We have the best of intentions when the season starts that this will be the year we truly soak up what this season means and mark my words, THIS IS THE SEASON. Even in a vibrant and full season, what if you had the chance to pause for two minutes and recenter your focus on what’s to come Christmas Day? What if this was the year December didn’t fly? Or what if this was the Christmas Eve service you didn’t plop
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Grumpy Mom Takes a CHRISTMAS Holiday
Wow! Can I just say, the holidays are hard. I asked on Insta stories what stressors caused the most grumpy moments and there was no shortage of things we could talk about. I realized a few things: 1. The things that are hardest are things we feel we can’t control. 2. So many of the truths and lies I shared in my book, Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday, can be applied here! So here’s how I set this up. I
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2019 Christmas Gift Guide
Welcome!! As you browse our gift guide we hope you feel a sense of peace–all the things we have to offer, all in one place, organized by all the people on your list. More than that, we want you to rest in the fact that choosing Val Marie Paper to put under your tree gets you more than just a box checked off your list, but something that’s beautiful AND meaningful (bonus points!) to place under the tree. Year after year
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Advent ideas for kids
I had the best of intentions of writing a full post on all the Advent things and then as I was researching all the “right” things to include in your season, I suddenly got very overwhelmed and hesitated to share too much in case it’d overwhelm you to. In the same spirit of margin that we talked about in these five posts last year, I’ll forgo the big list and give you 5 different types of resources and my best pick
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A post for the bad gift-giver
Buying gifts is very hard for me. Tyler and I are notorious for shopping on Christmas Eve and kicking ourselves for not figuring out sooner that that purchasing a gift online that takes two weeks to ship won’t work out. I’m also the mom who has missed birthday parties because I totally forgot to buy something ahead of time and once I remember I know I’ll never make it there with a gift. Why can’t I get my act together
