Friends, have you noticed? Christmas is just around the corner. This Sunday marks the first Sunday in Advent. It's the first of four Sundays that lead us right into Christ's birth.

I've seen so many adorable Advent calendars (that begin on Dec. 1) like this one, and I want to share a different kind of countdown we use in our house. I made these for my parish with about 100 other families last year, and it's a super fun family craft to make and keep for years to come.

Have you heard of a Jesse Tree? It's a way to get the kids involved in the countdown to Christmas while learning more about the family tree of Jesus. Through each ornament, from creation through the Old Testament. Usually a Jesse Tree would be made from branches with ornaments hung from the branches. We made ours in the form of a banner that can be easily stored from year to year.

We used our family hands to create the tree. With our family of five, we had each person trace their right and left forearm and hand. We became the branches from which the (velcroed) ornaments hang. I adore that I will have those little hands forever captured as the tiniest of branches.

Wanna make one? Here's what you need:

• 1 yard of purple felt (it's a traditional Advent color)
• 1 yard of brown felt for the limbs and trunk
• Printed or drawn symbol ornaments
• Velcro to attach
• Dowel and ribbon/twine to hang.
• Fabric glue or hot glue

Lay out your felt and trace forearms and hands. Cut out and arrange limbs on purple felt. Cut out a rectangular trunk to fill out the bottom of the tree. Glue down. Print and cut symbols. Laminate and add adhesive velcro (only one side is needed to stick to the felt) to the backs. Wrap the top two inches of the purple felt around the wooden dowel and glue down the edge. Knot off twine or ribbon from the dowel to hang. Viola! Keep your waiting ornaments in an envelope near your prayer booklet until they're ready to be used.

Currently our ornaments are paper. My oldest daughter has expressed a desire to recreate the images so I'm looking forward to capturing her artwork this year or next and making these circles a little bit more time-resistant.

All of these supplies are incredibly easy and affordable for bulk buying if you want to make a lot of Jesse trees at once with your Church or school group.

The Diocese of Erie has a lot of helpful Advent resources, and our ornaments and the booklet I created came from their writings. Find the complete set of reflections plus small and large versions of the ornaments here. All of the illustrations by Carolyn Pikoulas and text by Anne-Marie Welsh for Faith magazine, published by the Diocese of Erie.

Ann Voskcamp and Nancy Rodden also have a great free printable book that includes full color illustrations of each symbol and examples of very cute felt ornaments can be found over at a Shower of Roses.

Here's the copy of the booklet I created for our Church and our home. We keep it on the dinner table and add an ornament every evening (when we also add a piece to the Nativity scene and light the Advent wreath - we're all about evening traditions). The booklet takes you through what symbol to add for the day and even bring the Scripture in so that you only have to go to one place for the reading and reflection. I promise the this ritual won't add more than 2 minutes to your dinner time, and you might be surprised by how quickly this activity helps (you and) your children get a handle on the major stories of the Bible.

How do you count down the days? Do you have a special calendar or tradition to take you through Advent?

XOXO, MJ

I'll take the laugh lines and crow's feet. xoxo, MJ

Hey, friends! How are you? Happy Monday after Thanksgiving...and welcome to the month-long countdown to Christmas. :) How did the holiday treat you? We hosted all the grandparents and my aunt, too, and we cheered on my oldest in her second Nutcracker performance. It was all good, and we are all good and tired from the food fest and extreme Christmas decorating.

The hubs and I have been hosting Thanksgiving for the last decade, and every year we send our guests a little homework in the mail. Three paper stars. With them they bring three paper stars filled with three (or sometimes more if they can write really small) things for which they are grateful. My dad and hubs work diligently to build our slightly lopsided artificial tree the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and on the big day, everyone hangs their stars filled with names of important people, faith, health, and particular graces handwritten on each.

Some years the words are easy to predict... new babes and grandchildren enter the picture, anniversaries remind us of those we hold the most dear, new opportunities fill the shapes before us. Sometimes it's the surprises that get you...

The stars remain as our first decoration on the tree and our traditional ornaments get added to the branches around them.

In a black, leather bound binder I've kept all of the stars through the years, and I love looking through them and remembering the gifts of years past and seeing how many remain throughout the seasons.

The Christmas season is full-on upon us but maybe we can keep the spirit of Thanksgiving alive and well amidst the hustle and preparation of it all.

We'll be reading and re-reading our stars (and those of our loved ones) and trying our best to focus on the gifts we've been given as we work on the gifts we are to give.

Happy holidays, my lovely friends. May this one be particularly merry and bright.

