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our CHRISTmas mantel

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

hey, friendlies!  :)
i'm a little late to the partay, but i'm popping in to join in on the fun over at the lovely lettered cottage mantel linky!
plus, i wanted to show YOU my mantel, too.
it was really easy and fun to put together.
i'm a pretty simple decorator, and i love to use natural elements in my home, and that is what inspired me this year.  :)

i wanted the focus of our mantel to be on Jesus, Who is our only True Hope in this weary world.
the thrill of Hope, that we can be reconciled to God through the gift of His ONLY Son!

the only money i spent was on the beautiful print from lesley, the frame from target, and the mandarins.
i had the rest already tucked away here and there.
as you may be able to tell, the late 1800's mantel is still just propped up against the wall.
it may never get nailed down, and i'm okay with that.

anywho...we have been SO busy trying to finish up school before Christmas.
the girls have been crafting and creating maniacs and i can hardly keep up!
we have baked lots of goodies(and ate them).  #hello!muffintop
and after thanksgiving, let me tell you...it's REALLY hard to buckle down and focus on school.
like realllllllyyyyyyyyy hard!
as a home school mama, once you get into vacation mode, it's really hard to get back in the focus of school.
but we're doing it.
most of us anyway...my littlest is acting like he has serious ADD, but he is just super excited(kinda like me).  :)








i hope that you all are enjoying this blessed season, and remembering the True Reason that we celebrate.
from RECENT experience, i know just how hard it can be to keep the Right Focus.
the devil sure does try to steal my joy some days, but i am not going down with out a fight!

we, as a family,  have purposed in our hearts to have a different Christmas this year.
less about ourselves and more about Him.
and that means more about others.
God graciously led us to a family who could not afford Christmas this year so we were able to shop for them.
the kids had so much fun!  who am i kidding...nathan and i had a blast, too!
to God be the glory.  :)

we also bought the Jesus Storybook Bible and have been reading it every day for advent.
i'm pretty sure i have enjoyed it the most.
the simply written Bible stories that weave the perfect path to Him and mirror His perfect plan of redemption thrills me to my core!
the fact that my Savior was born in the lowliest of places and dwelt among sinners, born only to die for my wickedness and yours wrenches my heart in the best way.
i am so humbled and grateful for His free gift.
the debt that He paid so that I don't have to.
born to die, my Jesus was.

this is what Christmas is all about!
spreading the Good News that Jesus was sent for all sinners.
and just like any other gift, we have to take it for it to be ours.
my prayer is that i will be a light for Him this season...encouraging those among me to

"Let earth receive her King!"

have a wonderful day, friends!
i'll be back this week with a Christmas home tour....yay!

xo,
mary

The Lettered Cottage



and just like that...

Tuesday, November 27, 2012


...the shift has occurred again. 
goodbye, thanksgiving.
hello! Christmas!


haha.  nathan is in his socks.  :)

while i've hardly digested the thousands millions of calories i consumed over the weekend from our thanksgiving feastS,  the pilgrims have come down and have been replaced with the much anticipated nativity set.  
and while i tucked away the last of the pumpkins, bittersweet and bits of harvest, the peppermint wreath is already being made, bing is set on pandora, and we are decking the halls like the rest of the country. 
how crazy FUN is that?!


but let's back up the train a bit.
we had a lovely thanksgiving with both sides of our family this year.  
and while i'm on the subject, i would like to give a shout out to my moms for being such amazing cooks.  
with that said, i really, truly, SERIOUSLY need to step away from the comfort food buffet line.
what is wrong with me?  i've totally traded my mostly raw diet for anything cooked, baked or loaded with sugar.

SOMEONE HELP ME.

situations like the one below don't help, either.


instead of black friday shopping this year, my mom, sister and i, opted to do some holiday baking.
i can assure you that one of those pans of mixed nut bars(lower left) is already half gone.
we split the goodies that we made between the three of us, but still!
also, those walnut crescents in the upper left hand corner are my FAVE.  yikes. 
i'm totally in trouble with all of this taunting me in the basement freezer.
(that's where i do the laundry and the freezer is RIGHT next to the washer and dryer.  VERY convenient...and private...muahahaha!!!)
AND i'm not even going to explain henry and the bottle of sprinkles.  it pretty much sums up his existence.  :)


after school, we spent most of the day cleaning, packing away fall, and bringing up a few Christmas decorations.
that is, after i apologized to all of my children at least three times for losing my temper and yelling at them.
at the time, i did not know why it was so hard to round to the nearest hundred, sound out the long E sound, or put quotation marks around a quote.  
all day long i was edgy and i kept telling myself, "turn the volume down, mary!" (see?  quotation marks!).
because i wan't just yelling, i was YELLING!
thankfully, my children kindly forgave me and we proceeded with the Christmas cheer.  :)



this is the advent calendar i made last year.
i used an old cork board from the thrift store and covered it with fabric.
then i used some pretty ribbon to decorate it, and push pinned those little $1 boxes from michaels in.
the kids LOVE it.
i kinda do, too.


i tried my hand at chalkboard art today, and besides being time consuming, it was really easy!
check out how i did it, HERE.
i have been trying to find a home for my folk art carved wood chain(somebody seriously carved that thing out of a solid piece of wood), and the lyrics to O Holy Night came to mind.

Truly He taught us to love one another, 
His law is love and His gospel is peace. 
Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother. 
And in his name all oppression shall cease. 
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, 
With all our hearts we praise His holy name. 
Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we, 
His power and glory ever more proclaim! 
His power and glory ever more proclaim!


i think i may be a little addicted to chalkboards.  
especially when they deliver such a Wonderful message.
tomorrow we get to pick out our tree(nathan's home!), and dig up some more fun stuff from the basement.
it's always so fun to see what you have, remember your favorite things from years past, and find those that you have recently made or collected.

over and out, girlfriends.
when are you able to get together for a peppermint mocha and some cinnamon bread?
uh...i mean, veggies and tea.  ;)

xo, 
mary



 

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