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December 25, 2012 in Minimalist Christmas
We have had another wonderful Christmas this year! Our Christmas has lasted 7 days and is finishing today.
Recap on what we have been doing. 7 days, 7 gifts, 7 treats, 7 activities and Christmas morning excitement for 7 days 
We have left presents and notes in their stockings and they have had lots of fun being surprised every morning.
December 19, 2012 in Minimalist Christmas
Image: by Feelart FreeDigitalPhotos.net
On this, the Wednesday before Christmas, I wanted to share with you some other words of wisdom that I have enjoyed by other bloggers.
I had planned to write about something different but when the fingers came to the keys I decided to go this way instead
December 14, 2012 in Minimalist Christmas
Image: courtesy of thaikrit FreeDigitalPhotos.net
We are very excited about another minimalist Christmas this year for our family. Really it isn’t minimalist in the ‘smaller’ or ‘less’ definition because we are going to celebrate as a family for 7 days instead of one.
Last year we did the days between Christmas and New Years, but this year we wanted to do the days leading up to Christmas and have our 7th day be December 25th.
November 5, 2012 in Minimalist Christmas
I know Christmas is still a long way off… but I feel behind because other blogs have been blogging about it for at least a month already…. plus, I have plans and I know you are making plans so here is the Minimalist Christmas Planning post.
We did a Minimalist Christmas last year and it was a big hit. The kids have asked me several times since then if we can do a Minimalist Christmas again… so, from the mouth of my babies it was a hit
Holidays are awesome. We need things to look forward too…especially when the weather is turning cold. The whole month of December is full of cookies and happy music. I love Christmas!
However, to often Christmas is simplified and overwhelmed by a main focus being put on the gifts. There is so much more to Christmas and there is so much more to memories. So, the idea behind the Minimalist Christmas is to:
January 1, 2012 in Minimalist Christmas
Merry End of Christmas and Happy New Year! We are finishing the week feeling much better (rid of the sick) and with a bunch of great memories. It has been a great week! Wish we didn’t end up sick, but nothing we can change in life.
I hope this post finds you happily refreshed after a great holiday season. Rested, organized, laundry and dishes done, with a new lease on life, eagerly waiting for school and work to start full swing again 
Ha, it sounds good doesn’t it?
Anyways, here is a look at the last 2 days of our Minimalist Christmas. Thanks so much for coming along. If you are here for the first time (thanks so much for coming, so glad to meet you!) you can catch up on our first five days here. Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5. Here is our Minimalist Christmas Plan.
Day 6 found me still stuck in bed for the whole day. No fever, but I was still really weak and not feeling great. The kids had a great day with daddy though.
Ian got a cars puzzle and Lily got some bracelets. Not very exciting, but I think they liked them alright.
They went to Lost In Fun in Lincoln with their cousins. It is a fancy indoor playground. Since I didn’t go, I can’t tell you much about it, but I was told it was super busy. The kids sure seemed to enjoy it though.
Little Train Set my hubby found to take pictures of. We have had lots of train pictures up in the last month… an unintentional theme maybe?
It was super dark, crowded, and the kids were running all over the place, so this is the best shot my hubby got.
Making sugar cookies and decorating them. I got a kit for this earlier in the week because I didn’t know how our time would be going (vs making them from scratch) and I am glad I did. Lily made up the dough really good and they both had lots of fun cutting out cookies. We took them to Grandmas house on Day 7.
Little hands making little hands. I love it!
Ian still has the band from Lost In Fun on his wrist. The sprinkles are the best part!
Total = 22.25
Today was the big day! The big Christmas on the farm with Grandma and Grandpa and all of my hubbies family. I feel so lucky to be married into such a great family There is something so romantic (I have Anne of Green Gables on the mind) about going home to ‘the farm’ for the holidays.
So, still feeling like I was sliding into home plate with energy for our Minimalist Christmas…
With Ian just starting to read I really wanted to get him his own Bible. Real Bible. I found a cool one with a strap so I needed to get Lily a new one to match too. My biggest splurge for the week…. and it was hard, I had to call the hubby… and think hard… I don’t spend money easily. I think they will be able to last them for years and I really want them to know that this is what we treasure and what has the value in our house.
Bibles are sitting on a super cute pillow case that Grandma sewed for Lily. She is so good at sewing and comes up with the cutest stuff.
Cinnamon Buns, we cooked them and took them up to Grandma’s. (no picture… sorry, it was early)
Grandma’s house and all the family Christmas. The kids ran so hard all day that they crashed as soon as we got in the car just after 7 this evening.
