Welcome, 2012!

The past few weeks have been so full of family, friends, and fun that most days I had no idea what day it was.

My grandparents flew in from Montana to spend Ben's first Christmas with him. We baked and cooked. A lot. Nana showed Mom and me how to make my great-grandmother's sweet bread. We sat around the table and Grampa told us about what Christmas was like around his house in the 1940s. We were spoiled with gifts and spoiled just to have them with us.





Tim's parents drove up from Houston to visit for a few days. It was a quick trip but I know they soaked up the time with Ben and it was nice to exchange gifts in person!





Santa brought Ben his very own Radio Flyer wagon and he is in luuuuuuve. We've gone for a walk every single day.



I hosted all my "high school girls," (who are now college freshman) and are home for the semester break. I'm so proud of the beautiful, smart, funny young ladies they have become, and I'm thankful they are still willing to hang out with me, all these years later.



We survived the Christmas Eve service at church with Ben in our laps. It was so special to go to church as a little family of three, but it was also kind of (okay, incredibly) stressful trying to keep an eight-month-old quiet through the service. I didn't get any pictures, but I'm sure we won't forget the experience any time soon. The service concluded just as Ben gagged and threw up the rice puffs I kept shoving in his mouth to try to keep him quiet. Eh.

We celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary, which included me spending my first night away from Ben! Tim surprised me with an entire evening in downtown Fort Worth. We walked around the city, ate some great food, drank some good wine, and were in that huge, wonderful bed in our hotel room (watching cable) by 8:00pm. It was laid back and glorious and I'm so glad Tim "made" me leave Ben and go.



We drove around and saw Christmas lights, went to the movies, and shared great meals with great friends. Priceless, precious memories. We have been so busy living life that I haven't had much time to sit down and write about it.

In all the (good) busyness, I wanted to take the time to wish all of you a VERY Happy 2012. This year has been a year of tremendous blessing for us, but I have lots of friends and family members who have fought through difficulties and suffered incredible losses. Before we close out this year, may I encourage you to take the time to reflect on all the ways God has blessed you? After all, He promises to use EVERYTHING for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28), even the tough stuff.

Here's to 2012 and everything it will bring! Happy New Year to you!

Truth.

"We worship a God we cannot exaggerate."

- Francis Chan

Hallelujah!

Crazy Eights.

Guess who is already eight months old?



Guess who didn't want to put down his comb for our little photo shoot?



He played with it the whole time I messed with my little point-and-shoot camera. I loathe the flash situation on this camera. The flash washes out the subject, but turning the flash off results in a blurry picture. I can't find a good balance and I've decided a new camera is the only way to remedy the situation.



Anyone have an SLR camera laying around that they're looking to get rid of? Anyone?



The comb got old (and I was still messing with my camera) so Ben moved on to playing with a gift box, which I'd pushed just out of our way.



Our guest room (where I take his monthly picture) is riddled with Christmas present wrapping paraphernalia. I threw the scissors and tape on the floor, but the box was still within reach.



This is our eight-month-old boy. Full of life, generous with smiles, covered in drool, constantly squirming. He's just the best.

Hooked on Homes.

If you're looking to waste more time on the internet, (and you clearly are, since you're reading MY blog) have I got something for you!

Check out Hooked on Houses.

What a fun find! Home tours galore, including a special page dedicated to TV & movie houses, a page with celebrity home tours, and even horribly awful MLS photos. I'm telling you, you can burn some serious time on this site.

Helloooo, Kate Hudson's kitchen!


Today's post features George and Mary Bailey's "Drafty Old House" from "It's a Wonderful Life" (Swoon!)



There are just a few pictures of the Bailey's house, but lots of fun facts about Bedford Falls and the making of the movie.



The site also features a tour and fun facts about the Home Alone house.

Sure, my sink is still full of last night's dirty dishes, but now I know what Reese Witherspoon's $6.9 million estate looks like. That counts for something, right?

Happy surfing, and you're welcome.

Silly Dad.

Dear Ben,

Your daddy is really silly, but you already knew that.




You guys have lots of fun together.



Dad is pretty good at making you laugh, but he makes me laugh even harder. In fact, his sense of humor is one of my favorite things about him. Some of the funniest things are things he says without thinking.

