Happy Feast of Saint Nicholas!

This is an updated post from last year. . .

Do you celebrate St. Nicholas Day? Wonder how or why someone celebrates St. Nicholas Day? Would you like to? It's not too late to put together a nice celebration, you could really celebrate anytime this week! 

In many countries, St. Nicholas Day is the day on which children get their gifts, while Christmas is reserved for church services and family get-togethers. We've begun celebrating St. Nicholas instead of mingling Santa and Jesus on Christmas day. This allows us the fun of "Santa" without it getting confused with the Birth of Christ. Not that you can't enjoy "Santa" on Christmas, but for us it was getting hard to keep our kids focused on Christ on Christmas. And the whole Santa kneeling at the manger - bleh, no, not for me.

Here is how we've celebrated in years past:

On St. Nicholas Eve, the children excitedly and carefully lay out their shoes by the fireplace for St. Nick to fill. And they leave out a small plate of cookies and crackers, also. I've heard that in some countries they leave St Nick a nice beer (I think Belgium is where this is done) - doesn't that sound fun?

In the morning they found their shoes filled with a couple small gifts, sweet treats, and a chocolate santa (you can make these into Bishops with the directions from the Saint Nicholas Center). Even DH and I found our shoes had been laid out for us (by an elf, I presume) and filled with goodies and gifts!

Our favorite tradition is a true "feast" breakfast! We eat in the dining room with candles and special plates. The kids especially love the hot cocoa with a peppermint stick and whipped creme! Who wouldn't love that? This year we have one child who is attending school, so we will celebrate with a nice dinner at the dining room table.  If I can find the box with the Christmas china, I might even pull that out.  For dessert, we'll enjoy hot cocoa with a peppermint stick.

We have a small collection of Santa items that I put out as a display. This is the first of the real Christmas decorating we do. There are also some extra goodies from Mom and Dad waiting for the kids on the table, usually chocolate coins and fun Christmas pencils.

At each place, there is also a nice little postcard with a vintage Santa image. These are our "secret santa" good deed cards. A good deed is done and the postcard left behind. The card recipient then does a good deed for someone else and leaves a card behind. You could use any card - homemade or otherwise. And, it wouldn't even have to be a Santa postcard - anything seasonal you like would do well! We continue these for a day or so.  I'm thinking of hanging these on a garland at the mantel - wouldn't that make a sweet decoration?

Later we snuggle up on the couch and read about Saint Nicholas. I especially love Ann Tompert's Saint Nicholas book. This year I've added a new book: Santa's Favorite Story by Hisako Aoki (found in on the shelf at Barnes and Noble). This would be especially appropriate for a family that wants to continue celebrating Santa Claus on Christmas. It is a sweetly illustrated book. Santa shares his favorite story - of the First Christmas - with the woodland animals who respond by saying, "How silly we have been,' said the fox, 'to think that Christmas was only about presents." Then all the animals go back to Santa's house to help him finish his Christmas work.

Do you celebrate St. Nicholas Day? I'd love to hear about it! If you blog it, let me know and I'll link to your post.

Poem for Advent 2

Another Rosetti Advent poem...

This Advent moon shines cold and clear,
These Advent nights are long;
Our lamps have burned year after year
And still their flame is strong.
'Watchman, what of the night?' we cry,
Heart-sick with hope deferred:
'No speaking signs are in the sky,'
Is still the watchman's word.

The Porter watches at the gate,
The servants watch within;
The watch is long betimes and late,
The prize is slow to win.
'Watchman, what of the night?' But still
His answer sounds the same:
'No daybreak tops the utmost hill,
Nor pale our lamps of flame.'

One to another hear them speak
The patient virgins wise:
'Surely He is not far to seek' –
'All night we watch and rise.'
'The days are evil looking back,
The coming days are dim;
Yet count we not His promise slack,
But watch and wait for Him.'

One with another, soul with soul,
They kindle fire from fire:
'Friends watch us who have touched the goal.'
'They urge us, come up higher.'
'With them shall rest our waysore feet,
With them is built our home,
With Christ.' – 'They sweet, but He most sweet,
Sweeter than honeycomb.'

There no more parting, no more pain,
The distant ones brought near,
The lost so long are found again,
Long lost but longer dear:
Eye hath not seen, ear hath not heard,
Nor heart conceived that rest,
With them our good things long deferred,
With Jesus Christ our Best.

We weep because the night is long,
We laugh for day shall rise,
We sing a slow contented song
And knock at Paradise.
Weeping we hold Him fast Who wept
For us, we hold Him fast;
And will not let Him go except
He bless us first or last.

