| Homestead Happenings
Issue # 92
December, 2010 
Happy December and Merry Christmas!! The year is quickly coming to a close! My family and I had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It was full of food and visiting and we made great memories. Now my thoughts have turned to Christmas. I have the house decorated and a few lights strung outside. We will get our tree in another week or so. We always get a fresh tree and if I get them to soon they dry out terribly by Christmas.
This last month we said good bye to my daughter Emily. She headed off to Denmark and will be gone for a year. She is currently working as au pair (similar to a nanny) for a super nice family outside of Copenhagen. It should be a fantastic adventure for her. She did finish up all her classes for her degree (BSBA in Accounting) and took her very last final exam about one week before she left. We already miss her but I know she is doing great and the year will most likely fly on by.
Christmas time can be a wonderful time of year! There are so many memories to make and food to bake, family time and music to fill the days. But there is also a financial aspect that can be stressful for some families. In this month’s article I share some of my thoughts on how to deal with this and have the right perspective for the season.
Plus I am sharing some frugal homemade gift ideas and more! Hope you enjoy this newsletter!
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Thank You! Crystal :) ******************************************* Christmas and Finances
Crystal Miller
I love the Christmas season. It can be a wonderful time of year. I love baking cookies, I love Christmas music, and I love Christmas movies and the decorations. I love trimming the tree with my children and I love giving gifts and doing special little things for neighbors, friends and family. I love the wonderful time each year that my family and I can have together to make memories. It is a special time to focus on the love of God and thank Him for sending His Son Jesus into this world.
However this time of year can, at the same moment, be a burden to some because there is so much expectation on us. Sometimes the expectations put on us are just more than we can bear. There may be family issues or issues of differing values about what is important in our life verses our extended families. But often the biggest expectation this time of year is a financial one. For most, there are only so many dollars in the budget and only so much that can go around.
Often the financial expectations of this time of year become the main focus. I do know that not everyone who reads this is struggling financially but I know many families, especially young families trying to make a start in today’s world, do face these issues. Making the choice to live on one income certainly brings with it many challenges and often Christmas and finances can be a big one.
I have known of families going into debt in order to do their part in gift giving for expectant family. I have known of families who forgo doing things for their children in order to spend the money on family members who were expecting what could not be otherwise.
I know of a family who experienced many financial hardships one year as they worked to provide just the basics for their life. Yet they had extended family who was still expecting them to participate in the Christmas “festivities” by bringing the proper gifts. This meant a certain dollar amount needed to be spent on each gift.
What difficult issues to have to face at a time of year that should be filled with warmth, joy and thankfulness to God. Our society certainly has lost the focus on what has the most value and with that lost focus it can be easy to get pulled into the stresses of the season.
So what is the solution? I don’t have answers for everyone but I will share an important realization that was given to me one Christmas season in a sermon. When it comes to spending money on Christmas we still need to be a good steward of our money. In the Old Testament we see during the festival of the firstfruits that the Lord required people to bring an offering to the temple that was a portion of what he had blessed them with (Lev. 23:9-10). For some this may have been a lot and for others it was a little. The size of the offering was not the emphasis but the fact that what was given was a portion from what God had blessed them with.. No one went into debt or stressed over what was expected… it had already been given to them. So the message in this for us that Sunday morning was simple, give from what God has already blessed you with.
Rest in God and His choices for your family. Let expectant family know you love them but you can not allow them to put expectations on you that are more than what is wise or in the best interest of your family. If you have the finances to participate but not in the way that is expected by your family then do what you can do; bless them from what God has given you and trust Him on this.
Another financial aspect is the expectations from our children. We live in a materialistic society and we can easily begin to feel pressure to make Christmas into something that may be more than what you can do. Or even that each year should be better than the last. Let us not be looking to the world to dictate what expectations we should have for Christmas morning. Instead I go back to the basic life principles that govern the rest of my year, “Simple Living”; living a simple life and giving from my hands and heart. Giving from what God has blessed me with. Children can easily get caught up in the materialism of the season and over the years I have had to sit my children down to discuss the true meaning and joy of the season with them. This helps them to keep the right focus too.
To me, as a believer, this time of year is not about living up to a standard that is causing stress or pain or difficulties. It is about our God coming down in human form and giving his life as an offering to save our souls. In all the hustle and bustle of this holiday season let us keep in mind an eternal perspective on what the real gift is and what is of the greatest value to us all.
Luke Chapter 2 vs. 8-11
Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And *behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
May each of you have a warm and blessed holiday month focusing your hearts and homes on Jesus and His unfathomable love for us all!
*******************************************Crystal's Country Store 
eBooks from The Family Homestead!! Freezer Cooking with Meal Starters:
Cooking with Beans!
Managing a Home
The Family Homestead Recipe Collection
How to Make Whole Wheat Bread
Handmade Soap: A Step-by-Step Photo Tutorial
*************************************** In The Home
 Frugal Christmas Gift Ideas
With Christmas just around the corner it is time to start thinking about gift giving, it you have not done so already! As a single income family we are on a budget and I am always on the look out for frugal fun Christmas gift ideas. The ideas I am sharing with you here are a few of the different things I have done over the years as well as some ideas that I may be doing this year. Perhaps it will spark some new ideas for you this Christmas season!
In this list I have included a few recipes and/or links for the recipes. I will make the disclaimer that not all of these recipes are healthy!! :) But it is Christmas and I do make an exception for the holidays!
Gift Baskets are always popular:
Breakfast Basket
Pick one or two food type gifts:
Pancake & waffle mix along with homemade syrup
Homemade granola: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/granola1.htm
Homemade raisin bread
Homemade cinnamon rolls: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cinnamonrolls.htm or Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/pumpkincinnamonrolls.htm
Then add any of the following:
Homemade pot holders
Dish towels
Spatula
Coffee mugs
Dish towels, spatulas, coffee mugs can be found at dollar stores or Wal-Mart very inexpensively.
Homemade Bulk Pancake Mix recipe can be found here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/wwpancakemix.htm
Sucanat Syrup
Crystal Miller
2 cups Sucanat (or brown sugar)
1 cup water
2 t. maple flavoring
pat of butter, opt.
In a saucepan heat the Sucanat and water until just boiling and the Sucanat has dissolved. Remove from heat and add the maple flavoring and butter, if desired.
Another option that gives this syrup more of a maple taste and still cuts down on the cost of pure maple syrup is to substitute 1/3 c. pure maple syrup for the 2 t. maple flavoring.
Put this syrup in small canning jars and top with a canning lid and ring. Seal in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes or give directions to store in refrigerator if you do not want to can it.
Bath Basket:
This can be easy to put together with items from a dollar store.
Possible items to add:
Hand lotion
Homemade bath salts
A bar of moisturizing soap
A loofa sponge or bath mitt
A bag of homemade bath tea
A candle or two
A CD of soothing relaxing music, look on Half.Com or ebay.com for inexpensive used CD’s
For the hand lotion: if you would like you can buy large quantities of unscented hand lotion and scent it yourself with some essential oil or fragrance oil and then put it into smaller bottles for gift giving. Small size plastic bottles can be purchased at Wal-Mart in the cosmetics section.
You can find recipes for homemade bath products on my site: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/homesteadcrafts.htm
Gift basket items can be put in a basket or a nice decorated box. I have done both. I have found beautiful looking baskets at thrift stores for 50 cents. If I do not have a basket I will often just take a cardboard box and wrap the box only, leaving it open, with some pretty looking, foil type Christmas wrap.
Food always makes a good gift:
Quick breads baked in little loaf pans and wrapped in colored saran wrap, tied with a ribbon and bow is a great gift. Add a recipe card tied to the ribbon!
Banana Bread: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/bananabread.htm
Holiday Pumpkin Bread: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/pumpkinbread.htm
If you would like a recipe card to print out for these recipes for the Banana Bread: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/banana%20bread%20recipe%20card.pdf or Pumpkin Bread: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/pumpkinbreadrecipecard.pdf
Cookies: peanut butter, chocolate chip, oatmeal, lemon bars, sugar cookies, gingerbread men, or any of your family’s favorite cookies. Bake them ahead of time and freeze them. Then when you are ready to make a pretty cookie plate simply pull a couple of each type of cookie out of the freezer and put on your plate.
You can cover a plain white paper plate with foil and lay your food items on this. Cover with Christmas looking plastic wrap and top with a bow. My favorite cookie recipes can be found here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/dessertrecipes.htm
I have made different types of flavored popcorn and gave this away in zip-type bags with a bow on them. My recipe for Sweet Treat Popcorn: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/sweetreatpopcorn.htm
Another frugal Christmas gift I have given over the years is cocoa mix.
Big Batch Hot Cocoa Mix: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/hotcocoamix.htm
Gourmet type coffee is really simple to make. Add your favorite extract to regular ground coffee and mix well. Some good flavor choices are, almond, mint, cinnamon, or orange.
Flavored coffees and tea mixes are always a good choice.
Chocolate Mint Coffee Mix: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/mintcoffeemix.htm
Chai Tea Mix: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/chaiteamix.htm
Russian Tea Mix: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/russiantea.htm
Fruit Flavored Tea Mix: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/fruitteamix.htm You can find more gift ideas on these pages:
Homemade Christmas Gifts: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/homemadechristmasgifts.htm
Frugal and Helpful Gift Ideas: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/frugalhelpfugiftideas.htm
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In The Sewing & Craft Room 
These Christmas tree ornaments are easy and fun to make! Applesauce Cinnamon Christmas Tree Ornaments: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/applesaucecinnamonornaments.htm ***********************************
My Blog has moved to a new home:
http://homesteadinghomemaker.blogspot.com/
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FYI
Have you ever thought you saw some article on my site but then find you can’t locate it again? Well, finally I now have a search page to help you out! Here it is: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/search.htm You can find this link on the top of the main page of the site too.
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That is all for December! I hope you all have a blessed month in your home!
You can Email Me: crystal@thefamilyhomestead.com
My Website: The Family Homestead
http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com
My Store: Crystal’s Country Store
http://crystalscountrystore.com/index.htm
Visit My Blog!
http://homesteadinghomemaker.blogspot.com/
Clipart by Lisa’s Country Clip Art: http://www.countryclipart.com/ and/or Graphic Garden: http://www.graphicgarden.com/
and Marchia's Graphic Garden: http://graphicgard.topcities.com/
Copyright: Crystal Miller, 2010 Please ask permission before using any of my articles other than for personal use!If you would like to unsubscribe to this newsletter send a blank email here: HomesteadHappenings-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com | 
