I would much rather approach this season for what it was meant to be–a time of waiting for our Savior. Waiting for anything is difficult for me. But, Cathi’s talk, as well as what we are reading through in the Advent study, has challenged me to try to keep things simple, slow down and say no (mostly to myself) this year.

We have our home decorated, but decided to not put up lights this year.

We have a dresser in our living room that I would love to have repainted for the holidays, but it was something that was going to take a lot of time if I were to do it myself, and money if we were to have someone else do it. So, for now, we said “no”. Saying “no” is not easy for me to do, but as we create Christmas traditions for our family, I much prefer to think about it with joyful anticipation than worry and anxiousness.

I posted about this Advent calendar last year. I have the supplies, but have not finished it in time for this year. And I’m ok with that. Maybe next year.

UPDATE: I knew there was something else I wanted to mention here. I think I am motivated to do much of the work I create for myself in order to receive affirmation from others. I meet their expectations and am praised for a job well done. But if I am constantly needing to have others fill my cup, when do I have time or energy to fill someone else’s cup? We want to teach Analiese that Christmas is a season of giving, not just receiving gifts. I’m pretty sure this needs to start with her parents. And so, by saying “no” to a few things that I really want to do, I hope to open myself up to saying “yes” to blessing others more.

Let’s talk about music. We are those weird people who start listening to Christmas music after Halloween. There are some really great Christmas songs out there–some old favorites and many amazing new versions of the classics. Here are some of our favorite from our Christmas 2011 playlist on Spotify:

• O Holy Night – Shane & Shane
• O Come O Come Emmanuel – Rosie Thomas
• Drummer Boy – Mercy Me
• The Christmas Song – Frank Sinatra
• God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (feat. Robbie Seay Band) – Folk Angel
• Baby, It’s Cold Outside – She & Him
• Joy to the World – Sufjan Stevens
• Born to Die – Shane & Shane
• Away in a Manger/The First Noel (interlude) – Folk Angel
• Joseph’s Lullaby – Mercy Me
• Lo! How A Rose E’er Blooming – Sufjan Stevens
• White Christmas – Bing Crosby
• Deck the Halls (feat. Shane & Shane) – Folk Angel
• O Holy Night (feat. Jeff Johnson and Jourdan Johnson) – Folk Angel
• White Christmas – Otis Redding
• All I Want For Christmas Is You – Glee Cast
• Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas – She & Him
• O Come Let Us Adore Him – Shane & Shane
•  The Christmas Tree (feat. Lauren Chandler) – Folk Angel
• O Holy Night – Shane & Shane
• God With Us (feat. Isaac Wimberley) – Folk Angel

This week marks the beginning of advent. While we currently don’t have any notable family traditions surrounding this, Heather and I have decided to go through this advent guide produced by The Village Church. While we’re just getting started, we’re hopeful to spend some time slowing, reflecting, and anticipating.

Christ is coming. He has come, and He will come again. This is the message of Advent.

• Playing with rocks in the water and with new toys
• Spending time with Grandma (Gigi), Grandpa, Uncle Ryan and Aunt Angie
• Bathing in the lake
• Taking pontoon rides (on which Analiese hardly ever sat still and made Grandpa very nervous as she walked from front to back, back to front, etc.)

• Great naps and sleeping in a little later than usual
• Blowing bubbles with Grandma
• Playing with Ross’s old Fisher Price cars and people
• Celebrating my birthday with mixed-berry crumble and homemade ice cream (we tweaked the crumble recipe a bit based on the kinds of berries we had, but it was still delicious and a great summer substitute for birthday cake!)
• Watching fireworks go off across the lake to celebrate Independence Day

Of all of the pictures we took this week, this is one of my favorites:

1. Buy One Get One Free entree from Qdoba | 2. “happy birthday beautiful” Shampoo and Body Wash from Sephora | 3. Free Burger from Red Robin | 4. Free bowl of noodles from Noodles & Company | 5. Free personalized gift from Aveda | 6. Free entree from Moe’s | 7. Free drink (of any size) from Starbucks

Most of the deals extend days and even weeks past my actual birthday, so it feels like I’m still celebrating the fact that I’m another year older!

