Renewal in 2015
Happy New Year to all our faithful followers and to many new friends who I hope and pray will join us in our journey in 2015 to share, learn and apply more deep-rooted wisdom into our lives to help our growing families. This year we are going to have a theme for each month and in January we will be focusing on renewal.
Some people are totally committed to making New Year’s resolutions each year. Our family had a tradition of making a family crest each New Year’s Eve. We discussed the values that were important to us and how we could improve in the future. We colored and cut and pasted on a poster board and created a fun family project that had lasting meaning for all of us throughout the year. This was a way to set up a foundation for RENEWAL in the year to come. It reminded our family of the character qualities that were important to our family as a unit and gave us some goals to help us make a difference in the lives of others during the new year. (Click on the link making a family crest for details of how we made our family crest and try making one for your family.)
This year my husband and I talked a bit about what could make a significant difference in our lives as we entered 2015 and and bring us a sense of RENEWAL- a fresh start, a positive way to refocus. We decided to embark on a “read through the bible in a year” plan. There are many ways to go about this commitment but we decided to try a method that we discovered while visiting our eldest daughter’s church, Fusion Christian Church. We have been trying for the first 5 days …
Read MoreChristmas Blessings
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
The Growing Weisser Family is taking a two week break over the holidays. Here are a few pictures from our pre-Christmas festivities. Enjoy your time with family and friends.
May the God of the universe who made Himself known to us in the person of Christ Jesus, be near to your heart this advent season and forever!
The Christmas tree goes up…
The stockings are hung…
Visits with Santa…the fun has begun!!!
Families gather…
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The cousins are so sweet….
Baby Mikah is our newest blessing…
A day at the Nutcracker, can’t be beat!
The tacky sweaters come out….continuing the FUN…
Christmas carols, favorite movies and presents for everyone!!!!!
May the God of the universe who made Himself known to us in the person of Christ Jesus, be near to your heart this advent season and forever!
Love from the Growing Weisser family!!!
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Read MoreThe Joy of Friendship
Christmas time is a great time to reflect on the blessings and joys in our lives. One of my greatest joys the past few years has been the joy of friendship.
A little over three years ago, I became a mom for the first time. It was the best and scariest time of my life being responsible for a tiny little person. Since then we have added two more little blessings to our family and I just don’t know where I would be without the support and love of my friends.
Many of my friends and I met 3 years ago at a breastfeeding support group at our local hospital. We bonded over love for our children and the sheer craziness of our new responsibilities. Over the years I have added friends to my little circle through common interest groups and my Stroller Strides fitness group.
As fun as it is to have play dates and meet ups at parks for the kids, we realize how important it is to just have some MOM time. That is why I am so happy to open my home each year at Christmas for my annual Christmas Cookie Exchange. It is a super fun way to hang out, drink hot chocolate, and eat cookies of course.
So as you enjoy this season of giving and receiving remember to thank the amazing people in your life and the lives of your children for all their support and friendship!
Thank you to my friends and family. I am so blessed!
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Grace Based
This past Sunday at church, our pastor spoke on Santa. What? What pastor devotes a whole Sunday to Santa? Well, ours did. But it opened my eyes and my heart to new thinking. It was a change in perspective in the focus of Christmas, the attitude of my heart, and the way I spend my time this season. Now I am not going to give an opinion of believing in Santa or not, that is not what this is about. I just want to help us focus on the true and full meaning of Christmas.
I know the season is crazy, and the time to sit down and read a recap of a whole sermon is hard to come by. So let’s quickly compare the Christmas season according to Santa and according to Jesus in just one category. Santa Claus is works based Jesus is grace based. Santa is all about recording all the things we have done to put us on the naughty or nice list. Jesus is all about loving us for who we are, right where we are. Santa gives us things we earn. Jesus gives us undeserved grace. Santa gives us stuff if we are good. Jesus saves our life regardless. Santa comes to bring things. Jesus came to sacrifice himself. Santa gives us coal if we mess up. Jesus puts his hand out to pick us up and gives us an extra big hug. Santa brings stuff that does not last. Jesus gives us eternal life that lasts forever.
