The Heart Of Christmas ♥ #1

Homemade:

I just finished up a knitted cotton burp cloth for my new nephew "Jellybean" who is 2 months old. :) Of course it's really for his mama since 8 week old babies aren't really interested in gifts. ;) And for his daddy, and anyone else that happens to be burping the little fellow. (Shhh! He's a spitter. But he's so cute you can't even mind!)

It's a variegated yarn in greens and blues. I really am a horrible knitter so I'm not sure, really, why I took this project on. Maybe because little Jellybean is just so stinkin' cute I just look at a picture of him and get the urge to make him crafty gifts! It took about 2 weeks to finish. And so I've proudly set aside one homemade gift in the "finished" pile! Woohoo! I just love that feeling of accomplishment from finishing something you lovingly made for someone you care about, don't you?

Gift:
I need ideas for a homemade project for a 5 year old boy - my other nephew who is Jellybean's big brother. Any ideas? I was thinking maybe THIS. I'm not sure if he'll like it. What do you think?

Focus:
The other day it hit me that it's almost November already and I felt that rising dread... You know the one. The dread you get when you think about all the people you "have to" get Christmas gifts for and how are you going to afford it, make it fair, get everyone something they like... STOP! Seriously I had to give myself a mental shake! This is not what it's about. Of course I have to find a way to show everyone I love and appreciate them, but dreading it and stressing over it is not going to express anything positive to them at all. How would you feel if you could hear someone's thoughts as they looked at you and thought, "Oh crud! I have to get you something for Christmas and I don't know what to get! This is going to cost too much money. I hate Christmas shopping." How would that make you feel? UNappreciated, that's what! Like the person thought you are costing them too much time, money, and effort. So instead of focusing on spending limits and making sure everyone has the expensive toy of their choice, let's remember the greatest gifts are LOVE-based and not guilt, money, calendar date, wishlist, or responsibility based. The gift of a new My Little Pony or Transformer will last 3 weeks if you're lucky. The gift of quality time together, treasured memories, and kind words will last a lifetime.
And lets not ever let ourselves forget the Greatest Gift... When we try to make Him revolve around our holliday instead of revolving our holliday around Him, it's like saying to Him that He costs too much time, money, and effort so we'll add Him in as an afterthought. He should be the reason and motivation for all that we do, not just at Christmas but always.
"Lord, help me to keep my eyes on You! Help me to deal with my worrying and stressing and to focus instead on the gifts of love. Amen!"


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