and my 13-year-old grandson and I were talking of the song "Christmas Memories".  He commented that it almost made him sad for people who have never had such Christmas memories as his family has had.  And I am feeling the same way as I read and discuss this poem with you all.  How very blessed we have been! 

Candle glow

 

 Glowing candles are some of the most meaningful images on Christmas cards, especially the vintage ones.  The ones on the card above are a case in point.  (I really love the Christmas pastels, but that will be a post for another day.)  But just look at those glowing flames, wavering in the air, and the glittery halos around them.  So, so pretty.

This Christmas season I have been thinking a lot about candles.  As I mentioned in my Hodgepodge post at my Kitchen Table blog, one line from a Christmas tune has kept jumping out at me as I occasionally listen to our more-or-less local Christmas music station.  "I've got the candles glowing in the dark."  Times seem dark lately, do they not?  How important it is to keep the candles glowing. 

 
I may have mentioned this before, I'm not sure.  But last winter we did a lot of traveling to and from the home of friends for Bible study and a meal.  It became a very familiar route and we were usually traveling after dark at least for the trip home.  We so enjoyed seeing all of the lights glowing from people's homes.  There were lighted trees in windows, candles in windows, lights illuminating porches and outlining roofs,  lighted trees in people's yards.  One house that always caught my eye had long windows on either side of the front door, and long swathes of light spilled out onto the snow.  As the winter went on, Christmas and New Year's passed by and most people left their lights up.  It was a delight to see and I came to see it as a way of pushing back against the dark winter we had been promised.  It would only be dark if we allowed it to be!

This thought has stayed with me.  Mr. T and I need to do more with lights at our own home.  We have white lights up year-round inside in our bedroom and the living room, but I would like for us to do more, maybe with candles in the windows.  One thing we have done, even though our little camp is a very seasonal place and we won't spend much time there during the winter, is to place a lighted Christmas tree (with lights on a timer) in the loft window.  There are four windows in the living room below and, although these do not have window sills as such, Mr. T has plans to make a small temporary shelf below each one to hold an electric candle.  I will post photos if I am able to get them from the road.

 This Christmas season, as well as all through the dark winter, let's be sure our lights are glowing in the dark!

Christmas Eve

It's been quite a day, filled with busyness and activity, but I just want to share a quick post this evening.

When I scanned the vintage card above, I titled it "Christmas Eve Service" because, although it's still light outside, the church is all lighted up and people are coming to it from every direction. 

Usually on Christmas Eve we have our two oldest granddaughters over for supper and gift exchanging.  This year one of them wasn't feeling well at all and so we reluctantly decided to postpone. 

That opened up the unexpected and last-minute opportunity to attend a candlelight Christmas Eve service at a church in another town.  Our church had been invited to this but Mr. T and I hadn't planned to go, since we had a previous commitment with our grandkids.

Long story short, we attended and were so blessed.  Our Christmas Eve turned out to be very different from the usual, and very different from what we had planned, but it was a true blessing and the message gave us much to ponder.

So thankful that even when our path takes a different turn than we expect, God is in full control and He always has a plan for the detours.

First things first ... taking time to think about Christmas 2019

As we finish off Christmas in July, it seems the perfect time to make some plans as to how we want things to look come December 1.  I found a great resource and some wonderful encouragement and inspiration for putting First Things First.    This is from Melissa at The Inspired Room. 

I've done similar exercises before, but I have never started so early.  Here's what Melissa wrote that really energized me:

From Melissa at The Inspired Room

So I think that, this very afternoon, I will sit down with paper and pen and do this exercise.  Question 2 in particular should be incredibly helpful for me.

This is actually the first of a series of posts that Melissa wrote titled Love the Home You Have: Simply Inspired Holidays.  You can access the entire series of posts -- I think there are around fifteen of them -- from this link.  You may have to scroll down a bit to see the list, but it is there and includes such things as "Puttering and Decluttering", "Finding Childhood Wonder", and "Inspiration for Opening Your Home."  You will want to take a look at these!  I think I will spend some time in August browsing through this series. 

What about you?  Ready to get inspired and begin planning?  Let's do this!

