Even Moms Need a Break

Following the Christmas season, I'm usually one toasted lady. Between the Christmas-related food and gifts, I've put in a lot of hours.  I've finished planning and buying all of the gifts for my children, husband, and extended family.  It takes a lot of careful planning to stretch our dollars to cover 7 kids, especially since 2 of them this year are out of the country.  Black Friday, coupon codes, and internet offers help me find the best deals on that perfect gift.  Our early ancestors who were hunters and gatherers have nothing on me.

When planning meals, I mix convenience meals with special "from scratch" foods.  We had frozen pizza one night and hand-made spring rolls another.  I peeled 10 pounds of potatoes for Christmas dinner, but I fixed cheap refrigerator cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

When all of the planning, cooking, baking, buying, coupon-clipping, list-making, and gift-wrapping and -unwapping are done, I'm a tired mamma. Usually I spend the 26th and 27th in a kind of stupor watching movies and reading books.  I refuse to fix any meals or do laundry.  My brain and body take a brief hiatus from any responsibilities related to the "lady of the house."  You aught'ta try it?

Mom's Christmas List

Below is a copy of the letter that I sent out to my children.

Dear Children,

Every year you ask me what I want for Christmas, and every year I tell you the same thing -- well-behaved children who love God.  That's what God got on the first Christmas ... if it was good enough for him, it's good enough for me. 

However, I know that you are all quite generous and want to give me more than that.  So here's what I'd like (in addition to the above-mentioned):  TIME!  My lists of what I have to do, what I'd like to do, and what I daydream about doing make me long for more time, not more stuff.

So, be creative.  If you've already bought me a spatula or a book or a $300 sweater, explain how it will give me more time.  Or fix a dinner or fold some towels.  You're not too old to come up with an old-fashioned coupon book.  I'd gladly have some of your time.  I love gifts because they're an expression of the time and effort the giver took in selecting them.  That's why I'm not very good at giving lists.

I can most honestly and profoundly say that having you as children is one of the greatest gifts in my life!

Mom

A Christmas Gift for the Family

On the top of Faith's, Ryan's and Emma's Christmas list this year was a kitty. Earlier this fall, they had launched a campaign to convince their dad that a kitty would be a good idea for our family. We already have a 13 year old cat, Tumnus, who was born in our house. Though we love our cat,the kids wanted a little one.

I thought a kitty would be fun, but Dad was less convinced. However, after visiting a house with a fresh litter of kitties, he softened. It was actually more his idea than mine. On his return trip from picking up Megan from the airport, he stopped to pick up the cutest little black and gray tabby kitty I've seen. Fortunately for us, at 3 months old he was already litter trained and well-socialized. Though he was a barn cat, the original owners think he's part Maine Coon because of his coloring and the "M" on his forehead. (We've just discovered how huge these cats can get ... we may be in trouble!)

One of our biggest challenges was naming the kitty. We spent 3 days discussing, listing names and voting on our favorites. The kids's choices tended towards Narnia and Lord of the Rings options (with a few other literary choices thrown in.) Finally, we narrowed it down to 3: Gimli, Digory & Rilian. We sent Faith, Ryan and Emma off to another room to make the final decision. And they chose "Trumpkin."

Trumpkin has been in the family for over 2 weeks, and we're all in love. (well, everyone except Tumnus) He's really sweet and a bit on the tubby side. When you hold him, he goes limp and snuggles in like a rag doll. Like all kitties, he gets a bit rambunctious, but hasn't really been naughty or difficult. Tonight, he chased around the living room, with no particular purpose except to get from one place to another as fast as he could. Even Dad, the hardest to sell, pulls the kitty on his lap.

My Marvelous Family

While I tire of the shallow hoopla at Christmas, I am overwhelmingly grateful for the long break that we all get each year. Our whole culture seems to say, "Lets have some family time."

Having all of my children home was heaven for me. It went by far too quickly. I could have used more days of conversations, meals, laughter, and "chillaxing" with my delightful offspring. We cooked, cleaned, played, opened gifts, and spent time with cousins. Having 9 people share limited space can be a bit challenging, but they only occasionally annoyed one another.

I love who they are and who they are becoming. I get a kick out of their interactions and more grown up relationships. Each child has a great sense of humor and a fascinating personality. I've always strongly felt that if I didn't think my children were the most wonderful people in the world, who else would? And for these kids, it's the absolute truth!

The "true meaning" of Christmas is not family, but Jesus, Son of God & Son of Man. However, the togetherness and closeness of family is a marvelous perk of the holidays!

