Homemade Gifts for Christmas

It's the time of year when I start looking around for ideas of gifts I can make for Christmas.  I like to make things myself to give as gifts - I have a large-ish family and not a huge budget, so when I can make things that I'm proud to give that cost a reasonable amount, then I'm happy.  Last year I started panicking in October, I think, so it seems like I'm doing a better job managing the stress of it this time round.  I may regret not starting sooner... or I may not even think of gifts till after my sales at the end of November.  I'm sure I can get it done in December...!?! 

As I was thinking about starting to think about getting started, I thought I would do a round up for you in case you might be in the same place as I am, wondering what to make...  Here are some of the different homemade gifts I've given over the years, a few gifts I have thought about making to give, some gifts I have received, and some gifts I would kind of like to receive.

Soap - I did this one year - it's the kind of gift that you invest in the basic supplies, make a few varieties, and that's what everyone gets that year.

Wheat Bags & Handwarmers - Yes, I sell these in my shop, but they started as Christmas gifts for my family (everyone got one!) more than a decade ago.  Simple to make, and if you use rice, easy to find all you need.

CD of piano playing or singing - sometimes it would be nice to hear someone who's far away. 

CD or you reading a story aloud, along with the book - grandparents, this one is for you!  This would rock bedtime.  *Cheaper version - snag a few of the favourites they already own and record yourself.

Pencil Cases - Find a tutorial and make this up for your favourite pen addict... I can't be the only one out there.

Popcorn Seasonings - this is one we were given and I am still enjoying them on every batch of popcorn.  We almost need some more, though...

Homemade Notebooks - I like paper, and playing with paper, and sewing... Sometimes the paper gets sewn and is awesome.

Fairy Garden - I've never made one, but saw lots of fun ideas this summer.  Maybe an awesome gift would be some supplies to build one and the promise of a spring date to do it together?

Magnets - use clip art or words between flat marbles and magnets - personalize for the recipient.  I made some as teacher gifts and some with the Fruit of the Spirit on them (Galatians 5:22 & 23).

Playdough - fun for little ones.

Sock Monkey or Stuffed Animal - my boy has a monkey and an elephant made by his Aunts - treasures, for sure.  Meaningful for the parent as well as the child.

Doll Clothes - I still remember the Christmas when we were small and we got a load of Barbie clothes sewn by Mom and knitted by the Grandma & Granny, and then later making them for our Cabbage Patch Dolls.  If you know a girl with a doll in her life, this one might be a win for you.

Aprons - I've made a few of these over the years, including some fun matching parent / child ones.  My secret is to use one I like the shape of as the pattern.

Fire Starters - We made these for camping this summer - they might be nice for the camping enthusiast in the family.

Cookies in a Jar - Always a good idea.

Winnipeg & Family

A few weeks ago we hit the road to 'One Great City' to take in the Canadian National Women's Soccer game against USA, and to have some family time.  Here are a few favourite shots.

So exciting.  Loved the sunset view, too!  It was a great game - we scored in the first half and the US didn't answer the goal until near the end of the game, making it a 1-1 tie.  US is ranked #1 in the world and we are ranked #7, so it was pretty impressive. 

My fam!!  We are the 3 in the first row, the 5 behind them & the 4 behind them.  My other 2 are off walking.

At the {brand new} park the next day.  We adults had slide races, and M got this shot of me and Mom - I see where I get my slide style from! Matchy matchy!! Ha ha.

 Follow the leader...

Apparently my brother has spent more time training his kids in this fine art than I have... I really did laugh out loud at this one, all by myself here.

 At Levi's rugby game.  Nolan had a great time exploring in the woods.

 Just loved this shot.

This is the boy who made me an aunt, way back almost 17 years ago.

Love this.

Go Pipers!  Back in the day I also played Piper rugby at John Taylor. (And we were Provincial winners, too!)  I'm sure he's not really scowling at me...

 My beauty.  She and the rugby player above are 3-months-apart twinsies.

So this was one of the funniest things ever.  Here is K, my lovely niece in her dance recital costume after the dress rehearsal.

Madeline posing with K...

 

And Z wanted to get in on the posing, too, of course.

Enter Nolan, with the instructions to "Put your hands on your hips!"  So he walks over and puts his hands on Z's.  I'm still laughing.  So funny.

 Almost...

Got it!

A Shared Name and an Ending.

On this date in 1961, Carolyn Atkinson said "I do" to her sweetheart Doug and became Carolyn McCall.

In 1994 the youngest of their four children brought home a girl to meet his parents - Carolyn, meet Carolyn... and a year later that Carolyn took on the same name and became another Carolyn McCall.

A sad turn of events saw that boy gone too soon, and a few years later Carolyn McCall (the second) became Carolyn Ward, after a decade of sharing a wonderful lady's name.

And yesterday.  Yesterday, we said good bye to that Carolyn McCall for the last time.  A few hours short of reaching their 52nd wedding anniversary (although as Carla said, it was already past midnight in Ontario, where they got married).

Goodbye to the name and good bye to a wonderful lady.  We look forward with a certainty to a great hello again one day.

M got to be there and hold her hand...