Sadly, though, in an attempt to use my free entree coupon at Moe’s at a birthday lunch with Ross, we discovered that the two Moe’s in Dearborn are gone. Both of them! We drove around Dearborn for the majority of Ross’s lunch hour. (Maybe that’s why he never takes an actual lunch break! Too stressful!) We finally decided to eat at a nearby Panera–a safe favorite. This one in particular is doing something crazy awesome–it’s now one of only a few non-profit, community Panera Cares restaurants. So, even if we didn’t get a free meal ourselves, perhaps our “donation” helped someone who really needs it to have one.

Anyone have any other favorite birthday freebies?

It’s been a rough week for our Baby Girl–the girl who hasn’t been able to breathe out of her nose for the past three days despite our efforts to help her; the girl who can’t suck her thumb like she usually does to soothe herself to sleep. Naps have been sporadic and this Mama is wiped out and feeling very unorganized and unprepared for a visit with family to celebrate Easter.

{ Wearing a tutu did not make it better. }

I was reading about the Easter traditions that John and Noel Piper have done with their family in Noel’s book, Treasuring God in our Traditions, and she talked about how even if you don’t literally “fast” from something during Lent, Holy Week (Palm Sunday thru Easter Sunday) should look different. Our activities should commemorate the tragedy of Palm Sunday (praise followed by betrayal), Maundy Thursday (a time of good-byes and separation) and Good Friday (carrying the cross of pain, suffering and death).

It’s been a somber week here and although I wish Analiese was feeling better, she (and the awful weather we’re having) have helped me embrace the tragedy of Jesus’ last days. Jesus’ last night was brutal, bitter and cold (thanks @dbaughman). I’m not saying I haven’t complained. Because I have. (I told Ross that I was literally mad at Michigan for snowing on Monday!) But when I rest my heart and mind to consider Jesus’ painful exit out of this world, the somberness of this week is just as it should be. Because at the end of the struggle, there’s a day of rejoicing. And so we wait for Easter. When it’s here, we’ll have a reason to truly celebrate.

And although we’re not planning on playing up the Easter bunny (similar to our thoughts on Christmas), I’m putting a little basket together for Analiese to bundle the Easter Bugs book from her great-grandparents, a cute dress from Grandma and a handmade bunny (it’s a miracle this got finished–as simple as it is–given the lack of “me time” I’ve had this week!). I’m sure she’ll “oooh!’ and “ohhh!” over it!

Have a blessed Easter, everyone!

Although we don’t really celebrate the day as a holiday, I took advantage of the opportunity to be a little festive:

This was a totally free project since I used materials that I already had in the house. The two pieces of double-sided scrapbook paper were left over from Katie’s baby shower and Analiese’s birthday party. The book pages are from an old book from my mother-in-law, intended for crafts. I made myself a template and started tracing and cutting. Then, I stitched them together with my sewing machine. They are attached to the window frame with tape. Nothing fancy. I think they’re cute and whimsical. They are very visible from the street, which has made me even more self conscious about the fact that we are in a fish bowl whenever we dine at our table (right in front of these windows)…including early morning breakfasts with Analiese…pre-shower and pre-makeup. It is time to get some window coverings!

I also took some inspiration from fellow bloggers to do a few cute things for Ross. One of these stickers went on his apple in his lunch, he got some new socks, and he got a few treats in his valentine from me and Analiese (we used the “be mine” design). I’m smitten with my H. Ross! Have a great day!

I have high hopes that one day that daughter of mine will A) have an appreciation for the hours her mama put into making things special for her even though she won’t remember any of it and B) have her own love for creating things, too.

Our house is slowly being transformed into a birthday party. As I finish a project, it goes up and we enjoy it until party day.

Which brings me to this tutorial. When I saw Emily’s flower pin tutorial, I wanted to make a million flower pins for Analiese and myself. They are so pretty and can easily adorn a baby or lady alike. I decided to try to take it a step further and use the same concept to make an “A” door hanger to greet Analiese’s birthday party guests. Overall, this project is fairly easy (no sewing skills required) but time consuming.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Let’s start with the “A” template. I realize that I could have saved some time here and purchased a paper mache letter from a craft store. There are many different styles and sizes to choose from. However, I had what I wanted in my mind and the options I saw at the store just weren’t it. I was also afraid that the store bought ones wouldn’t have enough room in the center of the “A” to be seen enough. So, I decided to make my own by choosing a font I liked and printing it. Thankfully, we have plenty of cardboard in our garage. Thank you, Pampers!

I enlisted Ross’s help for this part. We sequestered ourselves in the basement after Analiese went to bed a few nights ago, turned on Step Up (the first one…we have all three, by the way) and crafted away.