Movie Reviews x 3!

We've about reached our saturation point with holiday movies. Most of the movies we've seen this year we've seen before ... some of them many times. This past week we watched 3 movies: Christmas with the Kranks, The Muppets Christmas Carol, and A Christmas Carol (with Patrick Stewart). Though I enjoy this part of our family's "Christmas traditions" I'll be glad to shelve the holiday movies for another year.

I don't know if you've noticed, but most of the movies have similar themes: bad or down-and-out person has some moment of great conflict and the solution comes in the form of "Christmas spirit." Whereas some of the movies have scenes you could use as sermon illustrations, few have any particular spiritual merit. Yet, we go ahead and watch them andgiggle our way through some very clever antics.

Christmas with the Kranks was the first movie we watched this week. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we had already read Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. The movie and the book are both delightful, but for different reasons. Jamie Lee Curtis and Tim Allen star in the movie and play their parts well. Ms. Curtis is hilarious, Christmas-loving wife and mother whose husband convinces her that skipping Christmas for just this one year would be a great idea. Remembering her performances in various horror movies makes certain parts of this film kind of "vaudevillian." Tim Allen is pretty predictable (starts out as a jerk and ends up lovable); his scene with the Botox is laugh out loud funny.

Our second Christmas movie this week was one of our family favorites: The Muppets Christmas Carol. Michael Caine plays along with Kermit, Fozzy Bear, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Rizzo the Rat and the rest of the Muppets. Mr. Caine plays a marvelous Scrooge opposite a cast of puppets. He even sings! One of my favorite lines is Gonzo (the narrator) explains that "omniscient" means all-knowing. Rizzo then calls him "Mr. Hoity-Toity God-like Smarty Pants."

Though the story itself has some darker portions, it is by far the happiest version of the this classic that we've seen. This is definitely a movie to buy and keep on your shelf.

On Christmas Eve, after a fun meal, present opening and a game we snuggled one more time in the den to watch another version of Dickens's A Christmas Carol.One of my favorite scenes comes after Scrooge has spent time with all three ghosts. Patrick Stewart, a bona fide new man, arises to a new day... and has his first laugh in a long time:

"I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future!" Scrooge repeated, as he scrambled out of bed. "The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. Oh, Jacob Marley! Heaven, and the Christmas Time be praised for this! I say it on my knees, old Jacob, on my knees!"

He was so fluttered and so glowing with his good intentions, that his broken voice would scarcely answer to his call. He had been sobbing violently in his conflict with the Spirit, and his face was wet with tears. ...

"I don't know what to do!" cried Scrooge, laughing and crying in the same breath; and making a perfect Laocoon of himself with his stockings. "I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a schoolboy. I am as giddy as a drunken man. A merry Christmas to everybody! A happy New Year to all the world! Hallo here! Whoop! Hallo!"

He had frisked into the sitting-room, and was now standing there: perfectly winded.

"There's the saucepan that the gruel was in!' cried Scrooge, starting off again, and going round the fireplace. "There's the door, by which the Ghost of Jacob Marley entered! There's the corner where the Ghost of Christmas Present sat! There's the window where I saw the wandering Spirits! It's all right, it's all true, it all happened. Ha ha ha!"

Really, for a man who had been out of practice for so many years, it was a splendid laugh, a most illustrious laugh. The father of a long, long line of brilliant laughs!

Christmas Eve = Marathon

With a large family I've become a pretty organized person. The task of planning, buying, sorting and wrapping gifts for 7 wonderful children, a dear husband, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins is a mammoth job. I usually start buying gifts sometime after the new year and continue watching sales throughout the year. Even though I work hard to be prepared and to be on top of the game, Christmas Eve is always a flurry of last minute activity.

On Christmas Eve Jim and I cloister ourselves in our room to wrap the gifts. I've sorted the gifts for each child and usually set Jim to wrapping. Often, we bring a TV and DVD player into our room and watch some marathon of movies. One year Jim watched video after video of James Bond. I'll often put in musicals. This year, it was Narnia and "Rumpole of the Bailey." In years past we've finished them with no time to spare before unwrapping them. Somehow on this day, I also prepare for the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meals while I clean the house.

Once the food is prepared, the gifts finished and the house tidy, we settle down as a family to eat a special meal and then open our gifts. Each year is a little different, depending on whether we are traveling out of town to either grandparents.

