Friday Favorites
Friday, December 7, 2018
It’s been a while since I shared some of my favorites, but I have so many things I’ve been wanting to tell y’all about!
It’s Christmas time at the Crowson’s! We got this as a gift last Christmas and it is seriously perfect for our little ones.
I’ve been trying to find ways to include Sawyer in Christmas, and this is perfect.
I’ve been trying to find ways to include Sawyer in Christmas, and this is perfect.
Two. Outlaw King on Netflix
Such a good movie! It’s basically what comes after Braveheart. So beware there’s lots of blood and guts that I covered my eyes during.
Three. Kroger K Cup Cappuccinos
Okay y’all, I pride myself on not being a caffeine person. I don’t relate to those “But first coffee” mugs, or
“All I need is Jesus and coffee” so this is a very big shift for me. That being said, I don’t think there is hardly
any caffeine in these, it’s mostly milk, sugar, and then a shot of coffee. They’re only 60 calories, all from 6g sugar,
so I don’t feel too terrible drinking them compared to a cup of hot chocolate or a sugary starbucks drink.
The best part is that it’s only $6 for 12!!!
“All I need is Jesus and coffee” so this is a very big shift for me. That being said, I don’t think there is hardly
any caffeine in these, it’s mostly milk, sugar, and then a shot of coffee. They’re only 60 calories, all from 6g sugar,
so I don’t feel too terrible drinking them compared to a cup of hot chocolate or a sugary starbucks drink.
The best part is that it’s only $6 for 12!!!
Four. Christmas Chronicles on Netflix
This may be my new FAVORITE Christmas movie. Just watch it. You’ll love it.
Five. The Real Life Podcast
Jefferson and Alyssa Bethke have tons of books, resources, and this podcast is my new favorite creation of theirs! Their life is extremely different than ours, so we love listening to how they put Jesus and family first. It's really challenged Daniel and I to talk about our vision for our family.
I linked one of my favorite episodes about how self care can become counterfeit.
Hope you love it all as much as I do!
I linked one of my favorite episodes about how self care can become counterfeit.
Hope you love it all as much as I do!
xoxo,
kelsey
8 Months // Sawyer Denise
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Sawyer at 8 Months
Weight: 19 lbs
Weight: 19 lbs
Birth Weight: 7lbs 7oz
Changes and Developments
Has two teeth!
Got RSV, but is happy and healthy now.
On the verge of crawling.
Eats 3 meals a day of solids.
Sleeps on her tummy.
Starting to sleep closer to 12 hours instead of 11 at night.
Giggles and smiles constantly. It's contagious.
Loves our Amazon Alexa, and will listen to it talk all day.
Adventures
We basically just skipped right past Thanksgiving into Christmas, but we did spend some time with friends and family. Sawyer’s cousins Claire and Caleb spent the night! I picture many more cousin sleepovers throughout the years. We celebrated Thanksgiving at Gigi and Chief’s house, and at Isa and Grandpa’s. Thanksgiving ended with a trip to urgent care. Sawyer had a cold all month, but she seemed to get worse all of a sudden. Turns out she had RSV and an ear infection. Luckily she’s completely fine now, and was a trooper the entire time. We wouldn’t of even taken her into the doctor, except for the fact that she freaked out every time we put her down for a nap. That was a clear sign to us that she had an ear infection. It’s wonderful to have her back to normal now! Seeing your baby sick is the worst. We took all our family Christmas pictures, and will hopefully be sending out cards soon!! We also went to Grapevine Main Street with the cousins to enjoy the Christmas lights and dinner.
We basically just skipped right past Thanksgiving into Christmas, but we did spend some time with friends and family. Sawyer’s cousins Claire and Caleb spent the night! I picture many more cousin sleepovers throughout the years. We celebrated Thanksgiving at Gigi and Chief’s house, and at Isa and Grandpa’s. Thanksgiving ended with a trip to urgent care. Sawyer had a cold all month, but she seemed to get worse all of a sudden. Turns out she had RSV and an ear infection. Luckily she’s completely fine now, and was a trooper the entire time. We wouldn’t of even taken her into the doctor, except for the fact that she freaked out every time we put her down for a nap. That was a clear sign to us that she had an ear infection. It’s wonderful to have her back to normal now! Seeing your baby sick is the worst. We took all our family Christmas pictures, and will hopefully be sending out cards soon!! We also went to Grapevine Main Street with the cousins to enjoy the Christmas lights and dinner.
Sawyer’s Schedule
Sawyer has completely moved to 2 naps! Which makes life a lot easier because we can actually go out for 2-3 hours without worrying about her needing a nap. She is still eating 5x a day, but I think she will be down to 4 soon because she’s eating a lot more solids.
Sawyer has completely moved to 2 naps! Which makes life a lot easier because we can actually go out for 2-3 hours without worrying about her needing a nap. She is still eating 5x a day, but I think she will be down to 4 soon because she’s eating a lot more solids.
7:00- wake up & eat 1
The rest of the schedule varies based on exactly what time she wakes up. Sometimes it’s 6, sometimes 7, this morning was 7:20.
The rest of the schedule varies based on exactly what time she wakes up. Sometimes it’s 6, sometimes 7, this morning was 7:20.
8:00- breakfast
She will usually have one or two of the following for breakfast; banana, carrots, tortilla, eggs,
turkey, chicken, puffs, pouch of fruits and veggies.
9:30 to 10:45- nap one
I stopped trying to push her to 3 hours of awake time before her first nap and have settled to about 2 ½ hours. So it’s usually between 9-10 am.
