Homemade Christmas

With the big move and only one income this Christmas season, I am going to attempt the crafty! My goal this year is to give personal, creative, homemade gifts that will be friendly to our tight budget. I've already got a lot of ideas rolling around in my head and I can't wait to get started! If you have any ideas or neat websites with ideas, please send them my way! I hope to be able to post some things I've come up with - but we'll see how they turn out! :)

Also, if you need any help organizing your Christmas this year. Go here to find lots of printables and tips to keep you sane during the crazy season!

Packing

Last night Shawn and I got to work and began serious packing. I've been working on it throughout the week, but in starts and spurts and at a much slower pace.

We started in Lauren's room. That room has been a lot of things, but it never felt right until it was hers. As we packed up her books and blankets and decorations it hit me that we really were going to leave this place, her first home.

I am thankful that this home holds many memories for me. I am thankful that I can relive those memories, the good and the bad. And, even though it hurts, I am thankful that we have the chance to take a big step and make new memories somewhere else.

see ya fairy tale

It seems like the past couple of nights I have gone to bed with the nagging feeling that I have accomplished nothing throughout the day. I look at my "to-do" list and realize that although I feel like I climbed a mountain, I have little to show for it.

I wonder what happened to my fairy tale vision of being a wife and mother. You know, the one with the cheerful woman who wakes long before her husband and makes him breakfast while putting laundry in and tidying up her immaculate house. The one with stylish, pressed clothes, flowing (clean) hair, and fresh makeup. The one who has a place for everything and has everything in its place. The one who has a routine and plan for her day that never gets interrupted. The one with the little baby who is always pleasant and never smells. Maybe she really is out there and I am just worlds away from her - or - maybe, just maybe, she isn't real at all.

Maybe reality is the mom who wakes up after her husband leaves for work because she was up with a crying little one in the dead of the night. Maybe it is dishes in the sink left from the supper that actually got made last night. Maybe it is a little girl who has learned to squeal in the highest frequency known to man and laughs and cries with passion. Maybe it is a house with a little dust on the furniture and laundry on the floor. Maybe it is knowing that no matter what, her husband will come home to her at the end of a long day and love her even though she is still in her pj's with a dirty ponytail and no makeup.

Each day I am challenged to re-evaluate my thoughts on motherhood and the great responsibility I have by staying home. No, I don't get to interact with adults on a daily basis. No, I don't have a job that pays me money. But, I have to believe that there is worth in what I'm doing. I have to believe that the love and time I am able to give to my family matters despite everything else.

We're Moving!!!

The last week has been a crazy time for us. We put an offer on a house last Sunday night, not really expecting them to take it. Well they did and we suddenly found ourselves with two homes! Ahhh, not a really smart thing in this economy. Monday we put our house on the market. I was totally freaking out. The week was stressful because at any moment I would have to pack up Lauren and leave so someone could stop by with their realtor and look at the house. I had to keep it clean at all times and with a baby that isn't too easy. We had our open house on Sunday and an hour after the open house we got an offer! After some re-negotiating, we signed the contract! I cannot explain fully how relieved I am. We close on this house and our new one the day after Thanksgiving. We're hoping to get carpet installed in the new house and the people who bought our house have graciously agreed to not move in until the 5th so we have that week to get that all set up. We will be in a new house for the holidays...strange! I'll keep you updated and post pics of the new house soon.

Whoa

I feel like the past week has been an absolute whirlwind of events. Shawn took his test. We are awaiting the results. We bought a house. We haven't sold ours yet. Stress. Stress. Stress.

Prayers are welcome!