Now THIS is What Christmas is All About . . .

Don't mind the little advert after 1:52 . . . I've never heard of Busted Halo. They might be a lovely website of people, but I have no idea who they are so I'm not trying to give them an endorsement by sharing this video. What I am giving a shout out to is the real reason for Christmas, a short lesson on Advent, and why we've decided to use a Jesse Tree this year to help the kids get in the real spirit and state of mind to celebrate it.

They're quite young yet, Little Miss is 4 1/2 and Kee-ku is 2, but I'm hoping that sharing the month of December with them in this way as we anticipate Christmas will help to de-emphasize the mentality that the world puts on us that Christmas is a giant gift orgy and that December is all about more MORE MORE!

Over the next month I hope you'll visit often and share in the true spirit of the One who came to dwell among us.  

Much love and God's richest blessings on you and yours this season,


P.S. I'm aware that Advent actually started on Sunday, November 27th, but we were all out of town and our stuff was not set up yet, so we're playing it cool realistic and starting our Jesse Tree devotions on December 1st. :)

**For more info and backstory on what this Jesse Tree business is all about, there's a great post explaining all about it on Rocks in My Dryer.** 
 **One more thing - - I came across The Great ADVENTure blog the other day . . . there are some really creative ways to incorporate food into your lessons for the day  as well . . . maybe next year?**

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Are You Ready to Make a Mitten Commitment?

It's been awhile since I did a post about charitable crafting . . . well, TIS THE SEASON, PEOPLE. :)

I just got an email today alerting me to The Mitten Commitment.

The basic idea? It's cold out there (I live in Michigan where it is already getting quite chilly and WET - - today was especially glum), and not everyone has the proper attire to face the weather.

Here's where you come in (the little blurb below was taken from their website):

Every year, millions of Americans face cold winter weather without sufficiently warm clothing. Simplicity Creative Group and OttLite have joined together to sponsor the Mitten Commitment – an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the less fortunate by providing handmade mittens. All mittens will be donated to the Salvation Army for distribution in mid-December, 2011. Handmade mittens are special, unique, and especially warm!

Mittens can be made using any medium (sew, knit crochet!), and in any size, using any pattern you want!  If you check out the Mitten Commitment page, there are a bunch of free patterns linked up at the bottom in case you don't want to go renegade on a design or need some more how-to.  

When you've finished whipping up a pair (or several - - you can do this!), send the completed mittens to:

OttLite / The Mitten Commmitment
220 West 7th Avenue,
Tampa, FL 33602

Easy as pie.  (I'd say "easy peasy" but I have a real distaste for that phrase for some reason, so I will stick with the pie thing even though I do not really believe making pie is all that easy.  Especially the crust.  Eating it, however, now THAT is quite easy.  Oh wait . . . maybe that's what it means?  It must be.  Yes . . . so getting back to the point I was trying to make an hour ago, EASY AS PIE.)

Now let's see some mittens, people! 

And pies!

Will someone PLEASE MAKE ME A PIE?!

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And It's a Top!

 I've been waiting for quite some time to see this come together, it had been so long I had nearly forgotten about it!

Remember when I signed up to make a block for ALS as part of the Sew Fresh Fabrics Scrap Bee?

No?

Allow me to refresh.

This was the stack of fabric I got:

Fabrics from top left to bottom right: White and Red Tweet Tweet Birds by Studio E, Summertime by Barbara Jones for Henry Glass, Robert Kaufman Red Daisies and Dots, Mingle Polka Dot in Red by Monaluna for Robert Kaufman, and Willow Wren by Alexander Henry.

And here was the block I pieced together:

Made with Happy Zombie's You Are Here block pattern.

I just caught an update that the whole top has finally been pieced together and is ready to be backed and sent along!

Sew Fresh Fabrics: At Long Last - Scrap Bee Progress

And all I did was make 1 block.  Man, this really makes me want to join another bee.  :)

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