Tonight Dad was doing a puppet show for you while you took your bath. He uses your lion bath puppet (Dad creatively named him "Water Lion") and your Elmo bath towel. Daddy does Elmo in a high British accent, and no matter how many times I insist that Elmo isn't English, Daddy (er, Elmo) always slips back into it.



He started the puppet show like this:

"Hi, Elmo!"

"Hi, Water Lion! Well, what in the Sam Hill are you doing here?"

Of course, I died laughing. Daddy has a pretty analytical mind, and he's still getting used to using the creative/imaginary part of his brain with you. The whole "child appropriate" thing is shaking out slowly. It's a good thing you don't comprehend too much these days!

After I finished laughing, Dad started again.

Elmo:(in his British accent)"Hi, Water Lion! Why don't you and I go visit Cookie Monster and Oscar the Grouch? They've been giving me trouble lately and I'm not too happy with them..."

I couldn't help but giggle! British Elmo needs to learn a lesson on bullying since he's already recruiting Water Lion to go antagonize other puppets on the street.

These funny little moments we spend as a family of three are so precious to me. I know you'll never remember them, but I hope I never forget them.

Purity

I heard this sermon earlier this year and it is one of the best I've heard on the importance of purity before marriage and transparency in marriage.

The Purity Test

Tim and I worked with students for several years (and it wasn't actually that long ago that we were single) and the question asked over and over and over seems to be, "How far is too far?" This sermon addresses the danger of dancing up to the line, and explains how your behavior in dating relationships (even the one you had with your spouse) will impact your marriage (because it will).

Take some time to listen to this, even if you have to do it in pieces.

"'Twas the night before, 'twas the night before..."

Dear Grampa,

Thank you SO much for the fun book you gave me!


"Oh, look! It's my favorite book!"

Every time I open the book and hear your voice reading me the story, I can't help but get a HUGE smile on my face. Mom wasn't fast enough with the camera to catch it this time. Lame! What else could she possibly be doing that would be more important than taking pictures of me?



I love flipping the pages back and forth, back and forth. First of all, it's really great practice for my page-turning skills, but I also think it's fun to hear you say, "'Twas the night before, 'twas the night before, 'twas the night before, 'twas the night before, when up on the roof, when up on the roof, 'twas the night before, 'when up on the roof." It makes me feel like a deejay spinnin' my own Christmas jingle.



When I'm all finished, I go back and read it again.



Love,

Ben

Living with Less.

All my life, all I’ve wanted was to be a Mom. Still, when I was holding that baby in my arms and it was time to turn in my letter of resignation and venture into the land of single-income living, I felt more than a little anxiety. “Can we even do this? How will we make this work?”

We are now six months into this new lifestyle and I’ve had more than a few girlfriends say, “I would love to stay home, but we just can’t swing it…” First let me say, I understand that some families really can’t swing it. Sometimes Mom is the primary breadwinner, and sometimes debt and extenuating financial circumstances really do make living on a single income momentarily impossible. I would venture to say, however, that so many families don’t realize they really can swing it. Our budget doesn’t just work itself out. This is how we’ve done it so far…

1. Make little cuts

Long before Ben was born, while I was still taking those cute weekly maternity photos, we sat down and looked at our double-income budget and cut the fat. We canceled our exterminator. I wasn’t thrilled about it, but we really can kill bugs ourselves. We canceled our gym memberships. If I’m being honest, that wasn’t a tough one for me. We now jog in our neighborhood and Tim lifts weights in our garage. Tim is a financial analyst through and through, and I have to give him the credit for combing through our budget and paring it down wherever possible. He even discovered that the city of Fort Worth distributes different sized trash cans and they charge $8 less each month to pick up the smaller variety. It’s not a huge savings, but it’s $96 a year, and every little bit helps at this point.

2. Make hard cuts

These cuts were certainly more difficult and required more adjustment. We canceled our cable and lost the DVR. The day I mailed that back to AT&T was a dark day for me, but I have to say I really don’t miss it too much anymore. The last thing I need is to spend more time in front of the television, so this one was probably a blessing in disguise, and it saves us a whopping $100 a month.

We will be the last people on this earth with smart phones. No data packages here, just straight talk and text.

Our cars are old and have lots of miles on them. Neither are particularly “family friendly.” Getting the car seat in and out of my civic is no picnic. Tim has a single-cab pick-up, which was both practical and romantic a few years ago, but now it’s certainly “cozy” when the three of us ride somewhere together. We can’t throw the stroller in the back if it’s raining. It isn’t ideal, but these cars are paid off (Hallelujer!) and there’s really nothing more “family friendly” than that.

