On Santa Claus

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Hubby and I came from two completely different ends of the spectrum in regards to Santa Claus. Hubby grew up in a household where Santa was seen as nothing more than a myth. His family didn't have a Christmas tree and/or many other holiday decorations. He was taught that Christmas should be focused on celebrating the birth of Jesus and Santa, Frosty, and such were simply a distraction from that focus. 

 I, on the other hand, grew up in a different kind of household. Sure, I knew that Christmas was about the birth of Jesus. I attended Catholic school and we went to Midnight Mass every Christmas Eve. But, I still strongly believed in Santa. I think I literally fell asleep on Christmas Eve with visions of sugar plums dancing in my head. I just knew that Santa Claus was real. Come on, he knew what was on my Christmas list and brought me those things every  year! Obviously, the man was real!

Because of the differences in our upbringing, hubby and I had to discuss what we would tell our children about Santa. He initially wanted demonize Santa. But, I didn't see the point in that. I wanted to be careful not to lie to the kids. Why tell them he is a real person when he is not? Or, why tell them that Santa is "The Devil" when he is not? So, we decided that the truth was just that Santa is pretend or make-believe. 

So, we don't make a big deal about turning the channel at commercials that feature Santa. When we hear our kids singing, "Santa Claus is coming to town" I remind them that he, in fact, will not be coming to town. (Although, some years I wish that he was).  Our children have seemed to receive our explanation just fine, until this year. 

This year, they asked me could they leave cookies and milk out for Santa. I answered "Well, Santa is pretend. He is make-believe just like Elmo or Big Bird."

They answered, *with sly little grins* "We know. We just want to leave the cookies and milk  for him anyway."

I guess they feel the need to test this out in their own laboratory. I find this so amusing, I think I might let them. 

Christmas Decor ~ Pinterest Favs

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God has been just that good!

This video is a 2010 review of Mount Zion Apostolic Faith Church in Indianapolis, Indiana. I have had the pleasure of hearing many of the preachers featured on the video, in person. And yes, we believe in having "chuch." And yes, it does get just as exciting and just as hilarious as it looks on this video!

To be honest, even as I watched the video, I began to reflect on my own 2011 review. I found that one minute I was laughing and the next minute I was shouting all over the kitchen. God is just that good! 2011 has been perhaps one of the roughest years of my life! But, I thank God that I can still see his faithfulness!

Have you began to reflect over 2011 yet? Despite the struggles, can you look back and see God's hand working in your life? Have you praised him yet? Go ahead and watch the video. You might find the praise contagious!

Fall Recap

Since there is about a week left before Winter is officially here, I thought I'd sneak in some of my fall highlights.

Urban Prep's football team did very well this year! Here is our family at the final game.


Noelle turned 6 years old on November 19th!


She put in a special request for a cake with strawberries!



Noelle had a great time at Chuck E. Cheese's and got a picture with Chuck himself!


And, thanks to hubby, here was what our Thanksgiving spread looked like.

How do I wean my baby?!

I don't know why, but it seems like whenever it comes time to wean a baby, I get complete amnesia.

Although I know I have weaned before, I can't quite remember at what point I got the guts to do so. I also draw a blank when it comes to what exactly "my methods" were during the weaning process. All I remember is that at some point, I got enough gusto and the determination to "go for broke" when it came to keeping a large toddler from hanging off my breasts!

Anne Smith, a Breastfeeding Basics writer, explains;

Webster’s Dictionary defines weaning as “accustoming a young mammal to take food otherwise than by nursing.” Although this event may be very cut and dried in the animal world, for humans the process of weaning is much more complicated, but only because we make it that way. Weaning your baby is part of the natural breastfeeding experience. It doesn’t have to be a time of unhappiness for you or your baby. If done “gradually, and with love” (the La Leche League motto), weaning can be a positive experience for both you and your little one.

That sounds real simple, doesn't it? None of my weaning experiences have gone that smoothly. My experiences usually involve the "crying it out method" to some degree. It seems like allowing children to self-wean would be a much easier route. However, I am usually too pregnant, weak, and exhausted, to wait.

At this point, I am not pregnant. However, I could be classified under the "weak and exhausted" category. So, I am about ready to wean my sweet Halle.

Do you remember when you weaned your babies? Was it ugly? Was it easy? Feel free to share your wisdom and experiences in the comments section!