On the 1st Day Of Christmas…..Giveaway w/ Zoe Elmore
Published December 1, 2008Welcome to day one of the 12 Days of CHRISTmas giveaway!!! There will be holiday ideas, easy recipes and both practical and pampering prizes to win. Best of all, each day you will meet one of my fellow “sistas” from the Proverbs 31 Ministries speaking team. Get to know them and their wonderful resources including books and teaching cd’s. Why, you might even just discover the speaker you have been looking for to appear at your next event.
So get in the holiday spirit. Tune in each day. Hop on and leave a comment. The more you leave, the better your chances of winning. The winners will be announced on the 13th day of December so comment every day if you can! (Now, don’t neglect the family or the let the house go, just do what I do and lose a little sleep in order to carve out some time to sip something hot and connect with your cyber sisters!!!) Enjoy!!!
Now, let me tell you, I had a hard time deciding which of my Proverbs 31 sisters to feature first. Then I remembered that little verse in the Bible about the last being first and the first being last, so I thought I’d start with my sister with the first name that begins with the last letter of the alphabet…..ladies……meet Zoe Elmore!!!
Zoe’s Bio:
Happily married to Tom Elmore, Zoe is the mother of two sons Joshua and Joseph and her future daughter-in-law Kelsey. She makes her home in Charlotte, North Carolina. She has six years of training with Bible Study Fellowship International where she served as a small group leader and assistant teaching leader for three years.
Zoe has a passion to encourage women and through her gifts of encouragement, compassion and humor, Zoe challenges women to experience the Lord’s peace and provision as she pours His life into theirs. Through inspiring stories and unforgettable word pictures, she will encourage you to experience God’s presence in a new and fresh way.
Ever the princess of our speaker team, Zoe enjoys time with her family and anything that sparkles.
Zoe’s precious family.
- Zoe, how will you and your family celebrate this Christmas season?
This will be our first Christmas without my dad and Tom’s mom as they went to dance with Jesus earlier this year, so we are changing our usual traditions. We will spend Christmas in our home for the very first time and my mom will be joining us for the holiday before she travels to Texas to be with my sister and her family.
We’re really excited that our future daughter-in-law Kelsey will be joining us for part of the holiday.
- What is your most and least loved aspect of this often-hectic time of year?
Most Loved: Time with family and friends. I especially love Christmas morning in our jammies as we open gifts and enjoy breakfast casserole and monkey bread.
Least loved: Not enough hours in the day to get it all done. Oh yeah, and taking down all of the decorations!
- What is your most treasured memory of Christmas as a young bride?
Our first Christmas tree was only 3 feet tall so we placed it on an end table in front of the large window in our apartment. From the street our tiny tree appeared to be full-grown. I hand made all the ornaments for our first tree and we continue to use those every year as we decorate our tree.
- Any holiday foods or decorating ideas you want to share with us today?
I always place a nativity scene in the branches of our Christmas tree to remind us that Jesus was born to die on a tree for our salvation.
I make Baklava and Kourambiethes (Greek pastries). I’ve added hand-made chocolate covered cherries to my repertoire thanks to Proverbs 31 speaker Marybeth Whalen and her mom.
Thanks for visiting with us today, Zoe and Merry CHRISTmas!!!
Okay ladies, Zoe mentioned not enough hours in the day to “get it all done”. Don’t we women, especially moms, feel the pressure to “do it all” every single year. You know, that tug you feel to bake decorated sugar cookies from scratch, construct a magazine-like gingerbread house, make fresh cedar garland for your mantle and hand write a personal note inside all of the 82 Christmas cards you feel compelled to mail out each year. ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!
In my workshop The Holidays: A Time to Bless, Not Stress, I encourage moms to take a deep breath, muster up their courage and hold a family holiday re-evaluation meeting. I did this with my hubby and kiddos about five years ago and we did it again this year on Thanksgiving Day. The goal is to discover exactly what YOUR family holidays should look like and to rid your schedule of the activities and even foods that really aren’t special to your clan.
