Seasons of Life- 2018 Focus

2017 has been a great year. We've had lots of fun and I've really tried to focus on finding JOY. This year is almost over, and while it can seem pretty silly and even pointless to set goals for the new year when you'll likely give up before the end of February, I really like opportunities to change (even if the timing does seem a little forced sometimes). Change is good. It can be hard, but if we don't change we don't grow, so let's think of this as an opportunity for growth and maybe for second chances as well. 

We are goal setters in our family, but I have found that when I try to make huge goals for the year, I often fall into that "fail by February" category. Instead, I like to have a focus for the year. I also like to think about a few generic things I'd like to do- not too specific, so when the opportunity presents itself I get to cross something off my list or I can count many different things. I try to keep it simple, so I don't get overwhelmed either. I'll break down each of the 5 items and my focus word below.

Do something SCARY:

This can mean I have faith to act on a prompting or feeling that I get. It could mean I face a fear for the greater good. It can mean I get brave for no reason other than to do it. Any way I take it, there's bound to be some personal growth here. I'm not sure I'm ready to confront any snakes yet though... we'll see.

Break a BAD HABIT:

I think we could all benefit if everyone did this one! HA! 

If you don't think you have a bad habit, ask someone close to you. Make sure you tell them what you're trying to do, otherwise it might get ugly. If you decide to ask for help, be prepared for the truth and you'll be less likely to get offended. 

The main reason this one is on my list is to help me practice some self control. It takes a significant amount of time to break a habit or create one (I've heard 14 times, 21 days, 30 days, and others but I wasn't feeling all the research today, so you can look it up if you're worried about the exact number.), and that's going to take a lot of self control. Now I just need to choose one of my bad habits.... 

Do something GOOD + don't tell anyone about it"

In a world of sharing through social media, it can be difficult to keep things to ourselves sometimes. It's not a bad thing to let people know the good you are doing-it can often lead others to do something good as well, but it often means more if we do quiet acts of goodness. Even when we do something for one of our friends or neighbors, my husband and kids usually know about it. I want to do something completely anonymous and make it count. It's going to be tricky and I'll have to be a little bit sneaky, but I'm kind of excited to see what I can come up with. I'm hoping I can do this several times this year! 

Try something NEW:

This can be trying a new food, going to a new place,  accepting a new job or church calling, or you can even do the two-birds-one-stone thing and let this new thing be your "something SCARY". Experiencing new things helps us to grow, and can also help us discover new interests.  I hope to say yes to many new adventures this year.

Change FOCUS for Biz:

This one is a little more me-specific. I've been wanting to go in a slightly different direction with my book business, and I have decided to use the new year as a fresh opportunity to do so. The good news for YOU (if you enjoy them) is that I should be adding more blog posts this year too!

I'm going to attempt to simplify and streamline my biz by consolidating a lot of my ideas. (I love feedback- it helps me grow! So share any thoughts you have from the past or throughout the year if you'd like.) 

To make this work in your life, find something that you've been wanting to do differently, or that might not be working the way you want it to and change how you focus on it! I'd love to hear what you are planning to change. Please share in the comments or message me.

2018 Word of the Year: SEASONS

SEASONS for me is a loaded word. It means I can do anything and everything, but not all at once. It tells me to take time for each adventure and don’t rush to find the next one. It tells me that sometimes I have to wait for my season. It lets me know there is something GOOD about every stage of life. It reminds me to acknowledge time and place, as well as give everything my own “spice” (see what I did there?). It reminds me that I can't hold on to everything, and that with change there is often something even better ahead. In 2018 I want slow down and enjoy the seasons of life.

When choosing your word for the year, make sure it's something that speaks to you. If it's completely one-dimensional, you might consider choosing something else that can apply to more than just one situation. If you are wanting to make a big change, it can all start with a small word. Focus on the word and what it means for you. Apply it to your life. Think of it when life seems crazy or frustrating. Remember why you chose it in the first place. That is how you can grow the most and have the best year yet.

I have included a copy of the graphic with blank spaces for you to customize if you'd like to print or share your resolutions for 2018. Tag me or link back to this post please! I'd love to see your focus and change goals. Thanks for reading mine.

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope it brings new opportunities for growth and change.