Some years I think I will give only gift cards. Or just a check. Or maybe I'll get our food ready-to-eat from Sam's Club.

Naaaaaahhhhh.......

Christmas Cookie Favorites

Our family does some extra baking during the holiday season. Not like my mother, who was baker-extraordinaire at Christmas, however. I learned early on that if I baked, I ate. Even if I hid the cookies, bars, etc., I still knew where they were. And no one in the family would know if I'd eaten a whole batch of cookies if they didn't even know those cookies existed.

My daughter, Faith, baked for a couple days in order to take baked goods as gifts to friends and co-workers. She tried some new recipes. My baking, on the other hand, will be our family's traditional stand-bys.

Below are the recipes that we always make:


Plantation Bars
1 pkg. almond bark (24 oz.)
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup salted peanuts, crushed
5 cups cereal (Rice Krispies or Cheerios)
(or skip the peanuts and use 6 cups cereal)
Melt the almond bark. Add peanut butter and mix well. Stir in cereal. Spread in a buttered pan or drop by teaspoonful on waxed paper.



Magic Cookie Bars
1/2 cup butter (melted)
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup chopped nuts (opt.)
1 cup chocolate chips
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
15 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
Layer the ingredients in the above order. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.



Gingerbread Boys
2 cups butter, softened
3 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup molasses
6 cups flour
3 teaspoons salt
3 teaspoons baking soda
3 teaspoons cinnamon
3 teaspoons ginger
3 teaspoons cloves
1 cup flour for rolling
Thoroughly cream butter and sugar. Add egg and molasses and beat well. Add sifted dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Refrigerate for 1 hour or more. Roll on lightly floured surface. Cut with floured cookie cutters. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 8 - 12 minutes. Bake smaller cookies for briefer times. Decorate if desired.



On Top of the Stove Cookies
Boil together for 1 minute:
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup milk.
Remove from head and add:
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 cups quick oats.
Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper.

Let me know if you try any of our family recipes.

Music Review: Blind Boys of Alabama: Go Tell it on the Mountain

A current favorite holiday CD, Blind Boys of Alabama: Go Tell it on the Mountain has been playing on repeat as I cook, bake cookies and clean in the kitchen. A mix of traditional Christmas songs (Joy to the World, Away in a Manger, O Come all Ye Faithful) and gospel flavored pieces (Last Month of he Year, I Pray on Christmaqs, Go Tell it on the Mountain), this CD features the tight 4-part harmonies that makes dramatic use of contrasting vocal leads. Some songs make you tap your toes; others tempt you to dance; while during the quieter ones you find yourself gently swaying.

It was at Alabama’s Talladega Institute for the Blind, in 1939, that the five blind boys first came together, initially calling their group "The Happyland Singers." They were re-christened the "Blind Boys" in 1948. Following is a quote from their website:

Since 1939, The Blind Boys of Alabama have sung a fervent blend of traditional and contemporary Gospel music. Much has changed during these seven prolific decades. Stylistic phases have waxed and waned; personnel has come and gone. 78 r.p.m. records have given way to LPs, followed by eight-track tapes, cassettes, and CDs. The Blind Boys’ audience – once rigidly segregated and confined to traditional Gospel venues – now reflects the group’s eclectic, global following, while their repertoire has expanded to embrace secular songs with a strongly spiritual message. Such wide acceptance is also evidenced by four Grammy Awards, an honor that didn’t exist when the Blind Boys started out. Even so, the Blind Boys’ lengthy saga remains a steadfast testament to constancy. Singer Jimmy Carter, who was there when the group was first formed, leads the band today with the firm conviction, joyous commitment, and gravitas that befit an elder statesman.

A Reviewer from an Appalachian college wrote: At the core of the Blind Boys' sound is four-part harmony that makes dramatic use of contrasting vocal leads.

Another reviewer from the BBC said: If you want to melt under the mistletoe and feel groovy as you make the stuffing, then get Go Tell it on the Mountain. I guarantee, your festival will flow.

So, if you're looking for that last minute gift for eclectic music lover in your family, this is a winner. (If you need a gift for me, I already have one.... you'll have to get something else.)

Movie Review: Fred Claus

It's Friday night and our family is snuggled in the den, the smallest and warmest room in the house. Keeping with our plan to watch mostly Christmas movies, we watched one that was new for us: Fred Claus. This movie stars Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatte, Rachel Weisz, Kathy Bates and Kevin Spacey. Fred is Santa's ne'er-do-well older brother who grew up in the shadow of the kid who could do no wrong. Fred finds himself in trouble and must retreat to the North Pole for help.

