He's So Proud...

You cannot know the joy when we passed this lovely "lady" at The Wal-Mart on a slow-paced Tuesday night before Thanksgiving.  Almost every evening, before bed, he asks, "Mumma, can you please show me my picture with Elsa?"

When I show him, he pets the phone, and says, "she's so pretty...she's my girl, you know..."

*grin*

Tiny House Dreams

In recent weeks/months, I have become OBSESSED with the idea of Tiny Houses.  Have you seen/heard of this?

Basically, people are building homes that would fit in the average family room these days, in pursuit of simplicity, financial freedom, and maybe a little bit of retaliation against "the machine."

:o)

Don't get me wrong - I love my home.  It's small, but not too small, in a wonderful neighborhood, close to all our family, and it keeps us warm and safe.

But, I feel myself being trapped by the STUFF.  Things.  I don't know if it's a phase, or a quiet scream for simplicity in my complex world, but it feels like a craving, in my soul, to find this simple life.

Every once in awhile, I get a gnawing pull to toss out everything that's not essential in my home, and start from scratch.  My fear is that in doing so, I'll only panic about not having said STUFF, and will have just thrown out things I thought I didn't need, and will create large sums of debt I don't NEED to get more STUFF that I don't NEED.  *sigh*

I guess I'm not really ready for a tiny house.  We have our boy(s), and that complicates things.  It's frustrating to know that all three would be just as happy with a box full of hot wheels and some free time versus an entire room in our home dedicated to JUST THEIR TOYS.  And that we have room after room stuffed with things that we rarely use, and still hear the words, "I'm bored," every week - whether they be from the mouths of the little ones, or rattling inside our own head. 

The idea of homesteading has rattled my cage a bit, but I don't think I'm THAT committed just yet.  I still want a grocery store nearby (we are both far too forgetful to abandon that convenience), but I don't want to buy 4 different kinds of cereal, so that each boy gets their fill of their favorite.  I think my biggest annoyance is TIME.  There never, ever seems to be enough free time for us.  And, when we HAVE it, we spend it exhausted and drained from all the work it took to create this free time.

We have created plenty of quantity, I want quality.  But, except for dropping EVERYTHING and just jumping in, I can't figure out how to do that.  I find myself SOOO envious of those with the courage to stop, look up, and say, "I'm done with life like this.  Let's do it OUR way."

There is no real REASON for this post...it's only my thoughts...and my desire to find a FIX.

Jesse Tree...ish?

Well, this year, I had every intention of doing a Jesse Tree (if you've not heard of it, google it - it's pretty great!)!

 

I was drawn to the idea of reminding our boy(s) what CHRISTmas is ACTUALLY all about, but still have the kitchy, fun vibe to go with it...bible lessons, placed on a special Christmas tree?  Perfect!

 

Well, I'm fairly sure that Halloween and Thanksgiving were only a week apart this year...and you won't convince me otherwise!  I think I blinked, and suddenly the next Holiday is upon us...then, I went and got pneumonia.  What it boils down to is this Momma never made the ornaments, found a spare tree, nothin'.  Go figure...I want to do something that focuses the holiday on Christ, and things pile up against me to make it happen. 

But I REFUSE to allow the devil the upper hand in this!  While at the drug store, picking up my FULL GROCERY BAG of prescriptions (even with excellent prescription coverage, the cost was still $80), I noticed this un-imposing, Mickey Mouse Advent Calendar thing.  Now, I have never known the purpose of these calendars, but I've always secretly wanted one to share with my kid(s).

A lightbulb exploded in my brain! 

THIS is PERFECT! Cheeto's chin and all!

 

So, when we got home, I made a mad-dash for google, and found these itty bitty Christmas ornaments that you're supposed to add a backing, and color all pretty, and hang on your adorable Jesse tree:

http://forthemommas.com/articles/free-jesse-tree-printables-3

 

But, why, oh why, can't we make it like a little trade?  Ben colors the picture, he gets the little snack treat to trade for the picture he colored, and hears the devotion for the day.

 

Coloring - Each day he's used a different hand :o)

Devotion - with the Bible to Guide

 

Sorry, I'm sick - I took the pictures over 2 days...this is the Candy Trade portion of the event.  :o)

Now, the biggest fear I had was to find devotions to use.  Unfortunately, because of my missing month, and pneumonia, I had a list of the scripture that was intended for each day, and the "tags" from the link above, but I hit a giant knot in my throat...how do I make this suitable for a 3-year-old??

 

On our drive home from the drug store, I prayed (yes, I do that a LOT...pray while driving...),"Lord, you know that I want to do this with my boy(s).  Please, help me find devotions that are simple, will keep their attention, and that are FAST - so we don't have the worry of running out of time, or making time an excuse not to do this...

 

And, boom!  When we got home, I found this:

http://onewiththepastor.com/2014/11/29/simple-jesse-tree-devotions-for-preschoolers/

 

It's perfect...it's accurate, but not too precise for growing minds.  It's only a half-page of "story" each day, not including the scripture, so it's quick (each day has been 5 minutes or less - which to a 3-year-old is PERFECT), and...my favorite part - it has a "Talk About" point, and a prayer for each day. 

 

The "Talk About" points are simple, but clear.  Things like:

 

Dec. 1: Jesse (Isaiah 11:1-2): When is it hard to wait for something? How can we be better at waiting when we are really excited about something?

 

Dec. 5: Abram to Abraham: What are some things that are hard for you to do?  How can God help you with them?

 

So far, it's just been Ben & I.  Tonight, we add the big boys...and I'm nervous about it.

 

Hubby gave me the genius idea that in future years, we can use Ben's Halloween candy to "trade" for the story/tag.

 

I'm excited to see what becomes of this!