A More Christ-Centered Christmas with Little Lamb

I walked into Seagull Book with my kids one day, and as soon as my girls saw the "Little Lamb from Bethlehem" display they gushed with those big blue eyes and beautiful smiles asking, "Oh Mommy! It's soooo cute! Can we please get it???" And me, being the completely responsible parent that I am, said, "Uh... yeah!" And that's how we became the proud owners of this adorably soft plush lamb and story book. (Luckily my kids are little and when something is out of sight, it's definitely out of mind, so they forgot we bought it. It will be a fun surprise when Little Lamb shows up later this week.)

I really liked the idea of the Lamb to help make our Christmas more centered on Christ instead of Santa, reindeer, and presents. (Not that those are bad, but they tend to take over the holiday if we let them.)

First, let's talk about where you can get your own Little Lamb set. They aren't on Amazon, so save yourself the search and check out these places instead:

Seagull Book or seagullbook.com (Direct link HERE)

Deseret Book or deseretbook.com (Direct link HERE)

And since many of my family and friends are from there, it can also be found at Service Drug in Delta, Utah.

This set has become pretty popular, and is selling out quickly, so don't wait to grab yours!

It comes in this box that will be great for storage at the end of the season. The box and the book contain many ideas for ways to use your Lamb this Christmas. You can make it as simple or as detailed as you like. Here are a few quick ideas to have your Little Lamb do (before I share what I decided to do this year):

• Have the Lamb deliver a scripture on a tag or paper each day/week
• The Lamb can bring service opportunities for your family to complete
• Let the Little Lamb be the messenger for the #LightTheWorld (25 Ways in 25 Days) videos and activities. There's also a great kids version HERE at A Year of FHE.
• Little Lamb can bring Family Home Evening activity ideas weekly
• Help build your nativity set by bringing each piece as you read the story of the first Christmas over the month of December
• Simply read the book and have the Lamb sit out as a reminder of the true meaning of Christmas

You can also search the tag #littlelamb on social media for more ideas.

If you're like me, you want things to be cute, but they HAVE to be easy. I found these cute FREE printable tags here at My Computer is My Canvas (Go ahead, click on the link so you don't forget, then hop on back over here. I highly recommend checking out her other printables too!) Just Pin her post to Pinterest and download your free set of Little Lamb tags!

She created gift tags for the set, 12 scripture tags, and 12 blank tags. Use as many or as few as you like. I decided to use the scripture and blank tags (you'll see them in the following photos) but I changed the numbers on them to fit my needs. (Mainly because I don't seem to know how follow instructions or to do anything like anyone else!) 

>> Here's the part where I'll go through my plans for our family's Little Lamb experience. The days will correspond with the date (Day 1 = Dec. 1st) and I tried to plan ahead so we'd have the more time consuming activities on days we don't have parties, basketball games, or other events planned. Plus, I factored in our own Family Home Evening activities to be part of that day's delivery. 

12 of the tags are scriptures from the nativity story found in the New Testament and will include pieces of our nativity set so we can build it as we learn. The other 12 are scriptures that teach us about another name for Jesus Christ and will include a treat/gift/activity to help us remember the name. I've also included a bonus scripture for Christmas Day. I did wrap all of the gifts, but I took the photos before so you could see what they were. 

I have linked the scripture reference for each day so you can see how it correlates with the gift (some don't match perfectly, but we're building the nativity and every piece needed a part), or in case you'd like to read it before committing to share with your family. Look for the highlighted verse.

Day 1: Little Lamb will show up with the book, our wooden stable for our nativity set, and a tag with the name "Lamb of God" and scripture reference: John 1:29

Day 2: Donkey from our nativity + Luke 2:1

Day 3: Cow from nativity + Luke 2:3

Day 4: Joseph + Luke 2:4-6

Day 5: Mary + Luke 2:7

Day 6: Name: "Jesus" + Matthew 1:21 + Baby Jesus and Manger set (not the one that goes with our nativity, this one is for the kids' room)

Day 7: Name: "Prince of Peace" + Isaiah 9:6 + Reese's Pieces (get it??) I tried not to do too many treats... we're on day 7 and this is the first one!

Day 8: Name: "King of Kings" + Revelations 17:14 + Crown shaped cookie cutter

My goal for this one is to make sugar cookies with my kids, but depending on my level of laziness that day, we might be making crown shaped pancakes instead! 

Day 9: Shepherd from nativity + Luke 2:7-8

Day 10: Sheep from nativity + Luke 2:9

Day 11: Baby Jesus in manger + Joy to the World DVD + Luke 2:10-12

This is one of our planned Family Home Evening activities. We'll watch the movie to learn about the birth and life of Jesus Christ. This has become one of our December FHE traditions, so it's kind of a "two birds, one stone" situation. This will probably be the most exciting contribution to the nativity for the kids too. This other movie is also great if you want to watch something shorter (and free). 

