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The Family First
Newsletter
Promoting family unity one issue at a time
Vol. 10 Issue 46 - Week of December 3, 2007
ISSN: 1527-6201
©2007 - Joyce Pierce --All Rights Reserved
In this issue:
Saving Christmas
Of Mice and Martha
Do You Let Your Children Help?
Flaky Pie Crust
Good morning!
The good news in our
family is that our son and his family just moved
back to town. We are just thrilled to have
them close again. When he moved away six years
ago, he took a wife with him. Coming home, he
has a 3 year old daughter and 7 month-old twin
girls. Quite a change in the family dynamics!
We are so happy that we will now have the
opportunity to have three more of our grandkids
here. Of course it would be even better if we
could get our Nevada kids here, too!
One day this week my
son and his wife had an appointment to look at
houses, so I volunteered to watch the three girls.
My daughter-in-law asked, "Are you SURE? You
want all THREE of them? I can take one of the
babies with us." I assured her I'd be okay -
after all, I raised three children of my own, didn't
I? I was determined that I could handle it,
and told them to just go enjoy not having to get 3
kids out of car seats every time they parked!
As soon as they left, I put a blanket on the floor,
dragged out a few authorized things for the twins to
teethe on, put a Disney movie in the DVD as backup,
and got the Fisher Price Nativity playset down for
the 3 year old. It wasn't long before I
reeked of baby formula that had been spewed on my
shirt and pants from the twin they've nicknamed "the spitter." I had soggy and/or crushed
Cheerios stuck to the bottom of my feet.
Cinderella was on automatic for about the third
time and the 3 year old watched it like she hadn't
actually seen it a hundred times before.
When the parents came
home and saw all of us sitting happily on the floor,
I think they were surprised. Grandma HAD
handled it after all, but not without having an even
greater amount of appreciation for my
daughter-in-law! I did absolutely
nothing else for five hours but watch and play with
the girls. Somehow, she manages to juggle it
all and make it look so easy.
So, my hat is off to
all of you moms out there. Thank you for
all you do for your families. While you may
think your efforts go unnoticed, they don't.
AND for all of you grandmas who pitch in to help,
Bless You! I lived with my grandparents
for awhile as a child and they made a powerful
impact on my life. Anyone who helps improve
the life of a child is doing an important work.
The blessings may not be immediate, and you may
never know what a difference you made, but that
child knows.
Please share this
newsletter with someone who may need to read it
today!
Joyce Moseley Pierce
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MissHumbug.com Launches Campaign to Preserve Christmas Spirit
by Marnie Pehrson A recent alert sent out by American Family Association (AFA) about Mrs. Fields Cookies removing Christmas products from their line spurred 73,000 emails to Mrs. Fields insisting the company bring back Christmas. Whether the entire affair was caused by an outsourced customer service representative speaking from her own opinion, matters very little. The fact remains that Christmas is not only commercial but also controversial. Marnie Pehrson, author of the Christmas story
Miss Humbug, has set out to take positive action to share the true meaning of Christmas by giving away free copies of the ebook version to site visitors. In the novel, high powered marketing executive Elaina Houston would rather work than celebrate. Not only is Christmas a complete waste of time and money in her opinion, but also it brings with it haunting memories that drive Elaina further into her frigid shell. Work is the only answer, but she's surrounded by coworkers who bask in the holiday glow, constantly reminding her of painful memories from Christmases gone by. Then one night, a week before Christmas, her past comes back to haunt her, and she's given an ultimatum. Either she learns the Spirit of Christmas or she won't live to see another December 25th. "The book is about one woman's quest to understand and implement the time-tested values that Christmas symbolizes - generosity, love, human-kindness, and peace." says Pehrson, author of over a dozen fiction and nonfiction inspirational titles. "The way I see it, we have two choices. We can throw away the symbol because it has become corrupt or we can restore it to its former greatness. Some say we should eliminate Christmas because a few might be offended. Others say to abolish it because it has become corrupt. But what if we could restore it? Would any find offense at the original icon? I've never met anyone who's offended by peace, love, unity, and generosity. I'm sure there are some people out there who live in diametric opposition to these principles. But do we want to cater to them as a society? Do we want to foster the antithesis of these principles? I think not. " "Along with Elaina, I hope readers will come away understanding that it's the small and simple things that bring great things to pass. It's not the gizmos and gifts or tinsel and trees that make Christmas so influential. It's those Christ-like values that illuminate a darkening world. We need them now more than ever!" concludes Pehrson.