XOXO, MJ

PS. In case you want to add some stars to your own festive fun, here's our perfectly imperfect pattern.

Today marks the final post in our Turn It series, and I am so grateful to Joy for her incredible creativity and generosity of spirit. I have been inspired by these posts, and challenged to turn the negative into a helpful positive. We hope you've enjoyed the journey, too. Here are three very practical ways to make tomorrow a great one! xo, MJ

Well friends, the holiday season is officially here! We’ve made it to Thanksgiving day, which means that many of us are headed out to feast with family and friends. While this is meant to be the happiest time of the year, it can sometimes be tough to be with people we wouldn’t generally spend time with otherwise.

Once upon a time, I dated someone whose mother was very difficult to be around, and we spent Christmas at her house that year. We were expected to sit in front of the television for the entire three day period and do nothing but watch terrible TV movies. At one point, I tried to sneak away to read for awhile, and she commented loudly, “Oh, are we too boring for her?”

Luckily, I really enjoy my family and James’, so I don’t end up in these awful holiday situations -- but that experience did teach me a few coping mechanisms. Should you find yourself dealing with a difficult family member this season, my hope is that these tactics will help you turn a dreadful situation into a happy (or at least tolerable) one.

Take a clue from Downton Abbey.

If you’ve ever watched Downton Abbey, you’ve witnessed the conversational choreography that we seem to have lost somewhere along the way. Practice being a great conversationalist by being curious and letting that difficult family member talk about his or her interests for five to ten minutes, seeing what you can learn from the chat. Then, politely excuse yourself by helping out in the kitchen, using the restroom, or heading out for a breath of fresh air. You’ll find that sometimes these individuals just need someone to pay attention to them for a few minutes, and then they don’t need to get attention by being nasty.

Become Martha Stewart.

In other words, bring along a project that everyone can contribute to. As the project coordinator, you’ll get to focus on it throughout the holiday, while each person adds their little touch. Create an ornament making station, make wreaths, make a scrapbook, work on an advent calendar. When you have a project to focus on, you have something to direct conversation toward.

Move it.

So much of the holidays is about sitting down and eating, but getting up and out puts everyone in a much brighter mood. Turn on the Wii and dance or bowl, go for a walk outside, or consider a short hike. I once read that it’s best to have difficult conversations while doing an activity, like driving. It rings true for family get togethers as well -- even if you don’t have anything particularly difficult to discuss, the forward movement opens up the door for communication that might not come naturally while sitting across the dinner table.

Thank you so much, Joy!! I can attest that even a walk around the neighborhood can bring a fresh perspective to a group stuck in a rut. Wishing all of you a blessed Thanksgiving.

Any other helpful ideas to Turn It for the holiday season?

Hi friends!! How are you? Welcome to Monday. We were busy, busy, busy having the time of our lives in Disney World last week, and, well, we made some priceless memories. Thanks to all who followed along via Instagram. :)

This is a week for gratitude, and I'm so thankful to all of you beautiful people. In the last seven months, you've brought me inspiration, support, enthusiasm, comfort, and sheer joy. This blogging thing has been a ton of work and has stretched me in great, new ways.

I'll be popping in and out this week as we recover from vacation (we all need that!), prepare for our holiday, and celebrate my eldest's Nutcracker performance this weekend.

Wishing each of you a fabulous Thanksgiving (and a special shout out to my Canadian and Irish pals on Thursday, too).

XO, MJ

Happy Monday, friends!! Those of us in the Pars Caeli family are off on an adventure.

Guess what we're making today? Happy memories. We're treasuring the time we've been given and the joys of life. Sometimes these two things are not so easy to do amidst the busyness and stresses of life. And for some of us Mondays can be the hardest day of the week to have a lens of gratitude.

We'll be focusing on Thanksgiving with a big and small T this week with a few guests stopping over to make your day. Hope you'll stop back over!!

Until then, I'm wishing you moments of treasured joys.

XOXO, MJ

Today's post is another great installment in the series Turn It wherein Miss Joy from Frock Files and I offer some perspective on life's challenges thrown our way. Check out more posts here, here, and here!!

Button pushing. Sitting and twisting that one nerve you have left. The last straw of patience.

You have had that morning or afternoon, haven't you?

These two little ladies could tell you the color, shape, size, and exact location of my buttons. Despite my best efforts, (seriously, how did they figure it out so fast?) they know how to tease, taunt, and aggravate one another and me. To their credit, they also know how to love and share like nothing else, too, but that's not this post.

Thursdays are our extra-busy, what-was-I-thinking-when-I-crafted-this-schedule kinda days. After school pick-up blends right into ballet one, then pre-ballet, that then overlaps with gymastics and somewhere in there we have homework, dinner, and bath/showers.

As you might predict, Thursday evenings can also be our crankiest, and that's not even taking into account children's behavior.

M and C were having a back and forth evening. M would call C a name, and C would lash out at M. M would cry, and C would tattle. For a solid two hours, it was a bad ping pong match of little girl banter at a high pitch frequency.

Typically my hubby is here for teeth brushing, prayers, and general calm, but this Thursday was an extra ordinary one, and he had a late night meeting.

After tucking my 3-year old son into bed, I walked over to the argument that I'd already heard brewing. I could not handle any more name calling, and I (had my own little tantrum) informed the girls that they were to go straight to sleep with no story (very rare). And that they'd better "learn how to treat each other a whole lot better."

I even had a dramatic huff (unintentional) as I closed the door. I really don't know where they get this melodrama. :)

It was quiet for a moment.

I stood outside the door and I listened. I heard the slow build up of tears coming from my younger daughter. She loves bedtime stories. And, moreover, she knew that I was upset ...they'd pushed just a bit too far.

And then I hear M say in her gentlest tone, "Sissy? Don't cry."

Whimpering quiets.

"Sissy? Do you want to hear a story?"

C: sniff "Yesss."

M: "Once upon a time there lived a magical princess and her sister. They lived in a beautiful castle way up on a hill.."

Sniffles.

This time from me. My anger totally diffused. M went on to tell a lovely fairytale about the two of them saving the kingdom and living happily ever after.

I wasn't in the room, but I'm pretty sure little C fell right to sleep with a happy grin on her face. Her big sis who she loves and adores (and swats) created a whole world just for her.

And M, well, she felt her own magical powers to calm the storm.

And in the end, that's what they'll remember from the day - that extra special, one-of-a kind, sister moment. And if they had to turn all my buttons to get there

So be it.

XOXO, MJ

As noted in my Simple Tuesday post yesterday (and also noted, I love donuts), the Pars Caeli fam is taking a little break. Ahhhh. I won't claim that we have great need in a world of Hurricane victims and other such devastation. But, I will say that this five-some, well, we could use a time away, a bit of time at play.

We're headed off to a land of imagination, to spend some time with mice and princesses, and mostly just spend a lot of time focusing on laughing, wondering, and memorizing each other's faces (those little expressions change so quickly, I have to study every wrinkle).

There is something so magical about time separate from the ordinary of life, particularly something about time spent on vacation, that gives me the crystal clear focus that I long for on so many fuzzy, hurried days in the routine.

This is a return trip for us, almost two years ago to the week, and I'm excited to see how my kiddos will take in sites old and new, and how they'll share the experience with each other. I found our packing list from our last visit. It's a long document filled with reminders to pack diapers, wipes, baby food, and diaper cream. Oh, the overflowing stuff of babies!!

I'm headed on a flight with three little adventurers who will be pulling their own rolly suitcases, filled only at half capacity as they each plan ahead for the souvenirs that await the homeward journey with them. They are such wondrous companions.

I look forward to restful, complete nights of sleep (knock on wood), and hilarious hash and rehash moments with my hubby.

The chubby fingers and exhausted naps in the stroller will be missed, but they've paved the way for excited hand-holding skips to the front of the parade and quiet parent moments watching from benches.

Bring on the celebrations of all that is and is to come!

XOXO, MJ

PS. Please pass along your recs if you have any must-see, must-dos!

Wishing all of our friends affected by Hurricane Sandy a hopeful start to November in the midst of challenges ahead. I felt a pang last night reading messages of delayed and canceled Halloweens (and much worse, of course).

Our evening was a full one. Temperatures here dipped into the forties and it rained a steady drizzle all day and night long. I dressed the kiddos in layers but the chill was still very much a part of the experience of Trick or Treat this year. We doled out 10 bags of candy for two hours, and my daughters had so much fun being the ones charged with giving out candy to our costumed neighbors from our front porch.

We ran through leaves, costumes covered by ski coats and fleeces, to every house in our neighborhood. It's funny how this silly holiday bring you eye-to-eye with people you haven't seen in ages or seasons and who live just a few steps away.

Honesty here, friends? Life is filled with stressors. Around us we've had a few major ones pop up in the last year, but those are not my stories to share. These stresses add weight to our shoulders and our hearts. Some moments are heavy.

I thrive on the windows of joy. They (and a great husband, kids, and my faith) get me through it. My children were so excited to see each open door last night and get another piece of candy for their bags and buckets. They giggled with our neighborhood children as to who would be brave enough to go up to that extra scary house.

