Procrastinating Anti-Procrastination

It's Anti-Procrastination Week Day Hour. . . ok, it will be any minute now.

I started out this week with BIG dreams. A BIG list of things to tackle. And already things have gone HUGELY awry.

The need started last year. . . and since I started this post earlier today and am just now sitting back down to the computer, I guess I've been procrastinating writing about my procrastination too.

But here's the thing--tomorrow I'll finish the original post and tell you all about my desperate need to get going on all manner of things in my life, which is why I originally wanted this to be Anti-Procrastination Week.  Because I had every intention of writing today, and then even DOING stuff that I have been putting off.

But then, when I took the kids to their music lessons. . . we got out of our shady, cold yard and realized it was a gorgeous day.  It must have been in the mid 60's, or even low 70's.  The sun was shining, and there was not even a cold breeze--it just felt so luscious to be outside, and so when I picked the kids back up at the end of lessons, I took them to the beach.  You must know at this point that we rarely go to the beach.  There's so much mess involved, it is usually time consuming--kids have to bathe when we get back, sand gets everywhere in the car and if I don't make them change clothes it always ends up in my bed (which is of course the sofa), no matter how well I thought we brushed and shook off, etc.  And taking them to the beach also keeps me from being productive.  So today the idea was just to go down and then back up the steep cliff stairs, getting a little fresh air and sunshine and exercise. . . but it was so beautiful and without a breeze the temperature was perfect without any jackets. . . so we spent the next hour and a half there.  We ran, we played, we just enjoyed the weather.  We probably got our first sunburns of the year, since I manage to always do that in Jan. or Feb.  I have SO many things to do here at home. . . hanging out at the beach was definately not on the agenda. . . .

But remember the old saying "Make hay while the sun shines"?  Well, for several months now, I have had in my head a tweaked version, specific to living on the Bay--"Make play while the sun shines."  I realized, as I sat contentedly there in the warm sunshine on a big driftwood tree, watching the waves and my frolicking children, that I made that phrase up because I tend to be lazy about getting us all out side when the weather is great.  I have a habit of letting my own list of things I want to accomplish, or even school I want the kids to complete, take priority over going to playgrounds or the beach.  But the sunshine and fresh air and exercise are GOOD things.  We need those, for healthy bodies, healthy spirits.  I want to give them priority.  So today I actually took advantage of the Good thing being offered me, and did not procrastinate about it.

And hey, I finished this post!  So I guess that qualifies as a successful Anti-Procrastination day after all. ; )

Start thinking now--who wants to join me tomorrow?  I'm making it official!!!

. . . And a Big Star Upon the Jesse Tree

See, I didn't actually make 12 post-Christmas posts. ; )

But I wanted to post this, just because it felt like a monumental achievement, and because Ashley was so sweet to ask for photos.

Behold, the Blessed Jesse Tree

The finished tree, on the fridge.  Made of construction paper and scrap paper and markers and lots of scotch tape.  We started the project a little late, but I didn't let that bother me--and so the first morning the girls made the tree together, and I drew and colored the first ornament, the Root of Jesse, which was fun for me and which also served as an example for the kids as they made their ornaments.  That morning I told them the symbol they would each be making so they could work while I read the accompanying Bible passages (as quickly as I could while still making them meaningful).  On school mornings I normally read the Bible to them while they are eating breakfast, so it was seamless doing the Jesse Tree readings as our daily Scripture.  Some of the stories I read from The Big Picture Story Bible, just because they were so long and complicated to try to read and explain from the Bible in just 10 minutes or so (I am not a fan of any books that dumb down the Bible for kids--I usually read to them straight from the NIV or NAS. But for companion books that are geared towards kids, that is a good one--it puts Old and New Testament stories into one big story arc that helps kids to see how they all point to God and His plan of salvation for all people--which is, after all, the whole point of a Jesse Tree. The Jesus Storybook Bible" is another good book for that purpose.)

