Hello, dear friends. Yes. I’m still alive. Nothing terrible has happened in my life. This post would actually be easier if there had been some monumental happening that pulled me away. Perhaps if I’d been abducted by a roving band of gypsies (no offense to the gypsies)? Yeah. That would be a good explanation.

I’ve lost count of the number I’ve times that I’ve tried to write over the last few months. Each time, the words haven’t come. Not. A. Single. Word. Trust me. I’ve tried.

I’ve cried about. And I’ve worried. Agonized really. And I’ve walked away. If you’ve sent me an email and I didn’t answer you, I’m sorry. My inbox overflowed and I gave up.

I’m slowly accepting that God is doing a refining work on me and I need to be patient.

In the meantime, I had to share the Promises of God that I read on chiselseason.com this morning. If you ever struggle to accept who you really are in Christ…or the blessings that are ours in Christ…then you need to read this. The (grateful) tears were flowing by the time I finished reading.

Love to you all.

For When There’s Nothing To Say is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

I love Thanksgiving. I love the food, the family and the reminder to stop and be thankful for all of my life. For the last couple of years, our family has done a Thankful Tree as a reminder to be purposefully thankful during the month leading up to Thanksgiving. But this year, life got in the way (and I procrastinated) and we haven’t started yet. Since Thanksgiving is next week, I went on the hunt for some meaningful Thanksgiving traditions that us procrastinators still have plenty of time to do.

We’ll be making Gratitude Rolls from Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam. So simple if you use a tube of crescent roll dough.

Silverbox Creative Studio has created a beautiful, FREE printable that you can use to make napkin rings, a paper garland or paper tags. Each strip has a spot to write what you’re thankful for.

Here’s another free printable from Sissy Print! You can use it to play the “I am Thankful For” Guessing Game!

How about making a Thanksgiving leaf garland with your kids on Thanksgiving morning?

I love this Blessings String from Southern Living. You could just wind the string around the tabletop and let people add tags with their own words during the meal.

Get a jump start on your Christmas paper chain garland by putting out strips of scrapbook paper and asking everyone to write down what they’re thankful for. Thank you Little Birdie Secrets! What a wonderful way to tie the two holidays together!

I love the Thanksgiving Journal tradition shared by Just Something I Made. What a great way to see how your family changes and grows over the years.

I got tears in my eyes when I saw this Thanksgiving Tablecloth shared by From Glitter to Gumdrops. What a precious treasure.

Does your family have any special Thanksgiving Day traditions?

The Procrastinators Guide to Meaningful Thanksgiving Traditions is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

It all started with Meg from Whatever. Her Summer List idea has become a bit of a phenomenon in the blogging world.

I latched onto her idea and it’s changed the way we do summer. This is our 3rd year doing a Summer List (check out 2009 and 2010) and it helps me be more intentional with our time.

The boys know it’s a tradition and in January start saying “Mom! We need to put this, that or the other thing on our Summer List!” And we do. Our list has grown longer each year because the boys want to include everything from years past and I try to add new things. We also left a little space at the bottom to add more things as the summer unfolds.

I am so looking forward to a laid-back summer with my family. My time with them feels so fleeting these days. I want to take advantage of the time that I have. If you see less of me this summer, it’s because I’m choosing my precious family over my keyboard.

Are you looking for some fun ideas for summer? Amy from MomAdvice has put together a Pinterest list of 100 Things to Do this Summer. It’s full of all sorts of fun ideas like: breakfast in bed, making lollipops, learning to finger knit and geocaching.

What do you have planned for summer? What’s on your Summer List?

Summer List is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

What will you be doing at sunset on Saturday, June 25th?

Will you Join the Applause?

We try to inspire our children to learn about The Creator by marveling at the beauty of His Creation. On Saturday, June 25th, Join the Applause is encouraging everyone to find a beautiful spot and to express their appreciation and awe by applauding The Creator at sunset.

Watch this:

And go here to learn more: Join the Applause

You can sign up there, share your plans and photos, and learn more about the event!

Thanks to Stacey at 29 Lincoln Avenue for sharing about this fantastic event.