You see, sometimes we are busting our tails to try to make the perfect holiday, complete with lots of hustle and bustle and homemade fruitcake. What we don’t realize is that our family would be just as happy with less hustle, no bustle and they don’t even care for that fruitcake!!!!
Enlist the help of your hubby, if you have one. Encourage your family members to be ruthlessly honest. Don’t be offended by their answers. After all, you want to scrape some things off of your holiday plate and free up some time to just be together!!! So, gather that darling clan and ask them the following questions:
- What holiday foods do you most love and look forward to eating each year?
- What holiday foods really aren’t your favorites and you could just as soon live without?
- What traditions are the most meaningful to you that we do or have done?
- What traditions do we usually do at the holidays that really aren’t important to you?
- If you could pick only three holiday activities to do as a family (drive and look at lights, Christmas caroling, attending concerts, making cookies, etc…) which ones would you choose?
- And last, but most important, how can we divide up the holiday duties (decorating, addressing cards, baking, etc…) so that all of the responsibilities don’t fall on mom?
57 Responses to On the 1st Day Of Christmas…..Giveaway w/ Zoe Elmore
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My Family
We are fortunate to be forced to scale down this year. We were forced from our home becaue of black mold. After four weeks, we moved back in to one room in the house. After three days of hard work, we are back in every room except for the kitchen which is non functional and the play room which is packed of clothing and “stuff” that has to be cleaned or thrown out. This year, we have our tree up, the kids have their “Charlie Brown” tree that they get to play with and touch, and we have a wreathe on the door that I made last year from retired ornaments from my childhood. That’s it, and strangely, I’m OK with that. It’s a good “feeling” to be able to be content. There is one tradition we are starting that my kids are looking forward to and that making a birthday cake for Jesus. They love to help me cook and decorate cakes!
I love having Christmas breakfast at my parents’ home. Christmas breakfast is what we call a breakfast casserole that our family only has once a year. The tradition began at my grandma’s house. She has passed away and now the tradtion has moved to my parents.
The tradition I could do without is traveling from house to house to see everyone on either Christmas or Christmas Eve. I enjoy seeing our families, but it is all so rushed!
Can’t live without Chirstmas morning dusties (or pigs in a blanket, depends what you call them). My mom started this awhile ago and I have continued with my kids. Its easy, non messy and yummy! Thanks for the first tip, will be looking at my list and checking it twice!
My husband and I have started a tradition that I hope will continue in our family. When we put out our table top nativity set, we leave Jesus out of the manger. Alongside the nativity sits a beautifully wrapped box with a tag “To: the world, From: God”. On Christmas morning this is the first gift that is unwrapped and inside is the baby Jesus for the manger. Then we read the Christmas story from Luke 2 before opening the rest of our gifts.
On Christmas morning we have muffins and we put a candle in one and sing Happy Birthday to Jesus by the Christmas tree with a fire going. My son with down syndrome loves Happy Birthday and he loves Jesus too. I cry every year watching his face.
As far as what I could dump…..probably the stress of feeling like I have to buy everyone the perfect gift. I love giving and it always has to be just right!
I have to have my mom’s homemande mac and cheese for the holidays. We have had that on Christmas since I can remember!!
I would dump running from store to store trying to find a Christmas gift that will get the oh’s and ah’s from everyone when it is opened. I want my gifts to have meaning and be special to that person. I am trying to look at their life and see what is going on in it. Buy a gift that will bless them!!
This is going to be so much fun!!
Blessings, Tricia in KY
Karen,
Nicely done!! I love this idea. Have a blessed day.
Charlene
The tradition I love is putting up the trees. My kids are old enough to put the trees (fake) together almost by themselves. They have a ball doing it! Then the joy of hearing them squeal as they open their ornament boxes and remember special ornaments from previous years is pure delight for this mama.
I could dump the hustle. I hate how busy the holidays are…why do we need to have so many concerts, plays, and parties in December?!? I am determined this year to slow the pace down and stay ahead of the craziness! So far (10 hours in) I am doing okay!
