Somehow I managed to bring the girls, Eliana and Isabelle, out shopping with me last week to TJ Maxx. After struggling and failing to hold Isabelle in the Baby K’tan AND lift Eliana up into the cart (thank you kind woman for putting Eliana in her seat for me!) I managed to spill Eliana’s graham crackers which resulted in her screaming “cookie! cookie! noooo!” Mind you this was a late shopping trip at 12:00 pm which is pushing it right into Eliana’s nap time. A few minutes after another nice woman helped me clean up the graham crackers, Eliana stopped whaling and I had 2.47 minutes to rush through the store before she ran out of her remaining “cookies”. Thankfully Isabelle stayed fast asleep through this whole ordeal. I didn’t manage to find much (I was looking for a glass dome thing), but I did find this sweet pinhole camera and thought of Elijah.
Then it dawned on me, Christmas is coming soon! So I thought this build it yourself pin hole camera would make a good Christmas gift and was a nice mix of do-it yourself and store bought. It will help put the boy’s imagination to work, too! I can’t complain about that. We don’t give many gifts for Christmas, so we like the gifts we do give to be either homemade or meaningful. But there is so much intimation coming from the internet to make these awesome DIY gifts. Yes, I am pointing fingers at you, Pinterest. I could get completely carried away with homemade gifts that would take me close to two months to make, or I could keep it simple.
By keeping it simple I mean, get the kids something we know and hope they will enjoy. For example, a secondhand doll house for Eliana and two or three unique gifts for Elijah. As for everyone else in the family (that lives in the area), easy and small homemade gifts. I am thinking some traditional homemade fudge, yum! Or maybe take it a notch up with some hand-packed seed bombs with flowers we know grow well in the area. We do live in Florida, and although it is winter… flowers still grow here in the winter!
I know I could also be proper and send out Christmas cards with a picture of the offspring to my brother and sisters and aunts and uncles and dad and mom and cousins not living close by, but I am not very proper. Sorry guys, maybe one day I will get my act together!
So what are some of your ideas for a homemade Christmas? Do you have the guts to go all out and knit some scarfs or are you intimidated like me and opting for the simple route? It sure can be stressful, but when it gets overwhelming it helps to remind myself of the true reason for this season, which isn’t gifts!
For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Might God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
