So last year I made almost all of my family and extended family's Christmas gifts. It was fun, but exhausting. Last Christmas I just bit off far more than I could chew... I had Christmas cards in my my Etsy store, was doing freelance graphic design jobs, making gifts, homeschooling, and participating in all the regular Christmas festivities...all with 4 kiddos! Yeah.
Not this year. I just can't do all that! I'm trying really hard to know my limits. For one thing, I'm preggers and am just plain old tired most of the time. Secondly, I tend to let the really important things slip to the back when I'm busy. This year I want... am trying to... enjoy the season, slow down, and talk more about our Savior. I'm trying to focus less on milking the Christmas selling season and more on staying sane! Less on an ideal creative Christmas atmosphere and more on keeping up with the laundry and meals! ... So there are no Christmas items in my store, just prints. I'm not doing any real freelance work during December. And I'm not making all those fun homemade gifts.
It's kinda sad and hard though... I'm a creative person! I'm a business-minded person! It's hard to turn that side of me off. I feel like the rest of the people in the world (which is the blog/internet world...a somewhat misleading niche of people who are unlike many others!... you creative Pinterest and Blog people! ) are going on without me. They are making gifts, sharing creative gift ideas, making fancy holiday treats, decorating out the wazoo! I know there are so many people who are taking it easy like me... but it doesn't feel like it!
So to appease my need to be part of the fancy creative people... I'm sharing a gift idea from last year! I happen to take these pics last year as well, so it didn't really require much of my time :) I found this simple wooden doll house on Pinterest and asked the hubs to make it for some of my nieces. We made 2 small ones and a big one for Barbie sized dolls. They were quite easy to make and turned out really cute... They just slide together and come apart... stacking in two flat pieces, not taking up much space at all.
I used scrapbook paper on the small ones and thick wrapping paper to cover the walls on the large one. I adhered it with spray glue and then sealed it with Mod Podge. So... If you are feeling ambitious this year... or next year, have at it!!
I made so many other cute gifts last year... and really had wanted to show you those ideas as well. But I think it's safe to say, I'm just not going to find time to get out my camera and all the stuff I used to make the items and take pictures. sorry. Maybe during the year, I'll get around to it... or maybe not :)
Blessings on whatever your December holds. Regardless of the level of your ambitions, may it be focused on God's love and his indescribable gift of his Son... our Savior!
Blessings,
