I've Been Nominated for the Liebster Award!

I'm very grateful to the Rosevine Cottage Girls for nominating me for The Liebster Award. Thank you so much!

Okay, here goes. I hope I did it correctly!

If you have been nominated for The Liebster Award AND YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT, here are the rules: write a blog post about the award in which you:

1. Thank the person who nominated you, and post a link to their blog on your blog.

2. Display the award on your blog (by including it in your post and/or displaying it using a “widget” or     a “gadget”.)

3. Answer 11 questions about yourself, (which will be provided to you by the person who nominated         you.)

4. Provide 11 random facts about yourself.

5. Nominate 11 blogs that you feel deserve the award, who have a less than 200 followers.

6. Create a new list of questions for the your nominees to answer.

Eleven Random Facts About Myself:

1. I'm a little afraid of heights.
2. People frighten me. I am definitely an introvert. 
3. I really, really stink at math. Really.
4. I knew nearly nothing about cooking or cleaning when I got married.
5. I knew nearly nothing about childcare when I had my first child. Hers was the first dirty diaper I ever changed. 
6. I nearly drowned as a child. Twice. 
7. I'm trying to teach myself to like seafood, but it's not going so whale. Heh, heh....
8. I recently obtained my driver's permit. Yes, I'm a little old for that and yes, I know how strange that is.
9. I'm very afraid of escalators. Like, very. 
10. My daughter just pointed out how many fears I have listed. Evidently, I am a very fearful person. That scares me. 
11. I find it far too easy to laugh in church, and when I do, I find it nearly impossible to stop. This usually results in desperate gasps for air. As quietly as possible. (And in case you're wondering, it's pretty much not possible.)

Here are my answers to the 11 questions asked by The Rosevine Cottage Girls:

1. Why do you write?  I write because, well, because I've always written. It's an outlet for me. 
2. What and Who inspires you? I'm inspired by every other mommy blogger who is brave enough to open her heart for her readers to see.  
3. Who do you admire the most? That's a tough one. I deeply admire Elisabeth Elliot and Ann Voskamp. I also admire a dear friend of mine who has suffered the loss of her husband to cancer. She's the homeschooling mom of four children, she's a writer, she's an encourager, a listener, and she's my hero. 
4. Where have you always wanted to go? That's easy! Europe! 
5. What gets you through the really tough times? A crazy sense of humor, reminding myself that this life is only temporary, and the knowledge that nothing takes God by surprise; that His Spirit will always be with me.
6. What is the most important lesson you have learned? That placing too much trust in people and putting their opinions over what the Bible says will bring a lot of pain and confusion. God's Word should be the basis for everything we do.
7. If you could give advice to yourself as a child what would it be? Stop trying to win love. Don't stress so much about being perfect and accepted. God's love for you is eternal and unchanging...cling to that.
8. Where is your favorite place to be? Home!
9. What are some defining moments in your life that God has brought you through? There have been a lot, and so many have been in the past three-four years. We went through some things as a family that nearly shattered us. I lost my grandparents, the only parents I'd ever known. We lost some close friends. Our lives changed drastically in nearly every way. But God has been unchangeable and always present, gently leading us in the way He'd have us to go. 
10. What is your passion? I'm passionate about encouraging, uplifting, and spreading joy, pointing others to Jesus, being a real Christian, and being the best wife and mom God can help me to be. Oh, and I'm passionate about homeschooling! :)
11. If you could go back in history and meet one person who would it be? Another tough one! Only one!? Of course, I'd love to go back to Bible times and meet the disciples, Mary, and all the rest, but other than that, I'd probably like to meet...wow, there are so many.... Well, one person I'd love to meet is Abraham Lincoln. Oh, and Susanna Wesley. And..... :)

My Liebster Award Nominees (in no particular order):

1. Frontier Blessings
2. Essentials for Health and Wellness, Naturally
3. Am I The Only One?
4. The House With a Red Door
5. Crystal Starr
6. Learning Table
7. Embracing Him
8. Homeschool Camper
9. The (mis)Adventures of a "Born Again" Farm Girl
10. Simply Blessed
11. Jennifer L. Self

Questions for my nominees (I borrowed some of them. Hey, I'm sleepy!) :

1. What is your favorite passage of Scripture?
2. If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?
3. What is your favorite book?
4. If you could give advice to yourself as a child, what would it be?
5. Who inspires you?
6. What is the worst advice ever offered to you?
7. What do you find to be the most challenging in your life right now?
8. Are you "early to bed, early to rise", or are you a night owl who lives on coffee?
9. Who is your favorite historical figure? Why?
10. Who is your favorite biblical figure? Why?
11. Why do you blog?