Join the Applause is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

For me, housekeeping and hospitality go hand-in-hand. Why?

Because if my house looks like this…

Actual, un-retouched photo

I don’t want to entertain. And if I don’t have plans to entertain, I’m not as motivated to keep the house all cleaned up. See? It’s all wrapped up together. So what’s the solution to this pickle and my #1 housekeeping/hospitality tip?

Make a commitment to entertain in your home on a regular basis. And by regular, I mean weekly or bi-weekly. Once a month doesn’t cut it.

I have found that knowing my dear friend is coming over every Tuesday for lunch and fellowship helps me keep my housekeeping mojo going throughout the week. I really don’t want Monday nights to be a spastic clean-up frenzy that leaves me annoyed and tired.

And entertaining regularly…even in a small way…helps me feel more comfortable opening my home. I’m more relaxed and willing to overlook my own imperfections when I stay in the hospitality groove. See? Housekeeping helps me with my hospitality and hospitality helps me with my housekeeping!

I am not exaggerating when I tell you that one of the main reasons that I’m inspired to entertain more often and open my home more frequently is because I’ve gotten to know Sandy from Reluctant Entertainer. On her blog, Sandy shares her powerful message that “true hospitality is not about being perfect, cooking a fancy meal, or spending a lot of money. Rather, it’s about an open door and an open heart.”

Amen and amen.

Have you gotten your hands on Sandy’s book, The Reluctant Entertainer? If not, you’re missing out on some serious encouragement on the topics of hospitality, entertaining and pure grace. Sandy has helped me get over myself and see the blessings that flow when I’m open with my home. It’s all about deep connections and meaningful relationships.

So today, we’re giving away 2 copies of The Reluctant Entertainer to 2 winners. (That’s 1 book per winner.) The Reluctant Entertainer is full of encouragement to break free of your misconceptions of entertaining. And there are tons of recipes that us mere mortals can handle! I know that once you get your hot little hands on this incredible book, you’ll be inspired.

If you want to buy your own copy, you can pick up The Reluctant Entertainer on Amazon.

To enter, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post. It can be as simple as saying, “I’m a reluctant entertainer!” But if you want to share why you’re reluctant, we’d love to read it.

You can also tweet, facebook or blog about this giveaway and leave another comment for extra entries.

Super-duper bonus entry if you can tell me what color the plastic Easter egg is in that top picture! (Leave a separate comment for this.)

Why I’m a Little Less Reluctant: Housekeeping, Hospitality and a Giveaway. is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Hey ladies! It’s that time of year again. It’s sneaks up on us every February. The stores are full of stuff to remind us that it’s time to show your fella just how much you love him.

Yep. Super Bowl Sunday.

Just kidding. Sorta. Super Bowl Sunday IS coming and if you lived in Pittsburgh, like I do, your whole house would be living on pins and needles waiting for the big day.

But after THAT is Valentine’s Day. And while I don’t recommend saving all your love for one day a year, it’s as good a time as any to think about how you’re loving that fella of yours.

I’m guessing that we all show our love in different ways. Aside from the obvious *ahem* physical affection, some of us use words, some give gifts and some show our love with the things that we do…and maybe some do combination of all those things.

But did you ever stop to think about how your man WANTS to be loved? What makes him feel loved?

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I wanted to tell you about a book that completely changed my relationship with my husband when we were first married.

It’s called The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman.

Here’s where I’m hoping that lots of you say. “I read that book!” If you haven’t, may I be so bold as to suggest that you get yourself a copy, read it and apply it as a Valentine’s Day gift for your man. It’s less than $7 on Amazon right now, or borrow a copy from the library. I would loan you mine, but it’s so tattered and dog-eared that I can’t let it out of the house.

Edited to add: I am LOVING all of your comments about this book!

In his book, Dr. Chapman describes the 5 basic ways that people communicate love…Quality Time, Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Physical Touch and Giving Gifts. We often show love to our spouses in the love language that we’re most fluent in. But if that’s not the way they need to receive love, then it doesn’t fill them up.

