How Do You...Manage Your Inbox?

How do you... manage your e-mail and keep your inbox from becoming cluttered?

Today's question has nothing to do with Christmas except that if you are like me, a cluttered workspace breeds a cluttered mind which breeds distraction.  I, for one, do not need distraction in the days before Christmas. 

As a general rule, I don't save more than four or five e-mails in my inbox at a time.  When I check my e-mail, I immediately delete the junk.  This includes ads that I've signed up for, like Old Navy or Children's Place, but don't have time to peruse.  (I do not unsubscribe altogether because these stores offer special coupons and discounts to e-mail subscribers so I like access when needed.)

Next I focus on my personal e-mails from friends.  I try to respond to messages with 24 hours and then either delete or file. 

Filing is my key to avoiding inbox clutter.  I have file folders labeled things like Online Shopping, Writing Assignments, Travel, Brian's Business, etc.  After I read an e-mail that is too important to delete, I add it to one of these folders.  Safely tucked away for future reference, it frees up space in the inbox and in my mind!  Periodically (maybe once a month), I weed the folders, too. 

How do you manage your e-mail box?  Let us know in the comments.

I'm taking a mini-vacation from my "How Do You...?"  feature until after Christmas.  I'm running a little dry on inspiration so if you have a question for a future "How Do You...?" post, share that in the comments, too, or send me an e-mail!  I'd love to hear from you. 

*** You can now access all "How Do You...?"  posts in one place by clicking here. ***

Puppets at Christmas

I love how much my kids love to create and do art projects so I make an effort to surprise them with a new idea every few weeks.   I know many moms, though, struggle to bring out the art supplies or find the time (or energy) to wax creative... and that's okay!  Remember, nobody is having fun when you are losing your cool!

Maybe this Christmas, instead, you could try a creative activity that does not require glue, Play-Doh, glitter, or anything messy. 

I printed  free Christmas ornaments from Wild Olive on white cardstock, but instead of inserting hooks to hang them on our tree, I hot-glued popsicle sticks onto their backs to create a set of fun little puppets.  I printed both the Nativity set and the Santa set, though we play with them separately.  (It just doesn't seem right for the shepherds to be in the same story as the Nutcracker.)

These were so fun, easy, and inexpensive that I made a few extra sets to give as small gifts.

This, though, is a win-win for everyone.  Sure, the puppets will take a minute to assemble, but most of the work is done for you and the fun part is watching imagination come to life.

a White (House) Christmas book

A Christmas Tree in the White House 

by Gary Hines

I know I loved this Christmas book equally as much as my kids did.  I'm a sucker for true stories, and though this one has fictional elements, I love that the basis for the story really happened!

A Christmas Tree in the White House is set during Teddy Roosevelt's presidency.  Known for his conservation efforts, he refused to allow his children to cut down a Christmas tree for display in the White House.  He explained that he needed to set a good example as leader, and though he loved to please his children, he was firm on his decision.

His two youngest sons, Archie and Quentin, hatched a mischievous plan to sneak one into the White House behind his back, but how does one keep a Christmas tree a secret? Who really wants to anyway? Once their father finds their tree, he takes the boys to his forester friend, Gifford Pinchot who gives a bit of advice that no one was expecting! 

Are the boys allowed to keep the Christmas tree?  You'll have to read to find out. 

*****

Do you have a book or two to add to the growing Christmas list?  If you do, I'd love to hear about it in the comments. 

a Birthday and a Book Review

Today my firstborn turns 10.  For a decade, I've been rocking, holding, hugging, teaching, guiding, correcting, laughing... playing games, cutting sandwiches into quarters, taking temperatures, sweeping crumbs off the floor, and loving. 

On that day ten years ago, December 8, 2002, I could not imagine my life today.  I wasn't even attempting to think of the future.  I was focused on birthing my son, waiting and laboring the twelve long hours from when I felt my first contraction in the wee hours of the morning until he was delivered later that afternoon. 

We can draw a comparison to our lives before Christ.  Weighed down with sin, in the midst of our painful aching and stretching, the longing and waiting... we are not looking forward.  We are simply waiting to be delivered.

I was recently given the opportunity to review the book by Born to Deliver by Kathy Brace (with Natalie Wickham).  Kathy is a midwife and I've always been drawn to those kinds of books (A Midwife's Story, anyone?  Or Baby Catcher, perhaps?), but this turned out to be not one of "those kinds of books" at all and beyond what I was expecting. 

This is the story of Kathy, daughter of divorce and loneliness.  As a teenager and  into adulthood, she looked for anything or anyone to fill the hunger in her heart.  She hoped having a boyfriend would make her feel loved, but boy after boy, man after man left her feeling used and empty.  She had multiple unexpected pregnancies and struggled though life as a single mom.  She eventually married, but even having the life she always dreamed-- a husband, home, and family-- didn't fill the void.