Weeping we hold Him fast to-night;
We will not let Him go
Till daybreak smite our wearied sight
And summer smite the snow:
Then figs shall bud, and dove with dove
Shall coo the livelong day;
Then He shall say, 'Arise, My love,
My fair one, come away.'

Links for Advent - Dec 4th

Good Morning!  It is dawning a little gray and frigid around here, but I have the promise of some warm fellowship later this morning with the ladies of my church.  Need to get my pasta salad finished here shortly.

But before I do, I thought I'd share a couple of  links I've enjoyed this week:

:-: Grace at a lovely blog called Uncommon Grace has a series of posts about the Advent calendar (I've not read through the other 2).  Her list of things to be used in an Advent calendar is nearly exhaustive!  It is a great list you could use for an Advent calendar, craft ideas, stocking stuffers, mini-celebrations like St Nicholas Day, or just some ideas for fun during the Christmas and winter season.   HT: to someone, but I can't remember who!  if it was you that linked to this page recently, leave a comment!

:-: My Christmas Poet from Internet Monk (one of the blogs whose nearly every post I star in my google reader).  I'd been listening to a slightly kooky radio show about the healing power of poetry and it got me thinking that while I don't agree with *why* they think  poetry heals (even poor poetry), I do think they are on to something about good poetry being emotionally healing.  So, when this post popped up in my google reader, I was intrigued.  I'll be posting some of the poetry I've collected in the past couple of years for Advent and Christmas, in the hopes I'll remember to read it more.

Music for Advent

Oh, how I love Christmas music, and still I can't help but to turn on the jaunty, mostly-secular carols in the car on errands, but I'm trying really hard to focus on Advent music around the house.  Here's my updated Advent music playlist.  I hope you enjoy it...and if you make one, please share it with me!




Blessed Advent to you!

Advent in our home this week

 Enjoy some photos from our first week of Advent.

The first candle.

E enjoys and afternoon of painting the pale orange leaves
that remain clinging to the tree out the kitchen window.

Time to stock up on sugar for Christmas baking.

And to enjoy citrus fruits and the remaining apples.

The family altar dressed for Advent.

The Jesse Tree begun.

The Advent/Christmas/Epiphany Binder - in 5 easy steps

Did I sound all uber-organized when I mentioned the Advent/Christmas/Epiphany binder?  Hmm.  Let's correct that....because I'm really not *that* organized.

Over the past few years I've been collecting resources for the holiday season.  I have a great make-ahead Thanksgiving menu that I clipped out of the newspaper in 2007 and have used ever since with a few adjustments to suit my family.  A Santa Lucia bread recipe.  Several cookie recipes.  Lists of books and movies we own (so I won't forget them).  A large stack of activity pages I found on various websites to keep the kids occupied while I wrap gifts.  Lots of scraps of ideas scribbled down. A plan for an Epiphany house blessing.

I bet you have some of this bits and pieces, too.

Mine were all stuffed in a folder and dropped in the Advent box.  It was good to have them in one place, but they got pretty mussed up in that folder.  Last year, I decided they needed to be organized so that they would be more useful.  It was easy and certainly has made this Advent start off more organized.

Here's how you can have a binder, too:

Step 1.  Gather all your bits of paper, clippings, print-outs, inspirational photos, recipes, etc.  Sort them into piles that make sense to you.  (Mine are: the current year's calendar, activity sheets, special instructions (wreath, jesse tree, etc), TV/events, Recipes, previous years' ideas/plans, lesson plan ideas, and poetry - see the bottom of this post for some links.)

Any old binder will do, no need
 for a new one! Save your money
for those stocking stuffers.

Step 2. Find a binder and binder dividers.  If you are like me, you have plenty of these around the house.  They just need to be gathered and cleaned out.  Label your dividers to match your piles.

Step 3. Hole punch your pages.  If you have something smaller than a full page, you can paste it onto a piece of paper.

Step 4.  Make a calendar for this year: Nov 30 - Jan 6.  Donna Young has tons of blank calendars.  This year I'm using her one-page month calendar (full-sized).   Mark your calendar with important dates (parties, local events, feast days, etc).

Step 5. Use it and then don't forget to store it in your Advent box for next year, or whatever box will be the first you open to get ready for Christmas.

Some links to things we have in our binder:

:-: Turn a chocolate Santa into St. Nicholas

:-: Lots of St. Nicholas coloring pages

:-: St Lucia of Syracuse  Santa Lucia and the Star Boy (coloring pages)

:-: Highlights Kids has fun winter and Christmas Hidden Pictures (you'll have to search a bit through the 2 pages of pictures, but there are a good number of them for this season!)