Debriefing for Christmas 2018

So I promised to share my thoughts from the post-Christmas debriefing I completed on Rudolph Day.  I use a form (which I've had for awhile) from Organized Christmas.  Before I share, though, take a look at the Christmas room above.  Isn't it lovely?  I especially love the coffee pot and cups on the little round table.  And the tree is so pretty also, not to mention that absolutely gorgeous fireplace!

I always like to look back on the Christmas just past and see how well everything worked, or where improvement is needed.  As mentioned, I use the five simple questions from a form available at Organized Christmas.  It looks like this:

1.  What worked this holiday season?  What changes did you make to create simpler, less stressful holidays?  

There were a lot of decorations that I did not take time to put up.  I didn't get any of our own ornaments out of the attic, but used vintage ones found in clearing out my childhood home.  It was actually enjoyable to use those old ornaments; it made for a very pretty tree and it kept things much simpler.

I also worked to get all of our Nevada packages sent out relatively early in the month, and did them all using Click'n'Ship and carrier pickup.  That in itself reduces so much stress!

2.  What was the worst aspect of preparing for the holidays this year?  How can you avoid this problem in the future?

* I committed myself to an activity that, in retrospect, I should not have done.  I ended up getting way too stressed over something I should not have taken on.  Next year I won't get involved.

* I didn't plan carefully enough with gifts for several of the local grands, and ended up doing some very last-minute shopping.  It all worked out well, but obviously I must plan much better next year.

3.  Were you satisfied with your family's level of giving and/or spiritual observances?  How could next year's holidays more closely reflect your family's values?

I was quite satisfied with our family's level of giving, and satisfied too with the spiritual aspect of our Christmas celebrating.  There are certain activities I'm  not sure about for next year, though.

4.  How well did your household function this year?  Were you calm and cozy, or stressed and strung out?  What improvements could be made next year?

In general I felt pretty calm and cozy.  I did get just a bit stressed when I saw that I wasn't going to make the December 1 deadline for handmade gifts, but when my sweet husband saw how much it meant to me to craft a few simple gifts, he relaxed the customary deadline and told me to take all the time I needed.  I finished these mid-month, by the way.  The problem was that I hadn't even begun to plan these gifts until November.  So obviously, improvements would include starting to plan for any handmade gifts much earlier.

A scarf for grandson Nathan

5.  Honesty time: how did your holidays go?  Did you experience the magic, the expectancy, and the sparkle of the season?  If not, what changes could you make to recapture the joy?

In general, we had a wonderful season!  I took great joy in making a few gifts.  I tried several new recipes and enjoyed every moment.  I loved decorating the tree, even though I did it mostly by myself, with vintage memories from my childhood.  I posted in both of my blogs every day in December -- partly as a gift to my readers, but as a gift to myself as well.  I managed to get out and walk many days in November and December, which I'm sure lifted my spirits and lowered my stress level a great deal.  I even sewed a new tree skirt out of some wonderful fabric our daughter had gifted me with!

So ... there you have it:  my debriefing for Christmas 2018.  Have you done an exercise like this?  It can only help with planning for next year! 

Does your Christmas season look different this year?

I've been thinking this week about people whose Christmas season is looking a bit different this year.    Maybe it's different in a huge way, like the loss of a spouse to death or divorce, or the loss of a child or a parent.  Maybe your celebration of Christmas Eve or Christmas Day is going to look different due to finances or health or not being able to travel, or your grown children deciding to spend those times with friends or in-laws. 

I was reminded of a post I'd written and have shared several years called Christmas Traditions for the Empty Nest.  If your nest is emptying, or has just emptied for the first time, you will want to check out that post. 

In 2014 I had written a post concerning making every day merry in little ways.  The ideas I'm sharing today are adapted and expanded upon from that one. 

As regular readers might have guessed, I just love December and the Christmas season.  This beautiful and oh-so-meaningful season passes so quickly.  One thing I like to do, to make the season last longer,  is to give every day during December a little bit of a festive feel.  This is especially helpful if, like me, you happen to be an empty-nester, or if you are single -- or even if you are a mom in a busy household. 

Even if you are sad today and just don't feel like doing anything Christmasy, humor me and read through these ideas anyway.  As believers, we have so much to celebrate this season.  You might be especially blessed by the ideas I've suggested for your quiet time:


*  Do an Advent Bible study for your devotions.  I'm a bit late suggesting this, but it does help keep one focused on the true meaning of Christmas.  If you jumped into one now, it probably wouldn't be too late; you could double up on each day and make it work that way. 

Abby's 25 Days of God-Given Gifts over at
Little Birdie Blessings is another great option to help you look at Christmas as a time of appreciating the gifts we have as God's children.  Abby's graphic for Day 9 is shown below.  ↓↓↓

Another thought is to do a Christmas Scripture writing challenge; that's what I'm doing this year.  Or, refresh your memory on some verses from Luke 2 or Scripture passages where the Savior's birth is predicted or described.  I like to review Luke 2:1-20 every Christmas season.

Or read a Christmas devotional and read and/or meditate on any Scripture that is shared.  I have a few Christmas devotionals here on my blog.  One of my favorites is this one: Comfort and Joy.  I also have a Pinterest board featuring Christmas devotionals.  You can find it here: Christmas devotionals.

Here are a few more ideas:

* Use festively flavored coffee as your everyday coffee during this month.  What we do is to buy Christmas coffee at the after-Christmas sales.  Places like Marshalls and TJ Maxx often have it for 75% off a day or two after Christmas.  (They often have regular coffee in Christmas packaging on clearance, too.  We snap it up.  Coffee is coffee!)

* Or use regular coffee and a festive flavored creamer.  Sometimes I use fat-free half & half along with just a splash of the flavored creamer.  Still gives the jolly flavor with less calories.

* If you enjoy tea, stock up on the holiday teas as you have opportunity and sip a mug daily.  Sometimes these are reduced after Christmas and sometimes not.  Some of my favorites are Christmas Tea by Twining's, Candy Cane Lane by Celestial Seasonings, and White Christmas by Stash.

* If you frequently use lotion or cream on your hands, feet, etc., switch to a holiday scented one for the season.  My daughter found me some Candy Cane Lane lotion (with green tea actually in it) by Jason.  I have also used a sugar cookie scented cream and a cranberry one.  I use it on my feet, and when I take off my boots there is this lovely cheering scent.

* Some people use their Christmas dishes all through the month of December, and I think this is a great idea.  I've actually moved my Christmas dishes to a more easily accessible cabinet to facilitate this.  Setting the table with Christmasy colored placemats is a nice idea too, and do add a simple Christmasy centerpiece. (Mine at the moment is a red, white, and green striped bowl filled with cookie cutters.  And little tea lights in shiny tart molds -- in the Yankee Candle Gingerbread Maple scent.  You can't imagine how nice they smell!)  Again, even if you are alone at Christmas, take time to use these table-setting ideas.  You will be much more apt to actually sit down and eat if the table is pretty and inviting.

  At the very least, using Christmas mugs or teacups for your coffee or tea is fun.  These also may be acquired for very little money after Christmas.  The vintagey-looking ones below were 75¢ after Christmas at Walmart one year.

* Listen to Christmas music as you go about your daily work.

* Take time to do some fun things like attend a Christmas concert, watch a Christmas DVD, bake some goodies or craft some simple ornaments.  Set up an Advent calendar or a Christmas countdown.   Yes, even if it's just for you!  A friend sent me an online Advent calendar with activities for every day.  So much fun!

* Decorate with fresh greens, fresh fruit,  or festively scented candles for an energizing scent.

*  In fact, put something small and Christmasy in every room of your house, like this little soft blue tree on my bathroom counter one year.  (Both bathroom and counter look completely different now!)  Little touches like this will make you smile every time you see them.

 Even a little festive votive holder with a battery operated tea light on a kitchen counter, bathroom counter, or a bookshelf can just lift your spirits when you see it.  A little light and sparkle is necessary for all of us, especially in winter when the days can be dreary and darkness comes on so early.

* And when you do have opportunity to do some celebratory things with family, friends, or your church family, go for it.  Take full advantage of the opportunities!   Even if it doesn't look or feel like your usual celebration,  or if it's not on your preferred day or in your preferred location (like your own home, for example), go anyway and be in the moment!  We all could use a reminder that this celebration isn't all about us.

There are a few ideas!  I'm sure you will think of more.  We have so much to celebrate -- the coming of our Savior to earth, to be born as a Baby in a humble stable, to grow up and die on a cross, then rise again, so we would have a way of salvation.  No, Jesus was almost certainly not born on December 25, but this is one time of year when the focus is on Him.  Let's go about each day with a merry heart, ready to share His love with others at this festive time!

