December

Tomorrow is December, it still feels like August to me.
Not weather wise, but time wise.

Tomorrow we will start our second year of using our two advents to count down to the big night. I was super excited for this year, due to a change in Papa Bears job in September, he was going to be able to be with us every night! Last year he missed a few night because of school related things. I was looking forward to this holiday season, I had plans galore! Concerts, activities, Little Bear is in a play, the town has lots of stuff going on, and I was going to do it all.

Not anymore.
We got word that Papa Bear has a job he needs to do, out of town. Way....way....out of town.
12 hours away. For 24days. He left this morning and is expected home on December 23.

so. sad.
It's just not the same without him.

Quite a Turn

In a hilarious, and almost poetic turn of events, I was asked this morning if I would be in charge of the meal for the Relief Societies Christmas Craft day. HA! I thought for sure after my post (see here) about that very event I would be barred from coming. Well, I didn't really, but I wasn't planning to go to the event. I did some google searching, and I have some ideas for the meal, I wonder how the Ladies would feel about sushi for dinner? I am happy to help out, and making some fun Christmas themed food, for me, is more fun that crafts I don't need. So I guess from now on you can just call me:

Christmas Already!?

On Sunday, when I arrived at Church, I saw in the hallway 3 table full of things that a person could make during the "Super Saturday" that is coming up in November. This is an annual event, where ladies can go and make all kinds of crafts or food items to either keep or give as gifts during the upcoming Christmas season. I know right!? Did you just think, as I did, it is SEPTEMBER! Why are we already gearing up to get Christmas ready!? I was really taken back by the fact that these tables were there, and had people crowded around them.

This display at Church caught me off guard a little, because I had already had Christmas on the brain for the whole week prior, but not in the - what am I going to buy!/make! for people - run around crazy - kind of way. I have been pondering lately the well known statement "Christmas is always so busy." or, something similar. It puzzles me, a lot. Last year (2010) I made a comment that went something like this - "I don't understand why a lot of people say that they are so busy during December." After making this comment in a group of people, I heard this - "You aren't busy because you only have one child." I really don't think that is true, or at least not the whole reason. I honestly feel that my lack of busyness, during the Christmas season, is due to the choices I have made, and will make.

I long ago got over the idea that I had to go to everything that is going on in town. I don't and I survive. My child doesn't and she survives. I heard a lesson given in Relief Society years ago that talked about priorities. You know the lesson that comes around every so often to remind us we don't have to do everything, because there is no way we can, and how to deal with the stress that life brings. Well, if you ask me, if Christmas is stressing you out! The meaning of the season is missing. Anyway, I took that lesson to heart that day, and my priorities changed. In my world my family comes first. Always. Period. The End. If something will interfere in anyway with my family than it is not something we do.

Speaking specifically about Christmas. About 6 years ago I hated it. Yup, totally disliked it. Felt like it was hardly worth the effort to put up a tree, and the only reason I did was because I had a little kid who wanted one. I never felt like Christmas was the meaningful event that I heard others talk about. But, as I said above, that lesson changed my priorities. I changed my attitude. I changed my outlook. I changed what Christmas was in my home. Last Christmas was perfect. The tree went up early and we decorated it together as a family. I have learned not to re-do anything that Little Bear does to the tree, yes it bugs me and my OCD ways, but it is her tree too, and she loves it. Our tree stayed up longer that it ever did before, in the past is would come down on boxing day, but it stayed up until New Year's. We didn't go to any events that didn't interest us, which gave us lots of time at home, together. We didn't do any Christmas baking, because we didn't want to, and you know what? Our friends & family still love us.

Perhaps my favorite thing about last Christmas was something new that we tried, and advent or countdown to Christmas. Each night we gathered around our lit tree, and we would pull from a bag a picture of Jesus Christ and read the scripture printed on the back. Then Little Bear would find a place on our tree to hang the picture. The spirit of Christmas, or Jesus Christ, was in our home during the season, and I know that made all the difference in the world. I know that it impacted Little Bear, she asked me last week when we could start our picture count down again.

