Finding Joy this Christmas

As excited as I am about Christmas, I am apprehensive as well. This will be the first Christmas without my Meme. As a result, we will be doing things differently this year. For instance, instead of Christmas Eve at Meme's house, it will be at my Mom and Dad's home. The last time my mom hosted was the Christmas of my 6th grade year, just after Papa had died in November. My memories of that evening are bittersweet. I remember laughing hysterically while playing a mock game of Family Feud with my cousins, but I also remember the candle burning on the piano in remembrance of our dear grandfather. I remember going up to my room because my stomach hurt so badly from indigestion and, well, grief. I expect Christmas to be bittersweet again in this new season. We will laugh as we play "Dirty Santa" with our $5 gifts. We will savor an assortment of thoughtful stocking gifts. And we will probably cry.

On Christmas morning, we will enjoy the presence of a new family member: Jill's fiance Brian, who already fits in to the family so well. That is definitely a change to look forward to! Christmas Day dinner will be without my aunt and uncle and cousin, who have other plans that evening. Meme's "very special friend," Harold, will be joining us, however, and I am really looking forward to spending time with him. Mom is planning to bake a Christmas ham. We will play our annual Trivial Pursuit game, which will not be nearly as eventful without Meme trying to play for both teams. It will not be the Hardestys vs. the Hartzells, either, as it has always been. But we will find a different way to divide the teams, and it will be okay!

Despite the sadness that I know we will all share this holiday, I am confident that we will all have a wonderful time together. There will be tears, but there will also be lots of laughter and joy. This year my mom will be stepping up to bat as the hostess and matriarch, and the rest of us will step up a generation into our new roles, as well. God is faithful; he will see us through.

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
To guide the future, as He has the past.

The other night at Dollar General, I found an ornament that I am 100% positive Meme would have bought for me had she seen it this year. I would put a picture of it on here, but it is already packed away for our departure tomorrow. Tree branches spell out "Joy." Joy is my seldom-used middle name. Since I got married, I legally dropped the Joy to make room for my maiden name. Even so, Meme would often call me "Amy Joy." Sitting on top of the "J" is a beautiful cardinal, Meme's favorite bird (she collected birds and birdhouses). I bought it for myself and will consider it my gift from her this year. I can't help but think that she sent it my way!

Now I will leave the computer, wipe away my tears, and find joy this Christmas, because that's how Meme would have wanted it.

Frugal Comfort Food

Sometimes when I get home, I don't feel like cooking. Correction: that happens more than sometimes. My old standby used to be a soup and sandwich, but that gets old. In the last few months, I have discovered something that is quick to fix and comforting to eat, yet tastes like it comes straight from Cracker Barrel (or close, anyway).

Amy's Hash:

Scrub and slice one medium potato.

Chop 1/4 a small onion.

Fry the onion and the potato in oil or butter.

When potatoes are tender, cut up a slice or two of lunch meat ham and add to skillet.

Brown the entire mixture and remove from skillet.

Top with shredded cheese and chives and cover.

Fry two eggs over medium in the same skillet used above.

Place eggs on top of potato mixture.

Slather with ketchup.

Devour.

Yummmmmmmmm!

Besides the taste, another thing this meal has going for it is its versatility. I enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

You know I wouldn't leave you hanging without discussing the cost-effectiveness of my recipe, which happens to be very easy on the wallet. Each ingredients adds up to just a few cents.

I know I should have a picture and a cost breakdown, but I just don't feel like being that detailed at the moment.

How I did in 2010

Now that 2010 is over, I guess it's that time to consider how I did on my 10 goals for 2010 before I set new goals for 2011.

• Drop satellite TV - We did this and have adjusted well. I would say that I am almost completely over my withdrawal. Going from hundreds of channels to about 4 is rather jarring, but it was totally worth it!
• Replace Seth's vehicle - Seth got a 2008 Ford Ranger pickup truck last March and it is totally paid for.
• Pay off 2nd to last student loan - We did this several months ago and are now working on Seth's Sallie Mae loan.
• Organize/clean out the filing cabinet in our home office - Oh my, this still hasn't been done and it is driving me crazy. Whenever I have to find an important document, it takes forever!
• Learn a new craft (like crocheting or knitting) - I have learned how to do some basic crocheting, but I haven't really kept up with it.
• Make my own all-purpose cleaner, scouring powder, and laundry detergent - I have made all of these and use them regularly.
• Drink two quarts of water every day - I have been drinking more water since we stopped buying pop. I don't know if I drink a full 2 quarts, but I do know that I rarely feel parched when I leave school like I used to.
• Begin teaching flute lessons again - I now have 4 students and will have 5 in the new year!
• Get a summer job - I ended up working at Holiday World. I haven't decided about doing that again. It did help with the debt!
• Finish reading the Old Testament - I am almost through 2 Chronicles. Here are the books I still need to read for the first time in their entirety: Ezra, Nehemiah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Micah, Nahum, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. I definitely slacked on this goal. I must admit that I find the sheer volume of the Old Testament VERY intimidating.

