• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer

A Quiet Simple Life

Sallie Schaaf Borrink

  • Home
  • Start Here
  • Subscribe
  • Categories
    • Christian Faith
    • Comfort Food Recipes
    • Gracious Christian Parenting
      • Gifted/2e Parenting For Christians
    • Homemaking
      • Free Homemaking Printables
      • The Prudent & Prepared Homemaker
    • Homeschooling
      • Relaxed Homeschooling
      • Homeschooling a Creative Child
      • Homeschool Mom Encouragement
      • Homeschool Planning
      • Gifted/2e Homeschooling
    • The Library
    • Our Cozy Family Life
    • Simple Living
    • Unit Studies & Resources
      • Unit Studies
      • Unit Study Printables & Worksheets
      • Unit Study Books
      • Unit Study Activities
  • The Shop
    • Explore The Shop By Category
      • All Products For Women
      • All Products For Children
      • Clip Art & Digital Papers
      • A Quiet Simple Life Series
      • Poetry
      • Editable Homeschool Planners
      • A Full Year Shopping Pass
    • Cart
    • Digital Products Terms of Use
    • Your Account Details
      • View Your Orders
      • Go To Your Downloads
      • My Account
    • Lost Password Help
  • More
    • Tags
    • Donate
    • Recommendations
  • Go To: SRA
You are here: Home / Our Cozy Family Life / In Our Cozy Home This Week / In Our Cozy Home This Week No. 8 – Christmas Difficulties, Making Christmas Special




Post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure statement.

In Our Cozy Home This Week No. 8 – Christmas Difficulties, Making Christmas Special

December 23, 2019 by Sallie Borrink
13 Comments
3         
3
Shares

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Happy Christmas Week! I hope you are healthy and enjoying this special time of year with people you love. If you aren’t, I am truly sorry to hear it. We’ve had more than a few difficult Christmases over the years for a variety of reasons and it always brings with it a lot of emotions. Here are a few posts that might encourage you if you are in that place this year:

  • When Christmas Isn’t as It Should Be
  • The Reality of Holiday Overwhelm for Highly Sensitive Children
  • Saying “No” to Holiday Pressures

This week I don’t have any big homemaking goals. Here is what is on my agenda.




Goal 1 – Keep the house reasonably clean and picked up

Goal 2 – Make yummy foods for Caroline and David so they have a good Christmas

Goal 3 – Focus on what is really important so I’m not grumpy or impatient because I can’t make things the way I wish they could be

What are you hoping to do this week? Do your celebrations last all week or is it just one or two big days? Let me know in the comments!


3         
3
Shares
Category: In Our Cozy Home This Week

More Inspiration For You

In Our Cozy Home This Week – No. 111

In Our Cozy Home This Week – No. 53 (Christmas Lights, Buying Books, KWLs, and Updated Printables)

In Our Cozy Home This Week No. 41 – Schoolhouse Teachers, Homeschool Reading, Preparing For Autumn

In Our Cozy Home This Week No. 9 – Cleaning Out Linen Closet, Office Files, Yearly Goals

Previous Post:Evidence of His Love – Streams in the Desert
Next Post:Choosing a Focus: Beautify

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Peggy

    December 24, 2019 at 8:29 pm

    Merry Christmas!

    We are having low-key celebrations with family spread out over the week. I got the biggest item on my holiday baking list done today. I still have many presents to wrap, which won’t happen until the tape is returned by whichever child made off with it.

    Reply
    • Sallie Borrink

      December 26, 2019 at 8:59 pm

      Merry Christmas, Peggy!

      I hope your celebrations are going well and the tape bandit returned his/her contraband. LOL!

      Sallie

      Reply
  2. Ticia

    December 26, 2019 at 12:43 am

    The week is halfway over because our Christmas celebrations started on Monday……

    We leave early Friday for the in-laws, so my goal for tomorrow is to have the house and our life in general ready for that.

    I’m off to read when Christmas isn’t as it should be, our dog has cancer, and so everyone is super touchy right now, and emotional.

    Reply
    • Sallie Borrink

      December 26, 2019 at 9:03 pm

      Hi Ticia,

      I’m so sorry to hear about your dog. I can imagine that is emotionally draining for your family.

      Have safe travels and a good time with your extended family!
      Sallie

      Reply
  3. Sallie Borrink

    December 27, 2019 at 8:52 am

    Happy Friday after Christmas! I can imagine some of you still have Christmas celebrations going on this weekend and leading up to the New Year. I hope they are happy and healthy ones.