I saw them work together, and bubble over with childhood joy, and soak up all that I've wished their childhoods to be.

For my part, I added a little silly. Mary Poppins has long been my favorite movie, and my kiddos now love it, too. Being silly with my little ones was a great way to spend the evening, and they loved that Mommy got into it WITH them.

Life can't always be filled with happiness. We have struggles that will challenge. We also have the gift of windows of joy, opened to us to reveal the Goodness that abounds.

It's the feast of All Saints today for Catholics, and we're grateful for the wonderful men and women who have come before us to show us what it means to live a good and holy life. They offer peeks into those windows, too.

Wishing you moments of joy for this November!

XOXO, MJ

Happy Halloween. We'll be battling the chilly temps and rain this evening with the same great neighbors with whom we've trick-or-treated for the last few years. It's a tradition now. For just one day I get to be practically perfect in every way. Can you guess my costume?

Are you dressing up today? Celebrating the festiveness of it all?

Last image, before the storm. Fabulous photos courtesy of my new guest photographer, my talented husband (taken specifically for blog purposes, so sweet).

XOXO, MJ

Happy Monday, friends! Did you know that Halloween is this week? If you live in our house, you could not NOT know because my younger daughter, C, has been announcing the countdown every morning. Yeah, she's excited to don her Belle costume with tiara and all.

Today's Make It Monday is a little different. First, I'd like to high five, hug, and congratulate all the mommas out there (and grandmas, aunts, and friends) who have worked and designed some beautiful costumes for their littles. Louise has made some gorgeous looks for her girls, and I know Sandra will be revealing her unicorn costume for the girl this week, too.

I'm the daughter of a momma who sewed my costumes all the way through middle school, and I was that child that always put forth a challenging idea. She put together Miss Piggy, Rudolph, a bunny rabbit, a mouse, a Hershey's kiss.. and many more. Part of the fun was thinking up something I didn't think I could find, and having it fit right to me by my very own mother. She's a talented lady.

When I became the momma, I took it as a personal challenge and a near-necessity that I sew my children's Halloween costumes. To many this is very normal, fairly easy, and happens like clockwork every fall.

For me, this was a process, over two months of work, and nothing close to easy. You see the first costumes I made for my girls. M was a dalmation pup her first trick or treat season, and C was the pumkin bunting I'd always wanted to sew.

For the first four years of motherhood, I sewed costumes. In fact, much of any free time in the Augusts, Septembers, and Octobers was found with me sitting on the couch, hand sewing each piece. My mom, in an effort to simplify my life, bought me a Singer sewing machine, but I always returned to the handstitch because I loved the feel of needle-and-thread creations.

When my oldest daughter turned five, she quickly turned into a young version of me, ready to challenge her momma with some creative costuming ideas. Eeps. So we hit Joanne's in August.

By September, she had changed her mind and wanted something different. Two weeks after that she changed again.

October came, and she had still not decided for sure what she wanted to be. I was stressed, I was making her stressed (why does Mommy keep asking me about Halloween?), and I was dreading Halloween.

I read this post from Meg last week, and it got me thinking. Go check out point 2.

And I'd like to send all of you very talented mothers out there who are NOT making costumes this year (or any year) a big smooch.

I gave it up. Or at least for now. Why, say you? Because frankly, my daughters wanted to be princesses with all the Disney, glitter, and plastic high heels that I could find for them. My son wanted to be Elmo with the big googly eyes and red furry paws. M wanted to change her mind four times and then change it again once she saw the Halloween costume catalog that arrived at our house.

And, more than I wanted to be the mother I had preconceived notions of being, I want my little goblins to be happy.

I want Halloween to be a fun day, filled with candy and neighborhood greetings. I'm done with the stressed fall season and trying to box in my children's creativity and indecisive natures.

And - honest here - Halloween is not an important holiday in our family, at least when you compare it to the real and made-up ones we treasure (eg: Thanksgiving, Christmas, Sisters Day, Yes Day, Easter). And I was spending months dedicated to something that would come and go for a day or less.

This year I'll be walking the 'hood with a goddess, Belle, and Elmo. They are so excited to break into costume.

And I'm delighted not to have trick or treat bags under my eyes any more.

XOXO, MJ

PS. Where do you fall? To buy or to sew? Or somewhere in the middles?

My beautiful friend, Paige, is getting married.

The whole getting-married phase of life can be a big time of transition; it was for me. I kind of consider myself a creature of transition. I moved a handful of times as a child, racking up five different schools in six years. I moved around campus as an undergrad and picked up to a new spot after graduation, too.

