O Come Let Us Adore Him

Lucas had his Christmas Play at preschool this morning. It was precious and perfect. Lucas (one of the three kings) sang all the songs and did all the motions (last year, he just stood there) and smiled like the adorable boy he is. I am a sappy, sentimental fool at things like this. I cry during the movie Polar Express and the end of Elf. And watching my little boy sing about Jesus and the miracle of Christmas brings out so much more emotion. So I was definitely wiping some tears this morning.



He is getting so big and grown up. He holds my heart, this precious "king."

And this one too! :)


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Resolving to Subtract

This is an updated version of a post I ran around this time last year. It still applies- even more so this year. So if it sounds familiar, it probably is. But aren't most NewYear's resolutions recycled versions of resolutions-past. They are for me. And this year is no different.

Happy New Year, to all y'all! Love and Blessings to you in 2010!!

My and my boys on Christmas Eve

Bloggy-land is running over this week with posts full of resolutions and goals and the best of intentions. I am no different than my fellow moms in that I have several (ok, LOTS) of areas in my life that need improvement and are in desperate need of a resolution or two.
In years past, I have started the new year with any number of things I want to change in my life in the coming months. Lose weight, get in shape, read more, pray more, yell less, spend less, ... I keep up with these things off and on, but like most people, my resolve fizzles fairly quickly. Because of my usual trend, I am approaching things a little differently this year. Instead of adding more things that I have to remember to do, to be, to accomplish.... I am subtracting. I am simplifying. Cutting out the things that clutter my mind, my day, the top of my desk. I am reading some really clarifying books that are helping me gain much-needed perspective. I am thinking of ways to keep life organized and simple and stress-free.

Beyond that though, I am taking a strong look at the ways we spend our days and "free time." Am I filling my days with things that matter and am I filling them too much? I am learning that my own whole-ness and that of my boys (young, old and canine) really depends on how well I am able to filter out the unnecessary clutter in all areas of life. Mid January will bring a big change for me and my family. I am changing jobs and I know this will have a big affect on all of us. It means more time at work and more of my home time will need to be dedicated to studying and learning my new role (BTW- I am a cardiac interventional nurse). This shift in my professional life and commitment makes it even more crucial that I take a hard look at all the other things that fill my days and decide what can stay and what needs to go. My time with my family, while being the most important thing to me, is about to diminish in quantity. So it MUST improve it quality. And that, for me, means simplifying and filtering and being intentional about the ways I spend my minutes and my dollars. So on the brink of this new year, I am resolving to subtract the insignificant, the clutter, the fluff. I am resolving to stop deciding what I should or should not be doing based on what seems to work for others or makes them popular and successful. I am resolving to decide what I want my life to look like and cut anything that doesn't contribute to that end so I can focus on the things that do.

Whatever your resolutions or goals are for the coming year, I pray that God would show you how to proceed, give you the perseverance to stick to it, and the grace to not get down on yourself if you can't. I have always been one to have very high expectations of myself. So this time I am trying to just see things for what they are and pray that God would help me make the small adjustments that will make a big difference.

I leave you with some pics from our Christmas this year! :) ...

Lucas and Caden sitting in the nativity out on my parents' front lawn

Lucas learning to ride the bicycle my parents gave him for Christmas

I got the boys these adorable superhero capes since they are so into superhero play these days. They loved them!! (Want your own? BabyPop on Etsy)

Working on his cool MotorWorks toy with "Pa"- an awesome toy with actual tools and parts and the kids put the toys together themselves. Lucas loves it!! (Check out this website...)

I made Caden a mailbox complete with felt letters and stamps and address labels that are interchangeable. It turned out super-cute!

Boys opening presents from each other :)

I also made them pirate blankets since Lucas is WAY into pirates. It was kinda inspired by one of our favorite books about a pirate pup who is looking for his treasure (his blanket).

Hubby and I with our team hats- his is the Chicago Bears and mine, of course, is my Gators.

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Merry Christmas, y'all!

Our family Christmas card

Setting out cookies for Santa and carrots for the reindeer

Silly Lucas

Santa baby

Merry Christmas, y'all!

Many blessings to you and your family this season and in the year to come.

Much Love,

Farrah

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And the winner is...

Pickel from MyTwoBoys! Hooray!! I hope you enjoy this book as much as we do.

Everyone else... you can go here to get one yourself or just stop in your local Border's Bookstore!
Thanks for entering and giving me an outlet for my Christmas energy. Merry Christmas y'all!

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In the spirit of Christmas...

"This is the stable, dusty and brown,
in a quiet corner of Bethlehem town."

