The Years I Will I Miss

The end is in sight, and the Medstud will no longer be the Medstud (although he will always be a stud to me). June 3rd, 2016, after eight years of being a student, which makes up our entire marriage, the Medstud will be graduating with his M.D. and M.P.H.(Masters of Public Health). To say I'm proud is an understatement. These last eight years have been full, and I praise the Lord for them! These are the years I will miss. I'm sure I'll say the same of the next season...but I will really, truly cherish these years in my heart. The Lord has been very gracious to us. He has taught us much and grown us individually and together. If I had to use a phrase or mantra, it would be "teamwork." The kids even say it now when cleaning or helping out. 

March 18th, 2016, will probably be a bigger day than graduation. This day is known as "Match Day." It's an annual rite of passage for medical students. And a day when the students will learn which residency program they will train at for the next three to seven years. It's a pretty big deal! This day will determine where we will live and call home for a season. I already told the Medstud I will cry no matter where we go, good or bad... I'm just being honest. I love our family. I love our friends. I love our Church (it's our 2nd home). I love California and all its smog and traffic. I'm a Cali girl. My kids are Cali kids (ask them about swimming in the middle of December). This has been home. If we end up anywhere outside of Los Angeles, I will trust God's good and sovereign plan for our lives (remind me of this blog when the time comes and I am sobbing my eyes out).  

Another reflection I have as we end our year is the fact that we have three children all before this ride is over. When the Medstud and I were 1st married, we "planned" to have children after medical school was over. Boy, am I ever glad we didn't get what we planned. After a total of 6 miscarriages, we now have three kids!!! What sweet blessings they are and a joy to have gone through this with. 

So much to rejoice over: praying friends who have stood alongside us and encouraged us; a family who has cared and brought us meals and have watched the kids for date nights; good neighbors, that I'm sure can't be found anywhere else on this planet. I think of the list of praises, the people God has placed in our lives to love us, His constant provision and care for us.

I'm just grateful for it all. So, if we come to mind, please pray for us and this next year of life. Pray that we enter it with thanksgiving and bring glory to the name that is above all names! 

Lastly, my encouragement for you. Count your blessings, big and small. Recall to mind all the Lord has done  and allowed in your life. Know that His ways are always better than ours. All things done by our awesome God is always for our good and for His glory. 

xo,

MY

Keep Calm, It's Only 40 days until Christmas

Do not! I repeat, DO NOT allow from now to Christmas be a complete whirlwind! With all the preparing and shopping and planning that has to be done, let us not neglect the preparation of our hearts. If we want to keep Christ in Christmas, it begins with checking ourselves. I understand the prepping and organizing is fun, well maybe for some of us and maybe for others it's no fun at all and anxiety inducing. So how does our family keep Christ the focus during the holidays? First, we worship Christ ALL year long, not just on Easter and Christmas. But you say, "we only have 40 days until Christmas." This is true, and it's not too late to let the real preparations begin.

A Heart Check

Christmas is not for being the best gift giver. Or for running around like mad. Or for being the hostess with the mostest. Unless this is your gifting, the holidays are no time to begin practicing. If we are physically present but our hearts are far from arriving, perhaps it would be better not to make the gourmet meal from scratch and ditch the hand-made gift, keeping you up at night for hours on end. Maybe the better way would be to stick to what you do well. I've learned that while I enjoy being in the kitchen, I'd much rather be around the people I am celebrating with. For me, this means planning ahead and having all things made before our guests arrive. I'm into hospitality and decorating, but I am also into simple. What does it look like for you or your family? My encouragement is this: figure it out now to avoid the whirlwind. 

Here are some ideas:

Shop early, beat the crowds, beat the lines

Shop online: Amazon/Amazon Prime Now, if you live in a major city Google Express, use Ebates to earn cash back for shopping online, find promo codes (Ebates also helps to apply coupons) 

On the flip-side, ditch the coupons and sales (you can't buy your time back. Saving a couple of bucks here and there may not be worth it)

Ask friends and family for their wishlist

Have a Secret Santa or Elfster 

Create a list of things to do, prioritize it and start erasing the things that REALLY don't  need to be done

Know ahead of time the people you want to visit

Allow for changes and curve balls (sickness, flat tire, overcooked chicken, etc.)

Be flexible

Christmas Countdown

Create a bucket list (I'll share ours with you in a few days)

Instead of giving the kids a treat or a trinket to open every day as part of their Advent, they open an envelope that has an activity. For example: camp out in the living room or have a tickle party. 