I hope it doesn’t sound hokey to say that this book changed my marriage. It taught me that my husband is an Acts of Service kinda guy. All that time I was spending TELLING him how much I loved him wasn’t doing it for him. Now I know that he feels loved when I set up the coffee pot before bed, so that he can have a cup of coffee when he leaves the house at the bum-crack of dawn.

There’s also a 5 Love Languages of Children but I haven’t read that one, so I can’t vouch for it.

And if you must know, my love language is Giving Gifts. Deep like a river, am I. Now go buy me a present!

Disclaimer: I am completely unqualified to give marriage advice. I just know what worked for us. When I tell people about this book, the most common question I get is “What if my husband won’t do it with me?”.

To that I say…You do your part. Don’t worry about him. Obviously, it’s best if both hubby and wifey are on the same page. But if you start loving your man the way that he needs to be loved, you’ll see a change.

Disclosure: That link to Amazon is an affiliate link. If you click on it and buy something, I will make a million dollars. Or a few pennies. Whatever.

How to Love Your Man is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Step 1: Pitch a gigantic fit. Make it a good one. Lots of sighing, eye rolling and feet stomping, please.

Step 2: Dramatically declare all things play doh banned from your home because your heathen children can’t keep the play doh on the table and off the carpet.

Step 3: Consult your most trusted adviser, Uncle Google, by searching for “How to get play doh out of carpet“.

Step 4: Try this method with moderate success.

Step 5: Sigh a little more.

Step 6: Feel a little tweak in your gut (heart? head? stomach?). What is this feeling? Guilt? Did you overreact?

Step 7: Hear the gentle prompting. Listen to God working on your heart.

Step 8: Remember that your house is home to 2 little boys, 1 manly-man and 1 giant dirty dog. At least play doh doesn’t stink.

Step 9: Notice that the play doh stain looks a little like a sunflower. Remember that you like sunflowers.

Step 10: Apologize to your heathen children and drag the play doh in from the garage.

The end.

Photos: Robert Donovan, Lance McCord, The Pink Princess

How to Get Play Doh Out of Your Carpet is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

By now, I’m sure that you know of the tragedy that has befallen our friend, Edie of Life in Grace. Her family lost their home and everything in it to a fire on the Tuesday before Christmas. By the grace of God, all of their lives were spared, but so much was lost.

I don’t know about you, but I can’t get their family out of my mind. I want to DO something…make meals, give hugs, build them a new house. Something. But I feel so helpless because we live so far away.

Then I remembered a discussion that I had with our missionary friends (yes, the ones who gave us their dog). They were in the process of raising money to finance their 4-years of service in Columbia and someone asked them about their greatest need. Their answer? Prayer.

How simple. Prayer. Not money. Not plane tickets. Not instruments, books or teaching supplies. Prayer. Everything else comes directly from that. Prayer isn’t a second-best, can’t do anything else kinda thing. It’s the first thing and the best thing.

So that’s what I want to do for Edie and her family. I want to wrap them in prayer while they wade through their ashes and wait on the Lord to rebuild their home.

I am committed to praying for them every day in the month of January. Will you join me? If so, leave a comment here. I know that there are some serious prayer warriors here and I would love to see a small group of women committed to lifting them up continually.

It doesn’t have to be anything crazy. Just a simple prayer whispered to our loving Father every day. I’ve printed out a small picture of Edie and hung it on the wall near my computer…where I’m sure to see it every day as a reminder.

I’m not suggesting that you shouldn’t help in another way, if you wish. If you’re feeling lead to do something else then, by all means, do that. Maybe someone else’s prayer is prompting your heart. Edie hasn’t made any needs known, but her sister’s address is posted here, if you would like to send a card.

As anyone who has ever suffered a huge loss knows, the immediate devastation is only the beginning. The roller-coaster of emotions lasts much longer than the initial shock. Your aftermath continues long after everyone else’s lives have returned to normal.

Will you leave a comment here and commit to praying for their family throughout the month of January?

The Gift of Prayer: Life in Grace is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

The shopping is done….completely. The presents are wrapped…mostly. The meals are planned…sorta. And I won’t be leaving my house until Christmas Day, if I can help it. The closer we get to the big day, the more my focus shifts from practical preparations to preparations of the heart.