From then on, after breakfast each child took turns making the ornaments to represent the Advent scriptures I had read to them.  Sometimes we did not read the Scripture until lunch.  I don't have the same Bible reading routine on weekends, and so usually we had several readings and ornaments to make up on Monday mornings.  But the important thing is not when we read the verses, but that we did at all.  And as you can see, I was not aiming for amazing art--I just wanted the kids to engage with the stories and symbols however they wanted.  (I drew the symbols for Smiley to color).

The whole Jesse Tree project did not get done perfectly, and it did not even get done on time--since we went to DH's parents for Christmas, we actually finished our Jesse Tree on First Christmas, and all the kids got to make one last ornament there at the table with their Daddy while I read all the remaining scripture passages.  (DH completed the tree with the star on top, cracking me up as he did so, because he took the honor very seriously and got out a ruler and compass and mechanical pencil and made a meticulous and beautiful star. I would have free-handed it, and called it good enough, but that's who I am, not who he is!)

So, there you go!  I kept the whole thing as simple as possible, kept my expectations really low, and decided to care more about making it fun and meaningful than making it "Pin" worthy.  I would say it was a success, and something we will likely do again, although I must say I don't know if I will do it *every* year, or just every other.  Either way, the kids will learn from it, and it will be a part of their Christmas memories.

(For me, one of the most memorable parts of our first Jesse Tree was, thanks to Rahab, explaining to a table full of young children what prostitutes are.  If you don't know that, you can't fully appreciate not only the story of Jerico and the Israelite spies, but also the whole amazing significance of Rahab having the honor of being in the line of David, and thus Jesus.  But still.  Never anticipated one of our Advent discussions being about how God made men to enjoy women's bodies and how some people corrupt God's plan for mating within marriage.)

And now, as I wrap up this post--I want to leave you with some real Jesse Tree eye candy.  My friend Ali is in the process of making the most beautiful Jesse Tree ornaments for their family Christmas tree, and they made me so happy that she graciously posted pics of them on her blog so I could then steal the pics and share them with you:

What is not to love about felt?!  So charmingly textural and invitingly tactile.   

I really had to restrain myself from posting every one.

Can you tell the rose head is three dimensional?  So pretty. 

A wee button!

These are two of my favorites.  

Thank you, Ali, for letting me share them!

And while we are on the subject of adorable and meaningful Christmas crafts, you really should check out the post Ali made on her blog about some other crafts she and her kids did this past season--esp. the Etsy-ish onesies! (Jessica, you would like!)

This post is proof that you can do something like the Jesse Tree with lots of careful thought and creativity and  artistic ability--or you can do it on the fly, with lots of creativity and whatever artistic ability you have on hand. There's no wrong way to do it.  Anything we do to share God's Truth with our families is just right.

On the 9th Day of (Blogging About) Christmas, My True Love Gave to Me. . .

My best Real World Steampunk outfit to date!

Look at the so steampunky belt and jacket my Dear Husband got me for Christmas!  Ok, ok, so I did hunt them down on eBay. . . and I did bid, and win them. . . but my Dear Husband earned the money to pay for them, and was happy for me when I found them, and glad for me to buy them--and would not let me open and wear them before Christmas, and did wrap them. . . so technically they are from him.  When I finally did get to wear them I was so excited to find they went so perfectly with the blouse and skirt I have had for years, but which I really did not have things to wear with.  The boots are also something I have been meaning to share with you for a while--they are waterproof leather too, so I have one really practical and comfortable and neo-Victorian church boot!  If you enjoy fashion or want to know more,  I did blog about the outfit and boots more over at Minnie Zephie's Steampunk Treasure Trunk.