We rarely eat out anymore, we don’t take vacations, we don’t buy many new clothes, and we don’t have new toys or gadgets. I don’t share any of this to pat myself on the back or brag about how disciplined or sacrificial we can be, I simply share because these are real, practical things we’ve had to do to make this situation work. They aren’t always fun. Terms like “frugal” and “sacrifice” and “delayed gratification” are counter-cultural, but we are rich in what really matters. We live with less so I can give Ben more. This is my mantra. These sacrifices allow me to give him more of my time, attention, and energy. It is worth every single thing we’ve had to say “no” to.

3. Find like-minded friends

There are days when the sacrifices are tougher than others. So many of our friends live on double incomes and are able to buy more and do more than we are. Some days I wonder if the path we’ve chosen is worth what we’re giving up. It is helpful to have the encouragement of friends who are living on similar budgets and understand the decisions we’ve made. When my eyes start to wander, they help me focus.

4. Trust God

Yes, Tim provides for us, but ultimately God provides for our family. If I truly believe God has called me to stay home with Ben, I must believe He will provide the means for me to do so. Whether it’s a “loaves and fishes” scenario where He multiplies what we have and allows us to stretch it, or He blesses us through the generosity of other people, He will provide for us in the journey He’s called us to.

I’ve already seen several examples of this. Like clockwork, before my last paycheck arrived in the mail, the air conditioning went out in our truck (In July. In Texas.) The battery died. The car started making funny noises. Our dishwasher broke. For each unexpected expense, we have either had unexpected money come in (a refund check from the anesthesiologist who did my epidural?) or really generous people in our lives who have helped meet a need.

We are relying more on God and less on our own understanding, and it is exciting!

5. Maintain Perspective

At the end of the day, stuff is just stuff. All the stuff I’m not buying today would be worn out and forgotten about by this time next year. It is actually quite a joke to pretend that we are sacrificing anything when I remember the fact that 80% of humanity lives on less than $10 a day. When I begin to feel the pull of consumerism, I ask God to help me be thankful and content with what we have. We have everything we need. AND I get to spend every day with my sweet little boy. This has been a prayer of ours since before we were pregnant. We are so richly blessed that I couldn’t possibly ask for anything more.

If you are reading this and you are a Mom who would love to stay home but don’t feel that it’s possible, please let me encourage you to sit down with your husband and take another look. You may find it really can’t happen right now, but with some big adjustments and reliance on God, you just might be surprised!

Truth.

"If you believe in a God who controls the big things, you have to believe in a God who

controls the little things. It is we, of course, to whom things look 'little' or 'big.'"

- Elizabeth Elliot, Let Me Be a Woman

Show and Tell.

I love visiting all my friends' blogs and getting a peek inside their homes around Christmas time. We've trimmed our tree and decked our halls, and here are a few shots...

This is our tree:



It's decorated in red and silver and gold. Glass ornaments up top and shatterproof ornaments towards the bottom with ribbons and beads and berries and pine cones stuck in all the bare spots.

There are lots of personal ornaments, too. Of course, there are the ornaments Tim and I make for each other each year as part of our Christmas tradition. My mom cross-stitched some cute ornaments for us the very first year we were married, since we didn't have much of a collection at that point.

I'll always treasure those.

Tim's Mom also gave us a box of some old ornaments from when he was a little boy. They are so fun to unpack each year. Wasn't my hubby a cutie?



And boy, doesn't our boy look like him?



But, back to the tree... There is a bow up top.



The top of the tree is crooked this year. I can't figure out how to fix it without knocking several dozen ornaments loose, so it will be crooked until I take it down in January or until my Dad or my brother, both of whom are over 6'3", have mercy on me and try to straighten it.

This is our mantle. I brought all the red and gold from the tree over to the mantle, but my very favorite thing about our mantle this year is the new stocking hanging on it.



My mom has done a needlepoint stocking for every member of our family. Mine was made back in 1984, Tim's was done in 2004 before our first married Christmas, and she's been working on Ben's since before he was born this April. She's really outdone herself, don't you think?

These are the cute little trees where I display all the sweet Christmas cards we receive from friends.



I just clip the cards on with miniature clothes pins and I love displaying them out this way because we can easily view all of them. Shout-out to Allison and Michelle and their adorable little ones!