Strangely I now find myself living in the same town for the last decade in a half. I'm married to the same, incredible guy I fell in love with moons ago, and we inhabit the house we moved into the Monday after our wedding, ten years ago.

And yet when I look back through the rearview mirror of my adulthood (yikes), I see transition after transition. Somehow staying in the same place, doing (mostly) the same thing, with the same soulmate has not stopped the changes from swirling through life. Many of those I embraced with wide open arms (hello motherhood of three great kids) and other changes that I tried to run from, like magic shoe's - sprint!

My kids have their own host of transformations and new stages that add to the variety and spice of life. My daughters, now 7 and 5, share a bedroom. And my little guy, a new 3-year old, has just made the move to the big boy room. When it was time to move him to his new space, we tried to make things all fair and even (who are we kidding?) and moved all three of them around to different bedrooms.

That meant that no one would fill the space that once was inhabited by small versions of each of them... the nursery. It's a small cozy room with one window opening up to our backyard. When I was pregnant with my first, I spent hours and hours in there, painting a mural with smiling bugs (our theme at the time) and the text from the toast that my husband dedicated to me at our wedding reception.

YOU MAKE MY SUNNY DAYS BRIGHTER AND MY BLUE SKIES BLUER.

Read the rest of this recent transition over on Approaching Joy today as a part of a special series she has on Macro Moments. Join me over there after the photo...

XOXO, MJ

Blogging has allowed me to connect with many creative, talented, and fun people from around the globe. I love looking at my Google analytics to see what parts of the globe light up from lovely readers (hello friends in Ireland!). One bright spot for me from New Zealand has been the inspiration of A Happy Adventure, the amazing brainchild of Hana. She knows how to make the world a magical place for her little ones, and I love seeing all that she has to offer (that I can grab and use, use, use for my kiddos). Check out her Little World posts and be prepared to get your family passports ready for adventure.

Hana invited me share some of our family traditions and celebrations as part of her Magical Days series.

1. Jump, hop, skip, and leap on over with me to hear why I'm a huge advocate of large sinks.
2. Find out what happens to our Christmas tree after the holidays.
3. Check out my favorite books to read with my kiddos.
4. And don't miss what I recommend for more joy in life (even more than a good night's sleep)...

Thank you, Hana, for welcoming me so warmly to your adorable and educational site!!

XOXO, MJ

What are you making possible today?

XOXO, MJ

Wanna talk about something mundane with me today? How about grocery shopping? No? Doesn't float your boat?

When I tell friends that every Sunday (it used to be Monday) night you can find my family doing the same thing, they think I'm a little wacky (perhaps deservedly so). Especially when I tell them we're spending our time at the grocery store...all five of us...together. We've been doing family grocery trips for the last decade or so, adding new family members to the dynamic as they entered the world. :)

Here are my thoughts on how to make it work and even make it fun. I'd love to hear your tips!

1. EVERYBODY'S GOT THE PLAN

I am not an ultra organizer. I do, however, try to put together a list, look through sales flyers, clip a few coupons, and have a rough idea of a menu before we make the trip to the store. I've taken the family on thissojourn without doing this and, well, it's not pretty. So I find a little up-front work is super helpful. We also engage everyone in contributing to the week's meal ideas (my daughter's 1st grade class made a cookbook of kids foods that has been very helpful with this). We talk about what items are on sale and how to best spend our family dollar.

2. BRING YOUR WINGMAN

This excursion does not work without a willing and energetic partner. My husband is the driver (of the cart) and the one who can instigate fun as necessary. Hang from the cart like it's the monkey bars? Sure! See how many containers of apple juice you can pick up? Yes. Daddy's here for support. Momma's job is sticking to the list and offering treats. My job would stink (I mean, I'm not the funster parent here) except I get to talk with each kiddo about something extra yummy just for them. Sharing is optional on these treats.

3. EAT IN

Every Sunday dinner is spent dining in at our grocery store. We come with our giant bag of canvas bags, our refillable water jugs, sippies of milk/juice (we're quite a site). Our store has a second level for dining and the kids love to look out at shoppers or down at the parking lot activity. I find it helps keep everyone's appetites in check as well to start off with full tummies.

4. ENLIST HELP

We know every attendant at the deli. Why? Because our store has a policy of offering free cheese slices to children. And for my bunch a free slice of cheese is a great big slice of Heaven. Many of these women and men have now greeted and gifted my children since their infancy, and we, too, know about their children and grandchildren. Community always helps.

Once your children reach a certain age, let them in on the budgeting, too. We have our oldest bring her calcuator or Ipod and keep a running total of our expenses. Are we near our budget? Did we go over with a certain item? What's her prediction for the final total? It's an awesome way to teach, and it keeps all of us accountable to our budget.

