all was calm, all was Bright

nathan and i finally had the opportunity to brave the stores(alone) and finish up(mostly) our Christmas shopping yesterday.

since giving gifts is my favorite, i have NO trouble seeking out treasures that i feel will best suit our loved ones and friends.  

money is always the issue.  always.

i would love to give SO much more materially, but that simply cannot happen and frankly, it's just not the point.

truthfully, i need to give more of my time and compassion to others, and they would probably appreciate that more than a gift card or any sweater that i think is just perfect.

it took a few minutes for us to get our brains aligned and really make some progress on our list.

does that happen to you?

in my frantic desire to provide someone with the perfect gift, i found myself entangled in the same lies that lead to the distractions that completely take my mind off of the Reason why we are doing this all anyway.

i get irritated with my poor hubby as he yawns and seems completely unstressed.
why isn't he stressed!?

then i get even more riled up over my assumption of his disinterest in it all, when, truthfully, he had it all right.

when i headed into target for the second time and heard jingle bells blasted for the millionth time, in the seventeenth version, it didn't take long for a still small Voice to ground my footing and become seriously grossed out by all of the commercialism that has completely overtaken the world.

i had fallen prey to it's lies and it made my heart hurt a little.  or a lot.

and then that Voice reminded me very clearly...

it wasn't like this that night.

it wasn't loud.

it wasn't flashy.

it didn't have glitter and music and a parade to make His presence known.

He was the Perfect Gift.

He still is.

all was calm.

all was Bright.

and as the Savior, our Rescuer, came into this world, He bore a burden so great.

it was us.

our sin.

so as i reassessed the day, and the hunting of the perfect gifts, the stressing over it all, i felt a great peace.

a peace that comes from the realization that Jesus broke the chains of death and sin for me, so that i don't have to be a slave to my sin anymore.

He has given me the victory.

forever and ever.  

amen.

but yet with the peace, came a very grave realization that not all have this Peace that i know.

my heart breaks for a nation that takes Christ out of Christmas and replaces it with meaningless nothingness.

even more reason for me to GO, tell and love.

and so i share this little vignette with you that is in my dining room.

a visual reminder of the Gift that was given to us over 2000 years ago.

the One that would forever change the course of this world.

One that can never get overplayed.

bear with me if i sound like a broken record over here.

He's just too good not to share.

xo, 

mary

our CHRISTmas mantel

hey, friendlies!  :)
i'm a little late to the partay, but i'm popping in to join in on the fun over at the lovely lettered cottage mantel linky!
plus, i wanted to show YOU my mantel, too.
it was really easy and fun to put together.
i'm a pretty simple decorator, and i love to use natural elements in my home, and that is what inspired me this year.  :)

i wanted the focus of our mantel to be on Jesus, Who is our only True Hope in this weary world.
the thrill of Hope, that we can be reconciled to God through the gift of His ONLY Son!

the only money i spent was on the beautiful print from lesley, the frame from target, and the mandarins.
i had the rest already tucked away here and there.
as you may be able to tell, the late 1800's mantel is still just propped up against the wall.
it may never get nailed down, and i'm okay with that.

anywho...we have been SO busy trying to finish up school before Christmas.
the girls have been crafting and creating maniacs and i can hardly keep up!
we have baked lots of goodies(and ate them).  #hello!muffintop
and after thanksgiving, let me tell you...it's REALLY hard to buckle down and focus on school.
like realllllllyyyyyyyyy hard!
as a home school mama, once you get into vacation mode, it's really hard to get back in the focus of school.
but we're doing it.
most of us anyway...my littlest is acting like he has serious ADD, but he is just super excited(kinda like me).  :)

i hope that you all are enjoying this blessed season, and remembering the True Reason that we celebrate.
from RECENT experience, i know just how hard it can be to keep the Right Focus.
the devil sure does try to steal my joy some days, but i am not going down with out a fight!

we, as a family,  have purposed in our hearts to have a different Christmas this year.
less about ourselves and more about Him.
and that means more about others.
God graciously led us to a family who could not afford Christmas this year so we were able to shop for them.
the kids had so much fun!  who am i kidding...nathan and i had a blast, too!
to God be the glory.  :)

we also bought the Jesus Storybook Bible and have been reading it every day for advent.
i'm pretty sure i have enjoyed it the most.
the simply written Bible stories that weave the perfect path to Him and mirror His perfect plan of redemption thrills me to my core!
the fact that my Savior was born in the lowliest of places and dwelt among sinners, born only to die for my wickedness and yours wrenches my heart in the best way.
i am so humbled and grateful for His free gift.
the debt that He paid so that I don't have to.
born to die, my Jesus was.

this is what Christmas is all about!
spreading the Good News that Jesus was sent for all sinners.
and just like any other gift, we have to take it for it to be ours.
my prayer is that i will be a light for Him this season...encouraging those among me to

"Let earth receive her King!"

have a wonderful day, friends!

i'll be back this week with a Christmas home tour....yay!

xo,

mary

and just like that...