My children love to make the easiest home made candy in the world at Christmas, that looks like a gourmet snack! It is simply a looped small pretzel, with a rolo on it, melted for a few minutes in the oven, and then a pecan half pressed top. It is delicious and easy! We also couldnt live without our home made caramel popcorn. Although most people hate the busyness, I love the holiday season and everything about it! (except the holiday bills of course), and our huge manger scene in the kitchen helps us stay focused on why we are celebrating and why Jesus was born in that little manger in the first place.
Karen,
Having all of the family together as possible on the day that Jesus came into our lives is a tradition that I couldn’t live without!
As I have grown older and hopefully wiser I realize that having Jesus and my family in my life is all that really counts.
My children have all grown and started lives together with their loved ones in new cities.
The trimmings, the decorations and the food are all fantastic.
The tradition that makes my holidays complete is as many family smiles as possible in my home and Jesus in my heart.
And Remember that God Loves You
Thais VG
I would stretch Christmas over more than a couple of days. We are constantly getting pulled in many directions and with two young children this becomes stressful. Therefore, I would stretch Christmas out or pray for the strength to leave everything behind and start our own traditions.
Karen, you never cease to amaze me! In the middle of the hustle and bustle you once again, are thinking of others. Love that about you!
Well, my family loves having big ol’ cinnamon rolls in the morning baking while we open gifts. My husband jingles the sleigh bells which tells everyone its time to rise and enjoy the Lord’s day together! Probably the most fun is what happens at the end of unwrapping gifts. After a full morning of watching each person open every gift and eating rolls and sipping coffee, we are so totally relaxed and enjoying just being together….then someone remembers, “The Stockings!”
Now I pack some cool stuff in those stockings. They never know what surprise mom has up her stocking, I mean sleeve. Even the oldest child who will soon be 34 LOVES stocking time! The squeals are the same as when they were all toddlers. We sit back and simply appreciate the sweet family moments.
How was that for a long answer to a short question? Sorry ;o)
The tradition I just couldn’t live without is baking, baking, and more baking – especially when I see the smiles on my children’s faces as they devour the goodies.
Karen,
Thanks for the support and encouragement you’ve given me through your website!
The treat we can’t do without is a dutch pastry called Bonket. It’s made with almond paste and has a flaky crust…mmm…..
Last year I made a promise to myself and my family that they would not have a stressed out Mom this year for the Holidays. I’ve been baking already, a few things at a time, and everything is in the freezer. I’ve already pre-made the casseroles I need for the get-togethers, and my Christmas cards are all addressed. I want to enjoy this season, and having this all finished early is helping me do that!
You don’t have to enter me in the contest because the only thing I have to say is that if Zoe would care to share a baklava recipe I’m sure it would become a “can’t live without” food in our household at the holidays!
I love making Wasil (like a cider drink) during the Christmas season and just cherishing all the moments with family and friends! We all seem so busy throughout the years its nice to just get everyone together and enjoy each others company.
I could live without all the hustle and bustle of the crowds that are out shopping. So this year I did some early shopping and the rest I’ve done online!
Christmas Eve with my husband’s family and their traditional perogi’s- potato/cheese and sauerkraut varieties. All handmade together as a family. As family grows up, moves away, heads south for the winter, it’s been harder to keep the tradition alive.
Thank you for your encouragement and Merry Christmas!
Lisa in WA
A new tradition that I started last year is setting a candle on the breakfast table 12-days prior to Christmas. Then on each of the 12-days I will light it and my son and I together say, “Jesus is the light of the world.” Then I tell him a short story about Jesus and His love.
He loves this. Now any time he sees a lit candle he will say, “Jesus is the light of the world.”
As far as what I could do without. . . like most of the others have said the stress of trying to put in an appearance at everyone’s Christmas gatherings. Way too stressful especially since we live 10-hours away from family.
Hi gals! Such fun reading all of your traditions!!! And for those of you who want Zoe’s baklava recipe, click on the link with her name. It will take you to her site where she has it posted today. Yum!!!
First, let me say I was JUST thinking of that book and Sheri in the shower. I heard her speak at a woman’s conference the day before my girl was born. Man, was I uncomfortable! Anyway, I haven’t forgotten how Sheri lives in the Spirit and is on fire!
