:thoughts on motherhood // advent:

it feels way to early to talk about christmas but it's actually only two months away from today. with the chill in the air, i feel it coming.

i look forward to driving our little family up the winding mountain, griswald style, singing christmas songs along the way. i imagine all three of my babies running through the rows of pine to pick out the perfect tree to grace our home.

i plan to make christmas pajamas for everyone so when we get home we can put on our pj's and slippers, turn on the christmas music and dance while we decorate. jacob will hang garland on the porch and i will hang our advent calendar on the wall. all of this will be followed by hot chocolate, popcorn, the charlie brown christmas movie and snuggles.

i love tradition.
i hope my children remember all these things as fondly as i do.

it feels too soon but it's not. have you ordered your Advent Scripture Cards yet? they are in limited supply and you will need them by december 1st to follow along. buy them here! 

::thoughts on how to have a less stressful week::

:photo source:

5 days until Christmas!!!!

i've been asked the question several times this week, "are you ready for christmas?"
the answer is always "yes."

yes i am ready for christmas.
yes i am anxiously awaiting the arrival of christ during this advent season.
yes i am breathing in every special moment spent with family and friends.
yes i am excited about all that this season encompasses.

do i have all of my presents ready and wrapped? no.
have i accomplished everything on my to-do list? no.
do i have the food planned and prepared? no.
am i stressed about it? no.

i decided before we entered this season that i would enjoy it, bask in it. every precious moment. i decided that i would focus on the things that hold value and everything else could just fall by the wayside. earlier in the week i sat down and made a list of things that i would do that would make this week more enjoyable.

• i will spend less time online this week.
• i will spend more time outside- trips to the park as weather permits.
• i will do crafts with my children and ignore the mess made along the way.
• i will stick with simple meals - tacos, pasta, ham, brinner.
• i will not stress over less. we have spent less money this year than ever before and i'm good with that, happy in fact.
• i will spend time reading scripture on my own and with my kiddos as we reflect on the meaning of the season.
• i will get to the store asap so that my cubbards are stocked for food prep this weekend.
• i will relax, let go and soak in the spirit of chirstmas.

what are you doing to make your week less stressful?

::thoughts on family [tradition edition]::

we left the house early that morning with great anticipation. we were going to get our CHRISTMAS TREE!! every time we said it, we yelled it, hands in the air, smiles on our faces.

we drove into the mountains, old school santa claus playing on the dvd player, hearts filled with joy. durgin pointed out every moo-cow and tractor he saw while eisley sang christmas songs.

we arrived and headed up the mountain to choose and cut our christmas tree, kids in tow. we searched for the perfect tree while eisley ran round and round each one giggling. i spent my time making sure durgin didn't go tumbling down the mountain head over heels.

we picked our tree and went back down the mountain, hand holding hand, proud of our pick.

traditions: the passing down of customs.

we plan to carry on this tradition every year.
hopeful that they will treasure this time when they are grown.
hopeful they will remember the time we shared, the songs we sang, the time spent as a family.

what are some of your family traditions?

{the snow princess}

hope you all had a wonderful christmas celebration!
our family had a blast!
as snow fell to the ground jacob and i drank coffee and enjoyed the children playing at our feet.
i will see snow differently from now on.
i will see it through the eyes of my children.
and there is nothing more whimsical that a little princess in the snow...

{the richest family}

{photo credit}

i had two encounters yesterday with two different people.

1. a family asked me where they could find a food bank because they needed to eat.
2. a woman shared that her boys weren't going to have a very good christmas this year because she normally spends $1000 (yes, one thousand dollars) on them and she won't be able to do that this year.

my heart broke for both groups of people.
i thought about the extremes all day long.

i love christmas.
i love everything about the season.
i start listening to christmas music in early november and don't stop until well after the new year has arrived. i love to hunt for beautiful light displays and make a huge deal out of them to my children. i love gingerbread houses and making christmas goodies.
i love decorating the tree and all the traditions that come along with it.
i love christmas!

{photo credit}

however, i am struggling this year to find the balance.

we are santa people.
we have the elf on the shelf that my little girl hurries to find each and every morning.
she knows santa brings presents to little girls and boys and all of that good stuff.

but this year my heart is heavier than years past.
maybe it's because i am more aware of the depravity around me.
families that have lost their jobs and are struggling to make ends meet.
some are struggling just to eat.
and we...well, we have plenty.
i want to teach eisley that christmas is about jesus and the "gift" he gave. i hope that in turn she will want to give gifts to others. not neccessarily material things, but instead gifts of love, hope, peace, kindness, thankfulness and service.

i read this post a few weeks ago and it spoke volumes to my soul. and then a few weeks later i read this story (get tissues ready}.

both stories encouraged and challenged me.
so as a family we are focusing on the reason for the season which we believe is the amazing birth of jesus. we are talking about this daily with our children in hopes that they too will desire to give to others more than they desire to receive.

{grace and peace friends}

{decorating + {hot chocolate}+ charlie brown}

no early morning shopping for this girl. nope. no sir-ie.
i woke at a decent hour, made breakfast for my darlings and coffee for the hubs.
we enjoyed a leisurely morning of play and snuggles.

later we picked up our christmas tree and came home to decorate while the little ones napped...saving the star for eisley to place. however, midway through the first strand of lights eisley made an appearance. she was too excited about the tree to sleep. so we let her stay up and help.

she decorated her own tree with the help of her minnie mouse. then at the end we let her place the star.

at christmas (halloween and thanksgiving too) we have a special FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT. i write it in caps because we always say it with exclamation! it's a big big deal to this little family.

after the tree was up and everything was back in it's place. i prepared for our HOT CHOCOLATE DATE!

now eisley doesn't get a lot of sweets so things like hot chocolate are super special to her. she savors every moment. she held her mug just like a grown up. she sipped it gingerly. we sat close. snuggled. enjoyed our drinks and watched A Charlie Brown Christmas.

sweet memories.
forever treasured in my heart.
what does your family do to celebrate the holidays?