Do I have a point? Maybe I do, and it's really just for me. Choose wisely what you allow to fill you life. Don't forget to leave room for what is really important. Perhaps like me, you too will find the busyness just fades away.

Day 21

We are nearing the end of our Names of Christ Tree advent. It has been such a wonderful addition to our Christmas. Today we read in Psalms, about - The Holy One. Which is what Christmas is all about.

Today we are grateful for our new home, we are excited to have a little piece of land to call our own. We are grateful for past experiences that make it possible for us to renovate this house without hiring anyone.

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Day 20

MAN! OH! MAN!
We are getting pretty excited here at the Bear house! It is only 4 more days until Christmas!
This morning at breakfast, as we sat around the table and read our Name of Christ Tree advent scripture for the day, I was tempted to sing it. Earlier this year I was able to perform exerpts from Handel's Messiah, with a Stake choir. Today's Name of Christ is - Prince of Peace. We read from the book of Isaiah, the scripture that is the words to the song "For Unto Us A Child is Born". I was going to sing, but Little Bear beat me to it. It was fun to hear how much of the song she remembered.

Here is a video of today's Scripture.

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Day 17 & 18

Things are roaring along here at the Bear House. We are excited that Christmas is only a week away! We have kept up with our Advent reading, though I did not post yesterday. I cannot seem ti find the cards we used for the past 2 days, to write down what the Names of Christ were, I will be more careful with the next one.

In other news, we have some news! We will be setting up house at our very own house, very soon!

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Day 16

This morning I got a wonderful treat! I was able to sleep in! It was wonderful! Papa Bear & Little Bear made breakfast, and spent some time together this morning. Papa Bear is now done his exams, and will be home with us for the next 3 weeks, before doing his last semester! (a whole other post of glee!) So, I was not part of this mornings discussion about today's Name of Christ - Redeemer. The scripture was in Isaiah, and it was put on the back of this picture card:

This painting is titled "Forgiven" and depicts the story in the Bible where the woman was taken in sin, and Jesus Christ said "He that is without sin cast the first stone". An incredible reminder of the forgiveness that will be given if we but ask.

This afternoon after school, it was time for our annual gingerbread making! It was, as it always is, a RIOT! Icing and candy everywhere! We got our kit from a different place this year, and weren't overly happy with it. BUT! We did come up with some sweet ideas for next year!

Today we are grateful for each other, for being able to laugh and joke and just have fun with each other. Family is wonderful.

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are! Don't forget to comment below if you would like your very own Names of Christ Tree card packet!

Day 15

Today our scripture was short and to the point. We were again in the book of John, reading about today's Name of Christ, which it - The Good Vine. We decided to check the footnote and found ourselves in 1st Nephi, which gave us more information.

Tonight was Little Bears school Christmas concert. She sang several numbers, and participated in a dance. It was super cute and tons of fun.

Day 14

We are now 2 weeks into our Names of Christ Tree Advent project. I am pleased to say we've not missed one single day! It has been a wonderful project for our family, well mostly for Little Bear and I. Since Pap Bear is still in school until Friday he is seldom home for our morning discussions. All that will change though this weekend when the Christmas break from school starts. I am looking forward to have both my Bears homes for 2 weeks!

This morning found us, yet again, in the book of John. Where we read about - The Good Shepard - which is today's Name of Christ. This Advent has produced another great "side effect", it has helped Little Bear become more familiar with the scriptures, she was able to find today's scripture with very little help.

Today we are grateful for only 3 more days of school, and for the upcoming break which will give us two whole weeks with nothing to do but be together!
We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are! Remember, if you would like a set of our Advent cards, leave comment below!

Day 13

Today's Advent reading took us back to the book of John, we have read several accounts of the Miracles Jesus performed during his earth ministry. Today we read about 2 blond men who called to Jesus and were told by the crowd to not speak to Jesus. The blind men however did not listen and called out again, and Jesus healed them both. To go along with that todays' Name of Christ is - The Word. Our tree now has many pictures of Christ hanging on it, and it is sure beautiful. Each evening as we gather around our tree with only its' lights shining I can see many faces of Christ hanging there. It has brought the spirit of Christmas in our home this year.