But my Dear Husband also did give me gifts that came directly from his hands and heart.  The first I want to mention happened during First Christmas (Second), when we were opening our stockings.  Some of you might remember me writing previously about a new tradition he and I started a couple of years ago--putting things in one another's Christmas stockings we find around the house that represent things we are thankful for or appreciate about the other person.  This year DH did the usual wooden spoon, representing liking me cooking for our family, and several other symbolic little things--but there were two in particular that made me cry.  First, he put in a crumpled piece of math scratch paper one of the kids had thrown away.  When I held it up quizzically, he said he was really glad I was homeschooling our kids.  Cue tears!  This meant soooooo much to me--he was a reluctant homeschool dad, and can tend to worry and be unintentionally critical, mainly because we have different expectations of "success" and "progress." So that token of encouragement in my stocking was so meaningful!  The second one was a little bit of yellow yarn--I immediately recognized it as one of the pieces of "straw" from our Advent manger, which I have previously written about here.  But what could it mean?  My Dear Husband told me it meant he was thankful for my Christmas traditions that have become our family traditions.  Cue tears again!  Esp. after what I shared in my post about the origin of First Christmas, in this post, that was such a sweet and encouraging and significant thing to say to me.

Then DH gave me another gift, after that--it was not technically a Christmas present, but it was a gift all the same, and a big one at that.  Some years ago, we started a holiday tradition by accident--my dear Becky and I had some evening event (probably a SoulKitchen core leaders meeting) to attend mid-December, and her husband was going to be out of town, so we asked DH if he would be willing to take care of her kids as well as ours for the evening.  We sweetened the deal by suggesting they all watch Christmas specials (for which DH has a particular fondness) and have pizza and cocoa and popcorn (all of which DH enjoys), which the mommies would get ready in advance.  So that's what we all did, and the kids loved it so much that the next year they begged to do it again.  So we did, and that time Becky and I went out for a rare girls' night.  Then last year I remember she and I decided to use our night "away" to hang here at my house (the Christmas special-fest traditionally happens at Becky's) and have a gift wrapping party, with a cozy fire, and Josh Groban and Loreena McKennitt playing softly in the background and mugs of Candy Cane Lane tea at hand.  She and I were both tired and stressed, as I recall, but making something we had to do into a  girlfriend event was such a good idea, and the pleasant evening was over much too quickly.

This year we just did not have a chance to do the traditional event before Christmas, much to the disappointment of the kids.  So we made sure to do it as soon as possible after, which turned out to be the Sunday before New Years.   We held the party at our house this year, and arranged it so that Becky and I got to escape for a good five hours, and this year in the company of our mutual friend "Rosa," whose daughter joined the crew here too!  And with that time away we did such decadent girlfriend things--going to see the new movie version of Les Miserables, and then having Indian food after!  The movie, as I am sure you know by now, was fabulous, and the food was great--but it was the relaxed, mind and spirit-synced conversation that I enjoyed the most.

And my Dear Husband really proved himself this time--can you imagine a Daddy having six active little girls inside such a small house for so long?! (It was a cold and rainy day, so they had to be inside--that and it was pitch black outside by 4:30.)  But from what I heard, they played with the plethora of Barbies, and the two youngest--Happy and Mini-Rosa--created a Spook House in the bedroom for the others (which the older kids scoffed at, until DH set the proper mood by turning off all the lights and playing dramatic and sinister-sounding music from the Batman movie soundtrack and then made the girls go in the bedroom one at a time armed with only small flashlights. . . the loudest scoffer of course going first).  They ate the dinner I had prepared and set aside for them.  And of course they watched some vintage holiday specials, ending appropriately with the one about Rudolph helping find the missing baby New Year.  As always, it ended too soon--well, for everyone but DH I imagine ; )--but it was such a fun way to wrap up the holiday season.

All in all, my Dear Husband really went out of his way to be thoughtful and loving and considerate and sacrificial this Christmas.  The warm fuzzies I got from all that are staying with me still.

 Our front door, as Becky and I found it upon our return--festively decorated for Christmas. . . or should that be for the Nightmare Before Christmas?  

On the 8th Day of (Blogging About) Christmas, my Mother Gave to Me

Sorry--I'm just not done talking about Christmas after all.  Originally, I thought it would be fun to keep writing about Christmas during the 12 days of Christmas, which end on Epiphany.  (I have just this year figured out what those actually were in the history of the church, and was pleased with the idea of so quickly applying that new knowledge in my own life, in my own way. ; )

Then life happened, and you all know how that goes.

