Nothing like capturing treasured Christmas moments on camera.  I have put together a scrapbook of some of mine to share with you, which you can see below.  As I have been pondering all of these pictures, I realize that all the different Christmas moments captured give me so much joy filling my cup to overflow.

How thankful I am for each moment I had with family, each moment I had to spend time alone, each moment I had making gifts, each moment I spent with favorite family pets, etc.  Each of the different moments filled my cup of joy up in different ways.

What were some of your treasured Christmas moments that filled your cup up with joy to overflow?  I would really enjoy reading about them … please do share in the comment section.

Moving quickly towards the New Year!

~ Shileen

A free scrapbook by Smilebox

As you listen to this song allow the peace of the Season envelop you.  May your Christmas celebration be filled with love allowing your light to shine bright!

Merry Christmas from my heart to yours!

Shileen

For the next few minutes as you watch this clip from Charlie Brown Christmas, be still. Let everything go for the moment, and allow this simple message to penetrate your spirit. Allow the simple message of Christmas to bring you Christmas joy and peace filling your soul with hope.

What does the message evoke inside of you? What does it cause you to want to do? How might you relate to the different characters, even to what we refer to as the “Charlie Brown Christmas tree”? I love it when Linus says, “… all it really needs is a little love”. The gang proceeds to give the ugly little tree some love and suddenly the tree shines. What might we learn from this?

Again, be still in the moment and be blessed by this little 5 minute clip. Don’t judge what might come up .. just let the thoughts come and go and in the moment let all be right in your world.

You can make your own little Charlie Brown Christmas tree as a reminder that there is always hope and with a little love, anything can shine.  Let us remember that even about ourselves … offering ourselves love in a way that will allow us to shine!  Click here for instructions => Instructibles

As beautiful as the Christmas season is, it can be stressful.  No matter how organized you are, no matter how many lists you are checking off twice, Christmas stress can still creep up on you and bite you in the behind.

For that reason I highly recommend that you create a sacred space to de-stress.  If you have created a sacred space to heal as Georgie Holbrook and I shared about in a teleconference call, then creating a sacred space to de-stress should not be foreign to you.

It is very simple.  Choose a place in your home that brings you peace and joy.  It can be an entire room or it can be a corner nook.  You don’t want to create more work for yourself so if your home is a bit overwhelming right now, please choose a little nook that you can clean up quickly.  Be sure to add candles and whatever else that will bring you peace and tranquility.  You will also want it to have holiday cheer so add some simple decorations.

I am sharing with you one of my favorite spots in my home.  My guest room is what I call the happy room.  It is bright and cheery and always feels calming and safe.  I added a simple little lit Christmas tree, a poinsettia, and window candles, which all gives the room a beautiful peaceful glow.

Yesterday I was feeling the holiday stress so I grabbed my holiday novel (“The Christmas Letters”) and a cup of coffee and spent an hour reading in my happy room. =)  Oh my gosh!  It felt heavenly!  It is such a simple thing but I kid you not, the beautiful atmosphere and the time out for reading filled my cup with so much Christmas joy and peace.

And as a result I have had a much better day today feeling under control once again.

Don’t let your checklist of things to do steal your Christmas joy. Yes, you do have time to de-stress.  You don’t have time NOT to de-stress!  Why?  The more rested and well balanced you are the more you get done.  It is that simple.

Do yourself and your family a favor and stop right now for 15 minutes to create a sacred space to de-stress special for the holidays.  You and your family will be so thankful that you did!

Do you like to do holiday reading?

Some of you may be thinking, “Right! Like I have time!”  Well if that is you and you are wishing that you had time to read during the holiday season, I want to encourage you to make the time. 

Join me in The Wonder Woman Challenge Christmas Read.

But how, right?

Many women complain about not being able to enjoy the holidays because it is so much work.  Yes, it is a lot of work.  That is why in my last post and in a recent article at 21st Century Apothecary Holistic Magazine I have written about knowing what you are celebrating, simplifying, and practicing being in the moment.

Today I want to suggest to you that just because it is the holiday season, it does not mean we put ourselves on the bottom of list.  You are to still work on your self-nurture practice.  Busy times of high stress makes it even that much more important.

For example, today I committed to continuing my exercise routine throughout the holidays.   It is important to me.  My eating habits may not be perfect now, which by the way is ok, but I can still exercise.  It will help me  keep everything in check and help my body deal with the extra stress.  It’s a way to give myself the gift of love.

With that, I really do love to read holiday novels.  I rarely do, but this year I want it to be different.  I can sneak in 15 minutes here and there (and more when I can) to read a special heart warming Christmas story.