It's a Party!

*~Happy Birthday!~*

Today is the birthday of Jennifer Self, the author/owner of Cherish The Call, and we're celebrating with a blog party! If you haven't visited over there yet today, you're missing out. Jennifer and the other gals have lots of fun stuff cooked up...there are even some prizes, I hear! So c'mon and celebrate with us.

I hope you aren't too full of party snacks, because it's time to play some games! Well...not literally. But I do have some fun birthday party games to share with you.

1. Crazy Cans Game
I found this idea at Two Shades of Pink. The painting and sewing may be a little time-consuming, but it's just too cute and it would be a great game for little ones. If you can't find the i-pod nano socks, you'll have to get creative. I'm wondering if the tops of some colorful socks would work...maybe?


2. Fruit Basket
Did you ever play Fruit Basket when you were a child? It's loads of fun! There are instructions here if you don't remember how to play it. The one major difference is that we always put chairs in a circle and the players had to move to different chairs when their group was called. Otherwise, these instructions are pretty much the same.


3. Relay Games
Relay games are always fun! Here are a few variations: (the first two are links)

a. Classic Egg and Spoon Relay. Fun...and messy. Definitely an outside game.


b. Grab Bag.  This relay would be more fun to watch than to play,
 I'm thinkin'. ;) It'd be funny for kids, but hysterical for adults!

c. The Food Relay This game would be more appropriate for teens and adults than for smaller children, and you'll need to find out about any food allergies before starting the game.

Get two large paper bags and fill them with sandwich bags containing small amounts of food items such as:
                                

Nice Items:

apple slices

bananas

slices of bread

pickle spear

chips

powdered donuts

 Not-so-Nice Items:

plastic spoonful of peanut butter (try to eat that in a hurry!)

     one piece of Sour Head candy

    fruit tape (soooo funny!)

   onion (just a teeny bit)

The players form two lines. The first players race to the table, pull out a baggie, eat whatever it contains, and run to the back of the line. The relay continues until one team has finished. 

The fun part about this game is that you can tweak it and do anything you'd like to with it...like only being nice, if you wish. :)

4. Clothespin Buzzword

Follow this link and scroll down the page just a little bit to find instructions for this game. It's suitable for birthdays, baby showers, bridal showers, etc. You can choose any appropriate "buzzword", but make it something that is likely to be said a lot! :)

And, of course, there are always the old favorites: Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Musical Chairs, Hot Potato, Bobbing for Apples....

Follow these links for more fun party games for adults and children: Party411.com & stephmodo.com . 

Don't forget to visit Cherish the Call throughout the day so you don't miss anything! :)

How We Celebrate Christmas

Christmas at our house is a simple time of family togetherness. I like it that way.

On Christmas Eve we watch Christmas movies, play games, eat snacks, and just enjoy our time together. We also allow the children to each open one of their gifts. They definitely love that tradition! 

My children aren't usually the type to bounce into our bedroom at 6:00 on Christmas morning to drag us into the living room to open presents. Sometimes, we have to wake them up. Sleepy heads! 

We started a Christmas morning tradition years ago and it's a precious start to the day's events. The first thing the children do when they wake up is to head for our nativity scene and find Baby Jesus in the manger. (I don't put Him there until Christmas morning.) This is a reminder to them, first thing, that this day isn't about rushing to greedily tear open their gifts. It's about the Baby in the manger Who came to save us from our sins.

After that, we get comfy and my husband reads the Christmas story to us.I so appreciate the sense of reverence that comes with the retelling of that old-but-always-new story!  We pray together and then...

...it's time to open the gifts! Chaos reigns! 

The rest of the day is spent enjoying the children's new gifts, with nothing in particular planned. Just relaxing. 

We used to plan a big ol' meal for Christmas Day, but have decided that we'd rather spend our time enjoying the day than cooking in the kitchen. So, we've simplified the menu. Last year, (and I believe we'll have the same thing this year) we had ham, crock-pot macaroni and cheese, broccoli salad, and rolls. All quick and easy to prepare. Of course, we have desserts and snacks on hand as well so we can "graze" throughout the day.

I love spending a simple Christmas, all cozied up with my little family!

What special Christmas traditions do you observe every year? I'd love to read them, so please share!

