Stepping into the New Year

On this last day of 2007, I have been thinking on the last year. The thing about looking back for me is that I forget easily. I forget the lessons that God has taught me. I forget about the blessings from family. I lose the great conversations I had with friends. And in all that forgetting, pain and hurt resound loudly in my head. It is interesting to me that I can so easily let go of the good and only remember the bad. This year, I am going to do something about forgetting. Here are some of my goals for 2008.

- Get back into a daily bible study…so many times I let Sunday morning or my small group be my study for the day or even the week. I really need to get into the Word more.

- Exercise…I really never feel better than when I have exercised. I want to lose the rest of the baby weight from Silas and get into better shape this year…partly for me and the other part is that I have three active boys who need a mom who can run and play with them.

- Journal…this is huge as I do best when I can get my feelings out on paper rather than have them well up inside of me.

- Become more self-sufficient as a mom – Sometimes I feel I ask the grandparents for help on simple things that I could do by myself or even with the kids. This year I want to become more independent as a mom.

- Become joyful…I want to continue to pursue joy in all of my situations.

Do you have any goals for 2008?

Santa does not come to our house

After posting this the other day, I thought it might be time to tell you a little about our lack of Santa.

Santa does not visit our house on Christmas morning.

Now, take a deep breath and let it out. I will give you a moment to let that sentence sink in.

I am not kidding. Long before we had kids my hubby and I had a talk about Santa. Would we do the Santa thing, how long would it last. After much thought, my hubby decided we would not do Santa in our house. The reason for us is this:If we tell our children to believe in something they can’t see and then one day tell them we lied, what would they think when we told them about Christ?

My kids know who Santa is, we have never hid the idea of Santa. We just have never said that he was real. This year to our surprise our 5 year old told us Santa wasn’t real. When we asked why, he replied that reindeer don’t fly, in a tone that meant we should have obviously already known that knowledge.

While we personally don’t do Santa, we don’t look down on those that do. It was our choice how to handle Christmas and we are doing what we feel is best for us. Others do what is best for them. At the end of the day, I want my kids to remember the story of Christ, his birth and the eternal gift He gave us rather than a man in a red suit that brought a couple toys.

A mom’s Santa letter

I received this from a friend by email and thought it was cute and worht sharing! Hope it makes you smile, too!

Dear Santa
I’ve been a good mom all year. I’ve fed, cleaned and cuddled my children on demand, visited the doctor’s office more than my doctor and sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground. I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son’s red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I’ll find anymore free time in the next 18 years.

Here are my Christmas wishes:
I’d like a pair of legs that don’t ache (in any color, except purple, which I already have) and arms that don’t hurt or flap in the breeze, but are strong enough to pull my screaming child out of the candy aisle in the grocery store.

I’d also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy.

If you’re hauling big ticket items this year I’d like fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music, a television that doesn’t broadcast any programs containing talking animals, and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone.

On the practical side, I could use a talking doll that says, “Yes, Mommy” to boost my parental confidence, along with two kids who don’t fight and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools.

I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting “Don’t eat in the living room” and “Take your hands off your brother,” because my voice seems to be just out of my children’s hearing range and can only be heard by the dog.

If it’s too late to find any of these products, I’d settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning, or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container.

If you don’t mind, I could also use a few Christmas miracles to brighten the holiday season. Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable? It will clear my conscience immensely. It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized crime family.

Well, Santa, the buzzer on the dryer is calling and my son saw my feet under the laundry room door. I think he wants his crayon back. Have a safe trip and remember to leave your wet boots by the door and come in and dry off so you don’t catch cold.

Help yourself to cookies on the table but don’t eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet.

Yours Always,
MOM…

Time is flying

Have you noticed that when the holidays roll around, the days are shorter? Does this phenomenon happen to anyone else? All of the sudden we are struggling Christmas practice and parties not to mention shopping for the perfect gifts. Honestly, it can be a bit overwhelming. At the same time, there is no more perfect time of the year than Christmas for me. I absolutely love the hunt of the perfect gift. I enjoy the craziness of parties and the scheduling that goes along with it. I even enjoy the Kid’s Christmas Programs (although I am hoping that they remember that Isaiah can sing loud enough…and place him not under the microphone). I love getting together the Christmas card and putting up decorations. And I am a little sad when it is time to take them down. Of course, I think the biggest reason I love Christmas is the chance to exude joy. This is the birth of our savior! He has given me the best gifts I could ever have. It is so easy to get caught up in the busyness of Christmas and forget that now (sometimes more than throughout the year) we are examples of our Creator. Enjoy your Christmas!