I want to shut out the noise the world and focus on the quieting of hearts and stilling of spirits.

The last few weeks have been a flurry of shopping, wrapping, planning, class partying, church pagent-ing and caroling. We’ve fallen behind in our Jesse Tree devotionals. And I didn’t bake cookies with my kids. Again.

We’ve consumed our weight in popcorn while watching Elf, Rudolph and Home Alone.

Our family’s tradition of celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve feels just right again this year. We are blessed with lots of family to visit on Christmas Day, so several years ago we began opening gifts on Christmas Eve morning. We treat it just like Christmas day and it gives us a wonderfully quiet day to play with new toys, eat simple meals and just be together…our little family.

Some dear friends will join us for a Chinese take-out dinner and then for church services.

Christmas Day morning will be a simple, joyful celebration of the birth of our Savior. Birthday cake for breakfast, anyone? I’ve been inspired by my friend who doesn’t exchange gifts on Christmas morn and we’ll be incorporating a couple of her traditions. The rest of the day will be abuzz with family and visiting. But we’ll have already had our quiet and it all seems just right.

I’d love to hear about your preparations and plans.

photo: Alesa Dam

Preparing is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

It’s only December 1st and I already know that Ann Voskamp’s Jesse Tree Advent Devotional will be one of my favorite things this advent season.

It’s free for the asking at A Holy Experience. Every word is wondrously beautiful and is encouraging our family to wait expectantly for Christ.

I printed off the devotional part on regular paper and the ornaments on photo paper. I feel like I’ve been given a beautiful gift already. Thank you, Ann.

If you’ve never heard of a Jesse Tree before, it’s an advent devotional that tells the story of God’s plan for salvation starting with the creation story, through the Old Testament to the coming of the Messiah. Each day has a family devotional with a special ornament that gets hung on your Jesse Tree. Your tree can be anything….a small evergreen, a branch, a silhouette of a tree drawn on paper.

Enjoy!

A Christmas Tradition is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

I was so late. The morning hours had slipped through my fingers and we needed to be in the car in exactly 5 minutes. As we raced to tie shoes, zip backpacks and brush teeth, I could feel the tension rising from my stomach, up through my chest and into my shoulders. You’ve been there, right?

I was was barking orders like “Hurry up!” and “Let’s GO!” when I heard my youngest son call from the bathroom…

“Mooooommy! I need you!”

I skidded into the bathroom and confronted what I can only describe as an unholy mess. I won’t disgust you with the details. Let’s just say it involved a 4-year old, bowel movements and an un-healthy dose of “I can do it MYSELF”. Got the picture?

When I saw the destruction, the thoughts in my mind went something like this… “OHMYGOSH! AREYOUKIDDINGME? WHATWEREYOUTHINKING? POOOOOOOP! IDON’THAVETIMEFORTHIS!”

I wanted to explode! Are you feeling me here?

But the preceding days had been filled with thoughts of grace. It had seriously been a non-stop barrage of conversations, lessons and readings about grace. I couldn’t pretend like thoughts of undeserved love weren’t at the front of my mind. In that moment, I resolved to deal with this disgusting situation in love – without yelling or sighing, scolding or shaming. Not my normal reaction, I assure you.

I scooped up my precious, filthy child, and plopped him into the tub where I washed him clean. All the while, this dear child was blissfully unaware of his disgusting condition. He was simply thrilled to be getting a bath in the middle of the morning. He splashed and giggled while I scrubbed and shampooed. There was no regret and no “I’m sowwy, mommy.”

So my irritation level increased. How could this child not see the mess he made? How could he not see the love I was pouring over him? Where was his remorse? I needed remorse! Then I could easily offer grace.

I barely held it together long enough to clean up the mess and get us out of the house. Late again.

But as the day wore on, God began working on my heart and the conviction came. Grace offered through clenched-teeth, with a raging heart, is not grace at all. Of course it would be easy to give grace if my child were receiving it gratefully. But perhaps that’s part of the point?

And I began to wonder – Am I really so different from my filthy child? How often do I spin through my world utterly clueless to the messes that I’m making? How often does my loving God faithfully clean up after me? How often does He love me with a pure heart while I’m still covered in filth?

