Christmas Greeting 2021

I’ve emailed this greeting to my newsletter subscribers. If you don’t see it in your inbox, please check your Promotions tab and/or your spam folder. (And be sure to add Debbie@thegardenerwife to your contacts list so you don’t miss any more emails from me.) If you still don’t see it, then I hope you’ll sign up for my newsletter here.

The Gardener Wife Newsletter

Hi  folks!

I wish all of you, my dear newsletter readers, a very Merry Christmas! May your whole holiday season be filled with love, joy, and peace.

Gathering for the Holidays — love
My family is still not gathering in the numbers that we used to before the pandemic. We are not under lockdowns this year, but due to having COVID or being exposed to someone who had it, some folks still cannot travel or visit. But I’m grateful that we have vaccines now and that many of us are able to meet in person and go to church, concerts, and other events again. While it’s wonderful to get together with those I love, I’m still assured of God’s love even when we can’t do that. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38-39 ESV). Christmas is a time to remember how God showed his love for us by giving us Immanuel, born to die for us.
 

Preparing for the Holidays — joy

Having the gift of God’s Son and his love, I can have joy during good times and bad, whether my garden produces successful harvests or not. During this holiday season, I’ve enjoyed preparing our home, indoors and out, for our festivities. I was joyful even when working by myself on these holiday tasks. I’ve been practicing video editing, so I put together several short videos as I worked. It was fun to share these videos on social media, and here I’m sharing my garden-style holiday decorating with you.

Here are my videos on outdoor garden-style holiday decorating:
DIY Winter Container Arrangements 
Garden-style Decor for the Front 
Night View of Front Decor without Holiday Lights 
DIY Easy Winter Container  
Winter Containers for the Deck 

Indoor holiday decorating videos:
Victorian Christmas Tree
Dining Table Ribbon Festoons  
Holiday-Style Houseplants

Coming soon to my YouTube channel:
Snowman Collection Display 
Holiday House Tour 

I hope these videos inspire you to find more joy than stress in your own holiday preparations.

Looking to the Future — peace

I thank each of you for subscribing to my newsletter and welcoming me into your email inbox. I’m especially grateful that you’ve stuck with me even though I sent out only four newsletters this year. I’ve slowed down—as I had predicted I would in my January newsletter—because I’m in grad school now, working on a doctorate degree. My studies will continue in the coming year, so you still won’t get regular emails from me. However, you are welcome to subscribe to my blog, where I post shorter updates, and/or to follow me on social media if you like. And don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or comments to share with me. Please let me know if you have any suggestions for making my newsletters even better when I do get back to writing more.

To subscribe to my blog, click on the “Follow The Gardener Wife” button at the bottom of any page on my website, www.thegardenerwife.com.

This is a time of uncertainty for me in many ways. I’m concerned about keeping up with my studies as I care for my family, home, and garden, and I’m concerned about what to do after I graduate. This is also a time of great anxiety and unrest in the world. While it’s tempting to work quietly in my garden and just feed my family, I know that God desires more for his people. That’s why I’m learning about global and urban ministry and why I hope to continue writing and speaking—about caring for people and souls as well as about caring for gardens and plants—after I finish this degree. We can have God’s peace even during the most difficult times.

May God bless you and your loved ones with successful gardens and with the peace that the angels announced to the shepherds long ago. “Glory to God in the highest,and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:14 ESV).

Digging it,

Debbie
The Gardener Wife