5. ENGAGE EVEN THE LITTLEST

Since we embrace the full family-ness (chaos and all) of the trip, each child helps to take items off of shelves, put them in the cart, and scratch items off the list. We typically pay with gift certificates purchased through my children's school, and each child even gets to practice paying for the bill by handing one certificate each to the cashier. Everyone helps to bring the goods into our house and put everything away. It's become a point of pride to see who can carry more bags and I'm all for it.

Honesty here: some trips are a challenge. We've had Sunday evenings when I wonder why the what(!) did I think this was a good idea.

But mostly I enjoy the ordinariness of it all. We are a real family with tired, fussy, fun, and quirky days and I'm happy we can share the amazing and the mundane together.

What do you think? Are you for the full team approach? Or does a quick trip through with no kids work better for you? Or something in between?

XOXO, MJ

Happy, happy Friday! The colors around here, my friends! Oh, they captivate me. We're headed to Michigan to pick some apples this weekend, and my oldest is going to a friend's house for her first sleepover. Nothing fancy, just down home fall fun!!

I have a varied tri- for you to try this weekend! But before we break that down, let's go Do Something Nice (because today is the official holiday to celebrate such gestures). Saturday pull out your best hats and get all kinds of silly and celebrate Mad Hatter's Day. And maybe leave it on for Sunday, too, because that one's Bald and Free Day.

                               

1. PUT TOGETHER TIMELESS HALLOWEEN DECOR

So many scary, fantastical Halloween crafts and treats are around the interwebs! My eye was caught by a more classic approach to the festivity. Landee See, Landee Do had a great idea to put large black and white photos of her children from previous Halloweens and pair them with orange and white stripes and some other objects of the season. The result is really personal, interesting, and perfectly attuned to the trick-or-treat celebrations.

2. STARE AT THESE CREATIONS

You know that I love to post projects and possible items for your to do lists in a Tri to Try. This one is just joy for your eyes. I came across these fabulous pieces of art that combine paper, whimsy, typography, quilling, and color. Way to go Erin Cansen.

3. FEEL YOUR PLACE IN THE WORLD

This one is for the parents reading (or those of you who will be or know people who are parents). And it's a little bit of the passive and a whole lot of the active. Brene Brown, who I've been reading lately, has all sorts of inspiration surrounding vulnerability and daring, two very intriguing topics for me.

She shared portions of the chapter on parenting taken from her book Daring Greatly over at Huffington Post, and I was drawn in to her Wholehearted Parenting Manifesto.

Let me share with you some of the waterfall of goodness, parent to child:

 I want you to engage with the world from a place of worthiness. You will learn that you are worthy of love, belonging, and joy every time you see me practice self-compassion and embrace my own imperfections.

We will practice courage in our family by showing up, letting ourselves be seen, and honoring vulnerability. We will share our stories of struggle and strength. There will always be room in our home for both.

We will teach you compassion by practicing compassion with ourselves first; then with each other. We will set and respect boundaries; we will honor hard work, hope, and perseverance. Rest and play will be family values, as well as family practices.

I will not teach or love or show you anything perfectly, but I will let you see me, and I will always hold sacred the gift of seeing you. Truly, deeply, seeing you.

A special thank you to all of your lovely people who keep coming back to Pars Caeli and in particular those of you who click over between 7-8 am (the most popular click time) to start your day off with a little piece of Heaven. Cheers to a bright weekend!

XOXO, MJ

 It's time for some happiness, friends! Welcome to Thursday and the every-other week series that Joy and I have going on. It's lovingly titled Turn It, and we're talking about how difficulties can become strengths when viewed differently. If you missed Joy's first post about the amazing work being done with MRIs and children's fears, go ahead, check it out (and join us back here!!).

I have two (short, I promise) Turn It stories to share with you this week.

1. Have you seen this story floating around the interwebs? If you were brave enough to follow the link, you'll see an adorable photo/video of a little boy named Carter. Carter travels via wheelchair because of spina bifida.

And if you click over to see this photo of Carter in his Halloween costume, you won't see a little boy who suffers from a challenging disease. You'll see a thriving boy who is living a happy childhood thanks to the assistance of his loving father.

Carter's dad turned it. Carter's wheelchair serves as the foundation to a magical ice cream truck complete with service windows full of ice cream cones. Not just anyone can wear this incredible costume. It was made to delight and show off the talents of one very special ice cream truck driver.

2. Story two comes from my home. The main character of this story is my husband. He is a problem solver by profession and vocation, and he so easily carries over these talents to his life as a dad.