The Story of Christmas by Mary Packard

" The calendar features 24 jewel-like miniature board books nestled in a three-paneled, stand-alone backer. The books are numbered 1 through 24, and, like the peek-a-boo windows on an Advent calendar, are meant to be opened one per day from December 1st through Christmas Eve. Read in sequence, they capture the magic of the first Christmas, from Gabriel's visit to Mary (Book 4) to the Three Wise Men gazing at the star (Book 9) to Jesus' birth (Book 24). Each book is one of four different trim sizes and features a gold thread loop so that after it's read, it can be hung on the Christmas tree."

What God Wants For Christmas: An Interactive Nativity for Children (Book and CD) by Barbara Rainey 
This one gets me every year! It's a countdown to be done a week out from Christmas.

Note: You may be crying at the end. I sob as our kids figure out what God wants. 

"Christmas in their hands. In their hearts. And out of the box. Unwrap the real meaning and wonder of Christmas in each colorful box of this interactive nativity for children. The beautifully illustrated poem tells God's Christmas story through each character. With them, your child journeys to Bethlehem, and to the surprise ending of box #7, peeking inside the heart of God."

Prepare Him Room: Celebrating the Birth of Jesus Family Devotional 
by Marty Machowski 

 
This is a wonderful devotional! The activities take a little more time and effort, but oh man it's good!
"Christmas traditions become a treasured part of a family’s heritage, passed down from generation to generation. This brand new, four-week devotional guides your family on an unforgettable Advent journey, exploring some of the most fantastic prophecies in the Bible and how God fulfills them in Christ. From Bible devotions that tell the Christmas story through the eyes of the prophets to an original Christmas short story called “Bartimaeus,” Prepare Him Room helps you build family Christmas traditions around Christ. The memorable and meaningful activities, songs, and stories of Prepare Him Room will become the fabric of your family’s Christmas memories. So gather them to watch the amazing gospel story unfold every December for generations to come!"

Praying we prepare Him room, and when Christmas is over, our worship of Him continues. May the holidays be a time of glorifying and magnifying our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). 

xo

M.Y.

Fall Bucket List: #13 Create a Tree of Thanks

It's November 1st folks! Countdown to Thanksgiving begins! 

Last night the kids and I culminated our last day of October by creating a Tree of Thanks. We used postal wrapping paper to paint the trunk and grass; you could also make branches. And then we taped it to the wall. It's about 3 feet tall. 

Over the next 30 days, we will use coffee filter leaves we made a few weeks back to write what we are grateful for. 

 

The leaves can be taped on. I still need to add 1 Thessalonians 5:18 to the trunk of the tree, 

"Give thanks in everything."

Lastly, every day we will read a thankfulness scripture.

 Today's verse is,

 "Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever," Psalm 107:1. 

Be sure to share your tree of thanks! And all the things you are thankful to our good Lord for!

xo,

M.Y. 

The One Anothers

Christian, do not buy into unbiblical independence, self-sufficiency, sitting in your private life with no vibrant connection with a fellow Sister in the faith. We are called to be effective, collectively with one another. Need accountability? Need to be challenged in your faith to grow in the likeness of Christ? Ladies, find a mature, wise Christian woman and ask for help. The greatest growth I have ever experienced in my walk is when a fellow Sister(s) has been involved in my life and I in hers. We would only be fooling ourselves if we thought we could go at this alone. Already have that Sister in mind? If not, pray that God would allow you to find one. The body of Christ is filled with many. And like a friend reminded me, there's probably no way she will say no to the invitation of helping you grow in Christ. All you need to do is simply ask.

Encouragingly,

M.Y.

• Love one another (John 15:17)

• Be devoted to one another in brotherly love… (Romans 12:10)

• Honor one another above yourselves. (Romans 12:10)

• Live in harmony with one another… (Romans 12:16)

• Love one another… (Romans 13:8)

• Instruct one another. (Romans 15:14)

• Have equal concern for each other. (I Corinthians 12:25)

• Serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:13)

• Carry each other’s burdens… (Galatians 6:2)

• Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. (Ephesians 5:19)

• Teach…[one another] (Colossians 3:16)

• Admonish one another (Colossians 3:16)

• Make your love increase and overflow for each other. (I Thessalonians 3:12)

• Love each other. (I Thessalonians 4:9)

• Encourage each other…(I Thessalonians 4:18)

• Encourage each other… I Thessalonians 5:11)

• Build each other up… (I Thessalonians 5:11)

• Encourage one another daily… Hebrews 3:13)

• Spur one another on toward love and good deeds. (Hebrews 10:24)

• Encourage one another. (Hebrews 10:25)

• Do not slander one another. (James 4:11)

• Confess your sins to each other… (James 5:16)

• Pray for each other. (James 5:16)

• Love one another deeply, from the heart. (I Peter 3:8)

• Love one another. (I John 3:11)

• Love one another. (I John 3:23)

• Love one another. (I John 4:7)

• Love one another. (I John 4:11)

• Love one another. (I John 4:12)

• Love one another. (II John 5)

Fall Bucket List: #12 Coffee Filter Leaves

I hope the ideas below will make your fall a little more festive, especially if you live in Los Angeles, where the heat isn't letting up and swimming in October is perfectly normal. 