    The week between Christmas and New Year’s often seems like a puttering around the house kind of week to me. Putting Christmas gifts away, cleaning out things that have been replaced, etc. makes for a time of little organizing bursts around our home. Caroline and David gave me a new bathrobe and three new sets of pajamas (my request for all) so I happily threw out all the old ones. I’m thankful to have pretty new things.

    In fact, one of my to do things for the coming year is to make a tickler list of all the things in our house that need to be replaced and try to tick off one thing each week. Whether it is a spatula or a sweater, hand towels or shoes, or whatever – keep a list and feel good about making progress.

    So how did I do on my goals this week?

    Goal 1 was to keep the house reasonably clean and picked up. Done!

    Goal 2 was make yummy foods for Caroline and David so they have a good Christmas. I still have some things to make for them this week, but we’re all happy with the food choices we made during the holiday so we’ll say Done!

    Goal 3 was to focus on what is really important so I’m not grumpy or impatient because I can’t make things the way I wish they could be. We had a good Christmas with lowered expectations since we had been sick. So we’ll say this is Done!

    Reply
  4. Vivian Gibbs

    December 27, 2019 at 5:49 pm

    I enjoyed reading about your goals and Christmas gifts! I got a new armoire from my husband. My old one was falling apart. I have cleaned out the old and organized my new one. It feels good to be organized. I am thankful for this time off to spend time with family, cook for them, and putter around my house. I love being at home.

    Reply
    • Sallie Borrink

      December 28, 2019 at 9:43 pm

      Hi Vivian,

      An armoire sounds like a wonderful Christmas gift! I, too, love the feeling of being organized and puttering around my home.

      I hope the rest of your time off is restful and enjoyable!
      Sallie

      Reply
  5. Erin

    December 28, 2019 at 11:19 pm

    Hi Sallie,

    I hope you and Caroline are continuing to be on the mend.

    My goals this week were remarkably similar to yours, although I guess that makes sense given that it’s the Christmas season!

    1. Get the house picked up and presents put away – not just out of sight but in permanent places.

    2. Do “Round Two” of Christmas baking. We had made a couple of things when I came down with a crazy cough for several days that threw my back out so we still have ingredients for things waiting to be baked:).

    3. Get out some games and puzzles and really enjoy some simple time together between Christmas and New Year’s.

    I got Goals 1 and 2 accomplished and then things got a little busy so we’re looking forward to the games in the next couple of days. We have a couple of new ones and then one from last year that we haven’t really given as much attention to as I’d thought we might.

    Also, I can’t see where it is now but I enjoyed the beautiful Christmas message you put out a few days ago with the pictures to words – what blessing:).

    Reply
    • Sallie Borrink

      December 28, 2019 at 11:29 pm

      Hi Erin,

      It sounds like you had a lovely Christmas overall. Coughing is no fun! I hope you recover fully soon.

      Do you have any game recommendations? We purchased a family version of Trivial Pursuit that has cards for both kids and adults. We’ve only played it once so far, but it was fun. I loved the original, but haven’t played in many years.

      I’m glad you enjoyed the Christmas message. It was in the sidebar, but I took it out since Christmas was past. It is a video I made last year. You can find it in the post I’ll link to below. I didn’t have the time or energy to make a new one this year so I used the one from last year again. I was very happy with how it turned out since it was a new-to-me thing.

      https://sallieborrink.com/my-christmas-greetings-to-you/

      Happy New Year!
      Sallie

      Reply
      • Erin

        January 1, 2020 at 9:11 pm

        Oh, I used to love Trivial Pursuit and haven’t though about it in a long time – that’s a good thought.

        As for game recommendations, we have enjoyed “Wordsmithery”, “Anomia”, “Rollick” and “Name 5” the last while. “Name 5” is more of a light party game but we’ve had fun even if there are just a few of us. “Rollick” is just an absolutely crazy fun game if you’re comfortable acting things out!

        Honestly, the most enjoyable game for me recently has been “Clue”. We’ve just gotten back from visiting grandparents and cousins and I found it to be a really interesting game for a range of ages. I remember it from my childhood and enjoyed showing my 10 year old nephew.

        I also really like co-operative games from Family Pastimes, which is a wonderful small family company in Ontario.

        Reply
        • Sallie Borrink

          January 9, 2020 at 9:04 am

          Hi Erin,

          That’s interesting you mentioned “Clue” because we were discussing that with Caroline, but haven’t played it yet. I still have my game from when I was young. We were looking at new ones at Barnes and Noble, but all the new games are just so… I don’t know. All the computer generated graphics and such just lack something. But we should pull out “Clue” and play it.

          I haven’t heard of any of the other games so I will have to check those out!