"Miss Humbug" is available as an ebook at www.MissHumbug.com. Those who spread the Christmas cheer by referring others to the site can also receive it in audio format. The paperback version is also available on the site or through Amazon or BarnesAndNoble.com. Marnie Pehrson may be reached for comment at marnie@misshumbug.com
or 706-866-2295.
Marnie Pehrson may be contacted at http://www.RejoiceIn2007.com or marnie@marniepehrson.com
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Of Mice and Martha
by: Jackie Papandrew
Every year about this time, I harvest a new crop of hope
that's been watered by an abundance of denial. I envision a
holiday season infused with peace, saturated with a spirit
of thankfulness and goodwill. There will be no chaos this
year, no crush of time bearing down on us like a frenetic
freight train. Order will prevail in my world of good things
and gracious living. Martha Stewart will be proud of me.
We'll be giddy with gratitude at Thanksgiving, goes my
fantasy. We'll gather before a table tastefully turned out
and groaning with good food, and I will bask in the awe
accorded domestic doyennes such as Martha and me. Gone will
be the snickers brought on by past disasters; my
mother-in-law will eat crow along with the succulent turkey
I place on her plate.
The cranberries will be expertly jelled, the green beans
and sweet potatoes dressed up for the occasion, and the pies
mighty with meringue.
At Christmas time, there'll be parties for hosting in my
immaculately clean house. My joyfully jingle-belling
children will make delightful decorations. There'll be
cookie baking and eggnog making, marshmallows for toasting
and chestnuts for roasting. Loved ones will gather near, and
hearts will radiate good cheer and glad tidings. It will
truly be the most wonderful time of the year.
Psychiatrists have another term for such delusions, but I
prefer to think of it as eternal optimism.
My hopeful harvest will soon begin to wither, however,
under the heat of seasonal expectations. I'll turn to Martha
for help, consulting her books for guidance. She will perch
on my shoulder, a stylishly dressed angel of ambiance,
whispering in my ear. Failure will not be an option.
Some people excel at execution; others, like me, are
dreamers, those for whom the best-laid plans of mice and
Martha almost always go awry. If tradition holds,
Thanksgiving Day will dawn as gray and gelatinous as my
gravy. My mistakes will be of the classic variety: the
cranberries will quiver, and the beans and potatoes lie
limp. The piecrusts will pucker, the meringue meander, the
rolls run amok with assistance from my brawling brats. And
old Tom Turkey, when pierced, will spurt ice-cold juices
from the depths of his still-frozen interior.
My in-laws will leave with empty stomachs and wagging
tongues, and my ruinous reputation will remain intact.
By December, I'll be walking on the dark side. We will
burn the cookies and scald the eggnog. My formerly angelic
offspring, their greed and wish lists growing with every
commercial they watch, will grow cantankerous, shredding the
decorations, tossing the tinsel and bashing each other with
the bells. The dog will manage to knock over the Christmas
tree almost every day. The gifts I have purchased will be
hidden away so well that they are forgotten, and I will
hurry out to buy more, wondering how I can be so
disgustingly disorganized. My Christmas spirit will spring a
leak.
Martha, now dressed in black -- a Darth Vader of
domesticity -- will prod and nag and threaten until I am
drowning in a sea of self-reproach. I will crumple under her
pressure like ill-conceived origami, promising her the
world. And still, she'll want more. Peace and calm will give
way to panic.
I will suddenly have a much better understanding of the
Grinch, and old Ebenezer Scrooge won't seem like such a bad
guy.Yet, on Christmas Day, somewhere in the midst of all the
un-Martha-like mayhem, I will be awakened early by the sharp
poke of several young and eager fingers. Breathless voices
still full of wonder, from children who don't care that I'm
not the queen of homemaking, will urge me to get up."Mom,"
they'll whisper, "it's Christmas!" And suddenly, nothing
else will matter.