I stopped trying to push her to 3 hours of awake time before her first nap and have settled to about 2 ½ hours. So it’s usually between 9-10 am.
10:45- eat 2
12:00- lunch
Usually turkey or chicken, tortilla, and some fruits and veggies.
1:00- eat 3
2 to 3:30- nap two
Sometimes this happens a littler earlier if she’s sleepy, or if we’re in the car.
3:30- eat 4
5:00- dinner
Usually turkey or chicken, tortilla, and some fruits and veggies.
6:30- bathtime
6:45- eat 5
7:00- night night!
All the Pictures
Enjoying the Christmas Season
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
Daniel and I have been talking a lot about how to really enjoy the holidays, and not just feel like we’re surviving them. It’s hard to put your finger on exactly where the excitement turns to anxiety, and the fun plans turn into burdens. It’s probably different for everyone, but for us the overwhelming feeling happens when we start overspending and over committing. We can’t buy it all, and we can’t do it all, but every year we try. This year we are trying to take it slow, start a few traditions and make lasting memories as a family of three.
The best way to simplify Christmas as a family is to prioritize what’s important to you and see what activities coincide with that. For us Christmas is about making memories as a family, and celebrating the birth of Jesus. We simply aren’t prioritizing the obligations that hinder our joy. It doesn’t mean we won’t do them, but it means we won’t stress if we don’t. They aren’t requirements for December, they don’t have to be done, and when some of them inevitably don’t work out we are okay!
For every event, tradition, and obligation, I have to consider does this help my family make memories, and celebrate the birth of Jesus?
Gifting
Christmas shopping is so stressful without a plan. Parts of gift giving definitely help make memories, and hopefully through giving we are able to celebrate the gift of Jesus. In years past we’ve basically just bought whatever we wanted for each person or gift exchange. While I love gifting, it has hit our credit card hard at Christmas. Luckily, using our credit card is a thing of the past so we had to actually have the cash for each purchase this year. That required saving, budgeting, and shopping smart. Don’t think we are Scrooge’s, we LOVE giving gifts, Daniel especially. He’s pretty much the most generous person on earth, besides my mom. We just can’t afford to go overboard anymore, and hopefully it’ll teach our kiddos about being generous with your time and love even when you don’t have any money.
Set an overall budget, based on how much you’ve saved or allocated out of your paycheck for Christmas. Make a list of every person you are buying a gift for. Choose an amount for each gift, based on the overall budget. Kids gifts are the best place to cut costs because there are so many cousins in most families that if you’re spending $30 per person, it really adds up! Also, kids don’t realize the value of something, especially if you picked it out based on their interests.
If gift giving is a major stress on your heart and wallet then take a step back and see why. Are you giving gifts because it’s an expectation? Are you spending too much? If your reasons for giving gifts don’t align with your priorities then it’s going to cause anxiety and frustration.
Christmas Parties
We love our friends and family, but there are so many of them. I never understood the stress of family get togethers until we got married and suddenly had five different Christmas parties! Our families aren’t even divorced, but we still see extended family so they take up almost every weekend of December. The only ones we HAVE to be at are immediate family, that’s who we want to make memories with and spend time with. With just one baby, we are still able to go to ALL the family Christmas parties, but eventually we won’t attend every year.
Church Events
There are so many amazing opportunities to serve during the holidays, but remember that serving your family comes first. When Daniel and I were single we spent hours a week volunteering, and when we had no kids we were able to as well. Now I completely understand why most volunteers are empty nesters, and singles. God has given parents a very specific and demanding task to serve their families. Don’t feel guilty about not being able to hand out Christmas dinners, be an usher at church, or volunteer in the nursery. If your kids are older, YES DO THOSE THINGS TOGETHER, but with an infant we just can’t. In this season, church is a place for rest and recharging. Yes we will still be involved with our life group and a part of Bible study, but we aren’t going to pile on the extra holiday volunteering that Christians feel pressured to do.
Giving and Serving
Loving others is such a beautiful part of Christmas, and can be done without signing up for ten different church events. I’ve been brainstorming ways to serve and give without over committing. A really simple way to love on your friends and family is with $5 Starbucks gift cards. You can text them straight to them if you have the app, and it is the easiest way to spread some joy. Especially for those teacher friends. If money is tight, think about what you can make! I made little Christmas cookie mix in a jar a few years ago that was really inexpensive but the perfect gift for neighbors or coworkers. Another way to serve is asking if there’s any “homework” you could do for a teacher or your church. I promise that your kids teacher has a million things to cut out, laminate, staple, and grade. Ask what you can help with!! My church even offered me a little diy take home crafting project for Christmas decorations. It was so great to be able to serve during Sawyer’s naptime. Don’t let service or expensive gifting cause you stress. Do what you can, when you can, how you can.
Take Aways
Before the season gets away from us let’s slow down and consider our priorities. If we don’t, we are sure to get caught up in the Christmas consumer culture that will leave us empty!
1. What are your priorities this Christmas?
2. How can you slow down, and focus on what matters to you
3. What obligations, burdens, and traditions can you rid yourself of to really focus on your priorities?
If you’re married, talk to your husband about what he thinks Christmas is about and how you can work together to create a home that reflects your values. If you’re single, consider how you can foster relationships with family and friends that encourage your priorities. Jesus is all about relationship. He became flesh and dwelt among us. Let’s celebrate his incarnation through the entire holiday season!
