Ranch Raised

Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus, born in a barn. It was a humble beginning.

As I sit down at the end of a very long day, 

I decided to let Santa know what this ranch wife had to say. 

We are blessed to live this way. We are blessed to see the Lord all around us. And I hope we all never lose sight of all that we are given 364 days a year, in addition to Christmas day! 

Just knowing that we have made the turn and are headed towards longer days, even if it is for a mere few minutes a day is just the physiological boost we need. 

Maybe it is my sentimental heart or my longing to hold tight to past traditions, but I still love the idea of baking Christmas cookies to share with those we love and adore.

Lately, I have felt the pull to become more grounded and settled, which with four busy kids under my roof, seems like this would be a pretty unlikely time to slow down. 

We may not be an area flush with big shopping malls, neon lights and fast food joints but we have a Bookmobile and for that I am so grateful to live where we do!

What shopping locally saves me in time and energy is valuable. What shopping locally returns in value to my community is priceless.

As I started the month of giving last week talking about not stressing over giving people physical presents but instead giving the gift of your time. I promised to bring you great ideas all month and hopefully something will spark an idea that works for you!