My Favorite Things of Christmas, Part 2

Another of my favorite things about Christmas is reflected in this statement given by President Hinckley at the LDS Christmas Devotional in 2000, 

“There would be no Christmas if there had not been Easter."

This one simple line emphasizes with perfection the true reason for our celebrations this month.

He also said, "The babe Jesus of Bethlehem would be but another baby without the redeeming Christ of Gethsemane and Calvary, and the triumphant fact of the Resurrection.”

“Marvelous is the chronicle that began with the singing of angels at Bethlehem and ended on Golgotha’s cruel cross.” 

In President Monson’s talk at this year’s Christmas devotional, he spoke of the “annual commercialization of Christmas” pointing out that Christmas was “becoming less and less about Christ.” It is true, the adversary is working hard to have religion removed from Christmas. 

I love how simply President Monson said

“And yet, Christmas is what we make of it.” 

Elder Uchtdorf reminded us that

“A meaningful Christmas celebration is something 

only we can get for ourselves.”

I have thought about President Monson’s suggestion that we “establish Christmas traditions for ourselves and for our families which will help us capture and keep the spirit of Christmas." Wondering what more my family can do, I feel impressed that 

instead of more, we can do less 

and perhaps we will find at least “an hour, spent in silent meditation and quiet reflection on the wonder and the majesty of this, the Son of God” as President Hinckley suggested so many years ago.

My Favorite Things of Christmas

My favorite things of Christmas always begin with remembering Mary, the mother of Jesus…

…and pondering her feelings as she witnessed the humble surroundings of her Savior’s birth. As a young girl, she learned from the writings of Isaiah and had faith in the promise of a Savior. She looked to his coming with anticipation. But to learn she was the woman who would bear God’s son, to know the responsibility that was on her shoulders, I cannot help but wonder if she at all felt unsure about bringing the Savior into the world in a stable, with a manger for his bed. I wonder if she felt that perhaps she might have failed in her calling or disappointed our Father in Heaven.

If the King of Kings is to be born in this stable, who will know of his birth?

I believe Joseph was a tender mercy to Mary at that time…I believe as the primary song says, he must have taken “great care,” and that he truly was “awed to be the guardian of Mary’s sacred child.” I am sure he “held the little Jesus close, that Holy night.” I have also begun to wonder if Joseph too, might have had the same fears I think Mary might have felt.

Is Jesus truly to be born in a stable? Is this what God meant to be?

That same night, God sent angels to meek and lowly shepherds. They were the ones humble enough to hear the divine message. They would believe it, obey it and share it. I love the Christmas carol “Angels We Have Heard on High” because it brings to life what the conversation might have been like between the shepherds and the many travelers whom they passed when following the star that night. Imagine the shepherds saying as they ran through the streets of Bethlehem: “Angels we have heard on high sweetly singing o'er the plains, and the mountains in reply echoing their joyous strains.” The people with whom they passed might have asked: “Shepherds, why this jubilee? Why your joyous strains prolong? What the gladsome tidings be which inspire your heavenly song?” And the shepherds not only testify, but also invite their new friends:

“Come to Bethlehem and see Christ whose birth the angels sing;

Come, adore on bended knee, Christ the Lord, the newborn King.”

And as many who followed the shepherds to the stable, and worshiped with them their King, were tender mercies to Mary and Joseph, letting them know that 

Yes, this was right.

This little piece of the nativity story teaches me a lesson of faith in God’s plan. It also gives me courage. I certainly have my moments of doubt, where I think, is this God’s plan for me? Am I doing the right things with my life? I also look at my children and wonder is this God’s plan for them, am I doing the right things for them?. I do not claim to be as “highly favored of the Lord” as Mary was, but this story teaches me, that like Mary, as a mother of his children, God is watching over my family and sending tender mercies to let us know, 

Yes, this is right. 

We may not pray as often as we should, or hold family home evening the way we should, but God knows me, and my family, and he knows we do our very best to teach our children to love and honor Him and the Savior. And because of our best efforts, he is guiding our path down his plan for us. 

Mary has long been a favorite person of the scriptures for me. When the angel came to Mary and told her she would bear the son of God, she responded “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.” I have strived to be as willing as Mary was, to serve in whatever capacities I have been asked. She was an example to me, first as a missionary, but in every aspect of my life since that time. Mary’s willingness to serve and the humility with which she accepted her calling, I have learned much and have been greatly inspired by her.