As a co-parent with him, I find myself watching some of his (very successful) strategies.

We have three kiddos (7, 5, and 2), and boo boos, scrapes, cuts, and bruises are a daily happening. My husband and I are working to raise strong children, able to express themselves while also knowing when the sobbing over a hangnail is just too extreme.

A while back, we had reached a stage of parenthood when our children were running to us with every knick and teeny, tiny mark. My reassurance that said injury would be fine seemed to only aggravate every attention-seeking need my children have. The crying seemed to multiply.

My husband started a ritual that is now a part of our family dynamic. When M falls down and hurts her ankle, she comes over to her dad (same process here). Her dad listens carefully and attentively (that's what we all want anyway, right?), and offers his hand. He then says

"Squeeze my hand and show me how bad it hurts."

My daughter squeezes with all her might and receives the silliest, loudest, funniest reaction from her father. She in turn laughs, forgets the pain, and makes her own face to top his performance.

Last week my 2-year old son observed his older sister C fall down from the monkey bars. He ran over to her, offered a caring face and an outstretched hand. He said, "Squeeze my hand and show me how bad it hurts." He does a great silly face; I think it's in his genes.

Today is my baby boy's third birthday. And I am incredibly grateful that his life entered mine. Happy birthday L!

Have you noticed someone around you turning their difficulty around? In even small ways?

XOXO, MJ

It's Wednesday, friends. And that means it's time for a little conversation about children. Did you know that I plan it this way? Here's a glimpse into the editorial calendar: Monday, we create. Tuesday, we simplify. Wednesday, we talk about kids. Thursday, we talk happiness. Friday, we try new things. And that is about as much as I can take on in any given week!! :)

I'm all about this here blog helping my real life and yours be a little bit or maybe even a whole lot better. However, this new once-a-month series is really all about me.

Well, sort of. And by this I mean, it's all about my relationship with my eldest, M age 7, and her sense of learning and literature. And it's about having healthy, life-giving parent-child relationships and finding meaningful ways to connect with the most important people in our lives.

And so maybe it's about you, too.

Remember how I started up a bookclub for M over the summer? Check out this post to find out how you can create a bookclub for your child, too (it's really not so tough to do). We had a ton of fun with her friends: reading, crafting, and eating together.

Now we're in the thick of the school schedule that for us means lots of academics, choir, ballet, Brownies, and a whole bunch of other busy.

But she's still my little girl, and I want to have special time with her (and her siblings, too). I'm also a teacher by training, and I know how critical it is to read at home. If you're looking for some great tips to encourage a passion for reading in your kids, head over to Sandra's blog...it's a great resource.

M and I were looking through summer photos and rehashing the fun we had together, and we decided we should do more bookclubs. But fully knowledgeable of our already-rainbow colored Google calendar, I suggested that we make it a bookclub just for the two of us.

Here are our basic guidelines:

1. We read one book a month.

We get two copies of the same book when we go to the library together, and we have to both be excited to read the book (AKA Mommy cannot force me to read a boring chapter book with a bad cover). We go to the library most Fridays (to get movies) and Saturdays (for special Daddy time) so we have easy access to the best choices.

This means that I get to dive back into some children's literature that captivated me.

AND that I need to be equally enthusiastic about reads that M loves... like our first choice, Meet Kit, an American Girl historical fiction. It's set in the 30s and 40s which opens up all sorts of great conversations about the world as it was! M spent her 5th birthday at the American Girl megastore in Chicago having a festive afternoon tea (see above), and she's been interested in the historical books for a while.

2. We wait to talk about the book until our "meeting".

M is very much excited about a special designated time where we can sit together somewhere other than our house and talk. I am super aware that this desire is likely a fleeting one so I'm soaking it up while I can. I imagine most of our gatherings will be at a local bookstore or coffee shop so that we have some girl time away, too!

3. We watch or craft together based on our stories.

Most of the books we've chosen have been turned into movies. I always love to dish about who would play which characters in the movie versions of our books for my grown-up bookclub, and I know that M will have great ideas on how the books do or do not mesh with the films.

If time so allows, we'll skip the movie idea and instead create something together based on our reading. M already has some ideas brewing for Meet Kit and its historical context, but I also want to be realistic about how much time we'll have to delve into a project.

That's it.

I anticipate my biggest challenge to be her brother and sister who at 2 and 5 will also want a bookclub just for them...so I'll just have to turn that challenge into something else good!

Have you ever read alongside your children? Any helpful ideas to share?

Happy reading! XO, MJ

Wonder where I live? Right here in the midst of changing corn and soybean fields. And come this time of year they produce the most amazing shade of yellow orange brown (saffron?) that amplifies sunlight from the ground up. It's heavenly.

Happy Friday to you. Are we ready to kick back this weekend?? We're beginning the 3-year old celebrations tomorrow with a visit from the grandparents. My son's birthday is next Thursday, but just like his sisters, he'll likely have at least three (small family) parties along the way. Time to bake some cakes!

In addition to the gratitude I feel for the most amazing son in the world, let us also celebrate Native American Day today. Tomorrow look for wisdom and humor around you as you ring in Confucius Day, honoring the great philosopher. Sunday marks the end of September and National Mulled Cider Day so grab a mug and snuggle up cozy next to those you love!

Here's this week's Tri- to Try. Don't forget that I'd love you to be a part of the DIY date for October, which I'm hosting, and craft something with typography!! If you'd like to post the invite on your blog, please feel welcome to steal the poster jpg that I created for the date!!

                             

1. HANG THE LEAF BUNTING THAT YOU'VE CREATED:

Have you ever been over to the Artful Parent site? Click on over and enter into a myriad of amazing projects for children and adults alike. I've been a fan of Jean's for a while, and I'm excited to show you some of the loveliness she's put together for fall. If you live in a part of the world that has leaves changing colors right now, go out and grab an armful and follow along!

2. MEMORIZE YOUR PERIODIC TABLE:

Nerd alert here. I loved learning the periodic table. My dad is a chemical engineer, and I was fascinated with his knowledge of these boxes and their abbreviated meanings. I suppose the graphic designer in me liked the sense of geometry, order, and balance, too. Gabrielle over at Design Mom posted this nerd-rrific print of a Periodic Table for kids. Check it out over on Etsy...each column means something different for adults and children, and it's really a great teaching tool and a beautiful reminder. Perfect new baby gift for the geeks that you love. :)

3. PRACTICE YOUR CUTTING SKILLS AND MAKE SOME WEBS:

Kelly over at Studio DIY is working up all sorts of Halloween and holiday decor and party ideas. I saw her step-by-step tut on how to make paper spider webs, and I knew we had to try this one at home! It's like all the fun of paper snowflakes without the chill of the impending winter. She posted the instructions over at Amy's blog This HeArt of Mine. Grab your scissors and head over!!

That's all from here, friends! Wishing you a bright weekend.

XOXO, MJ

This is not a sponsored post. This is a story of Twitter.

Well, really, this is a story of fabulous design that just so happened because of the ingenious means of communication known as Twitter (did you ever read about Paige's amazing job she secured through Twitter?). I love having the ability to talk right to my favorite people and brands in a simple, concise manner.

I've been following the witty posts of the Land of Nod for a while. Their blog Honest to Nod is always filled with cute ideas and beautiful designs that make me want to relive my childhood again and again. I am smitten with Land of Nod's combination of well crafted furnishings with quirky, life-loving designs.

So when @thelandofnod asked if anyone had a design dilemma, I tweeted right back. And EEK! Danielle Kurtz (hello, Creative Director) asked me to send her an email to hear more.

And what followed were numerous exchanges back and forth where I had the opportunity to tell Danielle all about my dreams for my son's new big boy room and where she authentically wanted to know more about my style, my son's personality, and see the space for future planning purposes.

I'm so over-the-top excited with what she put together. You can check out the entire project on the Land of Nod's Pinterest page under L's Big Boy Room. Beautiful Danielle even linked up DIY projects that would fit well with my goals for the space (I hope to share these with you in the weeks ahead).

Here's my initial explanation of our needs:

We decided to purchase the Simple Twin bed and wide dresser for my son. He's turning 3 in a month, and we wanted some Land of Nod pieces to get him started in a new big boy room. He's a bundle of energy. He loves cars & trains (right now). His favorite colors are orange and blue. We have purchased a madras plaid quilt with navy, green, and oranges in it. He loves stripes. He also wants a place where he can hang his artwork.

And here's Danielle's lovely interpretation from the Land of Nod:

And the whole thing makes me happy, from ear to ear. This is all so perfect for my son. My faves? That simple car print, that adorable orange chair, and the gummy bear nightlight...but I kinda like every single piece. And the color from Benjamin Moore, Palladian Blue has been in my sketchbook for a while now just waiting to fill one of our rooms. Yay!

Since our money tree is not blooming this season, we'll make some great selections from the inspiration board and DIY/thrift/budget store the remainder.

Have you ever had professional consultation on an interior space? Or has Twitter gifted you with something unexpected and wonderful?

Can't wait to share more!!

XO, MJ