Later, we will gather at my in-laws, where the food is
nauseatingly good. My kith and kin will promptly begin to
bicker, in the crotchety, comfortable way only a close
family can, over old insults and fresh resentments. Between
mouthfuls, accusations will be hurled, political stances
scorned and ethical standards questioned. Love will linger
at its cranky, unvarnished best. And that's a good thing.
© Jackie Papandrew 2007
http://www.jackiepapandrew.com
Jackie is an award-winning writer and editor with credits in
dozens of publications, including the Chicken Soup for the
Soul series, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Tampa Tribune
and The Oklahoman. Her nationally syndicated humor column --
Airing My Dirty Laundry -- appears in newspapers in the
United States and Canada, as well as online.
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Do
You Let Your Children Help?
by:
Mark Brandenburg
You have a chore to do around the house, and your kids want to help out. You
know it might be nice for them to help, but you're feeling a bit impatient. And
you know it might turn into a two hour project, with a big mess to clean up. A
mess that could be avoided if you did it yourself.
We've all been there, haven't we?
It can be so much easier to do the household chores and projects without the
assistance from your little friends. After all, who's got the time in today's
world to make a project longer than it needs to be?
You do.
Once in a while, there’s some research that unveils something so important and
relevant that it screams for parents to hear it. Researcher Marty Rossman, at
the University of Minnesota, studied a group of young adults from the time they
were young children. The startling results of the study were that the young
adults who’d participated in household chores when they were age 3 and 4 were
more successful as adults than those who didn't.
Specifically, these young adults were more likely to complete their education,
get a good start on a career, develop adult relationships, and avoid the use of
drugs. The early participation in household chores was deemed more important in
their success than any other factor, including IQ.
On the other hand, if children didn’t begin participating in household chores
until they were teenagers, the experience seemed to backfire, and had a negative
effect on their success as young adults, using those same measures. What does
this really mean?
When your young kids feel as though their dad (or mom) believes they're capable
of handling simple chores around the house, it’s an incredibly powerful message
to them. Dad believes I can do it!
If your kids believe that's how you feel about them as they go through life,
you'll also be the parent of confident, responsible, and happy kids. That's
what’s created when you choose to see your kids as capable, and you show them
you believe in them.
But it's not as easy as just seeing them as capable. You also have to show
patience when they tackle these chores. You can't take over for them when they
struggle, or "correct" what they did. Often, it’s what you don’t do that
communicates you believe in them.
Imagine the difference you can make with your kids by allowing their
participation in the family chores. Imagine the difference in your kids esteem
when they feel like a productive participant in the family from a young age.
You do have time to include your kids in chores and projects at home. Tell every
other father and mother you know that they have time, too.
It's too important not to.
Some of you may know that I’m a speaker, and I speak on leadership and
performance issues at organizations. I have a video clip of my speaking recently
at Bethel University. If you are at an organization or associated with a group
that might like a boost in performance, you can see my video clip here:
http://www.eqnow.org,
at the top where it says, “Hear Mark Speak.”
Looking for a way to prepare your children the entire month
of December. "24 Days of Christmas" is a great way to have
your own advent experience. Download this book today and use
it for years. Contains a scripture and a story for each day
of December leading up to Christmas Day. This is a gift your
family will enjoy year after year.
http://www.emersonpublications.com/24days.htm
Flaky Pie Crust
Joyce Moseley Pierce
At this time of year it seems we're up to our elbows in
pies, cookies and various kinds of sweets. I generally
buy the Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts that you just roll
out because I don't have a lot of room in my kitchen, BUT I
have become concerned about the ingredients in these
prepared crusts. Plenty of chemicals I can't pronounce
as well as lard and hydrogenated fats. If
you make your own crusts, you will at least know what's in
them! Give this crust a try!
5 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. shortening
1 egg
2 tsp. vinegar
Cold water
Blend first 3 ingredients. Put egg and vinegar in a cup and mix. Add enough cold water to make 1 cup. Combine flour mixture and egg water. Divide dough in 6 parts. Use immediately or freeze.
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