Monsters!

Thanks to this pin:

Source: expressivemonkey.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Carter and I played a fun game drawing monsters, which also was a fun way to help him recognize numbers. For some reason, he always has a hard time with the number 1 and the number 5.  But he's learning!

We played the game a few times.  This is his monster after the first round, when he tried the hardest:

This is my monster

 I really think he did a great job!

In the Garden

I had never heard of this song until my grandma's funeral this past summer (July 2012). It was a favorite of hers, which we later learned she had sung at many funerals in her time.  I had the opportunity to sing it with many of my cousins at my grandma's funeral.  I, of course, held my emotions well, until we were in the moment and singing the song.  And then, I really just stood there and cried while listening to my cousins sing (they sounded great!). I did pull it together just enough to finish the last verse with them.


And now I love this song because it reminds me of my sweet Grandma Betsy.  And I love it for the memories its given me of working with so many of my cousins to be ready to sing the song...we haven't all been together since Christmas when we were little kids.  We even sat in Grandpa's backyard to be together and have dinner the day after the funeral, another tradition that has not happened in years, but felt so good to be able to do.

Grandma Long, she really looked good. Love her so much!

Grandpa Long, he stood next to her throughout the viewing, as if protecting her, or showing her off, or just wanting to be near her.  He is a quiet man, but he has his convictions.  Someday I'll write about the lesson he taught me about faith during the week preparing for the funeral

All but one of the "girl cousins" practicing "In the Garden" the night before the funeral.
We missed Megan, but we knew she was where she needed to be, and where Grandma would have wanted her to be too.
But without Megan, this picture is only almost perfect.

I have great memories of my extended family.  I love every single one of them! I feel so privileged to be a part of the legacy created by my grandparents.  I have always wanted to live a life that would make Grandma proud, but I feel it even more so now. And I feel like she's watching me now so I'd better step it up! =o)

PS Some of the boy cousins sang too, I didn't forget about you guys, and I am absolutely including you when I say I have a great extended family.

Revelatory Experiences

The lesson in Relief Society today was so good I have to post about it so I can remember it always.

I loved the organization and format of her lesson (am I the only one who thinks about the format of lesson?). It is the perfect way to teach by the spirit for many topics because it is so flexible.  She based her lesson on two questions. She 1st took a few minutes to share her thoughts and feelings on the topic and by so doing, brought the spirit into the room.  She then turned it over to the sisters in the room, allowing them to bare testimony of the gospel in a less intimidating way. I'll bet many of them didn't even know they were bareing testimony, they simply thought they were answering her questions or sharing a story.  I love lessons like this...I love them!

Here are the questions, which I am still trying to answer...

• What spiritual truths have you learned or learned better in the past year? (see 2 Ne.26:13)
•  speaking of Jesus, Nephi teaches that: "he manifesteth himself unto all those who believe in him, by the power of the Holy Ghost; yea, unto every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, working mighty miracles, signs, and wonders, among the children of men according to their faith."
• Now that you have learned these truths, what are you doing to act on this knowledge?

And, in the fast and testimony meeting today, a woman mentioned she had begun calling church meetings a "revelatory experience," as instructed by a church leader.  She found as she did so, she was doing more to prepare to receive revelation, and she was receiving more revelation.  She felt she was led and inspired by the Lord more often.  Such a simple change of perspective opens up doors and windows of blessings and opportunity. Even that simple change shows faith.


I could really use guidance in my life right now.  So many changes, so many decisions, so many wishes to be balanced with reality...I could use a few more revelatory experiences just like our Relief Society lesson today. See how it's working already?

New Rule

Since I've gone back to work after the baby, laundry has been out of control. So, there's a new rule in the house.

Going forward:

My Triple Threat

You know Monday is going to be good when you wake up to this triple threat:

Best Day Ever

As an HVAC guy, Nate has literally been working around the clock since the first day our temperatures hit 90 degrees (about 2 months ago).  This past Saturday he finally made plans to do something relaxing, one of his favorite past times...

Fishing

Well...

1) His alarm, set for 4:20am, never went off. He didn't wake up until after I had fed Avenly, which was about 5:30am.

2) When he finally got to the lake, there were a million other people fishing there too.

3) He didn't catch any fish.

4) When he got back to his car at the end of his day, the car battery was dead.

