No one started crying ’til after 8:30 on Christmas morning. Since crying usually starts around 7:10, we called that a Christmas win, baby!

By 9:00, an inferno of neon blue Lik-a-Stix Fun Dip raged under the kitchen table. Fortunately, one quick-thinking kiddo knocked over his can of breakfast soda which dripped through the slats of the table and effectively tamped down the cloud of sugar dust, gluing it in place for clean-up.

I think the first grown-up melt-down occurred at 9:05am. And then again later in the day when the I-Said-Do-NOT-Throw-That-One-More-Time-In-The-House ball knocked over the bottle of red wine. But we big kids rallied, folks, which is the main thing. We rallied and kept our Christmas crap together, rolling on through the tremendous and glorious mess that is family.

Oh, sure. We have the Happy Christmas Photo like everyone else so we don’t have to hang our heads in Facebook shame.

But we also have the Truer Truth pics. Like the one of this mama and her kids (minus the sleeping-in teenager) in which I learn…

…I really should take my nighttime eye make-up remover regimen more seriously.

Or the one of the Christmas Dinner Aftermath…

…which makes me think I should add extra structural supports for my counter to next year’s Christmas Wish List.

Life is messier than I once imagined, friends. Marriage is more complicated and our successes more triumphant. Parenting is more gut-wrenching and our joys more transcendent. Everything we do in this condensed time of life is a wild mix of the Mire and the Magnificent, often in minutes right next to each other. And you know what? Life is also richer than I imagined because along with the complexity comes depth. Full immersion. Authentic living. I find it all stunningly… worth it.

And so, to celebrate the season of giving, I’m hosting three days of giveaways for the heart and soul. Each item I’m featuring has made a real difference to me this year in my ongoing quest to normalize authentic living.

Giveaway #1:
A Year Of Biblical Womanhood
by Rachel Held Evans

In the early fall, I received my advance reader’s copy of Rachel Held Evans‘ book, A Year of Biblical Womanhood. I loved it. Loved it, loved it. And I’ll tell you exactly why. I loved it because Rachel, by taking all of the Bible’s rules for women quite literally in a year-long experiment that has been called hermeneutical performance art, shows us with humor and grace how very much more the Bible has to offer when it’s not reduced to a simple list of rules, tight-fitting cultural boxes or constrained gender roles.

Sometimes hilarious, sometimes troubling, sometimes heart-wrenching, sometimes triumphant, Rachel explores all the Bible has to say about women and, in the end, teaches us poignantly to love the Bible for what it is, not what we want it to be. In short, if you’ve ever read the Bible or heard the Bible preached and walked away with a gigantic “WHAT THE ??” in your heart, this is exactly the book for you.

As a sometime Rule Breaker, perpetual Questioner, and committed Love Follower — and especially as someone who’s more interested in the grimy, gorgeous reality than in maintaining a pretty facade — I highly recommend it.

Now, there are two ways to get Rachel’s book at a steal.

First, the Kindle version of A Year of Biblical Womanhood is offered today for $1.99. I grabbed a second copy this way because I want it in my electronic library, too.

Second, I’m giving away a brand, spanking new hard copy.

Aaaannnddd… this giveaway is now closed.
Congratulations to Clarence Warren!
Check your e-mail box, Clarence.

To Enter This Giveaway:

Leave a comment on this blog post (perhaps telling us what your Christmas really looked like… even if it was perfect, I suppose 😉 ) by 11:00pm (Pacific Time) on Thursday, December 27th. One entry per person, please.

This drawing is open to international participants ’cause this is my blog and I can do whatever I want.

The winner will be selected using a random number generator and posted on Friday. Stay tuned for another giveaway then! The next one’s not Jesusy — which may be a relief or a disappointment — but it’s revolutionary, too.

Disclaimer: Although I received a copy of A Year Of Biblical Womanhood, I was under no obligation to write a review or host this giveaway. Rachel doesn’t know I’m doing this, nor is she a sponsor of this blog. All costs are incurred by yours truly. I just think this book is cool beans and a conversation changer.

……….