Shot a lot of pictures of all the cousins running around. Here are a few.
Ian going on a mule (farm go-cart) ride to collect firewood with Grandpa.
Every girl is a princess. Princesses were everywhere today.
My favorite tree ornament. Bryon added a cool texture to this that almost makes it look a bit like ice in the background. He rocks.
The kids wanted so bad to get everyone in the extended family a Christmas gift, but their Christmas savings was only about $20 between the two of them. So we decided on a really fancy candy tray that everyone could share. Not the healthiest, but the quality was much better than what they might have been able to purchase at about $.50 a person. Plus, it was cute to watch them work together with their money.
My amazing man. I shot this pic and I liked it… I don’t get many shots of him. He edited it very dark. He must be feeling dark tonight He is still hot, and I will still take him home
Total = $50
Total = 130.28
Well… first of all I had intended on spending about 60 or 70 on the week. When I decided on the Bibles I knew we would blow that. Without the Bibles (and a small gift instead) we might have been closer.
The goal was not to be gift focused and to be more experienced focused…. but the numbers don’t look that way. Without the $50 for the Bibles it would have been pretty even. … sounds like the Bibles are the problem Just kidding. I am super glad we got them.
All in all, I am excited with the week. My favorite part was CoCo Key, grilling, and the rug hooking. (might have something to do with how I was sick and missed 3 days). I wanted to ask the kids what their favorite parts of the week were… but they fell fast asleep too quick. … my hubby just says it was all his favorite part. He is super decisive.
Thanks for coming along. I am excited with where the new year is going to take us.
Wow, that was a long post. If you made it this far, congratulations. I also made up another pin. I love thinking up quotes. I will work on making them prettier.
December 30, 2011 in Minimalist Christmas
Shortly after my last post I got a crazy fever. I have barely slept and barely moved in the last 24 hours. Sigh. Such is life. I have learned that if I am going to be sick it is much better when hubby is on vacation and can take the kids. I planned all 7 day of Christmas, but it isn’t looking like I will be participating in many. Either way, it has been a good week. For earlier post: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4
Lily is feeling much better today so both kids had a chance to enjoy the day.
The gift for today was pretty fun. I made up a sewing kit for Lily and hubby did up a building kit for Ian. They are both ‘real’. I think real and small is much better than a bunch of bright plastic fake stuff.
Lily got fabric, scissors, needle, lace, and elastic. She got to pick out more fabric and thread at Grandmas to finish off the kit. Ian got a hammer, 2 screwdrivers, safety glasses, a tape measure as well as nails and screws and a block to put them into.
Donuts. The best donut shop I have ever been to is the ‘Blair Bakery’. It is amazing! It is in between us and Grandmas house so whenever we go to Grandmas during the week early enough in the morning we get donuts (which isn’t very often at all). But, this morning it was part of the plan. … it was a bad day to be sick and miss out 
Ginger bread houses at Grandmas house with the cousins. I got a kit of 5 little houses to make a village on half price Monday on Christmas clearance.
Total = $29 (most expensive day of the week so far)
So, while I was sitting here this morning I got on and try to start figuring out Pinterest. There is so much stuff on there! Anyways, I wanted to make up a few pins. I have to say I like the quote pins the best. Here are the ones I came up with.
Okay, now I am going to bed and hoping that I will wake up tomorrow feeling young and alive again. I will not be posting until next year , I will post Day 6 and Day 7 together Sunday morning January 1.
December 29, 2011 in Minimalist Christmas
Welcome back! Today ends the 4th day of our minimalist Christmas. Over halfway done now. Sadly, we are loosing steam fast. Ian woke up to his stocking on Dec 25 (Day 1) with 1 or 2 coughs, then daddy got the sniffles, then Lily and now me. We aren’t really sick or really better, but today was much slower. On the plus side, having a quiet morning meant I could die my hair like I have wanted too. Super bright red, but I have so much hair there wasn’t enough die and I have streaks. sigh. At least it is brighter red than I started.
The kids have been souped up on sugar, not much rest time, lots of excitement, and they refuse to sleep in because they want to find out what the next day will bring. Lily has gotten up at midnight and 5am (that she has admitted) to find out what the next days presents/activities will be. The combo of all of that has made staying healthy hard for all of us.
The gift today was a bit different. We got them music that they wanted and tried to get it downloaded for them on their player last night….. but the night got too late and it wasn’t working right. So this morning they got their music.
