Preparing for Nativity: Day Eleven...

There was no preparation for Christmas today... just lots of snuggling and enjoying a raining day from our cozy house!

Preparing for Nativity: Day Ten...

Yesterday was very hectic, but lots of fun! We had some church moms and their children over for lunch and a playdate. After the babies napped (they REALLY needed it!), we made these fast and very toddler friendly birdfeeders for the tree in our front yard. I was also able to polish our dining room table and chairs in preparation for all of the meals we will be having there during the holiday season.

I was really happy that I got all of our basic cleaning out of the way earlier in the week (very uncharacteristic for me!) because it is our son's birthday tommorrow and we are having my mother-in-law and our son's godfather and his son (a happy surprise!) over this weekend and into the begining of next week. It should be a really nice weekend!

Preparing for Nativity: Day Nine...

Today was spent trying to get the window of my oven door clean. I have no idea what is on it, but it is gross. I have tried using the self-clean feature on the oven, water and soap, Comet, Magic Eraser, and special oven cleaner. It is only a little better than how it looks in this picture. Any tips?

After I put the little ones to bed, I am going to be cleaning the whole downstairs. I did that last week and was able to clean everything and watch some tv while doing it in half the time it takes me to clean with the babies underfoot. I do like to clean with the children so that they are learning to work with me. However, with all that is going on this month it is easier to do it myself while they are sleeping.

I am feeling a little sad tonight, because we cannot find our little Nativity dolls. I have a terrible feeling that a little person put them in the bathroom trash can yesterday and I tossed them just in time for the garbage truck. Sigh.

Preparing for Nativity: Day 8...

Today was boring day as far as Christmas cleaning and preparations go. I finalized my lists for Christmas gifts and our Christmas dinner menu and cleaned out my desk drawers and cabinets. We also went and got our boy his first pair of shoes today. I had planned to get them for him and add them to his stocking, but it has been too cold for him to only have socks on. Plus, he is trying so hard to walk without holding on to anything. I'm hoping that shoes will help.

I also wanted to mention that I read An Orange for Frankie while we were at the library last week. I really enjoyed this book... so much so that it brought tears to my eyes as I read it on the worn carpet of the children's section! I recommend this book for your collection!

Preparing for Nativity: Day Seven...

We were hoping to get to go to a near-by town's Winter Wonderland Light Display this evening, but it is pretty cold and very windy here. With two little ones, it is probably better to wait! We pulled out our wintry Christmas candle instead. I love candle light in the fall and winter, don't you? It is so nice to be home on a chilly night and have the candle flickering and scenting the air...

Preparing for Nativity: Day Six...

Today was a wonderful and busy day! We began it with looking to see what we had received in honor of Saint Nicholas... chocolate coins and a wool felted Baby Jesus, Mother of God, and Saint Joseph!. We were also able to go to a Christmas party for the children in my Mom's Club!

I hung our winter wreath on the front door

and finally had a chance to create a dish cupboard for our two-and-a-half year old after being inspired to do so weeks ago! Having only the few dishes that our little one uses will work much better for us than having everything on a low shelf while our children are so young.

Preparing for Nativity: Day Five...

Well, I've just finished baking and decorating the St. Nicholas Cookies for tonight. We are going to have church, a movie on St. Nicholas, and refreshments at 7pm. I was also able to do my on-line Christmas shopping today and while our daughter was napping, I went to run a few errands with Little Man. We had fun getting some things at the health food store, the regular grocery store, and a consignment shop (Hurray for finding my FAVORITE skirt in a new color - a beautiful dark brown!!).

Preparing for Nativity: Day Four...

December 4th is our Little Man's Namesday! We had a pretty regular morning and early afternoon but at about 4:00, we had some yummy peach crisp (thanks to the advent cleaning out of the fridge and freezer, we had summer peaches to use!) for our special dessert and presents. Our boy loved the barn and animals that he received (as did his sister!). After we played a bit, we headed out to a Christmas Parade in a nearby town. It was the first time the children had been to a parade and the first time Fr. John and I were to one at night! It was really nice! Our little girl was very taken with the "princesses" (beauty queens) riding on the backs of convertibles. She even practiced their special beauty queen wave... We are in trouble with this one!

Preparing for Nativity: Day Three...

Sorting toys is something that I have needed to do for awhile. I normally do this every few months so that I can make sure that everything is organized and has the correct pieces. Because I put a few new baskets in the reading room, I was able to move our son's baby toys to the rectangular basket on the floor rather than the larger round basket they were in previously. It is so much better for him! He has been dragging it out from under the table all morning and playing with his things happily! I also went through our art supply cabinet (the one with glass doors). Though I like the look of the baskets, they hide a lot of junk!

Today's fun Christmas-y activity was the un-veiling of the Christmas and winter felt pieces for our felt board that I worked on this past weekend (Yours are in the mail, Courtney!!).

Here is St. Joseph, the Mother of God, and Baby Jesus:

Here are the winter felt pieces that I came up with:

I'd like to make a few animals and a maybe a little winter cottage, but I think it will be nice to make those things for mid-January when we put the Holy Family away and need something new.

I am really looking forward to tomorrow! It is our Little Man's Namesday and we have some fun things planned to celebrate!

Preparing for Nativity: Day Two...

I tidied up the front closet this morning - specifically the shelves above the coats. They had become a dumping ground for all manner of things. Now I have some room to hide a few presents!

We took a walk to the pharmacy at the end of our street where they were selling these sweet little holly bushes. A perfect centerpiece for our table! Don't get too excited over the red berries. They are faux.

