sky chatting in 2008

Yesterday I talked about how I'm not going to be all sentimental and look back over 2008. But I'm alone on New Years Eve so what else am I supposed to do?! Here are a few highlights from Chatting at the Sky 2008. Click to enjoy.

Things Babysitters Wish We Knew
a four part series

Portrait of a Kitchen
our old house, sweet Sophie Marie

An Unlikely Voice
how my alcoholic Grandfather inspired courage in me

Senior Photos: Take Two
a glimpse into my love of photography

Chatting at the Sky
my purpose post

Here's to another year of discovering the holy and the humorous in the midst of everyday life.

new

There is a week between Christmas and the new year for the following reason: to give us time to clear the house of all things Christmas and prepare for spring. Right? Am I the only one who is ready for warm weather by December 26th? I am practically pulling out the spring clothes. Except for the fact that I never put them away because I am just not that organized. What good is winter without Christmas?

So I do things like this. I put shells in a jar with the starfish that was living in my Christmas garland just yesterday. And I display it as a reminder of good things to come.
Each December I panic at least once, worried that I'm not savoring the season completely enough. I anticipate the after-Christmas-letdown. I think that is a left-over fear from childhood. Because as an adult, I love after-Christmas. I love taking down the decorations and clearing out the extra stuff. I love the fresh and the new that comes with January. I always forget how ready I am for the future by the time it arrives.
Generally at years end, I look back and reflect and pour over sentiment of what the past year has held. But this time I am ready for 2009 and what it will bring. I am looking forward with excitement and anticipation. I'm throwing open the blinds and letting the sunlight of a new day pour in around me. There are things on the horizon of this new year only beginning to dawn in my heart. I look forward to sharing them with you.

In the meantime, I'm off to look for my flip flops.

find the baby, find the peace

Not only is this what Nana's house looked like on Christmas afternoon, it is also what my brain feels like this week. Finding the important in the midst of the crazy is a challenge today. But I know it is in here somewhere, hiding beneath all these piles of laundry and torn up gift wrap.

O holy night

how we do birthdays

This happens every year. Just as I begin to settle into the Christmas season, my girls begin to plan their birthday. They were born shortly after Christmas (seven whole weeks before their actual due date thankyouverymuch). Had they come on time, we wouldn't be doing their birthday until the middle of February. Which would have been great because nothing big happens in February.

This year they will be five. They have already made their invitations and have been busy making plans for what will happen on their birthday. So far, it is a coloring, pajama, balloon, cooking party and there are 473 people on the guest list. And they want strawberry cake. With purple icing.

One thing I know they won't want is for us to focus on who they were as babies. Although it is fun for them to see baby pictures and to hear stories from their birth, for the most part they want to talk about all the things they can do now that they are five: like get skates and go to kindergarten and help mommy make dinner.

So we will celebrate them. We will celebrate the fact that, even though they were born too soon, they were healthy and whole and well. And they have become little ladies full of joy and innocence and excitement for life. We will celebrate who they are now.
As I've thought about the way we do birthdays, I've considered the unique way we celebrate the birthday of Jesus. We sing about his birthplace, his virgin mother, his swaddling clothes, the manger. On Christmas, we celebrate Jesus as a baby.

Maybe it's because it seems more manageable and less offensive to think of Him as a baby than to think of Him as a man. I can handle a baby. But a man who claimed to be the the Son of God, Savior of the world?

He entered the scene of humanity in this most humble of ways and he did so on purpose. Beautifully. Ironically. But Jesus as a baby isn't such a big deal unless you know him as a man and why he came as a baby in the first place. What depth of joy is available to those who are able to transition from celebrating Jesus, the tiny baby in the manger to Jesus, the redeemer of our hearts.

spreading the christmas cheer

We are certainly enjoying a holly jolly Christmas season around here.