Day 12: Sheep/Lamb ornament + Luke 2:13-14 

This one was originally going to be an angel, but my nativity doesn't come with an angel. Then it was going to be a second sheep (for some reason I thought my nativity had two), but I didn't have one of those either. I found this cute ornament that matches my tree decorations though, and I liked the message, so I included it here. If you have an angel, it would make much more sense to include that here or on Day 10.

Day 13: Name: "Shepherd" + John 10:11 +  candy canes (because they're shaped like a shepherd's staff) You can look up the story of the candy candy for a more in-depth discussion. The internet is full of useful information.

Day 14: Name: "Morning Star" + Revelations 22:16 + star tree topper

You could also use glow in the dark stars (the ones you put on your ceiling), starfruit, star ornament, or starbursts, but my kids have their own little tree, so I thought this would be a fun way to incorporate the Star (plus it was on rollback at Walmart.com for less than $3).

Day 15: One of the Three Wisemen from Nativity + Matthew 2:1

Day 16: One of the Three Wisemen from Nativity + Matthew 2: 2, 8-10

Day 17: One of the Three Wisemen from Nativity + Matthew 2:11

Day 18: Name "Emmanuel" + Matthew 1:23 + Nativity book 

Read the scripture to understand this one more. The book pictured sold out for the season a month ago, but this book is also a great choice and it has beautiful illustrations! This is another FHE night, so you could read the entire story from the Bible if you wanted or read multiple picture book versions of the story. You could also let the kids build the nativity as you read since all the pieces have been added by now.

Day 19: Name "Bread of Life" + John 6:35 + Bread mix

You could also include a recipe book or card to make the bread from scratch, or make it easy and buy an artisan loaf from your local grocery store. Bonus points if you share the bread and scripture with friends or neighbors.

Day 20: Name "The Life" + John 14:6 + LIFE Cereal or The Game of Life

Enjoy both as a family, or choose which one fits into your day best. (Smith's grocery stores often have Life cereal on sale and most places have board games on sale this time of year if you don't already have the game.)

Day 21: Name "True Vine" + John 15:1 + Grapes or grape juice (because grapes grow on.... vines!)

I was originally going to buy some grapes for this one, but I didn't want to forget to pick them up (they'd go bad by then if I bought them now), and I had a bottle of grape juice in my storage room already. I also almost didn't wrap this one because it was so heavy, but I got it done- big fan of slapping a bow on something though!

Day 22: Name "Rock" + 1 Corinthians 10:4 + rocks

You can use pop rocks candy, a prayer rock, collectible rocks, a large rock from your yard, or smooth stones to paint (the last one is what we'll be doing). My kids collect rocks, so this one will be fun for them. You can make an entire activity out of this delivery. Sing "The Wise man and the Foolish Man", and paint the phrase "Wise men still see Him" on your rocks with pictures of houses and stars. Hide the rocks around the community for others to find or keep them to display all season long.

Day 23: Name "Living Water" + John 4:10, 14 + Mini water bottles

You could use full size water bottles, but I think miniature versions are cuter.

Day 24: Name "Light of the World" + John 8:12 + Candle

You could also use a flashlight or lantern. I thought a candle was perfect for Christmas Eve though.

*Bonus*

Day 25: Little Lamb will be sitting by our "Believe" sign. The scripture on the sign is John 3:16 which is a great reminder of the importance and mission of our Savior Jesus Christ. He is the real gift, so this day doesn't come with anything fancy or wrapped in paper, just the simple reminder of the true focus of Christmas.

Tips:

A few things to remember or try so you don't get overwhelmed by the whole experience.