This movie is your expected mix of "cute and funny" with "stupid and vacuous." Some scenes reach actual ROFL status: Santa's secret service elves do Ninja moves, dance scenes in the workshop and Frosty's Tavern, the siblings anonymous meeting. Kevin Spacey plays Clyde Northcut an efficiency expert who threatens to shut down the North Pole. He walks around as a sort of "angel of death" in his black coat and thick-rimmed glasses.

Personally, I like my Christmas movies to be a bit cuter and cleaner. Vince Vaughn's character was a bit too "ghetto" for me. As in most movies, it all works out in the end, but I was disappointed in the overlay of a religious song with opening presents. The movie as a whole rated, for our family, an "OK, but we don't have to watch it again" rating. According to Yahoo Movies, it rates between a B and a C-.

One reviewer complained that Vince Vaughn, like many comedic actors, plays himself:

Much of the problem is Vince Vaughn himself, as he doesn't bother to play any character other than Vince Vaughn. And he's yet to perfect how to be likable and a jerk at the same time.

While we have a number of Christmas movies that we re-watch each year, Fred Claus just doesn't make the cut.

Book Report: The Gift of the Magi

Another favorite regular for our family is O. Henry's "The Gift of the Magi." This short story about a young couple, Jim and Della, tells of love and sacrifice during a holiday season when times were tight. As is common to the short story genre, it's pithy and to the point. Rather than a full palate of colors, O. Henry roughly sketches out the story and lets the readers fill it in.

Over the years, this story has been re-told in a variety of forms. Micky Mouse and Sesame Street produced children's versions; for grown-ups Marie Osmond starred in a movie, The Gift of Love. You can find of variety on on-line, full text of the story . Teachers can download a Study guide to use in their classroom. My all-time favorite version of the story comes from Focus on the Family's Adventures in Odyssey audio series. Entitled "The Adventures of Madge and Guy," you'll giggle all the way through and learn a lesson to boot.

My daughter and I read this before bed the other night. Snuggled on the loveseat in our room, hot chocolate in hand, the story became a "jumping off place" to discuss gift giving, sacrifice, and loving others more than ourselves.

Book Report: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Some pieces of literature become yearly events at the Prichard home: Dickens's A Christmas Carol, O. Henry's Gift of the Magi, and Barbara Robinson's The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (TBCPE). We've just finished TBCPE amidst fresh giggles and pleas for "just one more chapter."


A synopsis from the back cover:
The Herdmans are absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lie and steal and smoke cigars (even the girls). They talk dirty, hit little kids, cuss their teachers, set fire to Fred Shoemaker's old broken-down toolhouse, and take the name of the Lord in vain. So no one is prepared when the Herdmans invade church one Sunday-and decide to take over the annual Christmas pageant.

None of them has ever heard the Christmas story before. Their interpretation — the Wise Men are a bunch of dirty spies and Herod needs a good beating-- has a lot of people up in arms. But the actual pageant is full of surprises for everyone, starting with the Herdmans themselves.

I've wondered why this book is such a hit. I "Googled" the title and came up with page after page of community theaters performing this as a play. (My oldest daughter performed in the Northfield Arts Guild production almost 10 years ago.) How can we read this book year after year, knowing the stunts and dialogue by heart, and still anticipate next year's reading?

Here's what I think. Firstly, we're a bit fascinated by those Herdmans. Who doesn't like to sneak a peak (from a distance, of course) of these truly naughty children? I grew up down the street from a family of bullies and remember being both terrified and in awe of these boys. They were famous and infamous.

Ms. Robinson's style lends itself so well to reading out loud. Plenty of dialogue and clear narration make the chapters progress quickly and smoothly. There's no need to explain unusual vocabulary or to meander through convoluted sentences. She sketches out her characters so that your imagination can fill in the blanks... possibly with someone we already know. Interestingly enough, the young girl who narrates is almost non-descript, possibly so that we can put ourselves in her place and thoughts more easily.

This year my daughter was especially annoyed with Alice Wendlekin. Using my most "snotty" reading voice, she came across as an obnoxious tattle tale. By the end of the book, I think my daughter would have slugged Alice and hugged Imogene.

One section we re-read 3 times: (Mother is explaining the Christmas story)

"And, lo, the Angel of the lord came upon the," Mother went on, "and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and --"

"Shazam!" Gladys yelled, flinging her arms out and smacking the kid next to her.

