Tuesday Tea Time!

GOOD morning!

Christmas time is near (thank you Charles Schultz & your peanuts specials for the tune). If I thought the mind of others & my own were a flurry of thoughts & emotions before, somebody has increased the volume.

Increased volume & a flurry is a stereotype of how we are to live this time of year. But why the rush? Why the increased "to do" list? Why the stress?

When I talked about about leadership under the "BAD" section of my Sunday Snippits it's not that my thoughts or discussions around the topic have been bad. TS finds all sorts of good stuff about leadership worth looking into & living out. It's more the immediacy I find our culture jumping to the worst points of a situation or often even the "what ifs." This is not a way I tend to live nor do I want to live this way. It creates grumpiness & unease.

Insert the voice of your Life Coach saying, "SO Don't! Don't think/live that way." *Thank you to DT for being a voice of reason*

What do you find yourself doing this Advent season to alleviate the stress & flurry of thoughts & to step back & take in Advent? (Seriously, please share!)

Amidst the flurry of my life I'm stretching myself to put the lists, calendars, projects, screens & work away for at least 5min a day (which in the doing of this it is a piece of work) & breathe. Breathe in the beauty of the season, the fact that each breath is a gift (thank you Holy Spirit), & that good is happening all around us (thank you #heartfind challenge). With all this good, I challenge myself & all of you to keep a journal of at least 5 uplifting pieces of your day for the next month. *Cheers again to DT! It will boost spirits & that spirit of joy will catch on. Smiles ARE contagious just like yawns!

And on a side note....Don't you just LOVE this snowman teapot? I truly enjoy the tea related things that you find in antique stores!

5 pretty great pieces of Today: 1. Tuesday Tea Time 2. Energized mornings 3. Christmas lights 4. Puppy cuddles 5. Having jobs I really enjoy

Friday Favorites & Merry Holiday Cheer!

This bitstrip comic is very true.

While my home looks nothing like this picture - & probably never will - & my friend JM said I looked like I was about to go crazy on those reindeer, I haven't totally felt this excitement this year.

I attribute this lack of holiday love to being busy. I preached on Psalm 46 at the end of November & I shared then that we - all of us - are SO good at being busy.

In fact, Advent/Christmas is often figured to be the busiest time of the year. And really, this is nobody's fault, but our own. We pick & choose what we say yes to & no to & what we actually accomplish.

I'm a people person. I come from a very social family & we like to talk & visit & we are filled with the holiday joy by spending quality time with people. However, when that time is limited, it becomes a stressor of how we will spend that time together.

Sometimes its hard to enjoy all the things that go along with Advent/Christmas. But I urge you - as I'm urging myself - enjoy the time, take in the lights, play a game or in the snow, bake some cookies - or buy them from the store - & indulge. For this is a holy celebration time of the year.

No matter what you believe, there is something for everybody in Christmas. Sweets, lights, butter, cheesy tv shows, cold weather, hot weather if you live in or near the Southern hemisphere, songs, angels, crazy decorations, & a more focused vision of giving to & being with others.