Nothing bad is going on, don't worry!  We have so far avoided the whole sickness thing that seems to be hitting people coast to coast, although I am already getting smacked by some seasonal allergy, which greatly diminishes my energy and drive.  But even still, I am getting homeschooling back up into gear, and am purging, and my house is filthy, so as I go through cupboards and bins trying to purge and find homes for the new Christmas presents, I am also deep cleaning as I go.

So even if it is taking me well into the New Year and way past the window of culturally acceptable Christmas blogging, there are things I still want to share with you. All good stuff!  So, a few more days of "Christmas" to go here on O Blessed Day!

Today I want to show you all the complete fashion show of my adorable Smiley in the new outfit my mother made for him for Christmas.  As some of you may remember from previous fashion posts, like here and here and here, my mother is an expert seamstress and hand-sewing artist.  

Normally she makes things for the girls, but this year she finished a project for the boy:

Barnyard themed cord jacket and overalls! 

(These pics were taken next to my flower garden, at the front side of the house--with our neighbor's lovely seafoam-colored house behind.) 

(Double-click on any pic to see them all enlarged)

The back of the jacket. . . (and look at how my mother expertly lined up the plaid in the back of those overalls!!! That's the kind of subtle detail that really elevates her creations to the next level.)

Work it, baby, work it.  My little GQ model. 

Close-up on the lamb detail on one front pocket. 

Close-up of the rooster on the other side. 

With the jacket unsnapped, so you can see the overalls and their smocking scene.

The cutest farmyard scene!  All that needlework is meticulously done by hand, people!  And do you see how the lining on the inside of the jacket is also farmyard themed?

I rolled up the bottoms of the pants just because he was wearing his boots--they are long enough that he will get to wear this for at least another year, which is perfect. 

By the way, he insisted I button up that top button on the shirt, which cracks me up.  So little farmer geeky!

The outfit is just too adorable on him, Mother.  He loves it, and wants to wear it all the time.  Like yesterday.  And today.  

In this picture I told him to act like he was giving you a hug.  In lieu of the real thing, here you go!  

On the 7th Day of (Blogging About) Christmas, my MIL gave to me. . .

I already showed you some of the thoughtful gifts my MIL gave me for Christmas this year--but I thought I would include the short story of one of my favorite gifts from her this year:

MIL hosted the big family dinner on Christmas eve for the extended family who were there--18 people in all. She and I worked in the kitchen together for many hours preparing the food, and not only did it all turn out well, but she even made a distinct point of thanking me to my face for all my help, and even saying more than once that it was a success "thanks to me." Later she even said it on facebook too! This was really huge, because she does not compliment people lightly, and she was really affirming our relationship as MIL and DIL in that holiday. : )

Also, there was one really uncomfortable moment in the dinner preparations when she realized I had cut the broccoli side dish the wrong size (fork-sized florets instead of large, fancy clumps) and was really upset--and she started haranguing and not letting it go, and I felt the old rush of cold prickly adrenaline wash over me and the old urge to cower and deflect, but through the power of the Holy Spirit and the culmination of hard earned wisdom, I just stood and looked her in the face and said, as many times as was necessary, "I'm sorry," with my face and tone conveying my sincere apology, but also conveying confidence in her ability to forgive me. And it was momentarily really uncomfortable, but also really powerful--because she responded to my cues that implied Yes, I wronged you, but please believe that it was slight and unintentional, and Grace is here in abundance, so please accept my apology and let's forgive and forget, and all will be well and after a minute or two she self-regulated and then we went on together again peaceably finishing preparing the meal and getting it on the table. This likely sounds like such a little thing to the rest of you--BUT this is the kind of thing that for years and years used to happen every few minutes, every day, all holiday long and would lead to HUGE gulfs of perceived negative intent and feelings of being wronged, and hours of tongue-lashing. So for it to happen just once in a whole visit, and then be handled so maturely and Gracefully by both of us--GINORMOUS meaning for me. The embodiment of all the Good work the Holy Spirit has been doing in both of us.