And now my son likes to dip them in the glaze.
I could not live without anginettis. My husband’s Italian grandma made them at the holidays and gave me the recipe!
I could so easily dump pulling out the tree and fluffing it and taking off the ornaments after the holiday. I’d be happy to let them all stay up all year long!
I love to make cookies, I love the decorating and our family always goes to church Christmas morning. Going to church on Christmas morning uplifts us for the rest of the day.
I love this idea – can’t wait to read more insights from the P31 gals!
My favourite tradition at Christmas is setting a place at our table for Jesus. As we enjoy our meal, it is a visual reminder of the One whose birthday we are celebrating. At this place setting we place a ‘crown’ to help us focus on the King who became a baby.
The holiday tradition I would most like to ‘dump’ this year is the Christmas devotional writing I usually include in every Christmas card. I didn’t do it last year and oh the feedback I received. It has come to be a yearly expectation, but the pressure to “people please” should not be my motivation.
Looking forward to reading tomorrow’s post!
Blessings,
Joy
I love this! This will be the first time that I am not with my husband in 25 years. We are in the process of a divorce, our children our 15, 16, and 19. It was intresting the other night, we had this same talk. I told them it was about what was important to them this year, not us. I asked them to go upstairs and get the Christmas items that meant the most to them and bring them down. They each went up and got the tree and decorations together and the brought down all the stockings. That was it! I was like, your kidding me. What about this, that and the other? It wasn’t important to them. They said “mom all we want is to be with you”. It was the best gift ever,
Diane
My husband and I started a tradition with our family a few years ago much like Zoe’s. We live 6 hours from my family and 10 hours from his, so we starting staying home on Christmas Day when our son was born 6 years ago! They rise early and we go down and see what Santa brought. Then we eat some breakfast casserole and Monkey bread, just like Zoe!
We check out the stockings after breakfast and then we open presents from each other. The morning goes by slowly, we don’t rush and I savor every minute of it! We plan Christmas lunch/dinner very simply so that me nor my husband or stuck in the kitchen. We realize this want last forever, but for now it’s sweet and something I couldn’t live without.
What food do I love? Our Jesus Birthday cake. It’s just a sour cream coffee cake with a streusel topping. But, we have a special candle we put in the middle and sing “Happy Birthday Dear Jesus” before we do anything else. Then, we sit around the table and open our stocking gifts.
What could I do without? All the cookies I have to bake. I made the mistake of gifting trays of cookies one year. And although it’s flattering, now everyone says they look forward to them all year!
I opened my Christmas Card List and found a note to myself from last Christmas…Dear self, Do not put all of those decorations up and make all of those cookies and buy all of those gifts or you will make yourself CRAZY again!!! How quickly we forget the insanity that we make for ourselves!!
The one holiday tradition I could easily let go would be the extended family dinners. When I say extended I mean with my cousins and their children. I love these people but MUST we try to visit at Christmas???? A summer picnic would be so much more fun!!!
What I love:
On Christmas morning, we love to act out the Christmas story. We started this little tradition with our oldest daughter when she was two yrs old. Now, we have 2 little girls (5 and 2 1/2) that love pretending to be Mary and Joseph and they love to put Baby Jesus in the manger (laundry basket with their favorite blankies inside). Then we sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. I know that they won’t always love this tradition. I’m sure when they’re 16, it might lose it’s appeal. But right now, they love it and when they’re older, we’ll find another way to keep the same spirit.
What I would let go- TV commercials and the early advertisement in stores of Christmas. Every Saturday morning, my kids make a new Christmas list. I agree w/ Charlie Brown and Linus- “too commercial”.
It doesn’t seem like Christmas if I don’t bake candy cane cookies. These cookies (made of red and white dough twisted together to look like a candy cane) have peppermint extract in the dough and are topped with crushed peppermint candies and sugar.
What could I do without? The long lists of “gimmes.”
Making cookies, watching corny Christmas shows and decorating the tree are favorites of ours. What I can do without is the three days of gathering together that my hubby’s family seems to want every year. Really… do we need that third day? We all live in the same county and I dread that third day.