Evidently my kids forgot the first line of
Santa Clause is Coming to Town.
Merry Christmas from our happy family to yours.

clean house secrets revealed

The toy clutter is out of control. Like vines on brick, the Polly's and the dollies and the little matchbox cars are taking over my world one room at a time. And it has stressed me out to no end.

Until now. I have found the secret to a clean house. Wanna know what it is?



Someone please tell me why I haven't let this be okay before? It is genius, I tell you. And it is, quite simply, the best I can do. Gone are the days of putting toys where they belong. Just throw them in the middle and vacuum around them. I don't know how long uptight Emily is going to allow this to continue, but for now I am going to enjoy my new-found freedom. Merry Christmas to me.

come on-a my house

BooMama is having her annual Christmas Tour of Homes AND Julia at Hooked on Houses is having one, too. And as if that weren't enough, sweet Kimba is hosting an open house and its all just so much fun! I really really want to play. Is it okay to go to three parties at once? I'm thinking yes.

I've already shown my mantle, but here is a peek at some other little corners of the house. If this is your first time here, I offer you a heartfelt welcome. If you are a regular reader, here is your chance to nose around my new old house a little bit more. Come on in!
I bought the white thing at a yard sale and attached it in true Nester fashion. (she is my fabulously talented big sister. Aren't I lucky?) Then, I crammed it full of clippings from our yard. Cheaper than a wreath.

Our entryway.

A close up.
A closer up.

In case you missed it last week, here is a photo of the longest garland ever.

and here it is with fire.

I realized this year after 8 years of marriage, I have very few sentimental ornaments for our tree. Unless I can include how excited I was when I found these at Target's after-Christmas sale.
I still remember how sweet it was to see the sign: 90% off. With a quick glance over my shoulder, this pig was mine. All mine. Ahhh....memories.

That's me, distorted face and all,
wishing you a Merry Christmas from my home to yours.

Now go check out all the other homes on the tour at BooMama's blog...
And when you're done with that, you can link up at Julia's as well.
And THEN, click over to Kimba's just for kicks and look at HER beautiful home.
Have fun and thanks for visiting!

stuck much?

Need some perspective on that next load of laundry or the dreaded trip to the grocery store? My bloggy friend Laura linked up late to Monday's Everyday Unwrapped post. I'm so glad she did.

Because even though I have been so encouraged by reading all the everyday moments from all of you, I have still gotten stuck in the daily drudge a time or two this week.

Her post is one of the things that helped unstick me. Here is an excerpt:

A death in the family tears you off of your feet and out of the everyday, unwilling, stunned into silence, glancing over your shoulder at what should have been as you begin walking the rut of the mourner. Gather at Mom's house, wash dishes, murmur reassurances of eternal life through Jesus that land on unwilling ears...If only we could be grocery shopping, solving math problems at the school table, putting in the next load of laundry.

I'm almost convinced that circumstances are generally neutral. It is our perspective that causes them to be either a blessing or a curse. Hop on over to Laura's site and read her eloquent and vulnerable account of finding life in the midst of death.

garland show and tell

One of the many benefits of having the Nester for a sister is getting first dibs on all her great ideas. The most wonderful Christmas garland ever is one of her best. She has been doing her mantle this way for years so I adopted some of her tricky garland ways several Christmases ago. I guess it's time to find a photo to put in that frame. Maybe that will be my New Years resolution.

This is our first Christmas in our new house. I've been looking forward to decking this mantle out with garland galore.
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here. Thanks, Nester for the great ideas!
Oh. And one more thing. I can't publish this post without showing you the truth behind the beauty: the casualties of my garland after a fire.
This is only a portion of what fell out as The Man repeatedly jostled it every time he moved the screen to poke the fire. The nerve.
And while I'm confessing things, here is our fireplace flue. I think we could market this and sell it online. Genius.

wrapping up

What fun this has been! I have loved LOVED loved reading all of your sweet moments and memories over the past two days. What a refreshing perspective you have offered me. I have to admit it was a bit nerve racking standing at the door of this post before I hit publish: its no fun to throw a party if no one shows up.