"What?" Mother said. Mother never read "Amazing Comics."

"Out of the black night with horrible vengeance, the Mighty Marvo --"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Gladys," Mother said. "This is the angel of the Lord who comes to the shepherds in the fields, and ---"

"Out of nowhere, right? Gladys said. "In the black night, right?"

"Well ..." Mother looked unhappy. "In a way."

So Gladys sat back down, looking very satisfied, as if this was at least one part of the Christmas story that made sense to her.

Each year, as we end our reading, our eyes are a little moist because our hearts have been touched by the Herdmans and by a fresh telling of Jesus's birth.

Decorating for Christmas Prichard Style

When our children were younger, decorating for Christmas was a lively event. I often had special treats and, of course, lots of Christmas music. When our oldest were very young, we often invited singles in the church or college students to join us. We wanted to share with them the joy of little kids and the season -- we also needed extra hands. As much as little ones love decorating the tree, they really aren't very good at it.

Over the years, we've adjusted our decorating schemes. As our children became teenagers scheduling "decorating time" was a challenge. We weren't working around nap times any more. We had jobs, music rehearsals, hanging out with friends and church events to juggle. Some years, we had to "force" them to stay home so that we could have fun, happy family time. (I felt only a little bad about this.)

With a larger house, we not only have more room to decorate, but more room for storing those decorations. We've acquired garlands, wreathes, kissing balls, music boxes, etc. We even have our own little village (made of plaster of Paris and hand-painted by the children, themselves) displayed prominently on the mantle. Every year my parents give the children a special, collectible ornament. That's a lot of ornaments!

We've come up with a system that seems to work for us. Dad and whichever children are interested go to Hampton Hills to cut down a tree. After they've warmed up with hot chocolate or cider, we begin hauling up the many boxes of Christmas paraphenalia. While Dad cuts off the bottom branches, the rest of us set to rearranging the living room. Every piece of furniture has a different place during the holidays. Once the tree stand is in its pla ce, Dad brings the tree in. Usually I crawl under the tree to tighten the screws. Then we all stand and decide if it needs to be tilted this way or that. Dad's the one who usually cares, so we let him make the decisions.

With 6 boxes of decorations, not all of them go on the tree. I remind them that whatever gets taken out has to be put away. Usually, we set an hour for decorating the tree. Any more than that and kids lose interest or get "owly." Each child picks out what ornaments they want to hang. Occaisionally we have little tiffs over the suitability of this or that ornament, but most of the time they have fun going through the boxes. Once in a while, someone will pick out an especially unattractive piece and insist on putting up, much to the chagrin of the kid who made it. This year mercy was shown to the "Duct Tape Santa." The duct tape sling was removed and his arm was more carefully attached with glue.

Now that the children are older and there are fewer of them at home, the yearly decorating has become more fun and less of a chore. Our tree is now decorated. The lights are on the bannister and the mantle. Our special German wooden decoration is assembled. We're almost ready for Christmas!

Book Report: Skipping Christmas

Our family is getting back into the habit of reading aloud in the evenings. Maybe it's the coziness of a winter's night; maybe it's just that I'm sick of computers, TV and videos; maybe it's because if I hear someone say "I'm bored" again I'll ......

Since the Christmas season is upon us, I selected John Grisham's Skipping Christmas. It's a great little book from this well-known writer of suspence and intrigue. At Thanksgiving, Mr. and Mrs. Krank send their only child off to Peru to work with the Peace Corps. Rethinking the craziness and expense of a full-blown Christmas extravaganza, Luther Krank convinces his wife, Norah, that a cruise would be just the thing. For this one year, they would "skip" Christmas. The bulk of the story revolves around the affects this has on friends, relatives and neighbors.

It's a sweet book with scenes that made us giggle. (I won't share them here... I'd hate to ruin any of the little surprises.) It's not an overly long book; we read it in less than a week. The conflict, climax and denoument were well-timed and well-suited for reading out loud. However, I must warn you that a few inappropriate words and scenes may need on-the-spot editting by the reader. (It depends on your crowd.)

Now that we've finished the book, we plan to watch Christmas with the Kranks, the movie taken from this story starring Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis. Our family is just nerdy enough to re-watch a movie and compare it to the written source.

Christmas Movie Review: Santa Clause 1 & 2

Since we watched these 2 movies one night after the other, I thought I'd combine their reviews. I'm sure most of you have seen this movie in which Tim Allen plays Scott Calvin who becomes Santa because of an incident with a clause (get it? claus...clause?)