Head on over to see how these ladies celebrate Christmas:

Jennifer @ Joy Ever After

Judy @ Contented at Home

Joanna @ The LaVans

Our Christmas Activities

I'll admit that we aren't particularly creative when it comes to Christmas activities. I'll give a little insight into what we do, though, just to give you a glimpse into our rather usual Christmastime fun.

My husband and I put the tree up and get the lights on it, and then we decorate it as a family. This year, due to limited space (which I mentioned in this post) we had to improvise with our tree situation. Here are a few photos of the children decorating:

My sweet daughter made this ornament for the tree. 

Even the dog got in on the action. He was particularly intrigued by the smell of the popcorn. ;)

This is the finished product. Different, to be sure, but we all like it! Maybe next year we can get back to a traditional tree. 

For this Christmas, again due to our limited space, we're only using the same little nativity scene that we've used for years instead of our larger one. It had to go in a more out-of-the-way place than it usually would because of the danger of being knocked to the floor in these tight quarters. The children helped put all the little figures in place. All except Baby Jesus. He won't arrive in the manger until Christmas morning. :)

My son loves the donkey.

                                              

We made popcorn and cranberry garlands this year, which was very festive and so much fun...except for the occasional "poke". We enjoyed Christmas cookies and hot chocolate, and just being together. 

Christmas is quickly approaching, so we won't be able to do a whole lot of extra activities. Unfortunately, we missed a concert that I had really looked forward to because I (sheepish grin) was looking at an event calendar from last year. 

We should still be able to get out and see some lights, and that's always fun! I especially like to find a big ol' fancy community where we can drive through and enjoy the gorgeous homes and Christmas decorations. Makes me dream of my mansion in Heaven! :)  

In years past we have caroled in nursing homes with church groups. It always warmed my heart to see how the faces of those dear people brightened up at the sight of the children, and to see them singing along with the familiar Christmas hymns. 

Of course we always enjoy some nights of games and Christmas movies, and...yep...just being together. 

The past two years we were able to take off on a short trip to a nice motel for a little Christmas get away. It was part of the children's Christmas gift, and it wasn't very expensive because it was a tourist area and out of season. It was so very relaxing and we enjoyed making memories together! 

This Sunday our children will be in our church's Christmas play. They're very excited, but oh, so nervous! It will be the first program for our son, who is almost four. He's a camel. That should be a riot. 

I hope to find a Living Nativity in our area, and maybe another Christmas concert of sorts to make up for the one that I...um...botched. 

So, you see, we don't do anything really out of the ordinary. The most important thing is to spend time together, make memories, and focus on the true meaning of Christmas...the Gift of God's Son...and the joy and peace that He brought to us. 

Visit these other blogs to see what sort of activities they take part in at Christmas! 

Judy @ Contented at Home

Joanna @ The LaVans

Jessica @ It's the Little Things

How We Christmas Shop

Each Friday for the next four weeks, I'll be participating in a blog hop with Joy Ever After. There will be a different topic every week to give you a peek into our lives. There will also be a giveaway on most of the Fridays, so make sure to stop in each Friday for the rest of the year!


I am a stay-at-home mom and happily so. But, when I say stay-at-home, I really, truly mean it. :) I rarely shop. At all. And usually, that's okay. But, being a female, I do enjoy going on a shopping trip from time to time. So, when Christmas rolls around, I have an excuse and I take advantage of it! 


I'm especially guilty of being in love with Black Friday specials! The evening of Thanksgiving, after all the food has been eaten, leftovers put away, and fun times had, I pore over the papers and map out my plan of attack. 


One year I left the house with friends at about two o'clock in the morning. We spent those crazy, hazy hours laughing at everything because we were so tired and came away with aching sides, fun memories, and a few deals. 


We passed Best Buy and, for the first time, I saw for myself the line of tents and the crowd of anxious people in front of the store. 


"Look at those idiots!" I laughed to my friends, shaking my head. 


Fast forward a couple of hours. My friends and I are in line waiting for Sears to open. It's freezing, and we're exhausted. I nodded toward the passing traffic and commented dryly, "Know what they're saying? They're saying, 'Look at those idiots!'" 


Ahh, the memories. 


This year, my mother-in-law, my friend and I left at around 9 p.m. I didn't think my dear ol' mother-in-law would make it past 2 a.m. She surprised me. No, she astounded me. By around 10 the next morning, when I felt like I was going to pass out in Kohl's (no joke) she was still, um, bright-eyed-and-bushy-tailed. I was quite chagrined. And she was rather pleased. Hmph. ;)


I'm not really a greedy, gotta-have, shopping maniac, but I do enjoy shopping when I can  and Black Friday is one of those rare opportunities. 


