The Heart of the Holidays

Oh boy! Can you feel it? There's this constant little tension in the air.

If you're like me and don't really shift gears into the holiday season until after Thanksgiving is over, well I'm sure you're feeling it too.

This feeling that sits right on the edge of:

Okay, okay. I've got this. I need to start planning, making lists, buying gifts, decorating and etc...I'VE GOT THIS. 

Or

Oh shit. Christmas is right around the corner. I'm not ready. I'm already feeling overwhelmed. I don't know how I'm going to do it all. Help! Stop!

First off let's take a deep breath. We've done this many times now and we can do it again. Step by step. One foot in front of the other.

One thing to keep in mind: Mama, you ARE the heart of the holidays.

No matter how put together you can make it or how messy it becomes, it is going to happen. Our kiddos will only remember how it felt.

So if it requires some stepping back and simplifying in order to reduce the overwhelm, do that.

I want to suggest (strongly) a super simple way I have found, while in the midst of all the crazy, to capture and record what really matters. It's an app called 1 Second Everyday. This is my single most favorite app ever.

The premise is this: It's so easy to forget all the day-to-day things that happen. But all it requires is seeing one small second to take you right back to that memory. 

All you do is capture, with video, one second of your day. It can be watching your kids play, or doing homework, decorating the Christmas tree, the morning sunrise, or even watching your child sleep soundly as you check on them before you go to bed. 

Once you have recorded these "snippets" you have the ability to mash them together into a movie and then that is where you will truly see the power of these small moments in time to trigger the memory of each and every day.

Go download 1 Second Everyday and start recording those daily 1 second snippets. I'll be talking much more about using this app as we move forward.

Here's the heart of the matter:

Take a step back and breath. The holidays may be the single most memory making time of our children's lives. Let's do our best to make those memories beautiful. And while we're at it, let's capture and record these memories for them, but maybe more importantly, for ourselves.

Remember, you are the heart of the holidays. 

P.s. Watch a small example of my 1 Second Everyday by clicking on the video above.