I've been floundering lately to find a book that holds my interest.  After the string of memoirs I flew through this summer, I hit a wall.  After a real disappointment, I struggled to find anything that was too good to put down.  I never quit reading-- I'm always in the middle of something-- but I wasn't reading anything I loved.  When I began this book, though, on a busy, busy Thanksgiving weekend, I couldn't stop.  The story was riveting! 

I love the double meaning of the title. Currently practicing midwifery, Kathy believes God has called her to this purpose, this ministry of delivering babies into the world, but she also believes that ultimately she herself was born to be delivered into the arms of a gracious and forgiving God. 

How Do You...Keep Up With School in December?

How do you keep up with school work during the busy weeks of the holiday season?

We purposefully keep our weeks of December as stress-free as possible, but between my baking and wrapping and the kids' brains checking out of school on December 1, it can be a struggle to plug away at our pencil work until Christmas.  However, because we take an extended break lasting from the week before Christmas until the first week of February, we can't afford to totally zone out in December.

Here's how I make it work:

I sketch out a very loose schedule for the month.  I use notebook paper-- one sheet per week-- and write out a short list of what I'd like to accomplish each school day.  I check the calendar for special events and plan accordingly.  For example, we set aside an entire day in December to bake with my mom and sisters so I plan nothing academic and give ourselves a day off from official schooling. Because I know about it ahead of time, I do it with no guilt, but even if something comes up unexpectedly, I take a lighthearted approach, knowing that this season comes only once a year.

In the margins of my notebook, I write short notes of other things (besides academics) I want to do for fun.  I scribble in ideas of crafts for the little ones or books I want to read to them.  By seeing it all planned out together (no matter how messy), I can more accurately predict if it's a good day to bring out the glue and paint for a craft project or whether it would be better to stick with the basics. 

The best part about homeschooling is that I can choose to lighten our load in December...or rename the things we want to do anyway and label them school!  Last year, we dumped our regular art study for the month of December.  Instead, we took an afternoon a week to make a batch of Christmas cookies and called that art!  This year we're trading in our regular Bible reading plan for Allyson's The Names of Jesus Advent Cards (free download), and since we've been reading and singing our way through Christmas Carols for Kid's Heart this entire school year, it's been easy to incorporate music into our December days, even on the weekends! 

How do you keep up with school in December? Let us know in the comments. 

Also, if you have a question for a future "How Do You...?" post, share that in the comments, too, or send me an e-mail!   I'd love to hear from you. 

*** You can now access all "How Do You...?"  posts in one place by clicking here. ***

Size Sorting Busy Bag

Want an easy learning activity that you can pull together with things you have around the house? 

Begin by saving a variety of plastic or metal lids-- from the milk jug, the pizza sauce, the yogurt, the peanut butter jar, etc. Choose four or five in graduated sizes. Arrange them from smallest to biggest and trace the outline of each on a sheet of heavy paper.   You can label the paper like I did (or not!). 

Give your child the lids and the paper and have them match the sizes. 

It's a simple as that. 

Do you have any simple learning ideas?

a trio of Christmas books

For a little fun this year, I scrounged up a few books about the famous Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree to read to my kids.  While each book had a different style and target audience, all were excellent choices for our seasonal book basket!  They all fit the criteria for the Christmas Book List, too.  

The Christmas Tugboat: How the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Came to New York City
by George Matteson and Adele Ursone

This first Rockefeller book is for older children.  Brand new-- just released this year!-- it is the true tale the family who is hired to carry the Christmas tree along the river to New York City.  Told from the perspective of the tugboat captain's daughter, the story begins early in the morning as the girl rises to join her parents for the 2-day trip.  She shares details of the interior of the tugboat, what they do for meals on the boat, and how it makes her feel to see the enormous tree for the first time and to see the crowds of people waiting for the anticipated cargo.  Though wordy and detailed, it is never boring!

What makes this book most fascinating is that, though told from the child's perspective, the author is the real-life tugboat captain himself!

Christmas in the City by Loretta Krupinski

This tickled the fancies of my littlest girl (Alaine, 2) and my animal-loving girl (Maddie, 8). This book was less factual and more fanciful.  It shares the story of a young mouse couple who make their home in the tree that was selected to be the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.  They explore landmarks around New York City, looking for a new home after deeming theirs no longer suitable to raising a family.  You'll have to read yourself  to see the home they choose! 

The Carpenter's Gift: A Christmas Tale about the Rockefeller Center Tree
by David Rubel

This was my favorite of the trio and the book with the widest appeal to my audience.  I love books based on true stories and this was a good one.  Set in 1931 during the Great Depression, a little boy and his father drive into New York City on Christmas Eve to earn a bit of money selling trees.  After a successful day, they decide to donate their remaining trees to the construction workers who are building the new Rockefeller Center.  The workers decorate the  20-foot tree with homemade garland and tin cans.  The following day-- Christmas Day-- the boy and his father receive a unexpected gift in return from the construction workers. 