A couple more from the September archives

Just a couple more posts from the September archives!

I couldn't resist linking to our Mini Christmas in September from 2012.  Just a fun memory!

And then this one: Thinking Out Loud -- from last year, and still timely, especially for people like me who have a history of overextending themselves.  Due to my estate responsibilities, this is going to be another year of very few handmade gifts. 

Maybe these thoughts will be helpful to someone else!

2016 Christmas Debriefing

🎄     🎄     🎄     🎄     🎄     🎄     🎄     🎄    🎄    🎄

I always like to look back on the Christmas just past and see how well everything worked, or where improvement is needed.  I use the questions from a simple form available at Organized Christmas.

1.  What worked this holiday season?  What changes did you make to create simpler, less stressful holidays?  

One of the biggest changes I made was the decision to have all handmade gifts finished by December 1,  There were a couple of exceptions -- things I needed to print out that were not available until after that date -- but in general, I finished the gifts by then.  It made a big difference in being able to enjoy all the fun and meaningful December activities.

Christmas being on a Sunday this year meant a change in the way we celebrated, and my dad being in a nursing home made a difference too.  We kept Christmas dinner (actually supper) very simple and low-key, but it was still festive.  Another thing done differently was that our ladies' Christmas fellowship at church was a Saturday brunch rather than an evening or afternoon event.  This actually worked out much better for many of us.

2.  What was the worst aspect of preparing for the holidays this year?  How can you avoid this problem in the future?

I found that wrapping gifts,  shipping gifts, and writing cards were the most stressful aspects of Christmas for me this year.  I had many Amazon and Thriftbooks gifts shipped directly to our Nevada family and will plan to do that even more, hopefully earlier, next year.  I need to check the grandkids' wish lists much earlier next year, too.

With cards, I have a system where I send a card upon receiving one, but I wanted to get the cards out of the way sooner, so that left me doing more of them at once.  It felt like a chore.

With wrapping, I tried to wait until we had our tree up so there would be a good place to stack the wrapped gifts.  That didn't work out very well since we were very late getting our tree up this year.  I need to plan another place to stash the completed gifts in case that happens again next year.

3.  Were you satisfied with your family's level of giving and/or spiritual observances?  How could next year's holidays more closely reflect your family's values?

I was quite satisfied with our family's level of giving, and satisfied too with the spiritual aspect of our Christmas celebrating.

4.  How well did your household function this year?  Were you calm and cozy, or stressed and strung out?  What improvements could be made next year?

Our household functioned well, but I did still have some stress.  Next year I would hope to have my homemaking routines more firmly in place, and to use the slow cooker even more for meals.

5.  Honesty time: how did your holidays go?  Did you experience the magic, the expectancy, and the sparkle of the season?  If not, what changes could you make to recapture the joy?

In general, our holiday went very well.  There were magical moments here and there throughout the month.  Next year I would love to do an Advent Bible study again, and would like to take the grandkids to a Living Nativity I learned about too late this year.

So ... there you have it:  my debriefing for Christmas 2016.  Have you done an exercise like this?  It can only help with planning for next year!

My grandmother's best cookie-baking advice

I only have a few of my grandmother's cookie recipes, and will have to post her famous Aunt Sally's Cocoa Drops recipe one of these days ... a true heirloom.  But today as I was baking Christmas cookies in my own kitchen, I was reminded of something my grandmother often did -- something I should do much more often.  It would save me a lot of trouble in the end.

Especially when trying out a new cookie recipe, my grandmother would follow the recipe exactly, and preheat the oven to the specified temperature.  Then she would bake a test cookie or two, setting the timer for the specified number of minutes. 

And then she would see how the cookie came out.  Was it underdone?  Overdone?  Too brown?  Not brown enough?  Did the dough spread too much or not flatten out enough?  She would then make adjustments to the baking time temperature and sometimes, even to the dough, adding a bit more flour or liquid if needed.  I think she probably learned to do this as a result of baking in unpredictable wood stove ovens.

I should have done this a couple of weeks ago when I made Whipped Shortbread. 

