2012 Book List

I could keep posting Christmas pictures, but truth be told, after Christmas Day my photography efforts were squelched.  A 12.5 hour trip home on Monday (wherein we also picked up a puppy in South Carolina), followed by immediate illness of the younger two kept me away and the days didn't seem camera worthy. But 25 photos are better than none, and I am grateful for the motivation the December Photo Project provided. Next year I'll shoot (no pun intended) for 26 photos.

We celebrated our own little family Christmas today, opening our stockings and book boxes. For this season of our lives, we have decided to give the kids small gifts in their stockings and about 10 books each. Their stockings have items like candy bars, flossers, wind-up flashlights, a slinky, etc. and they each got a gun from Vision Forum. The younger two got pop guns and Cooper got a 44 magnum that shoots rubber ammo. They were favorites for sure. Their book boxes always include activity books, chapter books (for the older two), stickers, and one or two really nice books...the rest I tend to pick up throughout the year at Goodwill. I am not a big fan of the toy surge, and they already get presents from grandparents and great-grandparents. We leave the toy flood for birthdays when we can focus on each child individually. I don't think any fun is lost, and we may change it up as the years go by, but it's working for us for now.

Previous years have found me involved in a book club, but I opted out this year in favor of tackling some of my own book choices. Warren and I decided that our Christmas present to each other would be 12 books each, which we then modified to 6 books each to start with (just in case we lose steam). As it turns out, I think we will probably want to read some from each other's list anyway, so that may make up some of the twelve. It was really fun to come up with our own book lists and set goals for ourselves; I think we will set apart one date night a month for book discussion and that will keep me motivated to keep pace (and notes). Several books on my list were already on our shelves (I know, not as fun) and one I plan to get at the library. Warren got 6 new books, all of which I hope to read.

I'm currently reading Naturally Healthy Babies and Children and Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye, both of which I highly recommend. I got this book in my stocking, and the short nature of the journal entries are appealing to me. If I can keep it up, I think it will be a sweet collection of memories to look back on, and something to leave to my children.

My book list for the beginning months of this year:

January- How to Grow More Vegetables- John Jeavons

February- Leave it to Psmith- P.G. Wodehouse

March-John Adams- David McCullough

April-Everyday Talk- John Younts

May- Practical Herbalism- Phillip Fritchey and Herbal Antibiotics- Steven Harrod Buhner

June- Outliers- Malcolm Gladwell (getting this from the library...I've wanted to read it for a while but don't know if I want to own it)

July- Pocket Full of Pinecones- Karen Andreola

Warren chose his books mainly based on topics he wanted to learn more about:

The Israel of God- Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow- O. Palmer Robertson

Black and Tan- Doug Wilson 

Bringing it to the Table: On Farming and Food- Wendell Berry

The Intimate Marriage- R.C. Sproul

Seeds of Deception- Jeffrey M. Smith

The Dragon's Tooth: Ashtown Burials #1- N.D. Wilson

We spent the morning looking through each other's books and reading by the fire. It was a great way to celebrate Christmas and end the year.

What are you reading?

DPP Day 25- preschool photo madness

Not easy to capture these cousins. This was the best we could get before we all lost patience with the process. Next year (when we have a 9 and 6 month old added to the mix) will be better.

DPP Day 24- Christmas observed, part 1

He was pretty excited about the cap guns

DPP Day 23- Santa baby

Last night we went to a park filled with Christmas lights. We joined hundreds of other Floridians and the kids seemed to enjoy the show.

Adeline and her great grandfather- she never left his side (or stopped talking to him)

Mrs. Claus had a belly, too. Bet mine will go away sooner. Take note- I'm in a sleeveless shirt! Only in Florida.

DPP Day 22- Lessons

No, I did not quit the photo project. But I did get a little busy around Christmas Day, and then I couldn't figure out how to get my pictures loaded into my photo editing program once I changed the setting to shoot in raw format. On the 22nd, I got a little photography lesson from Lea. I still have a lot of practicing to do, and these are actually two shots she took while teaching me about my camera. But since I rarely ever have a picture of myself, I thought I'd save this for posterity's sake. All these December Photo Project pictures are 

going into a book at the end of the month.  

Sibling coffee chat on the porch...all the kids were at the park, and it was so nice and quiet for over an hour! Thanks to Lea for the lesson, my Mom for providing such a beautiful house, and my Dad and Warren for taking all the kids away!

DPP Day 21- Quelf

Otherwise known as, The Game Designed by a 12 year-old. Or, Most Stupid Game Ever (but if you are under 15 you will probably adore it). Quelf... check it out if you have a house full of teenagers. I would tell you the premise, but I don't think there is one other than to make people do ridiculous things and get no points for it. (Not that I'm bitter.)

Can you tell Daniel is under the table? That's where the card said he had to spend the rest of the game.

At this point Warren decided this was more of a drinking game. But Pop took it all in stride.

I'm not sure if I will be able to get a picture of these cousins- this is as still as they get.