Last night I bagged all of the chocolate coins we'll need for our shoes and for church on Saint Nicholas Day (December 6th). Don't forget the Saint Nicholas Center Website to help you get ready! It has tons of crafts, food ideas, stories, and book suggestions. We'll be trying this cookie recipe using a St. Nicholas cookie cutter (last one on page). We are also reading these stories to our children each night (with a few theological corrections:) ).

What Christmas preparations have you been doing?

Preparing for Nativity: Day One...

I've written out two lists for these next few weeks leading up to Christmas. One has all of the fun things that I'd like to do with the children: decorating, wrapping, baking, and special events (like a Christmas parade and Living Nativity!). The other goes through the house with daily projects I'd like to complete before the end of December.

Today, I tackled the children's books. They were getting a little out of hand and I noticed that there were many books we had two of or we don't read (thanks to all the books leftover from teaching!). I thinned out the shelves and added several baskets for sorting some of our more specific toys (balls, blocks, vehicles, etc.) .

Look how many we have to give away!!

After the de-cluttering was done, we took all of our Christmas and Winter books out and put them in a large basket for easy access. I even added ones I'd like to read (again) this year: Miracle on 34th Street, The Lion in the Box, The Mitford Snowman, Esther's Gift, and Christmas with Anne.

Next up, tidy the front closet and create a Winter centerpiece!

Christmas Panic...

It seems like every store in our area has had all of their Christmas things up since the end of October. Even though we don't start our decorating until after our son's birthday (the 12th of December) and don't put our tree up until December 21st (the Pre-feast of the Nativity), I feel myself panic every time I walk into a store. I keep forgetting that there is plenty of time and we need to focus on Advent and Thanksgiving first!

November 23rd...

It's time for another Commitment to Loveliness! This is a fun way to increase femininity and beauty in our lives each week without even trying! All you have to do is choose five things that you would like to work on or do during the week that will increase the loveliness in your life!

Here is my list for this week:

1. Decide on a menu for our Thanksgiving feast with my husband's side of the family.
2. Choose and print photos for the children's baby books.
3. Hem fabric for kitchen tablecloth.
4. Catch up on correspondence.
5. Clean house from top to bottom!

Once you have chosen five simple things, post them on your blog and link to this post in your post, and then post the direct link to your Commitment to Loveliness post in the comments section. If you do not have a blog, but have a commitment to share, please post them in the comments section.

Creating a Child Friendly Environment: Child-Sized Table and Chairs...

Do you remember our kitchen table? It no longer looks like this:

It looks like this:

After months of drooling over and hoping to get a child-sized table and chairs for our children, we were able to finally get one for free!! Our church got cabinets and counters installed in the coffee hour room and was getting rid of a kitchen table that was larger than ours and matched our chairs, so Fr John hauled it home with the help for some parishioners.

Once that was finished, he cut the legs down on our old table and I painted it. Voila! Our little ones have a table for their crafts! I still have to get a few chairs, but I have my eye on some wooden ones at Michael's craft store (I'm just waiting on some 50% off coupons!). In the meantime, our daughter's rocker (also a Michael's find!) is filling in nicely!

I really like the size of this table because it will accommodate more than one or two children. It will be great for crafting, parties with a lot of children, etc. A big thank you to Hannah for planting the seed of this idea in my head many moons ago!!

Axios! Axios! Axios!

A video of the Orthodox Church in America selecting a new Metropolitan can be found here.

Photos courtesy of Fr. John

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity, Jig...

We are home! We actually returned yesterday afternoon, but I was finishing up a bout of the stomach 'flu and couldn't really think about doing much except plopping on the couch without moving. My poor little ones are now in the throws of it themselves (our daughter seems to be coming out just fine, but our Little Man has contracted it as badly as his Mama did). Please say a little prayer that if Father John has to get it, he won't until tomorrow evening. He would be sad to not be able to serve Liturgy tomorrow, especially with such wonderful news to share with our congregation!

Mary Cassett - Woman Preparing to Wash Her Sleepy Child

A Blog Break?

My family and I are heading out for a week away after church tomorrow. We will be going up to visit my family and friends (!!!!) while Fr. John goes to the All-American Council to peddle his websites and pick a new Metropolitan. I'm not sure how much computer time I will have, but just in case I don't have any, I'll be back to posting nearly every day next week. I am sure I'll have plenty to share when we return!! See you soon!

Saturday's Feminine Tip...

Make a little extra for dinner and package it up for someone you know that could use a hot meal... maybe there is a person who is sick from your parish, a lonely person in your neighborhood, or a friend in need for a little helping hand. Whatever the case may be, a home- cooked meal is a welcome respite when you can't cook one for yourself!

Ina Garten's Chicken Pot Pie Recipe can be found HERE. It's my favorite way to make it (though I use biscuits instead of a traditional crust)!

Keeping Your Toddler Busy...

Though I try to involve my little girl in whatever I am doing, realistically I need a distraction for her sometimes. My favorite ways to keep her occupied are to give her vegetable scraps to "cook" with, dishes to "wash" and flour and water to make "bread."

How do you keep your children busy when you need a minute?

Nightstand Alternatives...

We have used the tv trays instead of nightstands for over a year now and I thought they looked okay until I saw them in some pictures I took. They looked so cheap when compared with our beautiful Broyhill bed. Since getting $250 nightstands (each!) is not in our future for quite some time (i.e. years!), I started to look for alternatives. I remembered that I had a round decorator's table (about $6 at Walmart) stored away and a pretty (a shame to cover it, really!) round side table that was nearly the same size. We also had two brown table cloths that fit the table in storage ($10 each at Walmart). I quickly switched in the round tables and cloths for the tv trays and was really impressed by how easily it improved our bedroom! I'm sure that some of the more frugal mama's out there could have done it cheaper, but my husband was impressed that I used what we had already spent money on to fix things up!