With the beginning of the New Year, I can not help but want to get some things in order. 



Now the Rich has been running his own business for a couple of years, I have learned a lot about what needs to be done to run a successful business.  We have had some hard times with the business as I am sure many people have this year.  Rich has had to go to work for someone else. 



And, although Rich is not really accepting any new business, I still have to make sure that certain things remain in order for when he may be able to be completely on his own once again.  So I am planning to take all of next week to get our business affairs in order.  Of course I am talking about things such as banking, taxes, and business insurance. 



I also really want to get things organized.  After a couple of years now, I feel that there are some changes that could be made to help things run a little more smoothly.

I don't know about you, but I am always looking for neat ways to get my kids excited about writing. 



While I used to love writing when I was growing up, I have to admit that this is not true for either of my children.  Kalene is a talented writer when she's feeling up to it.  Richie has absolutely no interest in writing anything!



The Schoolhouse Store is hosting a writing contest for homeschoolers.  I'm thinking that maybe a contest is just the motivation I need.  You can read all about the contest here.

I have gone to several Christmas parties this year. In fact I still have a few parties left before I can officially call it all over.



I have a New Years Eve celebration at my church that I never miss. It is so much fun to worship in the New Year. It sure does beat how I used to usher in the New Year. Also we have one more Christmas party on New Years Day. And the day after that is my nephews birthday party.



I am so thankful that my kids are so close to their cousins. They are all very close friends, and I think that is something special that you can take into your adult lives. One of the Christmas parties I attended this past week was with a lot of relatives I hadn't seen in more than 15 years. I did not grow up close to my cousins. This is how I know it's so important to give this to your children if it is within your ability to do so. It was interesting getting to meet and know everyone after so many years. I did enjoy it.



On a completely different not. While I was there I saw the neatest thing. It was a Digital Photo Frame. I had never seen one of these before, so I had no idea how cool they are. You can upload several digital photos from your computer onto one of these frames. The photo changes every few minutes to a new photo. But, at Ceiva you can purchase a frame and photo plans. There are several options to fit your needs. I think these make perfect grandparent gifts.



 

Through the month of December The Homschool Shop is offering a free download of History Scribe...History of Christmas.



They have this resource available in two different versions. The first is the grade school version and the second is the middle school version. But, this is only good for the month of December, so don't wait to get your copies.



These will make great additions to your homeschool studies. Even if you aren't able to get to it this year, you can save it and use it next year. I am downloading both versions to use now and when my son is older too.

It has been so unbelievably cold here in Michigan the last couple of days.  Now to mention the tons of snow we had dropped on us a few days ago.  And now, as I am typing this out, it is snowing once again.  I just wish it would warm up a little bit.  My hands have been in a permanent state of frozen.  Which, might I add does not help at all when one is trying to type.  Typing and frozen hands DO NOT work well together. 



I have been daydreaming of all the wonderfully warm places we could be right now.  If only we had thought about taking a vacation in the winter instead of in the summer.  What was I thinking.  It is already warm in the summer, whether I stay home or not.  But in the winter when it is freezing I would love to be some place warm and toasty like Florida.



I know that there are folks who use a vacation in place of Christmas gifts.  I have always wanted to go to Sea World.  Maybe I'll have to check for discount sea world tickets  just to make it a more frugal trip.  Hey I can dream right?

Contrary to my earlier plans of getting my Christmas cards made and sent out early this year, here I sit with the boxes in front of my still waiting to be made out.  I am not sure what is causing my procrastination.  I guess I could blame it on busyness.  At any rate, they do need to be done. 



After I finish our personal Christmas cards, I still need to order and send out our Business Christmas Cards.  So with this in mind, I'm feeling a little bit behind.  Thankfully I am pretty sure that I have found the right company to do the printing job for our business.  It is simply a matter of setting aside the time and getting it all done. 



And now I must get serious and do it TODAY!  With Christmas less than two weeks away there is no more time to sit here procrastinating!



GalleryCollection.com is very easy to work with.  And they are running a couple of promotions that make working with them all that much nicer. 



First of all, for any new customer who places an order with them for 250 cards or more, they will be entered to win 100 cards for free.  Now, I do not personally know 250 people to send Christmas cards to, but with our business it would be a good thing to have the cards already for this year and next year.  Maybe it would help my procrastination? 



The next neat thing they are offering is a free download of the book Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.  This  is a wonderful story to read to your family at this time of year.

I was recently made aware of a resource that is available for free.



It is the children's devotional titled Following Aslan by Kenneth McIntosh.  This devotional is based on the Chronicles of Narnia which are very popular at the moment with the release of Prince Caspian to DVD. 



So if you are looking for something to use with your children then I would highly suggest taking a look at this devotional.



You can find the devotional in its entirety here



Thanks to HOTM!

I can hardly believe how fast Christmas is approaching this year. 



It seems like only yesterday we were setting the table for Thanksgiving dinner, and now I am planning for Christmas dinner. 



Each year we choose to do all of our visiting on Christmas Eve.  This is strategic because I love to stay home on Christmas Day with my family and just hang out together.  Some of us do not even get dressed on this day.  We watched Christmas movies, or movies the kids might have gotten for Christmas and check out the new gifts everyone got. 



I also cook a nice Christmas dinner.  This is something I love to do since we are not home for Thanksgiving.  I try to make it really nice even though it is just us.  I like to set the table and include a centerpiece. I was looking at a floral  Centerpieces  from 1-800 Flowers.  They have got some really pretty stuff. 



I also like to light candles too.  And we use all of our nice dishes and silverware.  So even though our Christmas is very laid back, we still enjoy a great meal together.  I feel like it is my gift to my family.