• Plan ahead: prepare all of the deliveries or at least a few at a time so you aren't scrambling each night (or morning).
• Use things you already have. Things like candles, games, nativity sets, and stars don't need to be brand new. Find deals on items you don't have or shop at the dollar stores to keep the cost low. The focus shouldn't be on the money spent. (I only purchased 6 things for this- one was the Lamb set- the rest were things I already had)
• To take the focus even more away from the gift aspect, (and to save on time and energy) don't feel like you have to wrap the deliveries. As long as they are with the lamb, they'll be easy to find.
• I didn't realize the pre-made tags had the day number on each one already before I printed them. To save on time, write the scripture reference and name of Christ on slips of paper instead.
• Focus on service opportunities instead of gifts for older kids or anyone who needs to be reminded of others this time of year. (This is probably how I'll do the Little Lamb visits next year- this year we'll just have to make it 2 separate activities).
• Don't wrap the tags inside the gifts! Trust me... I had to learn from experience haha (check out the photo below to see where I had to break into the star tree topper...)
• Number the wrapped gifts or tape the tag to the gift. Trust me on this one too... it's really fun having to guess which nativity piece you wrapped ten minutes ago... not!
• Move the Lamb each night, or don't! Decide if you want to have a designated spot for Little Lamb visits, or if you'll be moving the Lamb each night for the kids to find. If "hiding" the Lamb each night or trying to find it after kids played with it will stress you out, don't worry about it! (Or make a rule that they can't touch the Lamb)
• Have fun with it! Your excitement will help your kids be excited for whatever the Lamb brings.

re-taped after breaking in to find the tag

gifts are all wrapped and ready to go!

Thanks for reading! If you liked these ideas, click on any of the pictures to PIN this post, or copy the link to share on social media. 

Have more ideas or know where else to get the "Little Lamb from Bethlehem" set? Leave a comment below.

Like this post? You might also like:

FREE PRINTABLE GIFT TAGS 

Gift Ideas and Printable Tags

Something I love to do is create digital graphics and printables. I get this desire to create from my mama. She is great at creating cards, scrapbook pages, and anything else that would be considered crafty. I dabble in that myself, but I have come to really enjoy creating pretty things using my computer. It's never anything very fancy, and I don't usually build the elements (pictures) myself, but it's a fun, creative outlet for me. I thought I'd share some of it with you today. These are all FREE for personal use only. Please don't sell them.

I also love gifts and puns! The puns inspired these fun gift ideas. There is a single tag option for one gift and to customize printing size, or a full page option below each one for multiple gifts. (Disclaimer: I was running low on blue ink when I printed these, so there wouldn't normally be those terrible lines you see in the photos with books, but I didn't notice until I had printed them all...) 

Up first:

 

Book Tag:

.pdf Single Tag

.pdf Full Page Tags

This can really go with any favorite book. I like to pair it with The Story of Inventions to also subtly say "You're my favorite invention", plus it's such a fun book full of interesting stories! I printed the tag, used colored staples to mount it on colored cardstock, punched a hole and tied it on with cute ribbon.

This next one was inspired because of an awesome Fall Frenzy sale happening now (October 2017) on coloring books (and more!) on my website. The tag and saying was inspired by The Gifty Girl. I saw the idea on her Instagram, but when I jumped over to her website I could not find the tag, soooo I decided to make my own. Check out her site though, lots of amazingly easy gift ideas with tags.

Colorful:

.pdf Single Tag

.pdf Full Page Tags

Coloring books with markers/colored pencils are one of my favorite gifts to give. 

This bright tag will bring it all together. Find pages of high-quality coloring books HERE.

Add your favorite coloring utensils with a cute coloring book, tie together with ribbon, and you're all set!

This next one was inspired by my own birthday and my love of cookbooks. 

Whisk Birthday:

.pdf Single Tag

.pdf Full Page Tags

You can of course use your favorite cookbook or even just kitchen tools. Make sure you include a whisk or it won't make sense! I highly recommend this Start to Cook book for beginning cooks of any age. (Kids, college students, newlyweds, cookbook hoarders like me...)

The pictures are cute and the recipe instructions simple to understand and follow.

Up next: A Christmas version of the Whisk gift.

Whisk Christmas:

.pdf Single Tag

.pdf Full Page Tags

This was probably my favorite pun of the group! There are so many cute options for this as well. The Christmas Baking Kit is cute and helps build a fun holiday baking tradition. It comes with cookie cutters and cupcake liners as well. You can never have too many whisks in my opinion.

Up next:

Gum:

.pdf Single Tag

.pdf Full Page Tags

I really like this idea for reluctant readers, or for classrooms! It would be a fun gift for a read-a-thon.

You can use a single pack of gum, cellophane bag filled with gum balls, or get them jumbo packs at Costco/Sam's Club for the gum lovers in your life.

For a more substantial gift, I like to attach the tag and treat to a fun story book. Shown here is the 10 More Ten-Minute Stories, and the pictures in it are beautiful! 