How often am I blissfully unaware as He showers me with grace unseen?

photo: apdk

Grace Unseen is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

I never pictured myself in a traditional homemaker role. I grew up in the 1970′s when the women’s movement had already come of age. We had figured out that we could do anything. We could be leaders, serve in the military, have careers. We could sing “I am Woman, Hear Me Roar” and no one batted a fake eyelash at it.

Unfortunately, along with all of the advancements came a subtle undercurrent of disdain for women who chose a traditional homemaker role. It certainly always overt, but I grew up with the sense that women who chose that role were selling themselves short. That they could do so much more.

And so, with my college-diploma in hand, I set out to become the successful career-gal that I’d always wanted to be. I worked hard and created a successful career for myself. I didn’t always love what I did, but I was good at it and I was rewarded for it.

Then came marriage and children…I married my dear husband and when our first child came along, we made the decision that I would stay home. I was in favor of that because by then my attitudes had changed remarkably and I really felt like that was where I should be. We were lucky that it was an option for us.

But I was a bit stuck…I didn’t understand my new role. I didn’t know how to be the primary caregiver to my home and family. Not because my mom didn’t try and teach me as I was growing up (thanks, Mom!) but because I wasn’t paying attention since it wasn’t a role that I cherished (sorry, Mom!).

I can look back now and honestly say that the first few years at home, I felt devalued. Like what I was doing wasn’t as important as what I could have been doing. Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to be at home but something didn’t feel right on the inside.

Whenever I met someone new and they asked “What do you do?”, my answer went like this, “Right now I’m a stay-at-home-mom, but I USED to…”. As if I had to justify my service to my family.

Through lots of prayer, study and reflection, I have since let go of those misconceptions. I won’t bombard you with a bunch of bible passages talking about a woman’s cherished role in her family (Prov 12:4; Prov 14:1; Prov 31:10-31, if you’re interested). But I will say this…

What you do matters. Listen to me closely. If we were having coffee together, I would lean across the table and look right into your eyes and say it again. What. You. Do. Matters. It is not beneath you. It is important work. Don’t just gloss over that and say “uh-huh, uh-huh”. Go back and read it again. I’ll wait.

Every diaper you change, every load of laundry that you fold, every carpool you drive, every meal that you make…it matters. Even for you moms who are working because you want to or because you need to. You set the tone in your home because you matter.

Serving your family is an important calling. You should never feel diminished or unimportant because what you do matters.

In light of my announcement last week, it seemed like an appropriate time to revisit this post from February 2009. The comments on the original post are worth reading all by themselves. Best comments ever.

photo credit: Shereen M

You Matter is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Summer officially begins for our family today. School is out and we’re looking forward to 3 months of sun, sprinklers, popcicles and lightning bugs.

Here’s our 2010 Summer List. I shamelessly stole this idea from Meg at Whatever. Thanks Meg! You rock!

This is our 2nd year for the Summer List. Here’s the 2009 version. I need something to help me be a little more intentional about how we spend our time. The Summer List is a major help.

~You’ll be happy to see that we got a jump-start on summer by making “Last Day of School Sundaes” last night. Priorities, people.

~Idlewild Park is rated the 2nd BEST kids park in the WORLD! (And it’s only 30 minutes from my house!) If you live in PA, OH or WV, it’s worth a trip.

~I’m hoping that “Dig a big hole” will happen at the beach. But with boys, you never know.

~We have the best kind of boat. We call it our FOB (Friends with Boats).

~Tractor pull? Have I mentioned that I’m a hick?

What’s on your list for the summer?

Hello Summer! is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6:33-34

photo: Grant McDonald

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Matthew 11: 28-30

photo credit: Jenny Downing

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Always late to the party. That’s me.

It’s now January 11, 2010 and I have yet to put any real thought into my goals for the new year. In a sense, that’s good. It means I haven’t broken any resolutions yet.

After minutes and minutes of intense thought and prayer, I’ve come up with a few goals for myself.