I Love The Way You Hold Me — Jamie Grace
This Is The Stuff — Francesca Battistelli
Listen – Josh Wilson
Shine on us – Josh Wilson
And a couple other Josh Wilson songs. They were dancing around the house, somehow missed getting pictures. Funny story with this is that my husband really doesn’t like Francesca Battistelli’s music. Drives him nuts. I try to explain to him that she isn’t trying to sing to attract mid 30′s bald guys, but it doesn’t seem to help. So, because he is such a great dad, he still got her this song because she loves it. …. and has been cringing all day listening to it (and Lily) on full volume. Such a great man!
I had the Josh Wilson songs from a gift card a while ago, because I love his music, so we only had to copy a few of those into the playlist.
The treat today was crepes. Bryon made up a pretty amazing batch with both blueberry and strawberry sauce. Having two kids means that there is two separate likes and requests for everything…. I can’t imagine what the folks with more kids have to do for fruit sauces
Food is a big thing our our house, we love it!
Our activity for the day was the Zoo. The dearly missed east coast cousins just arrived last night and they were to meet us this afternoon. Unfortunately, Lily was just feeling worse and worse and I decided to stay home with her to rest.
My husband said that he was too shy to say anything for the first half an hour, but after that he didn’t stop talking and they were inseparable.
They are so stinking cute! Almost exactly the same age.
And a pretty parrot…..
At first I was disappointed with not being able to take off for the afternoon, visit, and enjoy the great weather, but some quiet time with Lily was nice. Got her all warm and cozy in bed and she fell right to sleep. Then I got to pick up the disaster that this week has made the house and sit in a quiet house with a cup of tea. We met up with them at Grandma’s for supper and had a great evening.
The three oldest cousins, all book worms.
The holiday season seems super bad for germs and bugs. It seems like everyone on Facebook and Twitter are talking about getting sick or getting better. Late nights, tons of programs (for passing germs between people who would never meet otherwise), more sugar, and lots of excitement make it super hard for little bodies (or big bodies) to stay strong. I have tried all month to get as much rest in as possible, this week especially. I sure hope they both feel better in the morning.
For the money:
Total for the day – $1.28 (cheapest day yet… and cheapest for the week)
December 28, 2011 in Minimalist Christmas
Hey, it is a late night tonight and we are tired out from the day. Today was the 3rd day of our minimalist Christmas. Here is Day 1 and Day 2.
Bryon was really creative this morning and made a scavenger hunt for the kids. They got the first clue in their stockings by the fireplace and it sent them all over the apartment before finding their ‘present-notes’ taped under a dinning room chair. They completed it all in about 2 minutes, so it didn’t buy the sleeping in time I had hoped
The gift for today was play-doh. The kids love playing with it, but it gets dried out and mixed so easily. They really needed a new set so it made a great gift.
Lily made a ‘cat’ and then went to work on her rug project from yesterday.
Ian made a bunch of balls for cat toys and was storing them in the container.
For their treat we grilled (veggie) hamburgers and made homemade french fries. We have super great potatoes from grandmas farm and they make amazing fries. The taste of the grilled ‘burgers’ brought back summer memories. A burger just isn’t the same fried on the stove. It needs the grill.
Yum! These are Grillers by Morning Star, my favorite.
These gems are natural, vegan, local, sugar free, fresh, and high in omega fats. Healthy all the way around They are boiling in canola oil.
Our activity was probably the highlight of the week. We went to CoCo Key. It is an indoor water park in Omaha. We got a great deal on tickets and talked some friends into coming. The water park isn’t that big, but it is perfect for the kids. Ian is big enough to ride the big boy slides and Lily is big enough to ride the really big, fast, tubing slides. They ran and ran …. swam and shivered from 2:30 till 8:30.
Shot these with my ‘I-wish-it-was-an-iphone-but-my-hubby-talked-me-into-getting-a-droid-that-decides-when-it-wants-to-work-even-though-it-is-brand-new’ phone. Something about bringing his good camera around crazy kids and lots of water
Lily is so hard to take pictures of, she just won’t sit still. This was a lucky shot.
Coconuts hanging over the lazy river. The kids don’t get the lazy river. It is a race river to them.
Mr. Super-cool on his way up the steps to ride the slides. He must have climbed them 100 times this afternoon. He is sleeping good now
Today really tired me out. Swimming, chasing kids and trying to stay warm sure is draining. Good thing my hubby made some high calorie french fry nachos out of the left overs from dinner. Yum again.