When Close Ones Grieve

The little one and I are heading off on a road trip today.  Mom and Dad are on their way from Winnipeg to pick us up and then we head right back again.  Nolan would not last if we drove just the two of us by ourselves.  We looked into the bus and flying, but my parents came up with this crazy plan of driving to get us and take us back again - four trips in three days - so we're jumping on the crazy train.

The reason for the travel?  So we can go to the 'Celebration of Life' for my Uncle.  He's only the second of my aunts and uncles to pass away, and it feels like childhood ending in a way.  The family as we know it, still intact but for the grandparents, has begun another shift.  The saying goodbye to the generation just one up... the generation of our parents.

In these last weeks my sister-in-law in Portugal had to say good-bye to her mom, as well.  Grief is not uncommon, and we all must take a turn saying good-bye to loved ones; the universality of it unfortunately does not lessen its pain.

As one who has gone through a good-bye and knows the pain of grief, I also know that the words that help are hard to come by.  All I can offer are a few words from my own experience: this post on grief was written almost two years after, and maybe, Auntie Joan and my cousins, and Ana, they might give a picture of what's to come?

Praying for you...

Sunday Afternoon

This past Sunday we went to the Waterfall Park to try a new (for Nolan) playground.  I took my camera...

getting ready to go

he loves slides

and i love seeing daddy slide with him

too old for this... until we ended up racing down the slides

on to the waterfall

hey, there's me!

my big and my little

So happy to have these shots.  I love my family and will treasure this capture of this moment in our lives.  Thanks for looking!

The One About M.

Part of why I blog is to keep our family and friends who don't live close by up to date with our family.  The last year or so M has gotten less press than her little brother; to be fair, he is growing quicker and there is more to report.  But we do have two children, and I know there's a lot of love out there for the older one.  So today is Maddy Day!

A note on her name: I named her Madeline, I call her Madeline.  (And when I write, it's usually just M.)  Most other people call her Maddy, which started in grade 4 when there was a Madeleine (Mad-len) in her class.  My beautiful girl is 13, in grade 8, and the first thing you would notice is her beautiful smile.  Or maybe her loud antics, if she was with her friends.  Or maybe that she's 5'11.  Whatever you notice, she's no wallflower.

This was her first year playing soccer with ACFC, one of the 4 clubs in the Regina Soccer Association.  We've always played community soccer before, indoor and out, but with two weekly games and no practices, mostly arm-twisted parent coaches, and very little instruction, combined with M's growing love for the game and desire to take it further, we decided to try out this other league.  It was definitely worth the money, as she was on a team with girls that all got along, and with an experienced coach with the right balance between letting them enjoy themselves and working them hard to see growth in skills.  Hopefully most of the girls will be back together for the outdoor season.

Basketball is her other main sport at this point.  Last year their team won nothing, and this year I think they might have been undefeated.  I overheard the coach saying it was tough because they don't fit well into either of the leagues, but being in this one with smaller schools and having a winning season sure was great for M's confidence as a player!  It was great to watch the games and see her score so many points.  She has developed a lot since grade 6, and I'm pretty proud of the great team player and leader she's become.

Sports are just a part of my girl - I think she'd rather be singing than doing anything else, and has a brain that is a trap for artists and lyrics and tunes... very NOT like her mother.  She does not like taking piano lessons, but we are enforcing that for now as we know it will benefit her in the long run, and really, the 20 minutes of practicing in the morning before she gets on the bus will help in whatever music she pursues in the future.

She has one great friend, Julia, and a whole crew of others that are mostly great but who sometimes prove they are more fickle than faithful.

She would much rather shovel snow than rake leaves, and was trying to bargain with me just yesterday that in the fall, she will watch Nolan while I rake...

This summer she will likely do basketball and soccer camps at the University, as well as going to camp out at Katepwa Lake - can't miss that!  She'll also be going on a ministry trip for the first time with the youth from church, and is pretty excited about that.  Combined with going camping, to family camp and to Winnipeg for a week, she's got a fun summer lined up.

And there's a snapshot of our M for you. :)

Nolan at Nine Months

I've had a nine-month-old for a whole week now, and the biggest development is that HE'S WALKING!!!  Yes, an early stepper; takes after his dad, who according to my mother-in-law also walked at nine months.

I counted around 35 steps at the library the other day - they've got a great open space for him to cruise around in.  His balance is great, he can stop and go, and turn around... so fun to watch.

We had him dedicated at church this past Sunday.  I always find baby dedications to be a special time, since the congregation speaks out loud these words:

As your faith community, we support you as you bring this child of your love and the love of your Heavenly Father. As you commit your child and yourself to the Father, we commit ourselves to you, to support, to encourage, to pray and to take an active part in the nurturing of this young life. As God is our witness, we receive this child in love, and promise to be unto your child, father, mother, brother, sister and friend.

It is one way that you can practically feel the ties between us growing and strengthening.  A great picture of church, and a great reassurance that we are not alone in our desire for this boy to grow up with a heart for Jesus.

We are so thankful that our parents could be there as well as a few of his aunts, uncles, and cousins, and that they could all spend the day with us.

Mexican Golf

In a roundabout way, a game of Mexican Golf ended up being the highlight of the family get-together last weekend.

Games were played, then one of the kids got one of the bolos (ropes with a ball at either end) wrapped around the power line up overhead.

Much of the rest of the evening was spent throwing balls at the balls to get them down.  Great spectator event with lots of laughs.