What holiday tradition or food you just couldn’t live without or….
our Christmas morning casserole. We only make it once a year. It is so rich with all the eggs, cheese, and sausage and such a treat.
What holiday activity or food you would happily dump right now!!! Hmm. That would be all the decorations except the tree. I enjoy the lights on the tree and the shadows it casts on the wall.
I enjoy christmas the most because I get to spend time with my family, some of whom I would not get to see any other time. I love my neices and nephews and yes I have alot, I love seeing the joy in their eyes while they open presents receiving gifts that they are well deserving of, and not able to get any other time during the year. I love the conversations that me and my sisters sit down at the table and have with our mom and laugh about old funny times! Those moments are so precious to me.
I can however live without the hustle and bustle of last minute shopping, and the sadness of knowing that I am very blessed and fortunate to be able to shop early or last minute when their are so many who can’t. The feeling of nausea I get in the pit of my stomach knowing someone has lost a loved one and can’t seem to remember the real meaning of Christmas, or going through a terrible divorce and their children have to decide who to spend Christmas day with. I know somewhere somebody is hurting this time of the year more than any other!
I enjoy getting up on Christmas morning before everyone and having my cup of tea by the Christmas tree and waiting for those first footsteps and then watching in joy as my boys hustle around the house to get everyone up so we see what is under the tree. We laugh and giggle and enjoy it. But I have to say the quiet moments right before are always my favorite.
I love filling my home with Christmas music. Over 30
years ago I wanted to hear Chrismas music and found
a Christian radio station and a Bible teacher that made me realize I didn’t know the Bible had so much to say about life and death. I’ve been devouring the
Bible ever since==it’s my daily bread!
My grown children like getting together. Last year we
couldn’t coordinate a date and time.My husband and I
had to schedule 4 seperate Christmas celebrations.
This year my son’s girlfriend planned the date of December 6.Everyoneis coming and we’re simplifying the gift exchange with a keep or trade one item gift/
Love: all things associated with Christmas at our house, especially the simple things like watching a little boy gently unwrap assorted decorations and try to remember the story behind each one; keeping our focus on Jesus.
Could do without: the western Oregon rain…oh, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.
I can’t do without our annual Christmas caroling on Christmas eve. My husband doesn’t like it though – SO… in light of reading your article, Karen, I think I may surprise him this year and be flexible on that.
I could do without the rush – I’m trying very hard this year to get things done ahead of time so we can have a more relaxed momma and Christmas.
My husband wants to dump me cooking the Christmas dinner and go out, but my kids don’t want to do that.
I’m wondering if cooking on Christmas Eve should be a new tradition …
OK this one might get me booed because it seems like I’m the only one who doesn’t like it but honestly …
I would love to dump the green bean casserol! I’ve never liked it myself but someone always brings it to every Christmas celebration meal. *lol*
and I know you only asked us to answer one of the two but let me just say I love getting all the Christmas cards and letters … especially hearing from those who we’ve not heard from all summer long. Reconnecting is so fun!
This year we are expecting our third child ANYDAY and are also spending our first Christmas without my Mother-in-Law who is with our Savior this year. We’ve spent time thinking and preparing for the season–and want to keep our focus on our Lord’s birth!
A favorite that we all enjoy is Chex party mix! A bowl of party mix, candles, and a Christmas movie are special treats!
We could all go without the full schedules. Thankfully, this year, with a new Baby on the way, we’ve kept our commitments to a minimum. Our gifts are bought/ wrapped and the house is decorated. Now, we’re just enjoying the season! The question is: will we be faithful to do the same in the future years? One at a time…
Our children are ages 3 and 1, so we are just starting to develop traditions with them. This year we sat down early and established our priorities for the holidays, before all of the event invitations started rolling in. That has helped a lot already! My favorite tradition is attending Christmas Eve service – it’s been harder with small children. And I would have to say while I enjoy decorating, I don’t enjoy packing up and putting the decorations away in January.
