This is a time of giving and seasonal change.

Advent 2021 will begin on Sunday, November 28and ends on Friday, December 24, Christmas Eve.

It’s time to embrace slow, by choosing to be less busy this month. Let’s

Reflect

Find your purpose and be thankful for all you have in your life

Design

Style for Entertaining

Savor

Food for the soul and kindness to the earth with a VEgan lifestyle

Reflect in December: The joy of counting down

the month of The Advent

Personalized Kids Advent Calendar via Pottery Barn

ADVENT CALANDERS

When I was growing up, I always looked forward to December 1st. Not only did it kick off the month of Christmas (and Chamuka like many of my friends) but, more importantly, it was the day I got to open the first door of my cardboard Advent calendar and enjoy a special treat or activity.

Advent calendars remind me that the weight of holiday joy need not rest on a single party or gift or day.

Instead, the spirit of the season can be savored slowly: kind of like that mediocre piece of chocolate melting on my tongue.

Front and Center: Fresh Greens and Garlands or Dried Foliage for Tabletop

A beautiful arrangement that finishes the table in style. Dried flowers that offer the beauty of the fall season.

Also our favorite, Fresh Greens, Garlands, Candles and more for your table. These pieces are instant celebrations of the season.

Get The Fire-Pit Ready

December: The Advent, to prepare.

December = The month of Preparation and Creating Peace

December is the month of ADVENT: Hope, Love, Joy, and Peace

(What it means to me. This is the month of preparing for Christ’s Arrival. Preparing for change.)
(show my advent wreath)

The arrival of the Advent allows me the much-needed peace and quiet that I crave in response to the excessive noise in our lives. It’s a very real human need.

And if I ignore this need for too long, I end up overstressed, burned out, and depressed.

What can I do about this?

Prepare yourself for change. Use the month of ADVENT and the five themes to prepare yourself for the change you want to be.

“Sometimes God calms the storm, but sometimes He lets the storm rage and calms His child.” - Anonymous

The most common Advent candle tradition, however, involves four candles. A new candle is lit on each of the four Sundays before Christmas. Each candle represents something different, although traditions vary. The four candles traditionally represent hope, faith, joy, and peace. Often, the first, second, and fourth candles are purple; the third candle is rose-colored. Sometimes all the candles are red; in other traditions, all four candles are blue or white. Occasionally, a fifth white candle is placed in the middle and is lit on Christmas Day to celebrate Jesus’ birth.

Tea Cup Advent DIY via Miss Mustard Seed

What do the five candles of advent mean? #1 A green candle, symbolizing FAITH, is lit on the first Sunday that begins on or around November 15; on the second Sunday, #2 a blue candle, symbolizing HOPE, is lit; on the third Sunday, a gold candle, symbolizing LOVE; on the fourth Sunday, a white candle, symbolizing PEACE; and for Christians, the fifth Sunday, a purple candle, symbolizing the arrival of the child, Jesus.

At Christmas time especially, a season of anticipation and expectation, we think about peace. The peace that we crave. For some faith can bring peace to our hearts.

The way to deal with the storms all around us is to put the right things into our minds. If we change what goes in, our perspective changes. Peace begins to take over from chaos.

Your mind determines your destiny.

“You are what you are and where you are because of what’s gone into your mind. You can change what you are and where you are by changing what goes into your mind.”

How to get the right things in your mind?

For me, it’s with my Daily affirmations. Repeating what your subconscious needs to hear. It’s like bathing, I recommend you do it daily!!! Developing a new mindset takes daily work, and the results are

YOu can also have affirmation while you are sleeping. Your subconscious is not you, it’s all the input around you and before you. Changing your thoughts can change your response to the world around you. Just keep doing things the same way over and over will produce the same results. Affirmations help me to elevate a little bit each year.

Here is a sheet of affirmations to get started.

( add affirmations)

Here is a list of Youtube videos to listen to, when driving, sleeping or working at your computer.

( add list of YT sources)

Advent Wreaths and More.

Wreaths

See some of our favorite Wreaths and Garlands for your holiday decor. We completed a round-up of some of our favorite fall and winter decor. Nothing updates your front door and welcomes guest, more than a seasonal beauty placed in your entry, or living room than a well-appointed wreath.

Amazon Holiday Gift Guides, my Curated Holiday Decor Selections and More.

Holiday Gift Guides, Essential Oils, and Decor on Amazon: visit the dvd Interior Design Amazon Shop for Holiday Gifts. ... Shop now, wrap later. ... Happy Holidays Ghirardelli Chocolate Gift Tower by Wine Country Gift Baskets.