1. Lose 10 lbs before Blissdom. Note to self: Stop. Eating. All. The. Cookies.

2. Learn to put on eye makeup. I’m deep like an ocean, no? But seriously. How is it possible that a pushing 40 year-old woman can’t put on her own eye makeup? Left to my own devices, I’d still be wearing 1982 sparkly blue eyeshadow with the matching eyeliner. Does anyone know any good makeup bloggers? Maybe she’d trade makeup lessons for spray painting lessons.

3. Be more purposeful in my blogging…Less “Jump on to check my email and get sucked into the blogging vortex.” More “Plan my time wisely and keep things in their proper place.” God and my family absolutely must be my first priorities. I am embarrassed to admit that there have been too many times when my online life has gotten in the way of my real-line life. I am making the commitment to my family that email, blogging, facespace, mybook, comments and twitter will all take a backseat to them.

4. Get back in the habit of rising before my kids, so there’s some quiet time before they start making a ruckus. I’ve fallen into the bad habit of staying in bed until I hear them squirming around, or worse, until they’re knocking on my noggin asking for breakfast. Last year, I joined the 5:16 Club and fell of the wagon no less than 15 times. So I’m dusting off my alarm clock and giving it another try. And another. And another.

Do you have any resolutions that you want to share? And seriously, do you know any makeup bloggers?

photo credit: debaird

Resolutions Schmesolutions is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Silent night, holy night.
Son of God, loves pure light.
Radiant beams from Thy Holy face.
With the dawn of redeeming grace.
Jesus, Lord at Thy Birth.
Jesus, Lord at Thy Birth.

I sang those words for the millionth time tonight and they spoke to my heart in a new way…the dawn of redeeming grace.

2000 years ago a tiny baby was born and he changed everything. HE was the dawn of redeeming grace.

Merry Christmas, my friends. Have a blessed day and love on your family.

Love,
Kimba

photo: C. A. Muller

The Dawn of Redeeming Grace is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Random pretty picture because I can’t stand
starting a post without a picture.

This is a re-post from 368 days ago. There isn’t any Christmas yakk on my chandelier and I made the paper chains using staples this year, but the sentiment remains the same. It seemed appropriate to share this again today.

Today’s post is all about being real. With all of you and with myself. I love blogging. I love sharing my life and my home with you, my dear friends…And getting to know you through a glimpse into your lives. But it’s just that. A glimpse.

As much as I love blogging, I think it has one major danger (aside from being the cause of hungry children with no clean clothes). The danger is that we begin to think that everyone else is doing “it” better than we are. “It” is whatever we’re struggling with. Everyone else has better behaved children, is a sweeter, gentler mother and wife, is a better housekeeper, decorator, whatever.

It’s the power of the edit and the zoom lens.

So in the interest of encouraging you before we all spin off into the business of celebrating Christmas, I’m going to get real.

Do you remember these adorable children who were sweetly waiting for their blueberry muffins? As I am writing this post, the older one is enjoying some time alone in his room because he SCREAMED at his younger brother and shoved him off the couch. But don’t you go feeling sorry for that baby boy. He spent some time in the naughty chair earlier today for clonking his big brother on the head with Thomas the Train.

And these beautiful scrapbook paper chains that you all raved about? The scrapbook tape that we used isn’t holding. Every few minutes, I hear a flick and a shuffle as a loop pops open and part of the chain falls to the ground. Repairs will be made with staples.

Allow me to share my dining room. It has looked like this for a month. Actually, this is pretty good. I cleaned up for an hour last night. The dining room becomes my dumping ground for all my projects. At Christmas, that gets a little out of control.

And that Christmas yakk on the chandelier? My failed attempt at creating something beautiful. It’s OK. I know it’s a hideous mess. And I have no intention on trying to fix it. I am done. No more decorating. I’ve got plastic bins that haven’t been opened and another tree that will have to stay in it’s box until next year. I’ll enjoy what is done and that’s that.

And in case you think I’m all sweetness and light…let me assure you that Monster Mommy has been hanging out at our house a little too much lately. And what’s worse is that Witchy Wifey usually travels with Monster Mommy. Let this be a pledge to my dear family that I will banish that evil duo.