...the shift has occurred again. 

goodbye, thanksgiving.

hello! Christmas!

haha.  nathan is in his socks.  :)

while i've hardly digested the thousands millions of calories i consumed over the weekend from our thanksgiving feastS,  the pilgrims have come down and have been replaced with the much anticipated nativity set.  

and while i tucked away the last of the pumpkins, bittersweet and bits of harvest, the peppermint wreath is already being made, bing is set on pandora, and we are decking the halls like the rest of the country. 

how crazy FUN is that?!

but let's back up the train a bit.

we had a lovely thanksgiving with both sides of our family this year.  

and while i'm on the subject, i would like to give a shout out to my moms for being such amazing cooks.  

with that said, i really, truly, SERIOUSLY need to step away from the comfort food buffet line.

what is wrong with me?  i've totally traded my mostly raw diet for anything cooked, baked or loaded with sugar.

SOMEONE HELP ME.

situations like the one below don't help, either.

instead of black friday shopping this year, my mom, sister and i, opted to do some holiday baking.

i can assure you that one of those pans of mixed nut bars(lower left) is already half gone.

we split the goodies that we made between the three of us, but still!

also, those walnut crescents in the upper left hand corner are my FAVE.  yikes. 

i'm totally in trouble with all of this taunting me in the basement freezer.

(that's where i do the laundry and the freezer is RIGHT next to the washer and dryer.  VERY convenient...and private...muahahaha!!!)

AND i'm not even going to explain henry and the bottle of sprinkles.  it pretty much sums up his existence.  :)

after school, we spent most of the day cleaning, packing away fall, and bringing up a few Christmas decorations.

that is, after i apologized to all of my children at least three times for losing my temper and yelling at them.

at the time, i did not know why it was so hard to round to the nearest hundred, sound out the long E sound, or put quotation marks around a quote.  

all day long i was edgy and i kept telling myself, "turn the volume down, mary!" (see?  quotation marks!).

because i wan't just yelling, i was YELLING!

thankfully, my children kindly forgave me and we proceeded with the Christmas cheer.  :)

this is the advent calendar i made last year.

i used an old cork board from the thrift store and covered it with fabric.

then i used some pretty ribbon to decorate it, and push pinned those little $1 boxes from michaels in.

the kids LOVE it.

i kinda do, too.

i tried my hand at chalkboard art today, and besides being time consuming, it was really easy!

check out how i did it, HERE.

i have been trying to find a home for my folk art carved wood chain(somebody seriously carved that thing out of a solid piece of wood), and the lyrics to O Holy Night came to mind.

Truly He taught us to love one another, 

His law is love and His gospel is peace. 

Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother. 

And in his name all oppression shall cease. 

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, 

With all our hearts we praise His holy name. 

Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we, 

His power and glory ever more proclaim! 

His power and glory ever more proclaim!

i think i may be a little addicted to chalkboards.  

especially when they deliver such a Wonderful message.

tomorrow we get to pick out our tree(nathan's home!), and dig up some more fun stuff from the basement.

it's always so fun to see what you have, remember your favorite things from years past, and find those that you have recently made or collected.

over and out, girlfriends.

when are you able to get together for a peppermint mocha and some cinnamon bread?

uh...i mean, veggies and tea.  ;)

xo, 

mary

thirTEEN

some of you may know that i have officially been the mother of a teenager for a good nine months now.

you know your life is coming full circle when your daughters pinterest boards are cooler than your own.  :)

i mean, do i really look old enough to have a teenager?  ------------------------------------------------->

#dontanswerthat

this darling girl has been the recipient of all of my worst mothering mistakes.  she was my guinea pig. 

my heart's desire as a teenager(GASP! that's what she is!), was only to get married and have children.

seven was my 'magic' number.

after i had a few kiddos the number decreased, but by God's grace, i think it may just still be our number.
 but that's for a whole different post.  ;)

i got married to my love when i was 18, and one year and one month later, miss elly was born.

baby in arms...we were in LOVE.