Last year, I did greens and lights above the cupboards in our kitchen, but I wanted to do something a little different this year since hanging those greens on the front edge of the cupboards without leaving any permanent marks is quite a... challenge.

Instead, I just wrapped some greens around the top of the light over our island and the chandelier over our kitchen table. I wired some ornaments in there, stuck a few berries in the holes, and tied a bow up top.





I decorated early this year since we were visiting family the weekend after Thanksgiving, which is when we would normally decorate. I took my time and did everything over the course of a week and didn't bother putting any of the big red tubs back up in the attic, since I'll be packing all of this up again in just a few weeks.

Merry Christmas from our home to yours!

Truth.

"The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman. For I have accepted God's idea of me, and my whole life is an offering back to Him of all that I am and all that He wants me to be."

- Elizabeth Elliot, Let Me Be a Woman

"You Better Watch Out, You Better Not Cry..."

Ben must have gotten the memo, because when we went to meet Santa tonight, he didn't even fuss.

We started out with Mrs. Claus, just to get warmed up...


SANTA!!!!



No screaming or wailing, but no smiles, either. Basically, just lots of intense study.



"Can I be done now?"


After Santa assured Ben that his name was definitely on the "Nice" list, we went and looked at Santa's train, which Ben seemed to enjoy even more than the big guy himself.

Christmas Love.

Photos taken by the incredible Anthony Palagi. anthonypalagi@gmail.com

Thank YOU.

This year has brought several really wonderful changes for our little family. One of the perks of being home is that I have more time to write, which I'm not sure I'm great at, but I enjoy nonetheless.

I want to take this opportunity to thank you for visiting this blog. Much to my amazement, this page averages about 1,300 hits a month. That doesn't exactly make me Ree Drummond, but I think it's still pretty neat. The fact that so many of you drop in and find this little record of our life worth reading encourages me to continue to sit down and put our story in writing.

Many blessings to all of you in 2012!

Thanksgiving Traditions.

Our Thanksgiving tree grew each day in November until, on Thanksgiving morning, it was all full.



I had Thanksgiving morning all planned out. After Ben woke up, I would bring him into our bed and the three of us would snuggle and giggle and stretch and wake up slowly with no place to be. We do this on weekends, and it is one of the sweetest times we all spend together, so I was looking forward to getting a "bonus" snuggle in on Thanksgiving.

After we were all awake, I would make a cinnamon roll recipe I found on Pinterest, which promised to be quick, easy, and delicious. Then, we would all gather around the Thanksgiving Tree and while we enjoyed our decadent, sugary breakfast treat, we'd read the things we'd written on the tree and reflect on all of our blessings.

Once we'd licked our fingers clean and our last blessing had been counted, we'd migrate to the couch and watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, which is really nothing like I remember when I was growing up, but I still can't bring myself to stop watching it because, after all, it's a tradition. Broadway numbers and shameless NBC sitcom plugs be darned, Ben will grow to love the parade the way I did!

That's what I'd planned. Starting Thanksgiving 2011 and repeating every Thanksgiving to come. A tradition.

Ben woke up fussy on Thanksgiving. I fed him and brought him into our room and instead of cooing and smiling or playing games on the pillows, he just fussed. Disappointed but not deterred, I went to the kitchen to bake these.



They were easy and quick and really, how could dough, butter, sugar, and syrup in any combination not turn out great?

I pulled the rolls from the oven and dumped them out to cool and went to start cutting our tags off the thanksgiving tree.



I'd tied them on really well. Perhaps a little too well? I didn't want to tear them, so before long I was just frustrated, untying, then clipping, untying, then clipping... the rolls were getting cold.

After clipping all 492 tags off of our little tree, I carried them and our plates to the living room floor. We sat and ate and read through what we'd written. Ben vacillated between trying to eat the tags and playing in the firewood basket next to the fireplace.



Perhaps expecting a 7-month-old to participate in a family tradition is asking a bit much.

We hurried and finished and turned on the parade. It really does get worse every year. It wasn't long before Tim was watching football and I was scrubbing sugar and syrup out of my bundt pan.

So, the morning wasn't quite as romantic and seamless as it had played out in my mind, but our Thanksgiving Tree tradition is off to a good start. It really was fun to take some time, just the three of us, and reflect on all the great things God has given us this year.



What more could we ask for?