These are cute movies worth re-watching every holiday season. In the first movie, The Santa Clause, (1994)Tim Allen scares Santa off his roof, thereby killing him and becoming the new Santa Claus. The changes in his body from slim and clean-shaven to portly and bearded are hilarious. The elves are my favorite. From Bernard to the cute girls with the cocoa. One of my favorite lines is "we're your worst nightmare, elves with attitude."

In the second movie, The Santa Clause 2: The Escape Clause, Santa must find a wife. The plot is pretty predictable ... Scott Calvin falls for the principal of the school where his son attends (and whom the son doesn't like) The cleverest and cutest parts of the movie is the robot Santa (with the rubber face and plastic tusshy) and the little rivalry between Bernard and Curtis. Spencer Breslin ("Curtis") is adorable.

One review called these movies "delightful holiday distractions." Great movies for relaxing with the family.

Christmas Movie Review: Christmas is Here Again

A friend of mine has watching lots of Christmas movies between Thanksgiving and Christmas as part of her holidy "To Do" list. I checked out her list and a couple of internet sources in order to compose my own list of movies. You can see it in my side bar.

Last night we watched our first official Christmas movie, Christmas is Here Again. I checked it out from the Redbox at our MacDonald's. And I have to say that it is probably the worst Christmas movie I've ever seen! Here's what one reviewer wrote:

With a voice cast that includes Edward Asner, Kathy Bates, Jay Leno, Brad Garrett, Shirley Jones, and Andy Griffith, a film like "Christmas is Here Again" ought to be a runaway success, not a movie that makes you want to run away. But in an attempt to touch just about every Christmassy base, this animated film from Robert Zappia ends up being so far out you'd think it was made by Frank Zappa. It's like the holiday Jell-O mold with too much fruit and marshmallows dumped into it, when a little would have been just fine, thank you.

The premise of the movie is that the bad guy stole the magic Santa bag (which just happens to have been made out of the swaddling clothes of the Christ-child) and Christmas is gone for 30 years. The cartoon has singing, dancing, an orphan named Sophianna who has a pet caterpillar.
Don't watch it. Not even if you have a code for a free Redbox rental. Amazon should be paying us to buy it

Gingerbread Houses Galore!

Somewhere between Christmas dinner and leftovers; between Wii bowling and football games; between opening gifts and snoozing, our family made "gingerbread houses" on Christmas Day. We didn't use real gingerbread, but graham crackers. And more candy than a neighborhood during Halloween.



The big and little cousins had a marvelous time ... at least it sounded and looked like it. Katie and Ryan continued working on theirs after the families left for the evening. I had to shoo them to bed around 11:00.

Here are the pictures:

Christmas Shopping

Sometimes shopping at Christmas time is a lot of fun; sometimes it's the worst chore of the season. From my point of view, it takes a lot of planning, time, and shopping savvy. With 7 children, it's a daunting challenge. I try to find special gifts at good prices and keep our giving as even as possible. I shop early and stay late. I wait in long lines, wrestle with the crowds and drink plenty of coffee.


I've found a secret to changing this activity from a chore into a great time. Firstly, I remind myself that I'm loving my children well by giving them gifts. I'm blessing my extended family by giving them time (spent shopping), attention (carefully selecting items) and giving a gift. In the midst of the heightened activity of the Christmas season, it's easy to forget the "reason for the season."


Secondly, I pray before, during and after my shopping trips. I ask the Lord for extra help in finding just the right gifts at just the right prices. Like many other families, we live on a limited budget and I don't have extra money to throw away on dumb gifts. That would be wasteful. So I pray and ask for divine wisdom. Then, as I'm shopping I keep "praying in the spirit." I don't want to participate in the hectic-ness of the Mall, so I do my best to stay focused on the Lord.

The result: a great time finding just the right gifts for my family and enjoying the presence of the Lord.

Christmas Movies

Many times I feel that we watch too many movies and too much TV. When my older kids were little, we watched very little (and usually only PBS). I try to carefully monitor what and how much the kids watch.

However, I've found that I've developed a bit of a soft spot for some Christmas movies. I don't like the cheesy "Hallmark Specials," but I think there are some real treasures out there especially for the holiday season. We started watching our Christmas shows on Thanksgiving weekend.

So far, our family has watched:
Eloise at Christmas
The Muppets Christmas Carol
Santa Clause
Santa Clause 2
The Polar Express
Santa Claus is Coming to Town