Photo from Taste of Home

This is an old family favorite that I've made countless times through the years.  I always cut the recipe in half because it makes nine dozen.  I thought that's what I had done this time.  But apparently I made a mistake in the measuring, for the cookies did not stay nice and round as you see in the above photo.  They spread out too much and the edges were thin and crispy.  The flavor was still great, but the proportions were definitely off.  I will serve them on cookie trays at home and church, but will not use them for gifts.

Today I made a second batch and the cookies turned out perfectly.  As I measured, I tried to think what could have gone wrong.  There are only a few ingredients in these cookies -- butter, confectioners sugar, flour, and cornstarch -- so there isn't a lot to remember.  But as I think about it, I believe what may have happened is that I cut the amount of flour and butter in half, but left either the cornstarch or confectioners sugar measurement (or both!😕) the same.  I could have avoided wrecking an entire batch of these by just baking a test cookie and paying attention to the results.  At the time, I noticed the dough seemed soft, but thought it just needed to chill awhile.  That turned out not to be the case!

My Gram has been gone for 25 years.  But her cookie-baking advice is still golden!

A lovely poem

I always enjoy browsing through Christmas issues of Ideals, be they old or newer.  (The scan above is part of a 1956 Christmas Ideals, in fact.)  My memories of Christmas on the farm include a stack of Ideals magazines beside my grandmother's chair in the front room.  Oh, how I loved looking through those Christmas issues with their gorgeous photography, lovely paintings, Scripture, stories, essays,  poems, and sometimes even recipes.  I could spend hours with them!

And I still love looking through Ideals today.  Sometimes I will share quotes or poems from them here in my Christmas kitchen.  Today I spent a few minutes browsing through an issue I had bought after Christmas, I think it was last year, and found a poem by James Dillet Freeman that spoke to me.  Here it is:

The House That is Your Heart

Now take this Christmas Day to go 

A little way apart,

And with your gentle hands prepare

The house that is your heart.

Brush out the dusty fears, brush out

The cobwebs of your care,

Till, in the house that's in your heart,

It's Christmas everywhere.

Light every window up with love

And let that love shine through,

So they that walk outside may share

The blessed light with you.

Then will the rooms with joy be bright,

With peace the hearth be blessed,

And Christ Himself will enter in

To be your Christmas guest.

-- James Dillet Freeman

Isn't that beautiful?

I'd like to suggest, though, that we not wait until Christmas day to prepare our hearts and brush out those cobwebs.  We ought to be doing that right now.

Once we have those cobwebs cleared out and the windows clean and shiny, the light within will indeed shine through and draw others to the Light of the world.

"For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord; walk as children of light."  (Ephesians 5:8)
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."  (Matthew 5:16)

So many more thoughts spring to mind as I consider this poem.  Maybe I'll share them another time.

Thinking out loud ...

From a sweet calendar my girls loved as children.  So thankful I thought to scan the illustrations!

So I'm just thinking out loud here.  My dear hubby, Mr. T, told me some time ago (in fact, it was probably last December) that he didn't want me to be all tired out this coming Christmas.  To that end, he was establishing a deadline by which all handmade Christmas gifts must be completed (other than cookies, fudge, or other kitchen gifts).  The deadline is December 1st, and has been written on the calendar from Day 1 of 2016.

Some may see that as heavy-handed, but I know that he has my best good in mind.  He has always been very willing to pitch in with other things while I work on the handmade gifts.  He hates seeing me get so tired, however.  So I've been willing to work with that very reasonable deadline on the calendar.  After all, that's always been one of the main reasons I work on handmade gifts and Christmas preparations year round -- to free up December so I can really enjoy Christmas!

A couple of weeks ago I was challenged by something another blogger wrote about the importance of saying No to good things.  In that post, the blogger, Christa, linked to a fall planning workbook she was using. (It's free, so you might want to download one for yourself!)  As I thought, just a little bit, of what my summer has been like, and about what I want my autumn to look like, I began to seriously think about not doing handmade gifts (other than kitchen gifts) for the family this year.  For awhile I've been considering making the handmade gifts for birthdays, and giving consumable family gifts at Christmas.  I do have a few handmade things started for this year, and will finish them up.  And  I'll definitely be creating a few handmade things for the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. Beyond that, I haven't decided for sure yet.  I'll let you know!