Today we are grateful for strong healthy bodies. Now that Little Bear is feeling better, things are back to normal. I am grateful my cold only lasted 4 days and not the 12 that Little Bear had to endure. We are grateful to be healthy, to be strong, and to not have any ailments that hamper our day to day life.

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Don't forget you can leave a comment below and we will send you a packet of your very own Advent cards!

Day 11

To day we got off to an early start, we had a table in our local craft fair. We spent the majority of the day there, Little Bears Community Choir performed some of their pieces, and we bought lunch from the Library table. So, when we got home we did both our our Advent scriptures, while eating our pancake dinner. Today's Name of Christ is - Lord. It was nice to sit and talk about Jesus Christ, then we moved to the piano and sang a Christmas Hymn. I love these evenings as much as the mornings, it has really brought more to my Christmas.

Updated picture of our tree, (and one of our Library book piles.)

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Day 10

This morning we remembered to choose a picture before Little Bear had to leave for school. The past couple of mornings we haven't had time to get everything done before the bus gets here. So this morning it was nice to sit for a few minutes with our scriptures, in the Book of Revelations. Today's Name of Christ is - Bright and Morning Star. Some of the Names of Christ take a little more explaining, and talking about symbolism. Some of them seem to be a little over Little Bears level of understanding at this point, but I am sure next year she will catch on to more of them.

We have neglected to add what we are grateful for to our last couple of posts. Today, we are grateful for our warm house again, we have enjoyed nearly 2 weeks of warm temperatures and sunny days, this morning we woke up to cold temperatures, heavy frost, fog and snow. So we are very grateful for a warm home. We are grateful that there is only 1 more week of school for both Papa Bear & Little Bear and then it will be a nice long Christmas Break. We are so grateful for each other, and for all the fun we are going to have during Christmas.

We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Day 9

Today found us in the book of Daniel, reading about "Messiah". I didn't really didn't feel like the scripture was quite right, so I found a different one. So, we then moved to 1 Nephi to read a second scripture. Todays little discussion was nice, Messiah is a word that Little Bear has heard before, so I didn't have to define the word for her. I tree is getting fuller of little pictures, I will post a new picture of it soon.

Last night we had Papa Bear home, and we carried on with our evening Advent project. We sit around our tree, and read some of the Christmas story from the Bible, then we gather around the piano and sing a Christmas Hymn. I get to be the pianist, and so I stumble through playing the Hymn. Papa Bear & Little Bear are such good sports with my solidly mediocre playing, and all the stopping & starting.


We hope you are enjoying your Christmas as much as we are!

Day 8

This morning we read our scripture from my bed. I have gotten the dreaded illness that Little Bear had last week. I was having a rough morning, so we sat on my bed and read from the Book of John. Today's Name of Christ is "The Light". We had a nice talk about how Jesus was like a light, and how we can be guided by following him. I am enjoying more and more these little morning discussions we are having. It is like a mini Family Home Evening every day. I hope that you and your families are enjoying this Christmas Season as much as we are.

Today we are grateful for modern medicine. We are grateful for this because it helps ease our aches and pains, it sure make being sick a little less miserable.

Don't forget to leave us a comment and tell us if you would like a Names of Christ Tree advent packet. Don't forget to include your email address.

Day 7

In November I was able to participate in a stake choir that sang excerpts from Handel's Messiah. Today's scripture took us to Isaiah, where we read about today's Name of Christ. Wonderful. Councillor. Mighty God. Reading that scripture brought back all the feelings I had while singing. Little Bear was at the concert and she couldn't stop talking about it. It was the perfect way to kick of our Christmas season.

Today we are grateful for many things; food, clothes, our home that is heated, running water, and each other.

Don't forget if you would like a Names of Christ Tree advent package, leave a comment with you email address below!  

Day 6

Today our Advent project too use to John, where we learned the meaning of the name "Rabboni". It means - Master.

Not much new to report here, Little Bear is feeling better and was able to go to school today. Things are slowly returning to normal, Papa Bear went back to school and I was able to go for a nice long run as well. 