So, on the off chance you thought that I had it all together, I hope this is an encouragement to you. We’re all just doing the best we can. Some days are better than others and I pray that my Lord will cover my failings.

~~~~~~~~~~

In case you were wondering, DIY Day will start tonight as usual (10 pm eastern time). I may not get around to a recap but please share any projects you’ve done recently!

Being Really Real is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Every year, we start building anticipation for Christmas by pulling out our advent calendar at the beginning of December. I wish I could say that we always start on December 1st, but that would be a fib. I feel pretty good if we start by around the 7th. It’s definitely not too late to start this tradition.

This advent cabin was my birthday gift from The Hubster a few years ago (I think it came from L.L. Bean) and it is hands-down my favorite birthday gift ever. If you want to see me talking about this tradition, click here to see last year’s video. There’s no denying that I’m a total dork.

We do the traditional piece-of-candy behind each door or window. But I LOVE the idea of putting little notes behind each door with a fun Christmas activity to do each night.

That’s what Steph from Somewhat Simple did with her Magnetic Mini Muffin Tin Advent Calendar. She even shows you exactly what they put on each note to get you started!

Want some more advent calendar ideas?

How cute is this burlap stocking advent calendar from Making the World Cuter? She shows you step-by-step how she made it.

Are the kids squabbling over who gets to open the door or hang up the advent ornament each day? How about this Quick and Easy Advent Calendar from Makes and Takes. All the supplies come from the Dollar Store so each kiddo can have their own calendar.

And Breann from Me & My Three had a great idea for using Dollar Store mini gift bags and a piece of lattice. Totally doable!

Still not easy enough for you? Then how about this Sticky Note Advent Calendar from Giver’s Log. She even provides a free printable download so you can make your own.

And last, but definitely not least, leave it to Sarah Mae from Like a Warm Cup of Coffee to have an advent calendar that puts the focus squarely where it belongs…on the birth of Christ.

In her recent post at (in)courage, Sarah Mae shares her simple advent calendar and shows you exactly what her family will do each day in anticipation of Christmas. I particularly like Day 9 -Dance to a praise song! and Day 21: List three ways you and your family can be the hands and feet of Jesus this coming year – make a plan!

How do you build anticipation for Christmas? If you have a post about it, add it to my comments.

Countdown to Christmas ~ The Advent Calendar is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30

photo credit: Simpologist

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

I trust in Your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in Your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord, for He has been good to me.

Psalm 13:5-6

photo credit: Runner Jenny

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

I have a broken sugar bowl. My caffeine-deprived fingers fumbled its lid one morning as I was getting my coffee. My oldest son was nearby and said, “Don’t worry mommy. You can get a new one.”

Simple words that were meant to comfort me. Instead, they broke my heart.

My kids don’t have a spirit of thankfulness. Things like toys, games, books and clothes come easily for them. They have generous grandparents, aunts and uncles. And they have a mom who is an uber-bargain-shopper. This has all lead to too much stuff.

And not enough gratitude. When something breaks, we just get a new one.

I decided that moment would be a teaching moment. We talked about being grateful for what we have and caring for our things because sometimes, when something breaks, it can’t be replaced. Sometimes we fix what’s been broken and sometimes we make due (do?) without.

And so we carefully pieced back together the lid of my sugar bowl. We found each little sliver of ceramic and super-glued it in place.

Nearly 2 years later, I still have my broken sugar bowl. I could run to Target and buy a new one for $6. I could probably find a nearly new one at Goodwill for $1. But the lesson that is remembered every single time we use that sugar bowl is worth more than a new one.

We still have too much stuff and not enough gratitude. We also have a bunch of friends who probably wonder why I have a busted sugar bowl. But now we also have a reminder. Even if it’s only me that gets the reminding.

~~~~~~~~~~Keep scrolling down or click here to read today’s Make Your Home More Welcoming Challenge.

Broken Sugar Bowl is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Philippians 4: 8-9

photo credit: Roger Lynn

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again; Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4: 4-7

photo credit: Roger Lynn

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land

I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;

he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.

Psalm 40: 1-3

photo credit: Code Poet

Sunday Morning is a post from: A Soft Place to Land