now she's growing up on us.  *sigh*

as i look back at all of my naiveness as a young mother, and my millions trillions of mistakes, i see a story that is grace laced in every way. 

i was not always a great mother.  i was a very strict, demanding mama who required nothing less than perfection for a long time. 

of course, i know this is impossible, but it didn't stop me from trying.

i didn't give grace, and so that put a barrier between my very own daughter and myself.

as weird as it may seem, and as harsh as it feels to me, my daughter and i have not always connected in the way i thought we would.

it would take 13 years for me to fully grasp the gift that my daughter is to me and that she was specifically chosen for me.

what an honor and a blessing!

here are a few pictures of her birthday party this past february. 

it was a very bitter cold day, and her brother had a bad ear infection, but we had a great time just the same.

i know it seems late to post this, but i so badly want to document this vapor of a life.  :)

we chose a crafty theme for the maturing girl.

she requested fish tacos and individual nutella cheesecakes.  

#todiefor!

certainly the ONLY way we ended up where we are today is by the grace of God.

and a whole lotta caulk.  because Lord knows, He had to fill in a multitude of gaps that i left along the way.

and He still is.

elly is so much like me it hurts sometimes.

i think that contributed to our clashing.  ok.  for surely it did.

she is a beautiful girl, inside and out, and she is just bursting with talent!

i'd like to say that she is a lot like me in her love of creating. ;)

we both come alive when we are able to 'make'.

she also has a very tender heart, the best kind.

can you even stand the wisconsin sweater?  i am SO making that but with the united states on it!

she did that all by herself, and the sewing is amazing!

also, she has been able to bless a few of my bloggy friends(and others) with these baby moccasins. 

aren't they the CUTEST?

she is a wonderful knitter, a gifted pianist, loving sister, daughter and friend.

family singspiration just would NOT be the same without her.

this season of my life with her has {by far} been the best ever.

we totally 'get' each other, we love to create together, and yes, we share favorite TOMS and certain clothes.

i can break out in, "i just called......to say....i love youuuuuuu!" with fake mike in hand at target and she only gets mildly embarrassed.  :)

hey, that's my job!

so today, and every day, i'm so thankful that God chose ME to be her mother.

watching her grow up has been my privilege and i am keenly aware of how quickly time is fleeting.

we may only have her for a few more years, and i plan on enjoying every little bit.

eye rolls and all.

i hope she never forgets Who she truly belongs to.

she was bought with a price, a very high One, and my prayer is that she will radiate that Life to all those she meets.

Lord, i thank you so much for blessing me with this rare and precious jewel of a daughter.

may YOU shine brightly through her and continue to fill in all of my gaps!

mama loves you, elly grace.

xo, 

mary

go

i'm not gonna sugar coat this, dears.

this has been a hard week for me.

the results from tuesday were exposing my faithlessness in all sorts of ways.

one minute, i'd be walking on water{trusting!} and the next, i'd be in sackcloth and ashes{faithless!}...crying out to God.

as i was curled up in His lap late tuesday night, He calmed my fears, brushed away the tears, and i realized that THIS is what He wants from me all the time.

my complete attention and dependence.  

eyes fixed Above.

of course, all of this uncertainty and crazy turn of events is happening in the midst of the season of thankfulness, and there's nothing better to turn a frown upside down than a mile long list of blessings that are completely undeniable.

so here are a few of my #capturingourblessings from this week.
i have been playing along with rebekah on instagram and i am loving it!

first off, my privilege to vote.  i was able to give the kids a lesson in this as we went into our tiny town voters booth tucked in the basement of independent living apartments.  

there's plenty of old ladies with candy, and the cutest little americana curtains that i'm pretty sure one of them sewed to hide the old school write in voters stations.

i didn't get a sticker, but i felt a deep sense of pride knowing that i exercised my right to choose whom i feel would best represent this country with the morals and standards that are closest to those that God would be pleased with.

america is truly an amazing country.  we are blessed.

i captured this sweetness in the kitchen.  having a loving, Godly father for my children is an absolute joy and blessing.  He loves his children fiercely and always points them to Him.  always.

seeing the daughter/daddy love just about puts me into a puddle.

 

in typical God fashion, He had this package of blessings delivered right to my door step on wednesday.

wednesday would have to be the peak of my faithlessness this week.  

i mourned certain losses, and was melancholy at best.

a few weeks ago, i had seen a giveaway via one of my favorite blogs, Dreamy Whites, so i hopped over here to enter.

as it would turn out, i was the winner among many people who entered, and the timing was so appropriate.