Last, but not least: A scripture version of the bubble gum gift

Scripture Gum:

.pdf Single Tag

.pdf Full Page Tags

Several years ago, I received this set of scriptures for my birthday, and it has been one of my favorite and most-used gifts! I remember receiving scripture study gum when I was younger also. It had a rhyme similar to this. (I found several versions of the rhyme on Pinterest and used them to create my own.) It would be a fun Primary/Sunday School/ Young Mens or Young Womens gift with just the gum, or for a baptism/bigger gift you could attach it to scriptures or scripture stickers.

Thanks for visiting! I hope this helps you with your next gifts. If you use any of these tags I'd love to see pictures and hear about it. Leave a comment/photo below.

Preschool For the tWINs

Last year Mr. Jackson and I were in a neighborhood preschool co-op group. This year he's in kindergarten and his sisters were so excited to start preschool, but I didn't want to commit to anything as involved this year. They don't know that they don't get to go to kindergarten for two years... but they do know they have to be 5 to go... oh well... they'll figure it out. Hopefully. I'm not going to tell them...

I decided we'd keep it low-key this year and just do some fun learning activities at home. We can focus on the letters next year. I also know myself and my lack of motivation halfway through a project. I knew I'd need some kind of organization and a PLAN. I started early and I gathered ideas (mostly via Pinterest). Then I went to the Walmart.

I had seen several preschool/learning shelf ideas on Instagram and Pinterest, and I loved the idea. 

I bought this cute shelf and these three baskets from Walmart to commit myself to the shelf idea. I used it as a book shelf for a few months before it was time to stock it with preschool activities.

Yes, it is in my living room. I knew that if I put it somewhere out of sight, the whole idea would also be out of mind.

I made a list of themes that I would use each week. 

I chose things based on the books and toys we already owned. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on this. (Some favorites: princesses, dinosaurs, zoo, weather, and body.)

My list is super high-tech... 

From there I made lists of all the books, toys/games, and other activities I could think of for each theme. I needed a plan before I ever started or else I would give up. 

I added holiday/seasonal themes for specific times throughout the year. 

I made a rough list of things we'd try to do each day and the amount of time each activity would normally take (this is VERY flexible- we sometimes just sit and read books).  The night before Jackson started kindergarten, I set up the girls' school area.

Shelf setup:

• Theme signs- I pre-made a sign for each theme, so I don't have to scramble each week.
• Felt Letter Board- I also found this at Walmart. It is, admittedly, just for me. This shelf is in my living room, so I'd like to look a little bit put together.
• Theme toy decorations- I try to put something on top (usually including a book) to help the girls recognize the theme of the week since they can't read yet.
• Worksheet basket- This is where all the papers go before they've been completed. Coloring sheets, crafts, tracing and cutting worksheets, etc.
• Activities basket- This is where all the "stuff" goes. Small pieces, games, puzzles, sticker books, etc.
• Finished basket- this is where all the finished papers go- including the ones that come home from kindergarten. We keep them for the week then toss them. It has helped keep the random papers from taking over my house.
• Book cubby- This is where the books go! They all relate to the theme somehow. I don't try to arrange them in any order because they get pulled out throughout the day.

The last two cubbies have been switched around a little according to our needs, but here is what we've been using them for lately:

• Activity cubby- This is where the activities that are too big for the basket go. Large games and puzzles, hands-on activities, etc.
• Supply cubby- This is where we keep the supplies needed for the crafts, worksheets, and weekly setup. The box with supplies (scissors, crayons, glue, and pencils- all labelled because twins fight and are extremely possessive), stapler, blue painters tape to attach things to the wall. 

I usually wait until the day before to print off the worksheets I find so they don't get spread all over the house before we use them. If you're interested in the worksheets, jump over to my Facebook group- I post links there. I found most of them on Pinterest.

You may have also seen that we have snack time during our preschool lessons. Snacks are very simple with very little thought or prep. I usually just grab something from the pantry or fridge. The snacks can go with the theme if you want, or you can serve carrots and crackers every day!

Here are a few of the other themes we've done so far:

The very first day of our at-home preschool, the girls thought their friends were coming over for school, but luckily Daddy broke the news to them that it would just be the three of us.

They were fine with that information once we actually started our lesson. 

It lasted about 45 minutes and we only had preschool 3 of the 4 days that first week. The lessons are shorter or longer depending on their moods and mine. We keep it flexible so if something comes up we can do it. It's been fun so far and the girls are loving it. I've found that it is also a great time to bond with them and get stuff done while they are working on projects. I'm excited to see their progress throughout the year.

Let me know if you have any questions about the games, activities, or books we use.