Picture it … the house is decorated for Christmas, candles are lit, fire in the fireplace (sometimes), and my homemade hot chocolate or mocha in a super fun holiday mug while reading a beautiful story.  Can it get any better than that!!  Even if it is only for 15 minutes a day it is worth it.  And if you have young kids at home simply time it when they are taking a nap.

Ok, this week I want to buy a holiday novel to do just what I described above.  You are going to join me, right?

So what shall we read? Please share your favorite Christmas novel below in the comment section to help give me and others some ideas.

And, let me know if you plan to participate in The Wonder Woman Christmas Read.

Happy reading & here’s to a more joy-filled Christmas celebration! =)

Related Posts & Articles:  Christmas: Less Stress, More Joy, Avoid the Holiday Meltdowns, Finding the Joy In Christmas

*Photo provided by: http://www.freechristmaswallpapers.net/wallpaper/Christmas-Tree-and-Fireplace/

The holidays are upon us … ready or not the beautiful Christmas season is here. My question to you is this. What do you want?

No, I am not asking you what you want “for” Christmas. I am asking you what do you want your Christmas celebration to be.

If you have your celebration defined, it helps take a lot of the stress away. As I wrote in an article for 21st Century Apothecary Holistic Magazine, we cannot do it all. We must wisely pick and choose being realistic as the holiday plays out.

With that, I suggest that you practice being in the moment, especially now. If you don’t, you will be ruled by your to-do list and miss out on all the beauty, joy, and peace this holiday season can offer if you allow it to.

Take moments out to notice things. Notice how beautiful the Christmas lights are when you are out and about and even in your own home. Notice the lovely aromas that we often only get to experience this time of year. Literally stop what you are doing to notice these things taking it all in for that moment. Allow the sites, sounds, and smells of the season to give you moments of joy, peace, and might I add miracles.

Truly, with this simple practice of noticing, you will be surprised in the difference it will make in your personal Christmas celebration.

This month I will be giving you hints and ideas on how to fill your Christmas celebration with more joy rather than stress. In other words, I will be giving you holiday self-nurture hints and ideas.

Merry Christmas!

Share with us below in the comment section how “being in the moment” is impacting your holidays season.

To read my full article at 21st Century Apothecary Holistic Magazine click here … “Finding The Joy In Christmas”

Holiday photo provided by http://www.williamshouse.com/christmas.html

1 Corinthians 13 Christmas Style

©By Sharon Jaynes

If I decorate my house perfectly with lovely plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights, and shiny glass balls, but do not show love to my family – I’m just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals, and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love to my family – I’m just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home, and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love to my family – it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties, and sing in the choir’s cantata but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.

Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.

Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn’t envy another home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of your way.

Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return, but rejoices in giving to those who can’t.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.

Love never fails.  Video games will break; pearl necklaces will be lost; golf clubs will rust.  But giving the gift of love will endure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Used by permission, this poem was taken from “Celebrating a Christ Centered Christmas”by Sharon Jaymes

To learn more visit www.sharonjaynes.com

There’s a lot going on at this time of the year as we get ready for Christmas.  Stress is at an all time high … wouldn’t you say?  Life is crazy enough but then when you add the holiday “stuff” on top of an already busy schedule?  It spells … m-e-l-t-d-o-w-n!

Ok, girlfriends, how do we avoid the holiday meltdowns this year?!

First of all, stop wherever you are in your holiday preparations and celebrations and think about what you want Christmas to be for you and your family.  Certainly you don’t want it to be all about stress and meltdowns.  I know that my family does not want me to be irritable, resentful, and miserable during a time that is supposed to be about family, love, and celebrations. They told me so many years ago.  It was then that I began to scale down and slow down so that I could enjoy the beautiful season that it is.

Forget the picture perfect Christmas.  Choose one or two things that are most important and focus on those things.  Do you really need a million different kinds of homemade cookies?  No!  Does your house need to look like something out of a magazine?  No! Seriously, keep it all simple so that you can devote the time you do have to those you love in a way that will create beautiful, fun memories.

That takes me to you.  You know how it goes … “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!”  Let’s keep mama happy during this holiday season.  What do you need to do to make that happen?

Yes, scale down the preparations and celebrations.  But also keep up with your self-care activities.  You only need 15 minutes a day – that alone makes such a big difference.  But ya know what? If you need to shut the world out for a while, do so.  Watch your favorite movie, read a book, take a long nap, a bubble bath or whatever you need to do to restore.  These little things make all the difference in the world!

Avoid the holiday meltdowns this year by simplifying and taking a little time to de-stress.  It’s the best Christmas gift you can give to your family and yourself!

Do share your own thoughts and ideas in the comment section below.