Re-gifting or being thrifty?

This is the question I asked Merle numerous times over the Christmas holiday this year...is it bad that I re-gift things,or good that I am being thrifty with what we have?

With everyone being sick the entire month of Nov.I barely had time to keep up with school and housework,let alone do much shopping,baking,making of special gifts,etc.. So when Merle started coming home from work with plates of goodies from the other guys' wives,I admit I felt like the 'bad' wife...but after all,don't they know I have 8 kids to take care off? Who really has time to bake all day? Let alone have enough left over to package up in a pretty container and send to someone else? So yes,I did it...the neighbor left some 'more' treats on the porch one night while we were out looking at Christmas lights (with our own versions of jingle bells,away in a manger,and the hallelujiah chorus being sung from the back of the van...all at once too ofcourse!) anyways...so there on the plate amongst the nicely decorated cookies was some yummy muffins,th ekids don't eat muffins...hhhmmm I got a bright idea! Repackaged them on a different plate and sent them to work with Merle,praying they tasted ok so no one would think that 'I' was a bad baker!(should have tasted them beforehand)

I had been struggling with getting the perfect Christmas letter written( how do you condense an entire yr with 8 kids down to a 1 page letter?)...after fighting with our computer and printer to even get it printed off,I realized I did not have the 'pretty' paper that I wanted.After an hour of looking at walmart,getting to hallmark 5 minutes after closing,and not getting a chance to get to any more stores alone...

We got a beautiful card and letter from a dear friend,I immediatly noticed how pretty the border around her letter was,hmmm did I dare? Oh it was such a good idea I didn't even let Merle finish reading it before I was hacking my 'ugly' letter apart and taping it over the words of the 'pretty' one.I could hardly believe it,it worked and it was pretty! Well until it came out of the printer looking,well.. hacked apart and taped back together *sigh*. I had tried,it got sent out anyway.(said friend didn't get a copy)

Christmas Day with my family...I took leftover cookies from our time with Merle's family earlier in the week.

The pictures of the kids that I quickly took one day when I realized that if I didn't take them then,it wouldn't get done in time...the sheet I used for a backdrop had little lines on it that showed through,as well as the ABC cards that are taped to the bookcase.*R* sat with his hand on his knee to cover up the hole in his pants,*Z* looked like he had a stick up somewhere it shouldn't be,*L* got part of his head chopped off,*M* wasn't too shabby,*K* appeared to be in pain,*A* was in desperate need of a haircut,or maybe just a bow in his hair,little *K* was a goof and her picture is pretty accurate to who she is,little *M* was good but blurry...wouldn't you know it,the nephew's picture turned out the best. *sigh*

I swear I am the only person who can mess up chex mix and green jello...although the kids did find it quite funny when I was slurping jello through a straw the next day calling it slugs. *sigh* ( good thing MIL brought her good chex mix over!)

The projects I did attempt to do before Christmas are just now getting done,with 2 lost somewhere out in walmart photo land..*sigh*

BUT...in all the craziness and chaos,I was reminded more than once,that all of this 'stuff' really didn't matter! The fact that Jesus gave us 'ugly' humans,his 'pretty' perfect son..crosses out my need for making others think I have it all together! And that is something I am not ashamed to re-gift this year!

  Oh and I now know,I really need to start getting ready for next Christmas around the 4th of July this year! :)

Time

So I have been thinking lately about how well I manage my time,and if it is something I can change or work on.Ofcourse the answer I came up with was yes! Staying in bed that extra hour in the morning,completly justified by being awake with the baby all night ;) but is it the best way to spend my time? Perhaps some days it is,cause after all who wants to be around a cranky,overtired Mother? But most days,I have found just pushing past that initial earge to pull the covers back up and let the kids fend for themselves, really is worth it! Our day goes smoother,and I actually feel better :)

So there you have it...my big revalation for the day,no more sleeping in for me! ok,well I might let myself off the hook once in awhile! ;)

why do mornings have to come so early? I admit I am so not a morning person,I also know that 6:30 is really not that early! lol However that is usually when Makiah decides its ok to stay asleep,why do babies do that? so I am up,baby is snoring away,and the house is coming alive with the sounds of older children gearing up for the day. Nephew is here today as well,hence why I am up before I would actually 'like' to be ;) But its all good...kind of wish I liked coffee!

This is my first experience with blogging...so here goes nothing!

Typical Monday for us...here are a few of today's 'highlights'

Kayla said ' mama roll' while pointing out that she wanted to eat a roll from off the counter! Huge,since she is 2yrs and doesn't talk much,I am so happy she is saying more real words!

Kids discussing History at lunch time,I heard that Columbus had help on his trip from Lewis and Clark,but he didn't understand them cause they were from Spain and spoke spanish! lol

Zachary(9yrs) informed me that Makiah(5mo) must be nocturnal,when I commented on how she can sleep so good during the day but wants to keep me awake all night. smart kid! ;)

have football practice tonight and a nephews FB game to go to...so glad the weather is nice!

Have a blessed day!