My husband and I are between churches right now. Our old church, which we dearly loved, doesn't exist anymore and the circumstances that caused that to be true continue to grieve my heart. The reason I say that is to say that we are looking for ways this advent season to teach our almost- two-year-old how rich and wonderful this time of year is. It is a deep, meaningful holiday that teaches us so much truth about God's love for us and our proper response to that love. One of the things that made our church so amazing was the tradition and liturgy of advent. Being in any church at advent is powerful, but for us being a part of the advent liturgy made us feel the anticipation of Christ's birth and then the all-consuming rejoicing with the angels on Christmas Day. It moves your soul unlike anything I can describe. I love that sense of being able to close your eyes and worship through sound and smell and get a small taste of what it must have been like to be the shepherds in those fields listening to the angels sing "Hosanna!"
I have recently had conversations with a dear friend on how best to do advent with little ones and have browsed this awesome blog about other families' advent traditions. Both have been very thought provoking and inspiring for me in this process of trying to make this season meaningful for my family. I went to Borders the other day in an attempt to find books to include and I found this one: "This is the Stable" by Cynthia Cotten. It is wonderful. It is a simple telling of the Christmas story with the most beautiful illustrations and poetic verse. My son sat on my lap today for 15 solid minutes and I read this book over and over, neither of us getting tired of the repetition. The pictures remind me of Barefoot Books (although this is not a Barefoot Book - but they are wonderful too by the way!) as the artwork is a similar style - colorful and bright and eye-capturing. Lucas loved pointing at each page and naming what he saw... "donkey," "star", "baby Jesus." The story is true and simple but somehow it touched me. I love things that are beautiful and allow me to feel the depth of meaning and emotion that are always under my surface. This book did that for me. We both really like this book.
I liked this book so much, in fact, that I bought an extra one to giveaway to one of you. If you have a little one and are looking for a good book to read with them during this time of celebrating Jesus' birth, comment here and I will draw a name at random on Dec. 5. I will mail the book to you right away so you can read it through Advent with your child/children. If you don't mind, please post about this somewhere on your blog if you have one and tell your friends to help me get the word out a bit.

I know this isn't all we will do to teach Lucas about the beauty and mystery and profound love that is this season. But it is a start. And I am happy with that.


Also, don't forget that time is running out to get a discount on a new sling. Visit my website babyloveslings.com and click "buy a sling" or go directly to my webstore (store.babyloveslings.com). Use coupon code GIVEAWAY for 15% your total order until Dec. 7. Get a jump on that holiday shopping for yourself or that favorite mama on your list.

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Baby wearing pictures

I just updated my photo gallery on my website with some fun new babywearing pictures. My website has other pics too including a celebrity baby-wearing gallery but here are the BabyLove Slings pics. Enjoy!

Also, don't forget that time is running out to get a discount on a new sling. Visit my website babyloveslings.com and click "buy a sling" or go directly to my webstore (store.babyloveslings.com). Use coupon code GIVEAWAY for 15% your total order until Dec. 7. Get a jump on that holiday shopping for yourself or that favorite mama on your list.

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Christmas is coming....

Last Friday, we drove downtown to see all the city lights while listening to Christmas music on the radio. We didn't get out of the car (the easiest way to do city lights with a toddler if you ask me) but we rolled the windows down and watched the lights and listened to the sounds of the city. "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas..." (did you sing it in your head?)

I actually put up my Christmas tree last night in preparation for a playgroup party at my house today. This is the earliest I have ever done it. The tradition in my house is that the tree stays up until Jan. 7 which is my birthday!! We (o.k. mostly me) like to extend the party around here. :) We had a great little book exchange with the playgroup kiddos this morning and I am feeling the Christmas bug start to bite! I had my first glass of egg nog last night and I just ordered this adorable apron for my son who LOVES to cook with mommy and is getting into painting and other crafts. He will look so adorabable! You can get your own cute gift from skimbaco.com. She is giving away a $200 gift certificate too. I know that would put me in the Christmas mood. How 'bout you? :)







What puts you in the Christmas spirit? Music? Parties? Shopping? Spending time with friends and family? I don't know that I love Christmas the holiday as much as I love the feeling, the spirit, around this time of year. I love the house feeling festive and picking out gifts for my loved ones. I love that everyone starts focusing on spending time with people and showing them how much they mean to each other. I love how our priorities seem to shift at Christmas. We aren't as concerned with the "doing" as we are with just "being" and experiencing the season. At least that is how it should be. I don't always get it right, but that is why I love Christmas.
Christmas is the perfect season for people like me. I love to give gifts and get them. Mostly because a well-given gift expresses so much love and regard for the person. I give gifts out of love and I feel loved when I get them. I love to be hospitable and entertain well. Christmas is the perfect season for that. I love to plan meaningful events with people that I love. I love to decorate and make things look pretty. Again, this season is for me. I hope this season has its joys for you too. We should all take the time to just "be" this Christmas with those we love.

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