a homemade christmas wreath

Somethings in the air this season. I'm feeling really crafty. And creative. And ready to play. So on Tuesday during Elsie's nap, I took Ivar outside to gather pine branches to make a Christmas wreath. 

I have made a wreath one time before, when we lived out in Montana. It was at the Advent Retreat at Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp and though I remember having made a wreath, I didn't remember the technique at all, But I did remember that I thought it was easy enough that I boasted I would never have to purchase a wreath again. 

And I'd say that again. It is pretty easy, but it is also very prickly. 

I didn't have a wire base to built my wreath on, but I did have two wire hangers from the dry cleaners. Keeping the hooks as they were (so handy for hanging later!), I just bent the triangles into circles and then used wire to tie them about an inch apart to provide a bit of a wider foundation.

I also didn't have green floral wire. But I did have white string. I started by tying my bottom most layer and then adding more and more. By the end, I was able to tuck little pieces in strategically so that I covered up the white string. The wire would have made it a whole lot easier, but it turned out great! And for the bargain price of zero dollars, I'd say this was a great afternoon project.

 ...and check out this sweet picture from that Advent Retreat in Montana. We lived out in Montana for a winter while I wrote my masters thesis and Rory wrote his weather software. Annika and Jedd lived in the cottage at the Bible Camp and we lived in the nurses cabin. It was a dreamy six months, living on Flathead Lake, sharing most suppers with Annika and Jedd, and spending my afternoons and evenings with my adorable nieces. What a dream! And seven years later I am so glad we lived so fully and so freely before we started a family. What a sweet season to have shared.

vertigo treatment!

A few Fridays ago I woke up with a violent case of vertigo. I've only had one episode before when Ivar was about six months old, so I was really surprised. For six hours I felt terrible. The pictures weren't attached to the walls, the walls weren't attached to the room, things moved far away and zoomed up close. It was awful.

I stayed on the couch most of the day and had a moment in motherhood I'll never forget when Rory left me for an hour to take a sales call. Elsie jumped on the couch while sympathetically reminding me, "Mama sick. Me sick too. I snuggle with mama!" And then would jump on my body, snuggle and get up to jump again and I would commend myself for being such a hero.

By mid afternoon I was able to eat toast and keep it down. And by the evening I was able to sleep, but only on my left hand side. If I lay flat on my back or on my right side the whole world went helter skelter again. 

It was like this for six days. I could only lay on my left side. Any rolling over would bring on an episode. I was better when standing or sitting, but I could never throw my head too far back, or lean it on the headrest of the car. And most of the time if I moved my head there was a delay for the picture to catch up with my eyes. Like I was watching slow motion, except I knew I was moving normal.

It was gross. I went to a chiropractor, I prayed, and I was just about to go to an ear, nose and throat doctor when a friend at our small group told us about a procedure his chiropractor does for him when he has a vertigo spell. When everyone left we googled it. It required me getting on the kitchen table and Rory doing some big movements with my head and when we watched it done on youtube Rory politely declined. It was going to end poorly, probably with sickness.

But then Rory found a video that seemed compelling and the exercise she recommended was worth a shot. It was less jerky. So with the help of youtube, Rory coached me through a series of motions. The series took about two minutes and the first round was really uncomfortable because I had to hold a pose through the uncontrollable spinning. We waited 30 minutes and then did it again. And that time I heard something and felt immediate relief. We waiting another 30 minutes and did the exercises two more rounds with no spinning and that night I slept on my right side!

It was pretty miraculous for me. I was really weary from a week of messed up vision. And I was beginning to wonder if this was going to be my new normal. I am so grateful it is not.

But this video will be! I've had a few more dizzy moments since, and each time I do my half somersault move. It's amazing.

The likelihood that you will ever have a spell of vertigo is pretty slim. I've since learned that my Grandpa Harrington suffered terribly from this, which is fascinating to me. That it might be genetic? I have no idea. But I am writing all of this for two reasons: 1) so that I have quick access to this video whenever or wherever I need it. 2) in case you ever hear of someone who needs relief. This little video is worth a shot. It worked for me and I'm so, so glad it did!

Preparing for Advent

Advent is the season on the church calendar where we prepare our hearts for Christmas. But as a mom, I feel a real responsibility to prepare for Advent, so that I can take the lead in reminding my kids the real reason for the season.

Ivar is four now, and traditions are being set. Rory and I are talking really intentionally about how we want our kids to remember their childhood, how we want to create traditions, how we want things to feel and look and smell. One huge decision is that we want our kids to have Christmas morning at our own home, and we want to celebrate Christmas eve at our own church. These are both things we remember from our own childhoods, and want for our kids. But it means not joining our extended family for those times. Thankfully (and I am SO thankful!) all families involved have been gracious and understanding.

