Christmas Traditions

As Christmas quickly approaches, I have had a few people ask me about one of our Christmas Traditions, the Christmas Chain. Years ago a dear friend introduced me to the idea of the Christmas Chain/Christmas Countdown. The idea is simple, fill your December calendar with one activity per day leading up to Christmas.
Over the years our Christmas Chain has grown to become an event that all of my kids look forward too. It has become a time of enjoying making crafts together, trying new foods and doing activities that we don't normally do on a regular basis. Each year the chain has retained some favorite activities as well as embraced new activities and it has morphed and adapted with the age of my children.
If you are interested in starting your own Christmas Chain, here are some of my ideas:

1. Choose a method of counting down the days: Pinterest has a lot of ideas for countdowns and advents. Our countdown was one that I had purchased at Jo Ann Fabrics several years ago. I like this style of countdown because each day is a mini pocket and I simply fill the pockets with the activities. This works well especially if I need to swap out an activity in case of a change of plans.
My suggestion is for the first year or two or longer,  involve your kids in making a simple paper chain. You can write each days events on each link or you can keep a separate list (out of sight) in case you need to swap activities.

2. Choose your activities: Christmas Chain activities can be as simple or complex as you wish, based on what you and your family enjoy doing.  Are you active? Crafty? Social? or Homebodies? Do you prefer to be alone as a family or share the holidays with others? Are there things that you always do at Christmas time? or are there new traditions you want to start? The ideas are limitless! And remember that sometimes the simplest things are the most memorable!
Our activities tend to fall into 4 different categories. Books, Movies, Countries and traditions. Here's why:

1. I love reading to my kids and I especially love reading heart warming    stories during the Christmas season.

2. We love movies! And there are some Christmas movies worth repeating every year!

3. I love learning about other countries and cultures and experimenting in the kitchen. I also think its important for my kids to study and learn about other cultures. (I do try to coordinate certain countries with real holiday dates)

4. There are just some things we do for traditions sake!


3. Set your plan in motion: This is when I get out the big monthly calendar and strategically plan what days we will do which activities. On the days that are wide open I plan our biggest events and on the days that we are busy outside the home I plan the less intensive activities. This is when I also check  our community calendar to see if there are any activities we want to participate in or attend. I also try to make a weekly list of anything we need for craft projects, extra groceries, etc. So that I am "usually " prepared ahead of time.

Now, fill up your chain/pockets and let the fun begin. Each day allow your kids to remove one chain revealing the day's activity. Make memories, have fun and repeat often!

Here is a list of the 2013 Leathermon Christmas Chain Activities: 

Letters to Santa and Wish List Ornaments
Watch Rudolph and have hot cocoa
Christmas in Spain
Read The Snow Queen and make snow play dough
Christmas in France
Watch Frozen, have snowman pancakes and frozen hot chocolate
Watch Mickey Mouse Christmas cartoons and make Mickey cookies
Read Snowflake Bentley, make paper snowflakes and tortilla snowflakes
Read Frosty the Snowman, make snowman pictures, watch the cartoon and have snowman ice-cream
Christmas in Greece
Puppy chow and game night
Christmas in China
Read the Polar Express (take a train ride)
Baking Day and visit the Live Nativity
Look at Christmas lights
Elf Day: watch the movie Elf, make elf hats, elf ornaments
Christmas in Germany
Read the Gingerbread Man and make gingerbread houses
Christmas in England
Grinch Day: read the Grinch, watch the cartoon, make grinch punch and lump of coal cookies
Read The Shortest Day
Read Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree, tree craft
Read Trees of Dancing Goats, service project
Attend the candle light service, read the Night Before Christmas
Merry Christmas!