And that is why her pointed words of praise later that day and affirming our partnership in the kitchen were also so meaningful--because the preparations had not been without "incident" and I had majorly "messed up" at least that once (who knows how many times she held her tongue and I never knew I was doing something annoying or wrong), but with her words she was making sure I knew I was forgiven and it truly was not something that would be allowed to hinder our relationship. So I treasure that moment, and those words. My Mother-In-Law was purposefully speaking to one of my Love Languages--Words of Affirmation--and I received it! 

Praise the Good Lord above for this Christmas miracle! ; )

Finishing First Christmas, and When (the Civil) War Hits Home

So, I spent my blogging time for two days writing a long, sentimental post about our First Christmas this year, complete with photos from this and past First Christmasses.  And then last night when I went to finish it and post--something happened and it all mysteriously vanished into the void.  I would be really bummed about the wasted time and lost effort--except I have so many friends and family members who are starting out the New Year with horrible cases of the flu, or with children in the hospital, or having family members recently passed away, that I will consider a lost blog post and a minor quarrel with my husband (completely unrelated ; ) getting off easy.

So instead of trying to recreate that post, I'll tell you about one of the Christmas group gifts to our children that I have gotten a lot of chuckles over, both before and after the children opened it: boy Barbies.   You see, the girls inherited a modest collection of lady and little girl Barbies from my childhood and from their cousins Emily and Sarah, but they have never had any Ken dolls or little boy dolls.  So this Fall I noticed that Sunny in particular would do her best to dress some of the ladies, those with the shortest hair and less made-up faces, in the most masculine of the ladies' clothing and pretend they were men.  (Rebecca, your Marie Osmond doll from our childhood was the "man" most often!)  So I decided the girls needed some men, to make "real" Barbie families with.  I did not want to buy new Barbies, because they are expensive, and because I really am trying to avoid buying plastic toys, and because my kids would be completely happy with dolls in good used condition--but two pleas on freecycle did not score me any free used ones.  So, I hit eBay, and after a good month of optimistically bidding low (and therefore not winning--even used on eBay those dolls are expensive!), finally scored two Excellent Used Condition dolls and two New In Box dolls--having to get new because I wanted brown-skinned men too, and those are harder to come by. 

Smiley also got his first "dolls" this year, and when I started researching GI Joe action figures on eBay, LOOK what I found:

Johnny Reb and Billy Yank!  What an awesome way to wrap up a semester of studying the Civil War.  (You can even find General Grant and General Lee GI Joes on eBay--if you have the $ to throw down for those!)

I wrapped up the North and South GI Joes in one box for Smiley, and then the other male Barbies in a box for the girls (along with plenty of EUC Barbie babies, since you know once all the women have men, babies will follow ; ).  And as I did, I could see with my mind's eye how my kids would likely, enthusiastically, play with them all, what with our recent immersion in the Civil War and all. . . . Poor Malibu Steven--your world of fun and leisure is about to drastically change:

photo credit

Sure, enough, within minutes of opening the Barbies (the very last gift opened), poor Steven and the other brown-skinned Barbies were forced into slavery and bossed around by Plantation Mistress Barbie (her husband, Johnny Reb, was away fighting in the war).  Marie Osmond became a woman passing as a man to spy for the North, and my old long-shorn Skipper played a Union drummer boy (because she was too young to enlist).  Other Barbies were Quakers who did not believe in slavery and wanted no part in the war  (because, yes, Mother, we watched "Friendly Persuasion" at the end of our study unit).

This is the kind of imaginative schooling-fueled play my kids do all the time.  I have heard it is not, um, usual.  In fact, I was telling my (fellow homeschooling) friend Sara about all this yesterday, and she laughingly encouraged me to blog about it--because she thought what my kids did with their Barbies was such a refreshing change from the normal princess stories most Barbie dolls are trapped in by our culture.  I guess she's right--but without public schooling and TV and radio and magazines, we are pretty out of the loop of what everyone else does with their dolls, and this all seems perfectly normal to me.

Although on a more serious note for a minute--when I watch my kids re-enacting in their play (whether Barbies, or dress-up, or backyard romping with friends) the things I am putting in their minds through school, and documentaries, and books, and reading the Bible, it makes me awed at the responsibilty of that.  They truly are little sponges, in their hearts and minds. 