Other than BF specials, I have been taking advantage of the low prices on amazon or ebay. One thing that helps with my online shopping is the Swagbucks Toolbar. By using the toolbar for our searches we earn Swagbucks which can be redeemed for many things. I've always used them to get $5 amazon gift cards. I've been able to score quite a few things either very cheap or free! 


Another way that we've saved money while Christmas shopping is to shop consignment stores. Like-new clothes, books, and toys are just as good as new ones, and far more thrifty!


A highlight of Christmas shopping for me is when my husband and I get to go on our annual Christmas date. We eat out (another rarity) and enjoy some shopping together. Fun!


Now...with all that out of the way, I'd like to say that I read an article by Ann Voskamp at  A Holy Experience that convicted me almost more than anything else I've read concerning how we give gifts at Christmas. My husband read it and was convicted as well. We don't buy extravagantly because we can't afford it. But, then again, do we? In comparison with what we can truly afford...? Do my children really need all this stuff? What are we teaching them? Are they learning to give rather than to receive? Is this really how Jesus' birthday should be celebrated? 


And so the mental war rages. I love the fun and excitement and shopping at Christmas. I love to surprise my little ones with lots of gifts. But I want them to learn what Christmas is really about, and I'm quite sure that this Christmas commercialism isn't it. 


So, we're considering a happy medium. I have a feeling that subsequent Christmases at our house will be quite different. Such as...using gift money to help out those who really need it, maybe even doing what the Voskamps do (with the catalogs), and by buying only a few gifts for our children instead of stressing over getting them a bunch of gifts. 


And that's just a thought out loud. :)


Boy, I went long today. If you made it to the end of this post, please escape by checking in with these other bloggers to see how they shop for Christmas! 


Judy @ Contented at Home
Joanna @ The LaVans

Thanks for stopping by!

How We Decorate For Christmas

Each Friday for the next five weeks, I'll be participating in a blog hop with Joy Ever After. There will be a different topic every week to give you a peek into our lives. There will also be a giveaway on most of the Fridays, so make sure to stop in each Friday for the rest of the year!


Christmas is my favorite Holiday and I love to drive around and gaze admiringly at the decorations and lights in, on, and around the homes and yards of those more motivated than I. I really do love to see a place all decked out, but I just don't have the energy and gumption to do much decorating myself. Don't get me wrong, I love to decorate! But I'm just not the type who changes everything for every season and holiday. 


This year, decorating very much at all is a challenge anyway, because we have moved into a tiny little house and literally have no room for many decorations. In fact, we don't even have a good place to put a Christmas tree! I checked into buying a corner tree (didn't think we'd be happy with that at all) or a pencil tree (it'd still be awful crammed in that corner), and I knew that a little table-top was "out" as far as the kids were concerned. Soooo...we're improvising. Majorly. Please don't laugh. 


In the only available corner in our living room, on a table, stand...(drum roll please)...three trees. Yes, three. 


I got a set of three adorable, country-lookin', pre-lit trees, each a different height, and arranged them on that table in the corner. Traditional? No. A satisfactory solution? Yep! They actually look quite pretty! Alas, they aren't decorated yet so I can't share a photo, but they will be by Saturday night if I can help it and I'll take some shots and get them up on here. Most importantly, the kids like the idea. (I don't mean to make them sound like demanding, spoiled little brats at all! They just love a big Christmas tree and really didn't want to settle for a small tabletop. However, if that had been what we chose to do, they would have made the best of it.)


One of my favorite decorations, of course, is the little nativity we bought about seven years ago. Last year we had a nice mantle to put it on. This year... I'm not sure yet where it will be placed, but I'll find a place of honor where, hopefully, it won't be knocked over! (One of our special Christmas traditions is centered around this little set, but I'll post about that at another time.) 


So with the three trees, the nativity set, some greenery over some windows and a few other items placed here and there, our little home will look rather festive, I think. Oh, and the children have small trees in their rooms as well!

Here's what our tree looked like last year. I used a mostly red-and-white candy theme, though it doesn't show up very well here. (Where are my other photos?)

 

~*~

 This shot isn't the greatest, but I still love it. :)

~*~

This is part of our little nativity. 

Now you can go check out how these ladies decorate for Christmas!

Judy @ Contented at Home

Liz @ Inside the Mind of Mama Bear
Joanna @ The LaVans
Jessica @ It's the Little Things