Heart-felt Christmas

I struggle with Christmas.. Not Christmas the way it should be but Christmas the way we have made it.

 I hate it when I have settled it in my heart what each child is receiving from us, and then I hear what other parents are getting for their children and I start second guessing myself. Start to feel like I don't love my Children because we decided not to spend those amounts of money on them.

I HATE the thought of buying something plastic that will get a few weeks worth of play and then be forgotten and by next Christmas will have been dropped off at the local Goodwill.

I want to give gifts that will: create meaningful memories, Develop life skills, enrich lives.

I struggle with buying gifts for my friends.

I don't want to hastily buy something that has no meaning just for the sake of giving.

I want something that will be meaningful and heartfelt and will say, I KNOW you and LOVE you.

Therefore, I often over think the gift and end up with buying nothing. :( So if you're my friend and didn't receive a gift from me now you know why.

So here is a Glimpse at our Christmas as we tried to find that balance between plastic and heartfelt.

Haircuts for the 2 older Girls..  ANY HAIRCUT THEY WANTED!! (because they've been begging me for haircuts for a long time!)

Staci sporting her new cut. ADORABLE shoulder length hair. 8 inches shorter than before.

 Kristina, Sporting her CUTE new bob.

Which brings me the their favorite gift of all: Fashion scrapbooks. a sketch book, modge podge and a stack of catalogs. They then create a fashion scrapbook by cutting and pasting outfits, make up, and other things they like. then covering each page in modge podge for safe keeping. (bonding time for mom and daughters, creating opportunities for 'thats not modest' talks.)

 Staci even created a page of  'What NOT to wear.'

This fashion scrapbook was so much fun even for me and I am sure we are going to make many wonderful memories and develop a healthy sense of style over the next few years as we work on these scrapbooks.

Kristina, hard at work on her Fashion design book from Amazon. (life skills)

Mitchell and his TOYS! One for Mitch and one for daddy! (not sure about this one, but I know he and his Daddy sure bonded over these trucks!)

We had sooo much fun watching him with his Radio Control trucks. and then we laughed even harder as we watched the video of him later.

 Staci hard at work on her knitting loom. (life skills) as I write this she is all but done with a head warmer!!

Hadassah hard at work cooking with her new kitchen. (life skills) (role play)

Usborne books have never let us down. (books= life skills)

I'll leave you with this pic of Miss Haditude after her appointment at her big sis's beauty salon.