The kids and I recently made these fall leaves using coffee filters and watercolor paint. I found a leaf template online which made the cutting easier. I didn't follow my rule of placing newspaper to cover the table. Oops! Good thing the paint is washable. If you don't have watercolor paint or coffee filters lying around, the dollar store will. This will be the least expense craft known to man, with extras to last a couple of falls. Unless, of course, you need those coffee filters for some morning brews ;)  We will most likely use the leaves as part of our thankful tree come November 1st.

I enjoy getting creative with the kids and use it as an opportunity to sit together and talk. A moment to slow down and just be. Plus when mom is involved, the kids' attention span lasts longer and their interest peak a bit more. 

   

We are also reading fall-related books. This is one we have enjoyed! 

"The infectious rhyming prose paired with scriptural passages, give gratitude and glory to God as early learners discover the Fantastic Gifts of Fall."

Here is a list of other books we recently checked-out from the library:

Apples and Pumpkins

By Rockwell, Anne F.

Autumn Leaves

By Robbins, Ken

Awesome Autumn

By Goldstone, Bruce

Bunny and Bee Favorite Colors

By Williams, Sam

Clifford's First Autumn

By Bridwell, Norman

Fall Is Here!

By Jones, Frankie

Fall Leaves

By Curry, Don L.

Fletcher and the Falling Leaves

By Rawlinson, Julia

Flora's Very Windy Day

By Birdsall, Jeanne

How Do You Know It's Fall?

By Owen, Ruth

It's Fall!

By Glaser, Linda

Kevin Discovers Autumn

By Slegers, Liesbet

Leaves Fall Down

Learning About Autumn Leaves

By Bullard, Lisa

xo,

M.Y. 

                                                           

Christmas Wrap: Get Your Tickets

Back in August I listed some resources for Y'all! Today is the day to sign-up for this year's Christmas Wrap hosted by Children's Hunger Fund.  This could be a wonderful way to start your holiday season and teach your kids the joy of giving! 

Toy Wrap – West (Sylmar, CA.)

Sign-ups open today October 1, 2015

Here are the available dates and times. 

Thursday 11/19; 6:00 – 9:00 PM

Saturday 11/21; 9:00 AM – NOON

Thursday 12/3; 6:00 – 9:00 PM

Saturday 12/5; 9:00 AM – NOON and 3:00 – 6:00 PM

If you don't happen to reserve a ticket (this event fills up quickly) you can always volunteer all year long to help pack goods! 

CHF West Warehouse

13931 Balboa Blvd, Sylmar, CA 91342

- See more at http://childrenshungerfund.org/events/

xo,

MY

Fall Bucket List

Yesterday, the kids and I decorated to commemorate the start of Fall.  Although, the weather here in Los Angeles would say otherwise! We were just in the pool yesterday morning :)

I made this interchangeable wreath last year using floral foam and twine from Michaels. The bow and mini laundry clips came from the dollar store. And the banner was a free printable from the internet. 

We also made a Fall bucket list of things we have done in the past and things we would like to do. The kids had fun taping leaves on the door (also from the dollar store) and sang "All the Leaves are Falling"

Here is our bucket list:

1. Carve a pumpkin

2. Apple Picking

3.Visit a pumpkin patch. 

We enjoy Underwood Farms. It's less expensive if you go during the week.

4. Go on a hayride

5. Bake a pumpkin pie

6. Go on a leaf walk

7. Salt dough leaf prints 

8. Campfire and s'mores

9. Watch a Fall sunset at the beach

10. Decorate home with Fall decor

11. Drink hot cocoa. 

The kids don't dig apple cider

12. Coffee filter leaves 

13. Create a thankful tree

14. Volunteer at the Children's Hunger Fund

15. Write "thankful for you" cards

16. Have a cookie exchange party

17. Make homeless goodie bags

18. Have a countdown to Thanksgiving

19. Checkout-out Fall related books at the library

20. Take Fall Family Photos

If you would like to create your Fall Bucket List

The Homeschool Share Blog has a free editable one! 

Happy Fall! And stay tuned for more details about our bucket list! 

xo,

MY