French Press Friday

Christmas, Simplified

As I sit sipping my coffee this mornig, my mind wanders to Christmas preparations and decorating.  Last night I was at church helping the ladies group get trees up and all the decorations out.  I wish I could say it was a wonderful experience.  I wish I could say we had music playing and everyone was in the holiday spirit.  But it was just a chore that needed to be done.  Question:  How many ladies does it take to hang garland from the balcony?  Answer: Only two, but about half a dozen stand below shouting directions.  Please don't get me wrong.  We all worked well together, we chatted happily and the church is beautiful, but it wasn't, um,...a Christmasey experience, know what I mean?  Kind of felt like Charlie Brown wondering what had happened to the Christmas spirit.

So I contemplate all of that and the Christmas decorating that needs to be done at my own home.  And the word that stands out in my mind is "needs".  So I allow myself to wander down a new path of thought. 

What if...

       ...I don't get out all those boxes full of Christmas decorations?
       ...I don't scatter Christmas memorabilia all over our home?
       ...I just use candles?
       ...I only pull out the stockings?
                    And our Advent wreath?
                            And our Nativity?
       ...I suggest just decorating the tree?

And do you know what?  I feel relief.  I feel joy and anticipation returning.  I think to myself, "So this is Christmas, simplified?"  I can do this.  I think I will do this.  I think I will spend less time adding to our clutter and more time baking, making gifts, sending cards, listening to music, watching classic Christmas movies.  And cuddling on the couch with Hubby.  These things bring me joy. 

I encourage you to find your "Christmas, simplified" this year.  Go for making memories and enjoying traditions of the past.  Enjoy Advent!  Anticipate the coming of our Savior and the salvation that means for us.  Find your joy.  Check your personal headaches of the season at the door.  They aren't worth it.

Here kitty, kitty!

Mouse stayed home with me the other day.  His little tummy was upset.  Looking at his pale face at the breakfast table caused me some worry and I expected him to make the mad dash for the bathroom any minute. But, my boyos seem to have pretty healthy immune systems because as the day went on, instead of getting worse, he got better.  Then I found him playing with one of Bud's creations.

I knew Mouse was feeling better when he asked in his sweet voice, "Can I shoot this at the cat?"

Let is Snow!

The first snow of the season is coming down and I can't help but look at it and smile.  It's one of my simple pleasures and it's definitely going in the gratitude journal tonight. 

There is something exciting about the first snowfall.  The flakes were small and wispy at first.  The kind that make you think it might not be real or at least the kind that make you think this isn't going to last.  But I smiled anyway and enjoyed the fact that it was at least snowing, if only a bit.  I glanced out the window later to find that the snowfall was less intermittent and I thought, "Hm, maybe it'll last longer than 5 minutes!"  Then a glance out the window a little later rewarded me with larger and heavier flakes.  Oh boy!  I can just see the kids at school, squealing with delight and eagerly awaiting recess.  Then the worry might set in.  "Teacher, I don't have my boots.  Do I have to stay on the pavement?"  "I didn't bring snow pants!"  The planning might begin, too, for forts and snowball fights and "skating" on the blacktop.  The excitement of children!  Never mind the fact that the snow is not building up or sticking to anything just yet.  They set their sights high and hope for the best. 

I guess I still have some of that childlike excitement in me when the first snow comes around.  I hope for heavy inches of the white stuff to cover the evergreens.  I hope for a blanket of it covering my front yard.  I hope for the stillness it brings with it.  I hope for the eager yelling of my boys as they run in after school wondering where their boots are.  But it looks like all of that will come another day.  The snow is tapering off as I write.  I guess it was just letting me know that it is out there.  It will come.  I just need to be patient.

Let it snow!

Let it snow!

Let it snow!

Enjoy the song here.

Pumpkin Oatmeal recipe

A month...a month!  It's been a month since I've last  written anything.  I wish I could say there is  a lot to tell, but alas.  I have had writers block and nothing else.  Onward!

I love pumpkin!  Last fall I started collecting pumpkin recipes...scones, pies, muffins, cakes....yum.   This morning I tried one of them.  I had about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of pumpkin sitting in the fridge left from another pumpkin recipe and it needed to be used.  Perfect amount for pumpkin oatmeal.  It's so warm and spicey and perfect for the cool, fall morning after Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin Oatmeal

2 cups milk
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup oatmeal
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/8 tsp cloves
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 Tbsp dried cranberries
2 Tbsp chopped walnuts (or pecans)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp butter

In a saucepan, bring milk and salt to a boil.  While milk is warming, mix the oatmeal and the spices in a bowl.  When the milk is ready, stir in the oat and spice mixture, reduce heat to low and cook for 3 minutes.  Add the pumpkin and cook for 2-3 minutes more or til desired consistency.

Divide oatmeal into bowls and top with cranberries, walnuts, brown sugar and butter.  Adding a little cream around the edges is another delicious addition.

Simple and delicious!

Simplicities for October

I realize the month is almost gone, but maybe you can still take advantage of some of these ideas.  Maybe some of them you have already done and can reflect on the joy they brought to you and your family.  Either way, here's to a simple October!