Here's a photo of the girls, late afternoon on First Christmas, still in their pajamas (and the new handmade pj bottoms from my Mother) and surrounded by newly opened gifts, already immersed in all things Barbie:

I so hesitate to share photos of my house when it is not looking its best--but let's face it, that's pretty much all the time, and this shot so perfectly summed up the contented close of First Christmas.  And shows you all just how big my living room/master bedroom suite is, esp. with a Christmas tree. : )

There's actually more open floor space between the living room and kitchen, in what we call the entry, where Smiley got out his trains to enjoy some of the new train track he received:

And I might as well wrap this up with a few more photos from our gift-opening on First Christmas, originally intended for that lost post (too many of my photos turned out blurry, there in the dim light of the living room when I did not have the right setting on the camera.  So that's why I don't have any more good pics of the two eldest!  These are just the few that turned out halfway decent.):

Thanks for the ornaments, Grandma! (She's standing on the trunk that you see in the Barbie sprawl pic, which had been pushed over to our bed during the excavation of gifts from  under the tree, in case you were wondering why she appears so tall.  I'm taking these photos from my comfy seat at the foot of my bed.)

Smiley loves this adorable jacket my mother made him for Christmas--I'll have to get a good pic of him in the whole outfit and post it. : )

The kinds of sweet and simple handmade gifts the kids make for us and each other.  (It's a, um, colored snowflake? Paper doily? Whatever--it took some serious time and creative effort to make, and that's the real gift.)

Christmas in Photos, 2012

A quick recap of Christmas in Chico, with photos:

MIL encouraged us to get by the tree on Christmas Eve day, for an impromptu family portrait.

Me taking the opportunity of DH having our camera out to get a pic of me in my new finery: my boots, my new earrings, and the new top and scarf I bought during my birthday retail adventure with my dear Becky.  And me daring to wear my one pair of skinny jeans--hand-me-downs from MIL--without something long over them. Ta-da!  Gotta love the kids already delving under the tree to hunt for presents. ; )


--As I have already mentioned, we had a lovely time, probably the best we have ever had.

--MIL initiated a family reading of the Christmas story from the Bible on Christmas Eve.  This is the first time we have ever done this at their house, and it was full of meaning.

--MIL also really showed me that she heard me when it came to the presents.  She and I had been emailing and communicating for a month or two on the main gifts for the kids and for DH, and so had bought things we could actually use, or that we both (and DH too) thought the kids would really get enjoyment out of.  I think we actually brought home less quantity of presents than in previous years, which is great in itself--but each gift showed a lot of thought and desire to share enjoyment, which is the whole point anyway.

A quick gathering of Oma and Opa and the kids in front of the fireplace on Christmas morning.

--MIL also was so thoughtful in her gifts to me, encouraging me to pick out things I actually wanted.  We went shopping the day before Christmas to get a few last-minute things, and I saw this sweater dress and actually liked it, and she liked it, and she urged me to get it with discount coupons she had, and so I did, and she wrapped it up and put it under the tree, and after I opened it I wore it the rest of Christmas Day, which I knew she would like.  : )  And look--I'm wearing it with the Trade As One scarf she bought me as an early Christmas present back in November!  And with the new boots she bought me for my birthday!  So that's why I had DH take photos of me in my new MIL-gifted finery there at their house--so she would know how much I appreciated each thoughtful gift.  And so I could share them with you all!

Our crew hanging out (literally!) with two of their cousins on Oma and Opa's back patio.

--We got to spend some good quality time with two of DH's cousins and their kids.  They are really nice people who we engage with as friends as much as family, so we always enjoy seeing them.  It was really fun, too, to see our kids playing and hanging out together, since all our families live at least several hours from one another and we don't usually see each other more than once a year.

We went on a walk with some cousins in the big park there in Chico, which is right across from DH's parents'  house--and came upon a tree decorated with handmade upcycled ornaments.  What a fun bit of unexpected beauty.  A fitting metaphor for our entire Christmas visit.