Okay, for the money, in case you are interested.
Total for the day = $8.75
4 more days to go!
December 27, 2011 in Minimalist Christmas
New to Loving Simple Living? This week we are sharing our minimalist Christmas experience. Regular posting schedule will be back next week. Here is Day 1
On the second day of Christmas, this is what we were up to.
For the gift Ian got a dinosaur kit. He got to build it with daddy this morning.
I had so much fun taking these pictures of Ian and daddy building this dinosaur. I love the way the colors worked.
Lily’s gift was a rug hook. (I think that is what it is called). Grandma gave her a kit a while ago, but it never had a hook. With the hook and some instruction she was all set. She really picked up on it quick and worked on it off and on all day (even took it in the car with her). I am excited to see something crafty that she can do on her own. She loves creating things but at barely 8 years old there isn’t much she can master on her own yet.
She started slow, but really got the hang of it.
For the activity we got in a bit of trouble. We had intended to go to the Children’s Museum but we discovered it was closed. So instead we went to the Durham Museum in Omaha. We have lived around here for a while but have never been there. Lots of trains the kids could play on and tons of information. The building is beautiful. Bryon had lots of fun taking pictures of the architecture and the kids climbed all over everything they could.
This is in an old streetcar.
I carry this big ‘purse bag’ on trips like this so I can carry the snacks and sweaters and my book and … too much stuff. Not much for fashion but it works.
For our ‘treat’ we had a fire after supper and made smores. Between the smell of campfire and the taste of smores, it almost felt like summer again (if you haven’t had them, smores are a graham cracker sandwich with a roasted marshmallow and chocolate in the middle)
Making them at home allows them to be perfect. Fire roasted marshmallow with the final product put in the microwave for 10 seconds. Perfect balance of rustic and civilization gooiness.
For the numbers if you are curious:
Total for day 2=11.25
I am really excited about tomorrow!
December 26, 2011 in Minimalist Christmas
Hey! So today we started our minimalist Christmas. It was December 25 on the calendar, but instead of being just a day we are going to have 7 days. If you haven’t been around much, (I are super glad you have come today!) to get away from lots of stuff and a present-centered Christmas we are trying to create a family memory.
So, this is what we are up to. 7 days, 3 surprises each day. One-a small gift, two-a special food/treat, three-a family activity.
(I am taking off from my usual posting schedule to do Christmas and share it with you)
The kids have been super excited about their ’7 days of Christmas’ and it is really cute to hear them tell other people about it. I have been worried that they might prefer a pile of presents under the tree, but either to humor me, or the excitement of trying something out they have been all for it.
Today, they got a stocking full of stuff as their gift. We have always done stockings so I wanted to keep that tradition. However, what I put in it was much simpler. They got 2 oranges (they take space so nicely), bag of popcorn, 6 candy canes, some cookies, some chocolates, and a little stuffed animal. Really the stuffed animal was their gift for the day, it is just more fun in a pile of food My kids love stuffed animals, not sure if it is mine or just all kids.
Here is the stockings all stuffed full. The paper sticking out was their ‘notes’ telling them about their treat and activity.
Not fully awake, but excited
The special ‘treat’ today was waffles, strawberries and whipped cream. My fabulous hubby got up and made them and monitored the kids and their stockings while I slept in. I was able to hear through the wall of them opening their stockings and they were so stinking cute. I think I have the best kids ever! They loved everything they pulled out, including the oranges. They showed each other everything and shared. It was like a movie… they aren’t always so nice to each other.
Okay, so my husband was playing around with the kids and the food testing out his new lighting. We are wanting to get better indoor pictures and food pictures. He is much better than me, and he shot all these. He had so much fun playing… so we got lots of good pics.
Our activity today was a pizza, game and movie party at home. I wanted to space a few ‘home’ presents throughout the week for rest days, but somehow when the scheduling of stuff got figured out, today was the day when nothing else was open. So, we played board games, made home made pizza and watched the movie Cars. We don’t watch much… and might have had the only boy who hasn’t seen the movie in the country, but not anymore. I think he liked it alright. It ended up longer than he was used too, and the early morning started to wear on him. The card we used for the camera for the rest of the day decided to quit working for us, so I don’t have any more pictures
We finished off the day driving around and looking at Christmas lights and then going over to a friends house for hot chocolate.
Adding a cost section for those of you who are like me and wanting to count every penny.
Total for Day 1-$7.75
It has been a good day, and I am looking forward to the rest of the week. Ah, vacation
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