DPP Day 20- Gender reveal

I got an early Christmas present yesterday, and saw our smiling baby girl (you can tell if you look closely). Eleanor Grey will be here soon! Eleanor, because we like the feminine name- and it goes well with Adeline- and Grey, after Lady Jane Grey. I was convinced she was a boy. I cried (tears of delight, of course) and it only took about 2 seconds to change gears and start thinking about headbands, and cute hats, and little pink things.

 Warren bought this shirt for our gender reveal party that never happened, so here he is- not sure if the pink shirt will resurface again, so take a good look!



DPP Day 19- no picture

Yep, with an eventful morning of taking the van to the shop in a town not ourown, and a 7-hour drive to Florida after that, I did not manage to pull out the camera. I was pretty focused on just getting to our destination. But we're here...and part of my motivation for being here was my Tuesday appointment to get an ultrasound. Results revealed tomorrow.

DPP Day 18- IRL

My real life friends (who also happen to blog) Moriah and Nicky made some time for a quick visit on Sunday night. The picture above is only to show that we actually saw each other- and Nicky was tending to the baby so she couldn't get in the picture- but it was taken around 10:30pm and after a long day of church-going and visiting friends. We corralled all our kids- 12 in all- and had some snacks and a brief time of catching up. It was loud and crazy (a majority of those kids are boys) but it was so fun to see how everyone is growing up and great to meet new babies added to the group. It's also encouraging to see other moms who are in the midst of the chaos and purposing to be faithful despite the fact that this season is A LOT OF WORK. Both Nicky and Moriah have more kids than we do (thus more work) but I am so proud to know them, and to see God's faithfulness in their marriages and kids. It was a short but sweet visit.

DPP Day 17- old friends

My firstborn has an affection for cats. I think he gets it from his dad, because I'm not really an animal person. This very patient cat let Cooper build an entire castle around him without so much as a stir. The toys and the cat may have been favorites for him during our stay with friends.

Our whirlwind time in Tennessee was filled with memories, old friends, and the life we left behind. As we were driving up the mountain we were talking about how very good God is to give us just what we need, and how perfect it all is in hindsight. It's hard to see it at the time, but after the fact it is (mostly) clear as to why God directed at each turn. We are thankful for where we are now, our current church and town, and all the good things God has given us through changes. And yet we do not forget how influential the past seasons of life have been. Cherish what you have today. I think that was our final thought as we headed south to Florida.

DPP Day 16- Away

Let the games begin! Tomorrow is the first day of our Christmas vacation/travels. Lots to say, and no time to write. These are some fun car presents, given by a very thoughtful Granddaddy. Thanks so much!!

DPP Day 15- Fudge

 It's a tradition- Rachael Ray's 5-minute fudge. Fairly easy tradition to keep.

DPP Day 14- Night Owl

We interrupt this month-long program to take some time out for an all-nighter and an ear infection. Thankfully, it was short-lived. Here he is at midnight, watching Thomas the Train as a distraction. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and all that jazz.

For those who are interested, we made some ear oil by simmering crushed garlic in olive oil, and added a few drops of grapefruit seed extract. I also put a clove a garlic (cut to fit) in his ear. He actually wanted it in there. That, along with a tincture of echinacea, elderberry, and peppermint and he seemed 100% better after 24 hours. He also had two doses of ibuprofen- you have to sleep to get well. (Mom has to sleep to function.) He went from screaming for an hour straight, to sleeping peacefully with no trace of pain the next day. I was impressed.

DPP day 13- Felt

300 circles and 2 episodes later, my lone Christmas project is a little closer to being finished. Felt is so fun to work with- I'm not sure I will ever tire of it.

DPP Day 12- fort making

Winston built this with the kids tonight, and Warren took the picture. Never mind the slipcover with the torn seam -at least you can respect the improvement over the plaid.

 While the kids were merry-making in the basement, I was overhauling their rooms. One Hefty trash bag later, their treasures were pared down, clothes unearthed from dark recesses of their closets, and the paper trash was gone. They clean their rooms thoroughly every week, but they save every scrap of everything.  All I can say is that even though they look more like their mother, they have their father's I-can-make-good-use-of-anything gene. The differences lie in the fact that their father has a separate detached garage to store all of his treasures in, AND he actually does use almost everything.

DPP Day 11- Advent Activities

I'm not really sticking with the December Photo Project rules...but I don't have time to blog and post a different picture. The photos make great blog fodder, anyway. 

In order to keep things as simple (and do-able) as possible, our Sunday Advent activities were planned to be the same each week: Snacks by the fire and sing a few Christmas carols. Last Sunday night we put up the tree, and tonight was our last Sunday at home before we start our Christmas travels. Leaving town early for our celebrations has cut our Advent activity list way down, but even so, my friend Kate gave the best tip for making these memories more attainable: make a list of activities, and choose whatever fits the day (vs. pre-planning a month's worth of things for specific days).

DPP- Day10 Party Girl

She had a princess birthday party to attend this morning, and went looking very royal. (It's freezing here today- I know most princesses probably don't do turtlenecks with fancy dresses, but we have to be practical.)