Today we are grateful for; bright, sunny winter days when it's warm enough to get out and enjoy this beautiful part of the world. If you would like a copy of our "Names of Christ Tree" advent, don't forget to leave a comment below!

Day 5

I am home from Church today with a sick Little Bear :( BOOO! We have bee fighting this illness with her for a week now. She has missed a week of school, and managed to participate in her choir rehearsal, but that has set her back quite badly. Poor kid is sniffing, coughing and just lays there moaning. You know it's got to be bad when she isn't talking, those who know our Little Bear well will understand what I mean.

We still carried on with our Names of Christ Tree project, though this mornings discussion was not as lively has they have been, with a droopy Little Bear doing her best not to eat her breakfast. Nonetheless she was emphatic that we not forget the bag (pictured above) before she went back to bed. We still learned a great deal today, the scripture we read was a little puzzling, and just the phrasing of it made it difficult to understand. That's another little benefit of this project, really focusing on one portion of scripture, and deepening our understanding of it. This morning Little Bears selection took us to the Book of Acts, when takes place after Christ has been crucified. Todays Name of Christ is - "God's Holy Child Jesus".

Today we are grateful for a warm house, electricity, and running water. All luxuries. All things that help with treating a sick Little Bear, and sure make life a LOT more pleasant.

Here is a photo of part of our tree, 4 of our pictures are visable. I will take another next week too.

Day 3

This morning we found our way to Malachi 3:1 to read about the "Messenger of The Covenant". In this mornings discussion I was once again blown away by the depths Little Bears mind goes. I am so grateful to have the Gospel in my life, and to have such amazing people who help me teach her.

I am absolutely loving this count down to Christmas, we have never down anything like this before, and I am now wondering why? It really take now time at all, less that 5 minutes. The most time I spent was on putting the pictures and scriptures together. If you would like a copy of the scriptures and Names of Christ we are using leave a comment and I will make you a set of pictures to hang on your tree, and send them to you. My gift to you this Christmas season.

Day 2

We had another wonderful discussion this morning, it was extra special because Papa Bear was able to be with us. Normally when he is home he has to leave by 6:30am to make it to school on time. He was home with us last night to attend our Ward's live Nativity & Creche display. We had a wonderful time admiring all of the different Nativity scenes that were displayed, I wish I would have taken my camera and taken a few pictures, there were some really amazing ones there. Anyway, back to our advent. Little Bear pulled out 2 pictures today, one of which didn't have a scripture on it (I had extras). The other had todays Name of Christ which is - Mediator. The scripture for this morning is found in 1Timothy 2:5. We now have 3 lovely pictures on our tree, when we get a few more I will post a picture.

I had a bit of a tough time trying to explain what a "mediator" was in terms an 8 year old could understand, but I think we eventually got there. I looked up some synonyms for the word and I found a few that really helped make it clearer. Interceder. Peacemaker. Referee. One that didn't quite fit in my opinion was, rent-a-judge, made me laugh!

Today we are grateful for warm Chinook winds that have helped clear the roads so that Papa Bear could be at home with us. We are grateful for Jesus Christ, and for the wonderful program our Ward put on last night.

We hope your feeling the spirit of Christmas.

Day 1

We started off our Advent this morning at breakfast. Little Bear was very interested in what we were doing. This mornings Names of Christ was "Bread of Life" And we read a scripture in Luke 6:36, which is the same chapter that Jesus feed the 5000. Little Bear was very interestded in discussing what the sybolism of bread was, and after our discussion she took a long time finding the perfect spot to hang our first picture. It was a really nice start to our day. We will be reading our other Advent scripture tonight by our Christmas tree right before bedtime.

In addition to our Christ centered Advent, we are also going to be focusing on being grateful. We were taught a great lesson on gratitude this past Sunday, and it really struck home with me. SO! We will now be including 1 or more things we are grateful for at the end of our posts.

Today we are grateful for, Kleenex, Cough drops, warm sweaters and the chinook that blew in and made is warm outside.