So thank you. For showing up. Mostly, thank you for recognizing the importance of noticing smallness with me. Thank you for celebrating finding life in the little things. You have been such an encouragement to me.

If you didn't get a chance to link yet, please continue to do so! I love reading these and cannot get enough of these kinds of posts.

Tomorrow I'll be posting photos of my Christmas garland, as the Nester is having a little party of her own. If you have your garland up, head on over to Nesting Place in the morning and link up!

everyday unwrapped

I received the following email last week from my new friend, Tina. She captures the spirit of unwrapping the gift of our everyday moments beautifully. I couldn't wait to post her words with her gracious permission:

This week has been dragging. Too much at home time, not enough planned activities; too much monster mommy, not enough being present. But then I have moments like this: where I'm in my robe, armed with coffee, sitting at the kitchen table, teaching my children that Abraham was so obedient to God that he took his son up to a mountain to sacrifice him.

I get to explain to a three and four-year-old that in the end, Isaac lives and God provides. And we glue cotton balls onto rams that I printed off the computer and hang them on our Jesse tree. And I've worshipped. In my robe.

It's time to celebrate the moment: not what will be or what is to come. But what is real and true this day: the messy, the lovely, and the unexpected. Share a photo, a story, or anything that offers a glimpse into your own journey of discovering the gifts in the midst of the ordinary by linking up below. I look forward to the celebration!

(If you missed the introduction to this linky, check out last Monday's post.)

Edited: Please link directly to your Everyday Unwrapped post or it will be deleted from the links. If you don't know how to do that, email me: epfree1@gmail.com.

let the celebration continue

Raise your paw if you feel like the Grinch's dog yet? Poor little guy, all weighed down with a load he was never meant to carry. I'll admit to feeling this way more than once lately, even as I've purposed to notice and celebrate the small moments in the midst of my everyday.

From the looks of the marvelous, heartfelt, honest comments you have all left this week, I am not the only one who has been thinking about the struggle between celebrating what is while anticipating what's to come during this first week of December. I hope you have been treasuring up the small everyday moments in your heart to share with all of us next week!
There will be a Mister Linky set up on Monday for you to link up to a post you have done or a new post you are working on to share with us how you are unwrapping the gift of the everyday during this season of Advent. Feel free to grab this button to include on your post. I look forward to celebrating smallness with you, even as we prepare for bigger things to come.

the craft bar

In the spirit of being thankful and celebrating the small things, I want to update you on the results of a post from the days of yore.

In other words, this post is long overdue. I am thankful for the free ideas you have all offered about what to do in my house. Unfortunately, I've not been so great at letting you see what I've actually done. For example, this project in my sunroom needed attention back in August. I read through all the wonderful ideas you had and then I proceeded to ignore them for the next 3 months.
Until now. Ms. J left a comment on the original post asking what I finally did with this wet bar space. It was just unused and strange, sitting there in the corner of the room.

I opted for practical and free over pretty and pricey and went with those of you who suggested we use it for crafts. I took out the wine rack to make space for books. But not before I lined the back with scrapbook paper.
Oops. Not enough. I can fix that.
Much better. Wanna see what's in the tin?
Dinosaurs, snakes and various sea creatures. And a pink spoon. And a polly pocket umbrella. I like to keep this tin up high because if I have it within reach, guess what is always strewn about the sun room floor? Better to pull it out on a rainy day.

I also tried to think of a way I could use those wine glass holder things under the shelf.I have a bunch of these photo clips that I bought cheap before we got married.
Turns out they fit perfectly in the wine glass holder things (what do you call that?) Now I use them to hold photos and artwork.
Add a few crayons in a cookie jar and markers in a popcorn bowl, and we have ourselves a genuine crafting corner. Now it is ready for all that craft supplies they want for Christmas. Thank you for your advice!