{ 1. Trace letter template onto cardboard. Repeat 6-8 times depending on the desired thickness of the finished letter. }

{ 2. Cut out letters from cardboard. }

{ 3. Glue cardboard letters together. }

This next step wasn’t part of the original plan, but Ross suggested it would be a good idea to wrap the letter with a layer of felt for a nice finish. It was a really good idea!

{ 4. Create a template to wrap the letter using a large piece of felt. Trace the letter and then allow for 1.5″ extra around the outside. Repeat for the back. }

{ 5. Cut out the fabric. Cut into the corners so you’ll be able to fold them over the sides. }

{ 6. Wrap the center of your letter (if there are any “holes” in the letter you’re creating) with scraps of felt. }

{ 7. Glue the fabric to one side of the letter. Turn over and glue the other side. }

Now that the letter is wrapped, it’s ready for the flower embellishments. I added the flowers to the non-smooth side of the letter. That way, the back side had a clean, finished look.

{ 8. Trace flowers onto felt using the flower template. I freehanded mine, but you can use the one Emily provided, too. }

{ 9. Cut out all of your flowers. What a difference a new pair of scissors (dedicated soley for fabric) makes! I cut about 120-140 flowers. }

{ 10. Fold flower in half and then in half again. }

{ 11. Snip off tip. }

{ 12. Apply a dab of hot glue to the bottom of the flower and adhere to your letter. }

And again…and again…and again…(this took a looong time!)

{ 13. When you’re finished, you can either lean it against the wall or hang it with a ribbon and straight pins. }

{ 14. I hung ours on our front door. It’s on the inside now, but will go on the front on the day of the party. }

I love it! And I’m sure this party decoration won’t be hiding in a closet post-bash. This is a keeper. Maybe if I get ambitious enough I’ll do a “B” and a “C” for the future basement playroom…

When Analiese woke the next morning, we opened some of her presents early. It gave her something fun to do and helped spread the process of opening gifts out over a few days.

{ She’s starting to understand the idea of unwrapping presents, but has a very short attention span! }

Later that afternoon, we went to church at Pathway Community Church. We went last year and liked it a lot. The contemporary service was a familiar setting to us, and we enjoyed the message about how Jesus is the best gift we could ever receive. Ever. So true. It ended with this video:

We decided to put Analiese in the nursery at church. When we picked her up, she was contently playing with a toy on the floor, surrounded by crying babies with snot and tears running down their faces. She developed a cold about two days later. Thankfully, it didn’t stop her from enjoying time with her grandparents, uncle and aunt.

{ I bought a red velvet dress for Analiese from a baby consignment store a few months ago. Christmas Eve seemed like a good time to put it to use. }

Christmas morning was an early one thanks to Analiese’s 7 a.m. start to the day. It was the first time that I can recall us not having to rush around getting the food and table ready before guests arrived in the afternoon. Thanks for getting us going, Baby Girl!

{ Attempting to open one of Ross’s presents. }

{ Always interested in whatever Parker is interested in… }

{ Grandma and Grandpa got her a shopping cart and a set of wooden fruits and veggies. Both are adorable and she loves playing with them. }

{ Opening a present with Grandma. }

{ So happy! }

{ Not so happy… }

{ Who doesn’t love a sock monkey!? }

{ Everyone….look. at. me. all. the. time. Thanks. }

I really wish one of the H&M’s near us had a kids section. I just love all of their baby and kids clothes. The sweater dress and shirt Analiese wore on Christmas day are so cute and not the typical Carter’s look I see everywhere else. Her shoes are from Gracious May.

Since we were all looking so nice we decided to get some group shots before company arrived. Not an easy task, but we got a few good ones.

{ The wooden rattle was our gift to Analiese. It’s so darn cute. And handmade. In Ohio. Couldn’t resist. }

{ Uncle Ryan, Aunt Angie, Analiese, Heather and Ross }

{ Grandpa, Grandma, Analiese, Heather and Ross }

It was fun to see the Chasey extended family, too. It’s so nice that everyone is in the same place. It makes for such a nice gathering of people.

{ Analiese sitting on her great grandma’s lap. }

Our picture taking died down quite a bit after Christmas day, but we got this cute one of Analiese with her Uncle Ryan on our last night.

We wish you all a happy new year! Analiese made 2010 a great year for us. Recently, she learned how to make the “oh” sound. Can you tell?