His always is, you know?  He loves in the details.  and i love details.

maria is such a sweetie, and to say she has impeccable taste and incredible gifts would be an understatement.

in my package, i received a beautiful moroccan market tote, a monogrammed antique french linen sheet, two antique french linen pillow cases, soap, a lavender stuffed french grainsack pillow and a sweet sachet of lavender.

all of these treasures are my fave.  

head over to her shop to see more.

having a Bible believing, Gospel preaching, family of brothers and sisters in Christ is an absolute blessing.

we always go to prayer meeting on wednesday nights, 

but this night in particular i craved fellowship with my friends more than ever.

i needed love.

i needed encouragement.

i needed comfort and solace.

and that's exactly what i got.

if there is ever a time to seek God's face, it is now.  

Christians must band together and fight the good fight NOW.

this one may have been stretching it, but as i FINALLY sifted through ginormous piles of laundry, i couldn't help but be thankful for the bodies that fill these clothes that i so carefully fold into neat little piles.

you do not even want to see the mountains that remain, but i made a dent and that is always a good thing!

as i shake the dust off of my feet from this disappointing and rather difficult week, 

One thing remains the same throughout the crashing waves and uncertainty that lie ahead.

yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same.

all may change, but Jesus, NEVER.

glory! to His name!

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Psalm 100

we, as a country, may have changed and forfeited His blessings by choosing 

sin and self indulgence over obedience to Him and His Word, 

but those who have put their faith and trust in Him have no need to fear.

the events of the week have been a call to action, friends!

a catalyst to GO and BE the hands and feet of Jesus, fearlessly proclaiming His name 

BOLDLY.

God cannot use those who sit, paralyzed in fear and complacency.

i do not want to live in fear and with constant worry.

so i will trust, as well as i know how.

i will spread His hope and the Gospel to the unreached that need to know.

we are SO ready to

  GO.

who do you know that needs to know?

are you with me?

xo,

mary

vintage marquee 'GO' letters found at this fun shop!

our thankful tree

hello, darlings!

how have you all been?

i don't even know where in the world to begin.

i have had about a million posts in my head swirling around but nothing has made it over here.

do you ever write blog posts in your head when you are lying in bed at night?

or when you get a RARE quiet moment during the day?

i do it ALL the time, but they rarely make it to the big screen(haha!).

i know for a fact that the Lord has prompted me to tell you certain things that have been on my heart, but i have failed to do it.

i have sort of been using instagram as a mini blog, but it doesn't replace me sharing the thoughts that are constantly running through my head, the meaning behind each photo that i take, or the lessons that HE is teaching me along the way.

i could litralee write a blog post for each IG photo,

but i tend to get overwhelmed thinking about it and so i don't do anything at all.

fail.

well, not today!

i'm going to start right here. right now.

what we did today.

and maybe someday i'll rewind and share some other really special moments we've been having, too.

if you would like to follow me on instagram, my username is mary_krause.

so, today we made a thankful tree.

a simple and inexpensive way to count our blessings.

because you can never, ever give thanks too much.

i started with an antique cast iron urn and a fake branch that i bought at 50% off from hobby lobby.

i think it was $4.

i know there are oodles of free branches outside, but this one looked really real(hubby didn't know it was fake), and i can reuse it over and over again.  that's my justification.  :)

my girls balled up paper and shoved it around the stick in the urn and then we added river rock on top.

you could use a ball jar, galvanized pail or a pretty white pitcher, too.  anything goes!

then i took an old trixie belden novel we had been using for other projects, ripped out some pages, drew a leaf template and started cutting!

we hole punched each one and then tied string to some of them for variety.

it sure didn't take long for the attitude to change in our home once the kids and i started writing down our lists of gratitude.

there's definitely something that changes in the air when you turn your eyes off of what you feel you may be lacking and focus on the many blessings that we already have.

our tree is already SO full of leaves!

the kids just kept adding to it all day long and it did this mama's heart good to see them get excited about what God has given us.

it's only day one and the branches are bulging(there's more now than in the picture below).

that's a very good sign.  :)

i don't have time for big fancy projects, and this one definitely passes the, 'i-have-so-much-laundry-to-fold- my-head-is-going-to-pop-off-and-i-need-to-make-supper-and-you-need-to-erase-those-letters-again-and-redo-them' test for this mama.  for reals.

hope you make one, too.

you're gonna love it.

xo,

mary

p.s.  want to know what i am really thankful for tonight?  living in a country where i can VOTE!  i am SO stinkin' excited to vote tomorrow i can hardly stand it!  i hope that you do, too!