Loving My Actual Christmas: An Experiment In Relishing the Season by Alexandra Kuykendall

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• ISBN-10: 080107536X
• ISBN-13: 978-0801075360
• Publisher: Baker Books (September 5, 2017)

Synopsis

The Christmas season is a particularly difficult time for women to slow down and relish what's right in front of them. An annual marker for many, it is a holiday that can often remind us how life is not going as we'd planned. Our family relationships remain strained, our finances stretched, and our schedules stuffed with too much to do in too little time.

Following the formula of her successful Loving My Actual Life, Alexandra Kuykendall shares with readers her own personal experiment to be completely present in her life as it is during the holiday season. Addressing the themes of Advent and Christmas, she reflects on hope, love, joy, peace, and relishing the season, with practical pullouts on common Christmas stressors, such as finances, schedules, and extended family. Kuykendall's signature candor helps women go easy on themselves, remember what truly matters, and find joy in their imperfect Christmases.

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Loving My Actual Christmas by Alexandra Kuykendall is well written and a refreshing, practical guide on how to experience and find joy in the Holiday Season no matter where you are in your life and what is going on in your life. 

It's a call to remember the "reason for the season" and how to avoid sabotaging  yourself and those around you during the Christmas season. 

Ms. Kuykendall's advise and steps of her "experiment" are clearly defined, practical and at times a bit unnerving as she asks you to do a bit of soul searching and stepping out on Faith. 

Overall, a book I will be reading and applying not only to the Christmas holiday season but to other areas of my life as well. I highly recommend this book!

4 Stars!

I received this book for free. A favorable review was not required and all views expressed are my own. Thank you to Ms.  Kuykendall as well as Bakers Books and Netgalley  for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Easter Day 2011

~ Easter 2011 ~

We had a wonderful Easter Sunday! I was able to get the day off from work and we spent it as a family, doing the things we love to to do.

There was candy, a gift basket hunt and delicious meals but most wonderful was our drive up to visit a sandy beach that we hadn't been to in years. One we used to visit when the boys were toddlers and in elementary school. Oh, the memories!

We ended the day just puttering around the house enjoying each other's company and our various activities. The boys loved the presents they both received and they had a blast building/playing with them!

and

I can't think of a better way to spend the holiday than with family and friends!

Holiday Open House ~ 2008

The Christmas season is finally here! It is my absolute favorite time of year. I tend to plan for this season all year long and usually most of the presents are bought and wrapped by September. This year is a tad bit different. We've not been able to prepare as we have in past years but it has worked out really well because as a family, we've committed to focusing on a more simpler Christmas than we ever have before. It will focus on Christ, family and being together and more on giving than receiving; the things that are the most important all year long as well as during the holiday season.

We'll still be doing all of the traditions that we wrote about in our Holiday Open House ~ 2007. We're adding a few new traditions as well:

• We'll be making homemade Christmas decorations for our tree. I'll be posting more about this soon!



• Wrapping our favorite holiday reading books in Christmas paper or Hanukkah paper and putting them in a big basket under our tree. We'll pull one out, unwrap it and read it together during our family night time reading. (The books that we need to read for certain nights will be wrapped in special wrapping paper so we can be sure to pick them on the right night).



• Christmas Eve will be a celebration of Jesus' Birthday. We'll be watching The Little Drummer Boy, reading The Story of Christmas. We'll be having cup cakes (or cake...not really sure yet) and family reading of the bible and singing our favorite Christmas Hymns. We'll be celebrating Santa coming as well but the main focus will be on Christ's birth.

Wishing you all a Merry Holiday Season!

Thanksgiving 2008

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Aaron was able to get the day before Thanksgiving off so we had a full day of cooking before the holiday and it turned out wonderful! We even started our turkey in our roaster/slow cooker Wed. night so we didn't have hardly any cooking to do on Thanksgiving day. What a great way to cook for the holiday!

We started the holiday watching a little of the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade and it is so much fun to watch it through the eyes of our children ~ they had a blast! We taped it so that we could watch the rest of the parade later in the day.

After breakfast we headed off to the stores. We have never done this before on the holiday and it was so much fun! We went to the local stores near us, not the mall and we were so surprised it wasn't crowded. The boys were wiggling with excitement and it was such a pleasure to see their delight and awe of all the the holiday decorations. Several of the people in the store just stopped and watched our boys looking at the light display and having such fun. All of us adults had goofy smiles on after that. Who wouldn't?

We came home and had a wonderful Turkey dinner and just a really great family time. We finished watching the parade, played board games and ended the day with scrumptious pumpkin pie and a movie. I am so very grateful for all the Lord has blessed us with.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday!