My New Favorite Thing

I have a new favorite thing.

I seem to get a new one every few weeks. And right now it is the iMotion App for my iPhone.

It's this incredible little program that allows me to take a series of photographs with my phone camera in controllable intervals and then makes a stop motion video out of the frames.

It is wonderful.

I have been making movies of everything.

During this Thanksgiving break that is pretty much how my kids and I spent every spare minute. We stop motioned our dinner. We stop motioned Isaac. We stop motioned cars crashing (Hot Wheels, of course; not real ones.) Here is a video we made of dough rising.

Or at least our version of dough rising. And my kids came up with most of the ideas and did all of my special effects. It was a blast creating those holiday memories.

As we head into this holiday season, I know many of us will have extra time off with our families. And this should be a time to build relationships and enjoy each other. But I know for me at least the temptation is to get hectic. Or the temptation is to get frustrated. Or the temptation is to get cranky.

But let us decide to go into this time to make memories. So here is a suggested TO DO list for this Christmas season, especially as you have extra unstructured time:

1. Spend a full uninterrupted hour with God.
2. Make some Christmas presents/ornaments/cookies/(fill in the blank) with your family.
3. Make some hot chocolate or other festive hot beverage and watch a classic Christmas movie.
4. Turn off the TV and play some board games.
5. Cram into the family vehicle and drive around looking for the best Christmas lights.
6. Or go caroling.
7. Or purpose to have only Christmas music on in your house
8. Or buy presents for the Salvation Army Angel Tree together as a family.
9. Or serve at Heart 2 Heart (or some other community relief organization)
10. Or come up with your own creative memory-making family idea! (and please share these with us!)

May this holiday season we live out the words of Colossians 3:14-17 - "And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

And make a memorable Christmas season as we do it!