DPP- Day 9 Christmas cards

Well, two Christmas parties in one night and no camera means no pictures from yesterday. Best laid plans...

So this morning I got to work finishing up the last of the Christmas cards. I am not a wait-until-the-last minute kind of girl. I do not like to spend any amount of time shopping in a mall during the month of December. It makes me grumpy. But I do love working on Christmas cards, baking and eating cookies, and the general merry-making that goes along with this time of year. I don't mind the busyness, I just have an aversion to rushing. It happens sometimes, but I prefer quiet mornings like this.

Speaking of cards, do you know how many free offers there are to be had this time of year? Here are some examples:

• Staples offered 20 free folded Christmas cards, and 10% back when you use your Staples Rewards card. So I made $2 bucks on those cards. They were great quality, and I just took my thumb drive and uploaded my photo and design to their computer in the store.
• MyPublisher.com offered 10-15 free cards (no other purchase necessary) and free shipping, so some of our family/friends got those cards...they were really pretty.
• Staples also had HP photo paper on sale for $10.99, and offered a $10 Visa Card back when you purchased it. So I got 2 packs of photo paper for $2, and printed our own cards this year. We have an old Brother printer but it works well with generic ink. The cartridges are about $3/each at Label Outfitters. We didn't even use 1/2 of any cartridge to print out our 100 pictures and letters. That said, I still like a 4x6/5x7 photo better, so I may revert back to that next year.
• This doesn't even include the gazillion free and 6 cent photo print offers that rolled around...so many deals to be had!
• One Kings Lane offered these ErinCondren.com labels for half off, and I had some credit, making them free except for $6 in shipping. I LOVE this company. The paper quality and designs are great, though pricy without any kind of discount. They sent me a few extra personalized samples of products I didn't order...just an all-around classy business. 

We do budget for Christmas cards, but even when I handmade them all it was a struggle to stay within our budget. We have about 130 people on our list, which is a lot less than some friends, but enough to make me less motivated to handmake cards. This year, I was able to squeeze in the extra funds to pay a friend to design our card (not what she is worth, but still...), which was a nice treat! 

What do you do for your Christmas card/letter? Do you handmake your cards? Or do you make it easy on yourself and get a photo card? Do you write a letter? Or do you wait until the busy season is over and just send Valentine's Day greetings? Inquiring minds want to know!

DPP- Day 8 Hot Chocolate

Have yourself some rich, sugar-free hot chocolate. Here's the basic recipe I use per cup of milk:

 

1 Tablespoon cocoa powder

1 Tablespoon honey

1 tiny scoop stevia (ours comes with a miniscule scoop...it's about a pinch)

dash of salt

dash of vanilla for the whole pot

dash of cinnamon, or a cinnamon stick

1 cup of milk...raw milk, goat's milk, coconut milk...it all works

Put all ingredients EXCEPT milk in a medium pan and heat to warm the honey. Wisk together, and slowly add milk so your cocoa powder doesn't get clumpy. Add the rest of the milk and wisk until everything is mixed and hot. So easy, and I love having "treats" to give my kids that are 100% good for them. My brother, Winston, is staying with us right now, and he couldn't even tell the difference. 

I'm off sugar for now, so I don't mind the treat, either. It was the perfect accompaniment to yesterday's gingersnap cookies. Sigh, I love everything about this time of year.

DPP- Day 7

A little Christmas project love with my friend, Shannon. Using this link from Julie, at Less-Than-Perfect-Life, she made this adorable blessings board. I made these gluten-free gingersnap cookies while she worked...I was really just consulting and manning the glue gun. BUT, my lone Christmas project- which I can't start until I get the last of my Christmas cards in the mail- comes from Crate and Barrel. All the felt is just waiting for me to create this cute little pillow. Maybe tomorrow...

DPP- Day 6

Just a little merry-making with the cousins. You can't even see two of them!

DPP- Day 5

A long morning of school followed by running errands ALL afternoon= pancake dinner and sausage, with Christmas napkins and sprinkles to celebrate the season. Only whipped cream could have made it better.

DPP- Day 4

The tree is trimmed, the eggnog downed. Three very happy children (one of whom is still learning to keep the ornaments on the tree).

DPP- Day 3

This is truly one of the most beautiful places to go pick a Christmas tree- we are thankful to live in this area!

For more information the December Photo Project, click on the badge below.

DPP- Day 2

 

Cooper came up to me and said, "You're not the only one getting ready for Christmas- I'm decorating, too!" He made a Santa monkey out of perler beads...and put it on his light switch. Pretty funny (maybe tacky, too, but cute all the same)! 

Our Advent activity for today was to make eggnog- something Warren has been craving. We made it using this recipe from Alton Brown,  for Warren and the older two kids, and then modified the same recipe to be dairy/sugar-free for Thomas and me. We replaced the milk/cream with full fat coconut milk, and the sugar with honey and a pinch of stevia. The kids loved it, and it made for a special date night treat while we sat in front of the fireplace tonight.

For more information the December Photo Project, click on the badge below.