I guess I did at least reasonably well on 8 out of 10 goals, so I will call that a success! How did you do on your goals for 2010?

Christmas Home Tour

Merry Christmas to all of my friends online! Today we are stuck inside due to 1/4 inch of ice coating everything outside. This is our 2nd day off school this week. It feels great to be off now, although I worry that at this rate, we will race through our built-in days too quickly and end up going to school into June. Since my sister is getting married June 4, that is not an option for me.

Below is my frugal wreath. It is frugal because I simply use the same grapevine wreath year-round and change the ribbons and decorations according to the season or holiday.

Here is the fall version of the wreath.

This is my sideboard in the "dining room" section of our great room.

Our pretty table. I just love the cute snowman candle. I think I received it as a gift back in high school and have been careful not to burn it too quickly. Guess I'm doing pretty well on that since I have been out of high school for almost 9 years!

Our little tree. The angel on top was the first tree topper my parents had when they got married, so it is very special to me. Notice the wrapped presents. That usually doesn't happen until school is out, but the snow days have given me time to do Christmas-y things.

Our living room mantle. Hidden in the gold garland are a quintet of electronic brass instruments that play Christmas songs. They light up blue when they play.

Side table in the "parlor" area of the great room.

Door to office.

My new nativity set. I got it at Kohl's for $30 on Black Friday. I love how the figures look more middle-Eastern than most nativity sets I see. Also, I like how they look like they are carved out of wood. Each one has a gold star somewhere on it and most of the characters are holding their hands over their hearts in devotion. The wooden mirror was made by my Papa, and the angel and plaque were my Meme's. I like how Meme's angel is looking over the scene, just as I imagine her watching over us from Heaven.

I decided to hang up the Christmas cards this year in the office so we can see all of them.

Our bedroom mantle.

I tried something Meme used to do...put lights and ornaments in a glass hurricane. I like the effect!

I hope you enjoyed the picture tour of our cozy home. We are so thankful for God's provision in our lives and for his most precious gift, Jesus! Merry Christmas!

The Trouble with Clutter

I confess. I have a severe clutter problem! Ever since I was a little girl, I have left a trail behind me wherever I go in the house. Think Pigpen from Peanuts, only instead of dirt, I am enveloped in a clutter cloud.

Just last week, my husband and I did some serious clutter busting in preparation for a church party we hosted. After the extremely DIFFICULT and TIME CONSUMING job of putting everything back in its place, I have been determined not to let the place get cluttered again...at least for a while? (I am not so naive as to think I am cured, but I'm on the right track.)

Some time ago on my favorite cleaning blog, I read a piece of advice that got me thinking. It went something like this...One habit of families who keep a clean house is that they look around before they leave a room to find something that needs to be returned to the room to which they're going. I'm sure the original post was more articulate than that, but you get the idea.

This week I have consciously been doing this every time I leave a room, and let me tell you, it really works! If I am headed to the kitchen and I see a glass on the end table, I take it to the dishwasher. It seems simple, but it is all too easy for me to ignore the clutter instead of doing something about it. I am determined to keep this up and create a new healthy habit for myself and my home.

When the Message is Forgotten

My whole life, I have been taught that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is meant to be shared with others. Others are people who haven't heard the message, right? Others are folks who have not grown up in a Christian home, right? Others are people you don't know very well, right?

Right...and WRONG!

The resounding question in my heart as of late is "How am I supposed to witness to people who already know the message of Christ?" In my life, I know family and friends who talk the Christian talk. They might go to church, pray, even serve on committees. But like the seeds that fell among the thorns in Matthew 13, the cares of the world and the allure of sin are choking their faith and leaving them gasping for air.

For others, friendship with Christ is a sweet memory. They used to practice spiritual disciplines, but they have fallen away from the habits of before. Christ is spoken of affectionately as a faithful old dog rather than the here-and-now God of the Universe who loves them more than they know.

Still others professed Christ in the past and have made a conscious decision to turn away. They know the story, but they have chosen to file it away in the intellect rather than cultivate it in the soul.

What do you say to someone who already knows the story? The fact is, sometimes those inside the Christian community need a witness to the truth of Christ just as much or more than the people "in the world." But what does it mean to share the Good News with these treasured souls?

As I write, the Lord is impressing a memory upon my heart. During my college years, I had some serious doubts and questions about my faith. I remember sitting in the living room of a dear friend, explaining to her why I was uncomfortable with certain parts of the Bible and what they implied. Passionately, she encouraged me to seek God's Truth (as spoken in His Word and revealed by the Holy Spirit) rather than my own. She then proceeded me to tell me the story of Jesus and the power of His death and resurrection. In that moment, this dear friend was not afraid to offer me what I so desperately needed (although I didn't realize it at the time): someone willing to tell me the Good News of Jesus Christ AGAIN.

I suppose God just revealed the answer to my question.

May I not be afraid to proclaim God's love to those who have heard and forgotten.