5) He then had to hike back to the lake to find someone who could help him jump-start it.

6) After getting back to the car, he realized he didn't have the jumper cables in his car, so: 

7) He hiked back up to the lake to find someone with jumper cables to help him with the jump-start.

8) Did I mention there was no cell phone service where he was?

9) Not that it mattered, his cell phone battery was dead too (androids...sheesh!).

10) But, he did manage to "catch" the most horrible sunburn I have ever seen! And, unfortunately, I have experienced more than my share of horrible sunburns.  I wanted to cry when I saw how bad his legs were. But also, I have to admit, I was a little bit glad that someone else could be the sunburned one this time.

OUCH! Yes, he was wearing flip flops through all of this!

But wait, it gets better...

To end Nate's day, Carter snuggled up next to his dad to fall asleep.  We totally love any chance we get to snuggle with this cute boy so...  

It was a perfect ending to a hard day.

Until Carter had an accident in his sleep and went potty all over Nate and the couch.

<<< Gross >>>

Like I Said

The Best Day Ever!

Let's just not repeat it!

A Milestone

Avenly celebrates her 2 months of life with her 1st cold - poor little girl!

15% in weight at 9lb 4oz
40% in length at 22.25"
10% head at 14.5"

I'd make my bed but...

This little girl is in the way! And she is pretty cute about it too.

Blue

I'm Ready for My Game

Carter has been excited about playing soccer, baseball, and basketball a lot lately. Today he was trying to play baseball in the house...in our front room...next to our TV. With his accuracy, I was just a little bit nervous.

I finally convinced him to stop with the promise we would go outside to play some baseball during Avenly's next nap. So while I was feeding Avenly, Carter was getting ready for his game.

And this is how Carter plays baseball in 102 degree heat with 11% humidity. Winter gloves and a "pack pack" with granola bars in it.

"I'm ready for my game!"

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July!

Picture of the Day

Little Avy, she's ready to go!

Freedom!

Power to the people! My little girl loves to break free from "the swaddle."

Me too Little Man

Today Carter said to me "Mom, I love my baby sister."

Me too, Little Man. And I love you too.

A Picture is Worth a 1000 Words

This picture does a good job of explaining how life has been for our family over the last 18 months... Looking forward to July when I 'think' things will calm down.

A Freezer Meals Expert

Apparently, having a pinterest board labeled "Freezer Meals" makes me an 'expert' on the topic... =o)  

Our ward is having a Relief Society meeting tomorrow night where we will be preparing freezer meals that can be taken to families in the neighborhood who may be in need.  In addition, we are having a presentation about preparing freezer meals, and yes, somehow, I have been selected to be a part of that presentation.

Working with another 'expert' from the ward (because she also has a pinterest board for freezer meals), we have compiled some information we think is helpful to anyone interested in using freezer meals as a part of their regular routine. I've posted some of the information we will be sharing below with links, but I know there is a lot more information out there!

Our collection of

"Tried and True Freezer Meal Recipes" 

Help this collection grow!

What are your favorites?  Email me at daisila (at) yahoo (dot) com.  I'll be taking new recipes through out the month and post a revised collection the first part of May. (If your favorite recipes come from a published book, please give us the book title and author, the title of the recipe and the page number. Thanks!)

Our Pinterest Boards

Leading you to a TON of other freezer meal ideas, and making you an expert as well. =o)

(You do not have to have an account to view our boards)

Andrea's Freezer Meal Pinterest board.

Gina's Freezer meal Pinterest board.

A book we highly recommend:

"Dinner is Ready"

by Deanna Buxton

Every person we talked to in preparation for our presentation referred to this book and the recipes inside it.  Check it out -literally...it's available at the public library!

A blog post found on "My Thirty Spot" by Erin Kennedy, all about
How to Freeze Food --Timeline, Tips and Don'ts


A very inclusive
Food Storage Chart:


From Ohio State University:
Freezer Storage Fact Sheet

And one last website we have to recommend:

The National Center for Home Food Preservation

with all kinds of information on freezing food 

(and canning, drying, pickling, fermenting....etc)

P.S. I've used a lot of sarcasm about being an expert...1) I don't really think I'm an expert, and 2) I truly was honored to be asked to participate in the Relief Society meeting this way. It's a privilege to associate with the wonderful women in my ward and I am so glad I can contribute to the meetings they've organized for us.