Pig Bladders, Patron Saints and Celebration

"Barva is a small city and canton in Costa Rica, located 3 km north of Heredia.  It was named in honor of Barvak, an indigenous chief who ruled the area before the arrival of the Spanish.  The patron saint of the town is Saint Bartholomew.  A large church, Iglesia de San Bartolome de Barva, was established between 1568 and 1575 is in Barva.  Every year on August 24, the people of the town have a celebration dedicated to the saint, and the highlight of the celebration is the unique masquerade, where people go out wearing masks and hit others with cow and pig bladders."  From Wikipedia.  Yes you read that correctly! Cow and pig bladders! And our family got to experience the celebration! On Friday August 24 our family ventured to the Central Park of Barva with one of my classmates from school. The Central Park was full of activity. Vendors had set up tents around the park square selling food, clothes, jewelry and various other small trinkets. There were carnival style games, cotton candy and kiddy carnival rides. The church building was dressed with beautiful fabric drapes of red and orange. Floral arrangements lined the alter of the church and huge bouquets of tropical flowers dawned the massive church pillars. Outside overlooking the whole festive event was the patron saint himself, Saint Bartholomew. 

Sounds like a typical way to celebrate a saint, right? Well, this is where it gets interesting. On this day people young and old alike,  dress up in masks. Not your typical plastic mask with an elastic strap, (although we did see a few of those on little kids) but I mean a full, oversized, artistically painted mask that is worn like a helmet. The style of masks varied from clowns to demons. And those people wearing the masks carried with them cow or pig bladders, blown up like balloons, filled with water and tied with a string. Then the masked people proceeded to walk through the crowd hitting bystanders with the bladders. The crowd was consistently running from one end of the park to the other just to watch someone get pounded with a bladder. 
It was the most insane celebration I have ever seen! The kids clung closely to us, afraid they would get hit with one of the bladders. At one point in time Jyles literally tried to climb up me like a cat climbs a scratching post. I know, some of you are probably wondering why we would even expose our kids to such a tradition. The truth is I had no idea how scary the masks were going to be or how terrifying the thought of being hit with a pig bladder was! But life is full of the unknown and fear of the unknown should never hold us captive. 

Even scripture speaks to this. Isaiah 41:10 & 13 says "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous hand.........For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you." In the Leathermon household we don't want to be ruled by fear. We want to taste, see and experience all that the Lord has prepared for us. And it just so happened on August 24th the Lord provided us with the opportunity to taste, see and experience a unique tradition in Barva, Costa Rica. 

R & R Costa Rican Style

After a very long first week of some major adjustments, we were blessed to have a long weekend of some much needed R&R. 

Classes for me let out early on Thursday, (August 8) allowing for us to start our weekend on Friday. Prior to coming to Costa Rica we had made arrangements to travel to Manuel Antonio, a national park and beach. Originally we were going to take public transportation, but following a hectic week of adjustments, we decided it best to hire a private driver.

Our driver picked us up Friday morning at 9:00 and drove us the three and a half hours to our hotel. We stayed at a very nice place called Costa Verde. Upon arrival we decided to head up the hill to the nearest restaurant. While we were eating it began to rain and then pour! The rain refused to let up so we left the restaurant any way and made the treck back to our hotel. By the time we got there we were all soaked! But what an experience! It's rare to find a warm down pour in Montana. The kids of course "soaked" up every minute of it, jumping through puddles, laughing and enjoying the wonder of the rain. It continued to rain/pour for the rest of the evening spoiling the chance to do any outside activities.

Saturday morning greeted us with warm sunshine. Not wanting to waste a minute of it, we arose early and walked into Manuel Antonio. We found a public beach access and walked the length of the beach until we reached the town. It was of course beautiful!

We then spent the morning walking through the national park. Here in Costa Rica we have really been able to experience Gods great design in nature. We had to take our time walking through the park, searching for creatures. Insects, snakes and animals are amazingly camouflaged. We were fortunate enough to spy large spiders, a bright yellow snake, sloths, lizards, crabs, raccoons and of course monkeys! After our walk through the park we spent the rest of the day on the beach. There's something captivating about the ocean. As many times as the waves rush in and out, it never grows tiring. The kids rarely ventured out of the water except to bring ashore the treasures they had found. Sea shells, sand dollars and misc items that had been brought closer by the tide. 