The story continues many years later as the boy, now grown into an old man, is invited to participate in the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree tradition in an exciting new way. 

Don't miss the notes following the story, which sort fact from fiction and explain how Rockefeller Center began donating the lumber from their trees to Habitat for Humanity in 2007. 

*****

Do you have a book or two to add to the growing Christmas list?  If you do, I'd love to hear about it in the comments. Plus don't miss out on my Christmas Book Giveaway, ending Monday at midnight.

In the great green room there was a telephone...

...and a red balloon and a picture of the cow jumping over the moon.

If you are a parent of young children, I'm sure you recognize those words.  With all the talk of books and Christmas on my blog this week, this review is fitting.

When Maddie was a toddler, I purchased a copy of Goodnight Moon in a used book store and gave it to her for Christmas. Maddie is, and always has been, a book lover and that book was opened and read many times over the years.

We still have that book on the girls' shared bookshelf and it is now one of Alaine's favorites.  Just yesterday, I found it on the floor where someone had left it after reading.   For Christmas this year, we're giving Alaine a Goodnight Moon Felt Set  from the Cake in the Morn Etsy shop.

Because it is a gift and because I'd rather she not see it until Christmas Day, I asked Maddie (now 8) to try it out first.  We brought it out at nap time, sat together by the lit Christmas tree, and ooh-ed and aah-ed over all the detailed pieces-- the kittens, the mittens, the old lady, the red balloon, and even a bowl full of mush-- all set in their green room.  Maddie arranged the pieces in the room just so. 

We know Alaine is going to enjoy lots of imaginative play with this companion to a well-loved book. 

The Cake in the Morn Etsy shop offers other story book felt sets, too,  from classics such as The Little Engine That Could, Where the Wild Things Are,  and The Velveteen Rabbit as well as other educational felt sets, such as a Human Anatomy Felt Set and Felt Tangrams.  Be sure to order by December 10 for guaranteed Christmas delivery. 

H. Gray is the mom behind the Etsy shop.  She homeschools her four children with an eclectic mix of part-Classical, part-Charlotte Mason, and part-Waldorf philosophies.  She also runs another other Etsy shop of organizational printables,  Coffee in the Morn.

How Do You...Schedule Christmas Events Without Becoming Overwhelmed?

How do you... have fun in December without overscheduling?

In her e-book, Celebrating and Savoring a Simple Christmas, Crystal Paine speaks of taking a few minutes as a family to create a Christmas Bucket List of the events or activities you deem priority during December.  We've been doing this for years but with a twist.  Each year in November, Brian and I have a "business meeting" to discuss the things we want to do as a family in the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  We do this without the kids.  After we've made plans and penciled in the calendar, we tell the kids and they cheer (literally) as we share what we've planned. 

Our priorities change from year to year. There are things we do every year because they are family tradition and important to all of us.  For example, Maddie and I  have a girls' day out to see a school performance of The Nutcracker  in early December, and as a family we always ride to the ocean to look at Christmas lights on the evening of the last day of school before break. Some things we try because we want the experience, but don't have plans to repeat every year.  These include going Christmas caroling and attending our town's Christmas parade.  Some things we do at home like decorate the tree and watch our favorite Christmas movies...and some we do away from home like have a baking day with my mom and sisters.  We pay careful attention to the calendar when we're planning to ensure that we don't plan too much!  No one wants to run ragged at Christmas time!

We also make a conscious choice to guard the last days leading up to Christmas.  Two days before Christmas, we give the house a thorough, all-day, dust-the-crevices, wipe-down-the-refrigerator clean.  Once that is done, we relax and declare Christmas Eve a quiet day at home.  We do not accept invitations or leave the house, but spend the day together playing games and resting before the busy-ness of Christmas Day. 

How do you keep from overscheduling in December?  Let us know in the comments. 

Also, if you have a question for a future "How Do You...?" post, share that in the comments, too, or send me an e-mail! I'd love to hear from you. 

*** You can now access all "How Do You...?"  posts in one place by clicking here. ***

Christmas Book Giveaway

On Sunday evening, I rolled out my big Christmas Book List with selections for babies, older children, and families.  Today I get to give one of the books away!   

The Christmas Story by Jane Werner Watson

When I was a little girl, this book had a place on our home book shelf.  Then when my own little ones came along, my mom gifted a copy to them.  Does the sight of a  Little Golden book  make you feel all warm inside? What about Eloise Wilkin illustrations?  A mixture of both, this book is sure to make you melt! 

Would you like a copy to read to your children (or grandchildren or friend's children)?  Fill out the Rafflecopter form below for your chance(s) to win.  Giveaway ends Monday, December 3. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway