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avatar by on December 31, 2012   •   Personal Growth You

20 questions for reflecting on your 2012

Happy New Year’s Eve! Today I’m over on (in)courage, sharing my annual list of questions I use to reflect on the previous year. Head over there to read the post and to share your thoughts.

Then, head back here and download the free PDF of questions. Use it to journal in solitude or to chat with a group of friends over the next few days. Either way, I hope it’s a blessing to you.

Included in the free PDF is a coupon code for $1 off my e-book, One Bite at a Time, in the download linked above. If you haven’t yet, mosey over to 52 Bites and download yourself a copy—it’s a great way to start off the new year. Or, you can buy it in a bundle of other fabulous e-books from fellow bloggers like Crystal Paine and Stephanie Langford—a stellar price at $7.40.

Soon I’ll share another round of annual questions that’ll help you plan your goals for 2013. What are your plans? Your hopes? What would you like to happen for you personally, for your children, for your family? Be intentional, and jot down some ideas so that you can create a workable plan.

Enjoy the day, and I’ll see you in 2013!

avatar by on December 28, 2012   •   148 Comments DIY Your Home

What to do with bad paintings

If you follow me on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, you might have seen this ridiculously ugly painting. I bought it at Goodwill a few weeks ago. Don’t judge.

I actually passed it by several times, not giving it a second thought. It was priced at $30, which was, to me, overpriced for a painting that looked like it belonged in a hotel lobby in 1987.

But then the voice on the PA system said that purple tags were half off that day. The painting had a purple tag. I kept shopping, browsing the kids’ clothes, the furniture, the plates, but the painting was stuck on my brain. I left without it. I mean… it was ridiculously ugly.

I returned home, unloaded the car, and told Kyle I needed to go back, get one more thing. I paid for the purple beast and finagled it around the carseats, barely closing the trunk.

See, I wanted it for only reason: it’s huge.

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avatar by on December 27, 2012   •   2 Comments DIY Your Home

Simple ideas for storing Christmas decor

We are just recovering from a haze of the Christmas stomach flu, but already I’m anxious to put away the holiday decor and get ready for a New Year’s bash next week. I love to find stylish storage solutions because they just make me happy and if I can achieve form *and* function, I’m having a good day. Check out these fun and simple ideas:

Storing Christmas lights

I don’t know about you, but we are constantly getting light strands tangled, broken or otherwise lost. And even when we manage to be organized, we pull out all the lights and can’t remember the brilliant display we thought up the year before. Did the white lights go on the garage or the big tree out front? I love these ideas from BHG for keeping the lights untangled, labeled and looking good.

Storing Christmas ornament

How many special ornaments of yours have been broken over the years because of a poorly chosen storage system? I change mine up every year because I feel like I’m still in search of the best system – but I’ve never tried putting felt underneath!

If you’re wanting to keep it really simple, Martha says that white tissue (or white dishtowels) will pad ornaments but also protect them from dyes and chemicals that might harm the ornament.


Storing the Christmas tree

If you haven’t invested in a bag for your artificial tree, now is the time. They are super affordable and you can finally get rid of that ripped, old original box the tree came in. They come in various colors and sizes – some even with wheels on the bottom.

Do you have any tips for storing Christmas decor? I’d love to hear them!

avatar by on December 26, 2012   •   13 Comments Kids: Developing Character Your Family

How to make next Christmas even better

Written by single parenting contributor Crystal Hadidian.

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas yesterday! For some families, there may be another Christmas celebration today or later in the week with more friends or relatives. I wish you continued blessings, whatever your holidays may look like.

This year, my son was with me on Christmas and will be spending time with his father later in the week. Last year was my first Christmas without my son. Not my first Christmas as a single parent, but my first Christmas where my son was with his father and not his mother.

I think I handled it pretty well, because I was careful to plan in advance some ways to make the actual day of Christmas extremely meaningful, and not depressing. For me, this included starting the morning off at a monastery for some reflection and solitude, and then ending the day with close friends who were both sensitive and cheerful.

I made some notes in my journal that year about what I would repeat and what I would do differently. I knew I would forget two years later, the next time I had a Christmas without my son.

This year, I realized it would be helpful to also do this for the years that he is with me on Christmas day. Just because I get to spend Christmas with him, doesn’t mean I am not still co-parenting with his father.

Whether you are a single parent or not, here’s a quick and easy activity you can do to make next year’s holiday season even better than this year:
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avatar by on December 24, 2012   •   75 Comments Personal Growth You

Embrace imperfection

Christmas is tomorrow. Did you get everything checked off your holiday to-do list? And in the midst of it all, are you actually enjoying the season?

No need to panic. I haven’t done it all, either. And I have fleeting thoughts that wish the holiday would hurry up already so we can go back to normal life.

But I’ve decided to just let it go and enjoy Christmas how it is now, for what it is. I didn’t decorate all like I wanted. We didn’t make fudge as I hoped. There were evenings when we were out late, so we doubled up on our Jesse Tree devotionals.

It’s okay. Christmas is not about perfection.

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