But regardless of what I decide, I do plan to be here in the Christmas kitchen just as often as possible, and I'll have plenty of recipes along with crafting and decorating inspiration to share.  I'll stop in again very soon!

Nothing else needed

This year I saw a lovely idea on my blog friend Sandi's blog, Rose Chintz Cottage.  You will find more than one lovely idea there.  Sandi has some of the most beautiful decorating ideas you will see, and Rose Chintz Cottage is well worth visiting every week for Sandi's Tea Time Tuesdays.  You would also love Sandi's Christmas blog, Christmas Pudding, which is the most beautiful Christmas blog I have seen.

Back to the idea I saw -- it was very simple.  In front of her nativity scene, Sandi had placed a little New Testament open to Luke 2.  Why have I never thought of doing this before?  The little Bible is a powerful reminder that the scene depicted in the rustic stable is a true account.  It isn't a fairy tale.  It really happened, to real people, to make a difference in the lives of real people.

So, as you can see above, I found a little New Testament on my bookshelves, bookmarked it to Luke 2 and placed it in front of our creche.  The stable was built by my father many years ago, and the little figures were given to us with it.  I hope someday to replace the figures with some nicer ones, but for now this is what we have.

Ever since doing this, I have been thinking that the scene "needs"something else.  A star, maybe (not a bad idea; Sandi has one, and after all the star is a big part of the story); or some greenery and maybe a small candle or some white lights.  I may add some of those things next year, as I think they might add to the specialness of the scene.  But as I thought about it from day to day, I was reminded that nothing else is needed.  This depiction points out that Jesus came to earth as a Baby, to grow up, to die on a cross for our sins, to make a way for us to be right with a holy God.  He was truly born to die.  The Gospel story is more than enough.  We only need to accept that free gift of salvation to become part of God's family.  Nothing else needs to be added. 

December 4 ~ Quote for the day

From my collection of vintage cards ~ I'd never cut these up for a project!  To me, this one speaks of a simpler, more innocent time when no one would dream of taking anyone else's mail.

 On Saturday, my 12-year-old granddaughter and I started a little craft project with old Christmas cards -- banners for over our dining room windows.  I will post pictures later, but briefly, it involves cutting old cards and some of their inside messages into pennant shapes, backing them with scrapbooking paper and fabric (we are using card stock instead) and sewing them together along ribbon for hanging.  I adapted the idea pretty freely from the pattern.

Some of the cards are from the 1960s or so, others from the 1970s through the 1990s.  The quote I want to share is a message from one of the older cards.  I was just now sitting at the sewing machine, about to attach this pennant to the ribbon, when I read the message again.  Such a lovely thought, I had to pause in my sewing and share it with you all.  It reads like this:

Whatever else is lost

 with the years --

whatever the changes,

Christmas remains --

a time of happy

recollections -- a time

for remembering

treasured friends --

Isn't that lovely?  (Picture it, if you will in a red 1950s script not unlike that on the old Betty Crocker cookbooks.)  A lot has changed over time, and much has been lost,  not only in our lives personally but in our society.  I was just thinking yesterday how increasingly vulgar our society has become.  But my happy recollections of Christmas in the 1950s and early 1960s are still with me, precious and warm.  And most important of all, the whole reason for Christmas remains -- celebrating the birth of our Savior, who is "the same yesterday, and today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).

A festive mess

Just some food for thought as we look back over our Christmases of 2012 -- gifts we gave, recipes we tried, decorating and craft ideas that worked (or didn't).  These thoughts came to me a few years ago and I always intended to expand on them before posting them.  On re-reading, I decided these few words will stand just fine on their own and serve as an encouragement to me and maybe to you as well.  Here they are:

A number of years ago, I looked around my house one late December day and declared, "What a mess!"  I don't recall exactly what I was looking at, but it was doubtless the familiar late-December jumble of Christmas shopping bags, wrappings, ribbons, boxes of cards, half-finished gift projects, racks full of cooling cookies, etc.  One of my daughters, in either high school or college at the time, consoled me with these words:  "Well, at least it's a festive mess!"

Those words have stuck with me over the years and have brought a chuckle every time I think about them ... and a good reminder as well.   Every December, there's always a "festive mess" in my home (and probably in yours as well) -- and when you think about the true reason for our festivity, we can only thank God profoundly that we have such great cause for celebration:  the birth of our Savior!