Cindy
(P.S. – And I’m with DeniseLynn up above. . .don’t really care for the green bean casserole, so I would be happy to not have that at Christmastime!)
i can’t live without the turkey dinner it brings the family together!! =)
Every Christmas Eve, we have fondue after the kids go to bed. Then we get out all of the presents and wrap them while the kids sleep. It makes for a late night, but also for some great memories.
I could live without having to send out Christmas cards. It stresses me out every year.
Favorite Tradition…. me NOT cooking… and that is my family’s favorite as well. LOL
And in our Advent Calendar we place a little poem of something special we will do each day as a family. Every morning as our kids add a piece to the manger scene, they get to read what we will do for that day. They LOVE it. Many of them are simple… read a new book about Christmas… watch christmas movie while sipping hot chocolate… looking at lights… shopping… candlelight dinner with menu planned by kids…This year my 13 year old made the list of ‘her idea’ we could do for the 25 days. Made it easier on me.
Love everything about this time of year… I would dump the excess commercialism.
For me it is a tradition that my husband’s family calls Dutch Lunch which we have on Christmas eve. It consists of meats, cheeses, special breads, crackers, pickles, olives, chips, cookies, etc. Just a lot of specialty items that we only eat at Christmas.
My favorites are Christmas cards, spending time with family, the decorations, Christmas songs, Christmas movies, and the joy and excitement from your loved ones when you give them something they really wanted.
My least favorites are finding that perfect gift for some people. A few people on my list are very hard for me to buy for. I also dont like commercialism of the holiday makes it to easy to get our focus off the true meaning.
P.S. I dont like the green bean casserole either….
I love the baking but not need the sugar cookies from scratch! I don’t like the time writing and addressing all the Christmas cards.
I can’t live without my peanut butter pie!! The only time of the year that I make it is the holidays. I will continue to make it until I physically cannot.
I just want to say thank you for this blog. I am enjoying reading about everyone. I am reconnecting with Christ and have found so many great new inspirations through it all. I truly do appreciate it all!!
Thxs for these questionsGod new i needed a tool to take the unnessasary out of the coming weeks before x-mas
This weekend i planned already to start preparing the house and to plan x-mas…
Overhere ( Holland) after today’s celebration of St Nicholas the x-mas decoration and focus to x-mas comes out……
Thxs for your blogs
Blessing
Must have EGGNOG!
Must have Christmas Music constantly playing. Must have the Sunday School Christmas Carol Sing!!
Must have orange danish rolls for breakfast Christmas morning. Must have Christmas music. Have already done away with sending Christmas cards.
My mom always makes frosted Honey Cookies for Christmas. Know I make them too, but only at Christmas time. I always look forward to them!
My children can’t live without the tradition of new pajamas on Christmas Eve. Not a tradition, but what I can live without is not feeling in control of the calendar. Every date gets planned for us. Thankfully, we are doing much better than years prior!
My favorite tradition that my hubby and I started a few years ago is to make and take homemade food gifts to family and friends (including our pastors and staff). For the past 3 or 4 years, it’s been Caramel corn. We enjoy the chance to share.
my favorite thing is christmas morning when it’s just us home and relaxing and spending time together. the least favorite would be taking all the decorations down.
I grew up having blueberry muffins for breakfast on Christmas morning, and we’ve continued that tradition with our family…simple, yet special!
I have just started my own tree in our bedroom with just picture frames of my favorite memory of our child for the year. It has been fun looking at it.
It’s a good life!
Terri E.
Even as an adult with kids of my own, I love to go to my mother’s house Christmas morning. She cooks this huge spread. But there is just something about Christmas morning in the house you grew up in! I enjoy making Christmas cookies with my daughters. I don’t bake much so they think its a big treat!
There are a few holiday traditions that I really enjoy with my family. My parents have always bought us new pajama’s for Christmas Eve and a new ornament to put on the tree that night. We would always drive around together and look at Christmas lights. And my favorite part was baking cookies with my mom. I’m continuing that with some friends from church and already have 2 ‘cookie parties’ – one tomorrow! My parents live in PA and we live in GA and won’t be able to get together this year. =(