Sunday morning we were once again greeted with beautiful sunshine. We enjoyed a traditional Costa Rican breakfast of eggs, toast, rice, beans, and sweet fried plantains. We also enjoyed the company of monkeys playing just off the balcony as we ate. Knowing our driver would be returning for us in the afternoon, we were careful not to venture to far from the hotel. So, the kids spent the morning swimming in the pool, while I worked on homework for the upcoming week. Just before noon we received notice that our driver would not be coming at 3:30 as we had originally planned, but that he had been delayed by traffic and would arrive at about 4:30. 4:30 came and went along with another notice of his arrival time changing to 6:00. We passed the time by writing post cards, shopping in the gift shop, and touring one of the hotel's amazing rooms, a refurbished airplane! However, we were so grateful when our driver finally arrived. The kids were troopers, waiting all those hours. All in all it was a wonderful weekend and we felt so blessed to be able to get away and relax. 

"He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:29-31

There's No Place Like Home

"Where thou art- that is home" Emily Dickinson

Piamonte Place, that's what we will call home for the next month. Its a far cry from our native Montana. We have traded in our "big sky" and prairies, for moss covered cobble stone roads and  lush green tropical forests. As I sit on our open air balcony and stare out at the landscape it is green as far as the eye can see. Down below me there is a thick forest of trees, plants and flowers. Amid those trees and flowers are secret trails and passages leading to tucked away waterfalls, ponds, picnic spots and gazebos. For the kids it is a never-ending opportunity for exploration. Each day is a filled with new sites and spectacular sounds. 

Piamonte Place is actually situated on the side of Barva Volcano, a now extinct volcano. I've been told that when

Piamonte Place was first purchased there was little to no vegetation here. But over time the care taker has planted trees, flowers and plants of all kinds. There are bannana trees, orange trees, palm trees, calla lilies the size of my hand and many unique plants that I have never encountered before. It is all a testament to our Creators extrodinary handiwork.

Our house is a two story, 3 bedroom, 2 bath home. We have been blessed with all that we need. I say "need" because it is of course lacking in a few amenities that we often take for granted and forget to be thankful for, like hot showers, reliable internet and an oven. But we are extra greatful for running water, flushing toilets and reliable electricity. 

So far our adjustment to "home" has been relatively smooth.  We have estabished the routine of mealtimes, chores and school work to make all of us feel as "normal" as possible. We've quickly learned to make adjustments for the rain, the amount of daylight, and the lack of technology. We are learning the art of slowing down, playing games, journaling, drawing and soaking in our surroundings. 

 

Matthew 6:25-34 says,  "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air they do not sow or reap or store away in the barns and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ……..But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." 

Here at Piamonte Place we are learning to not worry, but to rely; to rely  on the one who created the birds of the air, the lush tropical forests and the beautiful plants and flowers. We are learning that life can be lived at a much slower pace, with less stuff and more meaning. We are relearning the art of seeking His kingdom and His righteousness.

Greetings

Today I set out on a new adventure. One of discovery of the world around me, discovery of myself and my beliefs. Today, I enter into a world that many have entered before me, but is completely foreign to me, the world of blogging.
For years I have had a nagging desire to write. Just write. Maybe it would be something profound or maybe it would be something simple, it's hard to say. Maybe it would be something life changing for me or for someone else, I'm not really sure. The only thing I am sure about is the nagging. 
Before I get too carried away let me introduce myself. I am first and foremost a daughter of the King of Kings, (although I'm embarrassed to say I don't always act that way), secondly, I am wife to my husband of 15 years who is a music minister and nurse, and finally I am mom to 5 really great kids who someday will do great things for the kingdom. With those types of credentials I should have plenty to blog about! But so does the gal next door. And I guess that is the point for me.....
I'm really nothing special just a fellow sojourner on this journey called life. I'm the girl next door who sometimes gets it right but a lot of the times gets it wrong. I am simply one of seven irons in our household who are consistently being refined by the King of Kings. 
My hope through this blog is to bring hope to others just like me. Life is crazy, life is hectic and busy but life is also good. And its my faith in Christ that helps to hold it all together. 
So as I embark upon this journey may my life be "a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing," (2 Corinthians 2:15)