What I've learned is that building tradition takes intention. But what I remember about my own childhood is that it is the little things. We always had an advent wreath on our kitchen table during December. And it was lit at each supper. Sometimes we would turn the lights out after everyone was done eating and sing a christmas carol. I'm not sure how many times we actually did this, but it is etched in my mind with the happiest and warmest of memories.

So my goal is to keep it simple. I spent Sunday night looking on pinterest for Advent Ideas, and felt convicted that you could really overdo it and loose the whole point of the season. So I googled for Christ-expectant Advent ideas and found an awesome article that spelled out a simple Advent plan, the one I remember from my childhood. So here's my plan:

1. Make an advent wreath. Maybe just five mason jars filled with sand with three purple, one pink and one white candle. A good explanation can be found here. And keep it on the kitchen table all of December.
2. Light one candle each week leading up to Christmas. I love the anticipation this builds. I remember loving church in December and watching the acolyte light one more candle each week...because it meant Christmas Eve was that much closer! Ah! The anticipation!
3. Eat our supper and then turn out the lights. I know from experience that this always quiets the room.
4. Read the scripture for that day and sing a christmas carol. We'll add one carol a week so by Christmas my kids should know the words to four carols.
5. Pray and thank God for sending his baby boy Jesus for us.
6. Turn the lights back on.

So that's my Advent plan. If you have older kids (elementary or middle school, I still recommend The Family Book of Advent, but it still seems a bit too involved for Ivar and Elsie.) How about you? Do you have any favorite Advent traditions?

(The picture above is my cousin Sarah (the blondie) and me dressed up as angels for the nativity we act out each year with the cousins. My grandpa always read the scripture and even though he died when I was fifteen, I can hear his voice clear as day when I think of him reading, "In those days, a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered...")

kid quotes

I never put these pictures up, but this was such a happy day for us I just want the pictures documented. These pictures were from a Monday in October that was so stunning my kids ended up barefoot in the river. And one week later there was snow accumulating on the ground which made me very glad we had soaked up this glorious last bit of fall weather.

Here's some kid quotes to kick off your weekend:

*I overheard Ivar and Elsie in the living room. Ivar said, "Now you'll be in big, big, big, big trouble!" And Elsie shot back, "No! I'll be in teeny, teeny, teeny big trouble!"

*I was trying to snuggle with Elsie holding her like a baby. I said, "you're still my little baby." She sat right up in my arms, looked me in the eye and said gruffly, "I'm not a baby! I'm a sister!"

*Two times at small group our kids haven't gone to bed before the company came. So they got to be a part of everyone's check in. Last night they listened patiently and when it was time for us I asked Elsie if she had something to share and she lifted her hands in the air and announced, "I grew up! I'm tall!" The other time they got to share Ivar ran away for a while and came back to show everyone that we had got new toothpaste at Target.

the christmas house

I saw this idea on pinterest and pinned it to my "I wanna make this" board. And 24 hours later, I had made it. Because it was that awesome of an idea. The original I saw used white lights, but it turns out when you take two kids to Ace Hardware to pick out Christmas lights, white is not an option. Kids know a boring chirstmas light when they see one. So we went with "the pretty color ones!"

I also didn't have a box big enough, so I pieced together three boxes that we had with duct tape and supported the whole structure with a couch on one side and an end table on the other.

If you do this on your own (and you totally should!) I have a few pointers:
           ***Obviously making one of these is pretty obvious. Obviously. That's obvious. 
                 But just in case you wanted to learn from my trial run I thought I'd share.

1. Go make a big order of toilet paper and paper towels on amazon prime to get your big box.
2. Purchase your lights. I used 200 lights for this beauty. Because, you know.
3. Using a sharp knife, and making sure no children are inside the box, poke little x's in the top of the roof. Place the lights as you go! Christmas lights are spaced way closer than one would think, and I had to poke all new holes.
4. Poke the lights all the way through the x's...so that just the wire is showing on the roof. It makes for a brighter fort, and a more secure light set up (they were falling out before I figured this out.

And then enjoy! Until we get our Christmas tree this little Christmas house is casting a beautiful glow in our living room. And since it is snowing and twenty degrees, it seems right to have the glow of christmas lights warming our house. It has become quite the cozy family hangout spot. Tonight we are going to eat milk and cookies in the Christmas House.

After the kids go to bed.