UPDATE: Homemade Christmas Gifts

I am done. Finally done. I have finished making Christmas gifts for all recipients on our list. This is the latest I have ever finished wrapping my presents. I learned a few important lessons this year, while undertaking this (larger than anticipated) task:

1. Making gifts can be very rewarding, but very time consuming. I had no idea how many late evenings I would be spending in my craft room.
2. Some people value homemade gifts more than others. Take my daughter for example, who was much less excited than I was about the dollhouse bookshelf I made for her, as seen in the video below:

3. It is a struggle to think of ideas for homemade gifts that people will actually like.
4. I did not have the courage to just give a homemade gift, so I ended up buying gifts as well, as not to look like I was taking the inexpensive route.
5. Making gifts is rarely cheaper than buying them. And a lot more work. Making gifts was NOT a way to simplify the holiday season.
6. I can get by on a lot less sleep than I thought, staying up late to make gifts.
7. I am much more excited to give my gifts than I am to get them, but that is also the case when I have purchased gifts.
8. I could literally spend hours (ok, days) on craft blogs looking for ideas...And I did.
9. When using superglue, it is a given that I will glue my fingers together. Every time.
10. Leaving a hot glue gun on all night will not burn your house down, but it will create a sense of panic when you realize that it could have.

Would I do this again??  I would focus less on making something for every person on my list and just make things that I think people would like. I would also try not to learn new skills/crafts and do the crafts that I already am familiar with and enjoy. All my "research" on craft blogs gave me some great ideas for next year. But for now, I really need to update my own family scrapbook and will enjoy coloring with my Bundle.

~Angela

O Christmas Tree (Volume 2)

I just like these out of focus pictures. It reminds me of squinting to look at Christmas trees which I always do to see if there are enough lights on them. Our tree passes the squinting test:)

~Angela

The Shiny Gold Slippers

Nestled in our Christmas tree is a pair of shiny gold slippers. Can you see them?

Here they are up close.

No, they are not my daughter's shoes, but I wish I would have thought to have her wear them when they would have fit. Now, Bundle's feet are too big for them.  They serve as a reminder for us what Christmas is all about. Also known as The Christmas Shoes, the story goes like this:

It was only four days before Christmas. The spirit of the season hadn't yet caught up with me, even though cars packed the parking lot of our local discount store. Inside the store, it was worse. Shopping carts and last minute shoppers jammed the aisles.
Why did I come today? I wondered. My feet ached almost as much as my head. My list contained names of several people who claimed they wanted nothing but I knew their feelings would be hurt if I didn't buy them anything.
Buying for someone who had everything and deploring the high cost of items, I considered gift-buying anything but fun.
Hurriedly, I filled my shopping cart with last minute items and proceeded to the long checkout lines. I picked the shortest but it looked as if it would mean at least a 20 minute wait.
In front of me were two small children - a boy of about 5 and a younger girl. The boy wore a ragged coat. Enormously large, tattered tennis shoes jutted far out in front of his much too short jeans. He clutched several crumpled dollar bills in his grimy hands.
The girl's clothing resembled her brother's. Her head was a matted mass of curly hair. Reminders of an evening meal showed on her small face. She carried a beautiful pair of shiny, gold house slippers. As the Christmas music sounded in the store's stereo system, the girl hummed along, off-key but happily.
When we finally approached the checkout register, the girl carefully placed the shoes on the counter. She treated them as though they were a treasure.
The clerk rang up the bill. "That will be $6.09," she said.
The boy laid his crumpled dollars atop the stand while he searched his pockets. He finally came up with $3.12. "I Guess we will have to put them back," he bravely said. "We will come back some other time, maybe tomorrow."
With that statement, a soft sob broke from the little girl. "But Jesus would have loved these shoes," she cried.
"Well, we'll go home and work some more. Don't cry. We'll come back," he said.
Quickly I handed $3.00 to the cashier. These children had waited in line for a long time. And, after all, it was Christmas. Suddenly a pair of arms came around me and a small voice said, "Thank you lady."
"What did you mean when you said Jesus would like the shoes?" I asked.
The boy answered, "Our mommy is sick and going to heaven. Daddy said she might go before Christmas to be with Jesus."
The girl spoke, "My Sunday school teacher said the streets in heaven are shiny gold, just like these shoes. Won't mommy be beautiful walking on those streets to match these shoes?"
My eyes flooded as I looked into her tear streaked face. "Yes" I answered,"I am sure she will."
Silently I thanked God for using these children to remind me of the true spirit of giving.   ~Author Unknown

My mom found this story years ago, and since then, there has been a book, movie and a song written about the Christmas shoes, but I still give my mom the credit for sharing it with me.

And I am so glad she did.

~Angela

Doing the Most Good

I am referring to the motto for the Salvation Army: Doing the Most Good.

This weekend, my friend Jenny, Bundle, and I rang bells for the Salvation Army. First off, everything (yes, everything) I do with my friend Jenny is an adventure, so I knew this would be fun. And it was!!! Although aside from me almost knocking over the bucket, it was one of our less adventurous endeavors, but fun nonetheless.

This was Bundle's 2nd year ringing bells for the Salvation Army. We decided even at 8 months old last holiday season, it was important for us to start this tradition. Last year when we rang bells as a family, she fit in a stocking:

This year, Bundle no longer fit in a stocking and the Salvation Army must not have many mini bell ringers as they did not provide stockings for her, so I found an apron for her to wear so Bundle looked official. She entertained us by dancing and jumping and singing along with the singing chipmunk we brought with us (pictured) while Jenny and I rang the bells. It was an absolute blast. Bundle got a kick out of giving people high fives and saying "thank you" and helping people put their money in the bucket. Even more important, we helped out a cause that helps others. My husband did not ring bells with us this year, but was gracious enough to stop by and take photos for our scrapbook.

Bundle at a rare rest period.

~Angela

Holiday Soup Luncheon

I don't mind baking when I have the time, and contrary to popular belief have baked a few decent things in the kichen. The key there is when I have time. Baking is not a priority to me because I do not enjoy it enough to take the time in the kitchen by myself, when I would rather be with my family and friends.

So instead of baking Christmas goodies this year (well, I didn't bake last year either!), we (Bundle and I) invited friends over for a soup luncheon. I have Fridays off (which I cherish SO much. What a gift these days are, but that is another blog entry altogether) and thought with a little planning ahead- most of the cooking was done before Bundle even woke up-this would be a fun way to get together with girlfriends to eat and visit. And it was! I had a blast and hope that everyone who came did too!! Bundle had fun coloring and watching the guests while everyone ate.

I invited my coworkers (because I consider them friends as well) and most people stopped in briefly on a lunch hour which was perfect, because I did not have room for 23 people to all sit down and eat at the same time. My goal was to make the time to spend with the people I care about and allow my guests the time to relax during the holiday season, even if it was only for a 30 minute lunch.

 One of my coworkers, graciously gave reindeer dust to give away to children and that was a hit.

 I also copied off my favorite Christmas story to share.

The menu was simple and one I will likely replicate next year: Tomato Basil soup, Chili, Chicken Wild Rice soup, popovers and beer biscuits, salad and my "famous" made-from-a-box brownies. The soups were all homemade, proof that I REALLY can cook when I want to! Even with 4 "bonus people" (people that did not RSVP), I have one more meal of soup for my family to enjoy. There was a Christmas with my in-laws where they ran out of food and I did not get to eat, so I always overcompensate as that is my worst nightmare: not having enough food.

I took no photos to share because I was busy visiting and hosting, but I have good memories of this day and decided that I started a tradition. And of course, I am a big fan of traditions:)

~Angela