* Plan an outing to a pumpkin patch.  Buy several pumpkins so you can carve, paint and otherwise decorate til your heart's content!  How about buying some little ones to turn into pies?  I cooked several last fall and had baggies of fresh pumpkin in my freezer through the summer. 

* Creat a seasonal table.  And it doesn't have to be the one you eat at!  Maybe use your piano or your mantel or a bookcase.  Angie over at Echoes of Laughter does a BEAUTIFUL job with seasonal decorating.  I get lots of ideas from her.  Thanks Angie!

* Try this fun idea for preserving fall leaves like they did in Victorian times:

                Trim branches from trees when the leaves have just turned and are at their best, before they start to dry.  Split the stems of the branches about 3 inches up from the bottom; stand them in a bucket of warm water for several hours.  If any leaves start to curl, pick them off.  Prepare a solution of glycerine and water by mixing one part glycerine with two parts water.  Glycerine can be found at pharmacies.  Bring the solution to a boil, gently simmer for 10 minutes and then let it cool completely.  Cut the bottom of your stems at a  very sharp angle and smash them with a hammer (wouldn't the kiddos love this part?)  Stand the stems up in the solution and store it in a cool, dark place until all the solution has been absorbed.  About a week to 10 days.  When you first notice tiny beads of glycerine beginning to form on the leaves, they are done!   Take them out of the solution, wipe them down with a damp paper towel and dry thoroughly.  The leaves will stay beautiful and bright for several seasons.  I think this one will have to wait til next season at our house.  Something to look forward to!

 

* Plant bulbs to show off next spring.  Tulips, crocus, daffodils.  How beautiful it will be!

* Mull cider and /or wine on the weekends.  Invite friends to enjoy it with you.  Our family enjoyed this on the first day of Autumn along with some gingerbread cookies.

 

So!

 

Before we get caught up in planning Thanksgiving dinner and all the other events in November, let's remember to enjoy October to its fullest.

 

 



Tomorrow

Yes, tomorrow.  Tomorrow is when I'll start.  Tomorrow, when things aren't so crazy.  Tomorrow, when I have a quieter day.  Tomorrow, when the kids are napping and the laundry is done.  Tomorrow...

Just curious...have you started a gratitude journal?  Have you started paying attention to the good gifts in your life?  Or are your intentions for beginning that "new project" scheduled for....tomorrow?  If you are making time to read blogs, may I challenge you to stop.  Right now.  Go find an odd, currently unused notebook (we all have them lying around, don't we?) and a pen and stick them under your pillow.  That's it.  Then you can come back to your blogging.

The life we live does not stop.  Just like the To-Do list is never finished, life rarely gives us a breather.  I don't know about you, but a common phrase running through my head is, "I really should be doing..."  There is always something I feel like I should be doing other than the fun thing I'd rather be doing.   I really should wipe down the baseboards, iron those clothes, scrub that bathroom floor, get Bud started on that school project.  What I want to do is spend some time scrapping, or decorating for fall, or practicing my crocheting.  But there's no time!  I'll have to put those off until, yes, you guessed it...tomorrow! 

In reality, what is the harm in delaying the scrubbing of the floor an hour while I bring out ceramic pumpkins and silk leaves?  Am I not making a home for my family?  What do I want my children to remember of their childhood?  A clean home with an unhappy mom, or a warm, inviting home (slightly less clean) with a warm, inviting mom?  It's about recognizing the things that make me happy and spending some time at them.  Then the dull To-Do list isn't so bad.  Like Mary Poppins sings, "Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down!"

Gratitude for yesterday:
a bird with its fluffed out feathers sitting in the lilac bush outside my kitchen window
the smell of ginger cookies baking
the smiles of my boyos as they eat those cookies
Classical Christmas music
watching Bud do his math with ease and confidence
hot coffee with half and half

What's on your list?

 

A bit more on Gratitude

(from Through Faith Alone: 365 Devotional Readings from Martin Luther)

"'It is better to look at what is in front of you than to go looking for what you want. Even this is pointless.  [It's like] trying to catch the wind.'    Ecclesiastes 6:9

Enjoying what you currently have is better than letting your heart wander.  You should make use of what is in front of you rather than wandering around full of desires.  This is what the dog in Aesop's writings did when he chased after the reflection in the water and lost the meat he had in his mouth.  You should use what God has placed before you and be satisfied with it.  You shouldn't try to satisfy your desires because they will never be satisfied.  Instead, you should use whatever God has placed in front of you.  All of it is very good. (Genesis 1:31)"


Luther goes on to challenge us to think about one who sees everything in front of him as nothing but a nuisance.  He doesn't use or enjoy these gifts.  Instead he lets his heart roam in discontent, searching for something different.  Maybe a different house, a different spouse, a different job, a different car.  More money, more possessions, more recognition.  And this does nothing but lead us to more despair and discontent.  It is, as quoted from Ecclessiastes, pointless.  It's like trying to catch the wind.  It cannot be done no matter how hard we work at it, how long we try or what methods we use.  We will never be able to satisfy ourselves. 

God has given us just what is needed for our seasons of life.  And, I believe, that when we respect that fact and give thanks for His goodness, He will grace us with even more goodness.