Don’t you want to live a grace based life? Don’t you want to focus your time on things that bring hope, peace, and purpose rather than things that remind us we are never good enough. Basing your life on grace means you understand you are a …
Read MoreThe Joy of Giving through Serving
The joy of giving through serving came alive for us tonight as we volunteered at a wonderful Christmas event at Christ Church of the Valley in San Dimas. The event is called CCV Toy Store and this year, “Love All Serve All” was the theme. Mark 10:45 says, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” We showed up and received our assignment for where they needed our help. We were on the children’s activities/craft team where we helped the kids make a fun Christmas tree collage with paper, glue, sequins, glitter paint and stickers.
Our friend, Carrie, showing us her creation
We set up the crafting tables and cut out shapes, filled paper cups with sequins and got everything organized for the kids. 
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Christmas Fabric Garland
Christmas crafts abound during the month of December. I used to make it a hobby to attend many different holiday craft boutiques to gather ideas for ornament making and for decorating our home during the holidays. Now you do not even need to leave your home because of awesome websites like Pinterest where the creative ideas are everywhere to be found. My daughter, Bethany, just hosted a cookie exchange and we decided to try our hands at making a fabric garland to decorate for the party. She found the idea on a Pinterest site and we modified it to meet our needs.
Here is how we made our fabric garland. We actually have enough fabric to make 5 garlands total so I will be making one for each of her sisters as well as one for my house.
Supplies needed…
Assortment of christmas fabrics-(I bought one yard of 5 different Christmas fabrics)
twine or rope
2 inch wide burlap ribbon
2 inch wide assortment of christmas colored ribbon (optional)
fabric scissors
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Shopify Store is Up and Running
Christmas is 10 days away and many people are dashing out the door to get their shopping done! Dash no more! We have a great gift idea ready and waiting for you and those you love! The Growing Weisser Store is open for business. This holiday season we are featuring the Baby Bear Stew; A Family Heritage Cookbook in our store. Simply sign into the store and you can purchase right from the comfort of your home. Order in the next day or two and we will get your cookbooks to you before Christmas, otherwise they will arrive ASAP. Over the past two weeks we have been featuring the story of Baby Bear Stew and some of the unique recipes inside this treasured cookbook, so go back and read all about it. To order, click here or use the “our online store button” on the sidebar of the blog?
Merry Christmas and blessings to you this holiday season!
Love from all the Growing Weisser girls!
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Crafting With Old Christmas Cards
Do you love getting and sending Christmas cards in the mail? It is one of my favorite parts of the Christmas season. I love it so much I leave mine up all year.
I love looking at the cards all year long and Ellie and Hanna love to look at the pictures while they eat. It is a fun way to talk about our friends and family and keep them in our thoughts and prayers even after the Christmas season.
Each year as Christmas approaches I get excited for new cards to hang on my display, but it makes me so sad to get rid of the old ones. This is how I came up with the idea for a Christmas Card Book.
Supplies:
One-hole punch
Old Christmas Cards
Reinforcers
3″ multipurpose book ring
Step 1: Collect your cards
Step 2: Arrange your cards by size and shape
Step 3: Punch a hold in the left corner of each card…
Blessed by Family and Baby Bear Stew
It has been a really great experience reflecting on the legacy of my family this past week through the posts about Baby Bear Stew. Not just reflecting with amazing food and recipes, but the legacy of tradition, togetherness, and love. It is a joy to have the privilege to be in a family that enjoys being together, loves caring for one another in unique and creative ways, and loves to carry on family traditions.
It only makes sense if my first reflection is the way my family was always prepared to have a few extra people at the table. And I know that this tradition was not just a result of an excess of food (which was usually the reality at every meal), but an overflow of love. Now when I cook, I have the same problem of preparing more than enough and can’t seem to figure out how to just cook for two. And we seem to always have an abundance of cookies and treats as well, just in case someone stops by or we have to go to someone’s house.…
Read MoreXmas Tree Bread Recipe-Winner Announced-Shopify
And the winner is…
Laura Payne!!
You will be receiving an email soon to claim your prize!! 😀
As promised, here is the Xmas Tree Bread recipe….
Ingredients
1 box Pillsbury Hot Roll Mix
1 egg
¼ cup sugar
⅓ cup flour
3/4 cup additional flour for kneading
½ cup melted butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon cinnamon
½ cup powdered sugar
⅛ cup milk
colorful sprinkles
green and red candied cherries
Make Hot Roll Mix according to directions on box adding ¼ cup sugar, ⅓ cup flour and 1 egg. Mix until smooth dough forms kneading in the extra ¾ cups flour as needed to form a soft but NOT sticky ball of dough.…
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