          Sallie

          Reply
  6. Ticia

    December 30, 2019 at 12:32 pm

    Our trip up to the in-laws went well, so that was good.

    Reply
    • Sallie Borrink

      January 9, 2020 at 8:20 am

      I’m glad you had a good trip!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

 

Thank you for your comment. I read and appreciate each one even if I am unable to respond.

Sidebar

I’m Sallie, Christian wife, mother, homeschooler, and homebody. Do you desire to create a quiet simple life for your family? If so, I invite you to explore my helpful content about the faith-filled and home-centered life. Please start here. Welcome! ♥ 

Categories

Find It Here

My Other Website: Sallie’s Rebuilding America

Popular Right Now

  • The Ultimate List of AIP Comfort Food RecipesThe Ultimate List of AIP Comfort Food Recipes
  • Why I Reject MinimalismWhy I Reject Minimalism
  • The Ginghams Paper Dolls (Free!)The Ginghams Paper Dolls (Free!)
  • How To Grow Planters Full Of PansiesHow To Grow Planters Full Of Pansies
  • Cozy Blogs I'm ReadingCozy Blogs I’m Reading
  • 100 Field Trip Ideas for Homeschoolers {Free Printable}100 Field Trip Ideas for Homeschoolers {Free Printable}
  • Why I Homeschool In The Afternoon and Not The MorningWhy I Homeschool In The Afternoon and Not The Morning
  • Happy Birthday To Me!Happy Birthday To Me!
  • How To Talk With Your Daughter About PubertyHow To Talk With Your Daughter About Puberty
  • Parenting & Enjoying Your High Need BabyParenting & Enjoying Your High Need Baby
  • Decluttering 1,000 ThingsDecluttering 1,000 Things
  • He Drew Me Aside - "I Needed the Quiet" by Alice Hansche MortensonHe Drew Me Aside – “I Needed the Quiet” by Alice Hansche Mortenson
Receive new post notifications from A Quiet Simple Life

Powered by follow.it

Popular Today In The Shop

  • Rhyming Words ActivityRhyming Words Activity
  • Picnic Printable Activity PackPicnic Printable Activity Pack
  • Beach Fun Memory Game PrintableBeach Fun Memory Game Printable
  • Inauguration Day 2021 Printables Activity PackInauguration Day 2021 Printables Activity Pack
  • A Quiet Simple Life Planner & Guidebook (January 2022 - December 2023)A Quiet Simple Life Planner & Guidebook (January 2022 – December 2023)
  • Shapes and Colors Bingo Game Printable Cards 5x5Shapes and Colors Bingo Game Printable Cards 5×5
  • Trees Fun Facts CardsTrees Fun Facts Cards
  • Women's History Month Fun Facts CardsWomen’s History Month Fun Facts Cards
  • Flowers and Plants Fun Fact CardsFlowers and Plants Fun Fact Cards
  • Apple Writing Prompts and PapersApple Writing Prompts and Papers

Join The Conversation

  • Mrs. White on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Pam on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Cheryl on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Lauren on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Amanda on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Marilyn on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Sue Elvis on Happy Birthday To Me!
  • Peggy on Late Winter Days at Home
  • Marilyn on Late Winter Days at Home
  • MERRILYN 9 MERRI0 on Late Winter Days at Home
  • Etti on Breaking Our Bonds: Wokeness Will Destroy National Panhellenic Conference Sororities
  • Mrs. White on A Little Update

Blogging Is Better With Blinkies!

My Blogroll

  • Adventures In Keeping House
  • The Blessed Hearth
  • The Bluebirds Are Nesting On The Farm
  • By Sun and Candlelight 
  • Coffee Tea Books and Me
  • Creekside Cottage
  • Elefantz
  • Exquisitely Unremarkable
  • Generations Before Us
  • Heavenstretch
  • Homemakers Thoughts
  • Hope and Thrift 
  • A Housewife Writes
  • Jane Austen's World
  • The Legacy of Home
  • Like Mother, Like Daughter
  • Love My Life
  • Mama's Learning Corner
  • Mountain Housewife
  • The 1940s Experiment
  • North Ridge Farm
  • Rural Revolution
  • Something From Almost Nothing
  • Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth
  • Stories of an Unschooling Family
  • Sugar Pie Cottage
  • Thinking About Home
  • Thrive On One Income
  • Upon Hope
  • Vox Popoli
  • A Working Pantry 

Lifetime Visits

17,543,856

Archives

Contact Me • Privacy Policy • Disclaimers & Affiliates

Copyright © 2023 · A Quiet Simple Life · All Rights Reserved · Powered by Mai Theme

Scroll Up