December 1st.
A new season.
Fall is now morphing into an opaque brown color, all over. Gloomy skies, and chilly wind breaks any form of comfort, when leaving the house, and rushing to get to the car. Dreary days, met with evenings where I swear it feels like 9 p.m., and only typically is 5:47 p.m., thanks to Daylight Savings Time.
December also begins a series of countdowns for us.
Counting down the days until the Christmas Giveaway, counting down the days until Baby #6 gets here, and counting down the days until CHRISTMAS!
It's weird how November seems to draaaaaaaaag on, and then BAM! We only have a few short weeks, until Christmas!
As I'm preparing for all of our countdowns, I'm overwhelmed with a feeling of gratefulness, not feeling prepared "enough", trying to nest on my home, finish school with the kids, not go into labor, as well as, try and drink enough water, be a good friend, wife, and Mom. *Gulp.*
Honestly, if I'm not careful, I can really start to feel like I'm not enough.
That overwhelming lie can quickly sweep in, especially around this very BUSY season.
Will I pick out all the right gifts?
Will we get school finished?
Will I remember to do the advent countdown?
Will I have my house done, by the time the baby gets here?
All of those questions, swirling around, and the pressure to get it all done in 25 short days.
WHEW.
What an overwhelming, and unrealistic view on what December 1st should feel like.
Today, in my Mom's Connect Group, we were challenged with the question:
Are we pursuing to make our children happy, or holy?
Likewise, our we pursuing our own happiness, or humbly seeking holiness?
Holiness is quiet.
It cause everything to go slooooowly.
It's when we rest. When we say enough of the hustle and bustle.
Even though the business of Christmas isn't necessarily a bad thing, is it the best thing? Rather than trying to pick the *perfect* gift, for the list of loved ones, that gets longer every year, am I focusing on truly pouring into them, in all the days leading up to Christmas?
I'm a visual person, and to me, holiness feels like that first snow of the season.
You know when you're up before everyone else, and the sun is beginning to rise. You peer through the window, to beautiful, big snowflakes trickling down from the sky. You allow your eyes to follow them all the way down, until they reach their final destination. As if someone laid a beautiful, fluffy, white blanket down, and covered up all the opaque brown, and there is beauty, again. My favorite memory of every single snow we've ever received, was stepping outside, and feeling an overwhelming, peaceful silence, from the first snow. So silent you can actually hear the snowflakes as the brush softly onto the gutter, or the ground. Or when the wind blows, the trees crackle, as each limb hits the next, covered in ice.
Peace.
That's what I'm challenged by. That peaceful feeling, throughout this busy month, so that I don't let my checklists get in the way of our home feeling at peace. My checklists will get done, the shopping lists will get taken care of, and this precious baby will get here, whether my floors are scrubbed, or not.
And that's my challenge to you: What are you pursuing, this holiday season? What do you want your children to pursue? What is the overwhelming tone that fills your walls?
My prayer for you, this year, is that your home would be filled with peace.
_ _ _
I told you that I'm doing a Christmas giveaway, and I'm so EXCITED at the wonderful gifts I get to send one of YOU!
This line-up is from some of my FAVORITE shops! The thing I love most about these shops, is they are Mom's, trying to make a difference in the world!
Our first shop giveaway is a necklace/earring combo from Bèljoy:
The "Christine" necklace, and the "Estelle" earrings!
The second shop giveaway is from From Thailand, With Love:
EIGHT beautiful wood ornaments, to adorn your festive tree!
(Ornaments chosen by shop)
The third shop giveaway is from Bourne Southern:
A festive Raglan that would be ADORABLE for any Christmas Party!
The fourth shop giveaway is from 46five Boutique:
The PERFECT mug, for your cup of Holiday Hot Cocoa!
The fifth shop giveaway is from ME! It will be a fun basket FULL of some of my favorite Christmas goodies: candles, chocolate, and other fun surprises!
Last, but not least, an AMAZING giveaway from The Giving Manger:
A Complete Box Set, to add to your Christmas decor, at home!
The beautiful Momma's behind The Giving Manger approached me, about wanting to do a giveaway, so I opened the Complete Box Set, which included:
We actually pulled out our very own Giving Manger, last night, read the story, and placed the manger in our Nativity Set! My kiddos were SO EXCITED to get started, that right after we told the story, and were getting ready for bed, Asher (age 4) went and served everyone a drink of water, before bed. He did it quietly, and didn't say anything other than "Here's your drinks of water, guys!" Then Khai (age 7) pointed out that Asher was the first to serve, so therefore should get to put the first piece of straw in the manger. It was a pretty special moment, as Mark lifted him up, to put the piece of straw in the manger.
Remember that whole "I want to have peace in my home." thing I was talking about, above? That was a moment of peace. And it. was. precious. Seeing the delight on Asher's face, as his siblings were EXCITED for him, mixed with the wonder that filled everyone's imaginations, as they tried to think of creative ways to serve was EXACTLY what we are aiming for.
A peaceful, holy moment.
I am so so so excited to share this giveaway with you, so now for the rules:
1.) SHARE this blog post on Facebook!
2.) FOLLOW the 5 shops, and I, on Instagram!
3.) COMMENT BELOW: a special memory, from the Christmas season, that reminds you of a moment of peace.
My peaceful memory is how much I love going to my parents, on Christmas Eve. We go to the Christmas Eve service, and then we all pile into a vehicle, to drive through the huge Christmas Lights display, in our small town. The rest of the evening is spent playing board games with my siblings, and their families, and laughing about memories from our childhood! That's my peaceful Christmas memory.
SHARE, FOLLOW, and COMMENT BELOW! Winner will be announced in ONE WEEK! YAY!!!