:-: JanBrett.com has lots of coloring and activity pages to go along with her books, many of which are perfect for winter and Christmas.

I just love the old claymation TV specials!

:-: A Jesse Tree coloring page

:-: "Company is Coming" crossword puzzle  (there are probably updated files for this year - dig around there are many more resources here!)

:-: TV listings for Christmas specials

:-: Rosetti's seasonal poems




See, wasn't that easy?

Repost: The Advent that Almost Wasn't

In November of 2008 we were at the tail-end of our adoption.   Each day brought new forms to complete and our to-do list was growing exponentially.  We expected to get the call to travel on any day.  It was a very busy and hectic season and it was also almost Christmas.  I'm sure many of you have found yourselves in a busy season and wonder how to add "Advent" to it.  I sure did...

Advent almost got put by the wayside this year for my family. Me, a die-hard devotee of all things liturgical, almost said, "Advent is just too much for me this year."

I almost let it slip away....

Yesterday we pulled out the Advent box and spent
some time deciding what we'll do this year.

It has been a very wild year for our family - but especially so this Fall. The thought of pulling out all the Advent items, thoughtfully planning our Advent activities, and keeping up with our various Advent celebrations...well, it all just seemed too much. We needed low-key, we needed normalcy, we needed quiet. Advent was too much work - or so I thought.

What our December would look like - would it be devoid of all things Christmas, sort of a non-Advent Advent? Or would it, as so often happens when something is removed, just fill up with what our pop-culture considers an appropriate pre-Christams hysteria? That doesn't sound too low-key, or normal, or quiet.

Then, it hit me...Advent is low-key, it is normal, and it is quiet. It is exactly what we need.

That is one thing I adore about the Liturgical year - when it becomes a part of your family culture, it can have a stabilizing affect. As life swirls around us, we have the familiarity of the same activities, traditions, smells, sounds, words to keep us anchored. And what better to be anchored to than the Church - the Bride of Christ and, as the Bride of Christ, Christ himself?

My eldest daughter delivering
St. Lucia buns early in the morning.

We will have a beautiful, low-key, normal and quiet Advent this year - with it's bright spots of St. Nicholas Day, St. Lucia Day, Gaudete Sunday, and other pre-Christmas planning. It will probably be a little less planned out than previous Advents in our family, but that is one of the joys of the liturgical year in the home - the more you do it, the less pre-planning it takes!

I encourage you - if you think Advent is just too much, reconsider! If you've never celebrated or kept Advent before, start simply. If you've done it for many years, scale down if you must. But don't miss it. It is a season of quiet joy and expectation. You'll find that it properly places Christmas at the pinnacle of the season, rather than on a precipice.

Need some ideas for keeping a simple Advent (whether it is your first or fortieth?) Read on.

How do you plan a simple Advent? What are the essentials? Well, there are as many different traditions of Christian worship as there are "essentials" of Advent. But, since you are here, I'll share my family's essentials.




:-: Using an Advent Wreath - Some families are diligent to use their Advent Wreath every day, we are not so diligent...and to be honest, even some Sundays we find ourselves a bit worn out from a full day with our Church family. But pick a night of the week, Wednesdays or Fridays might be logical, to do your Advent Wreath lighting and devotional. There are many suggested devotionals online.



:-: Celebrating St. Nicholas Day - If you have children, I highly encourage you to celebrate St. Nicholas Day. Even if you still have "Santa" on Christmas Eve, you can have a celebration on his feast day and let St. Nick come fill up stockings or shoes with some little treats.

This was an easy but very pretty Advent
centerpiece. 

:-: Limiting Christmas decorations - There are many schools of thought about decorating for Christmas, but if you are going to truly put Christmas at the absolute pinnacle of the season rather than the precipice, I recommend finding some way to limit your decorations. The goal being to save the most flamboyant decorations for Christmas Eve, Day, and the Twelve Days. Some people hold off on any decorations until Christmas Eve, while others bring out certain items on certain days slowly decorating the home over the Advent Season. (We bring out St. Nick decorations, the Scandinavian ones on St. Lucia Day, we light the tree on St. Lucia Day - but no ornaments, and then on Christmas Eve we decorate the tree and put out the rest of our fun decorations.)

My messy kitchen in the middle of making yummy
Christmas treats.

:-: Special Advent Family Reading - Find a lovely story or devotional that you might read together as a family during Advent. There are some nice devotional stories that you might use...or even something classic like "A Christmas Carol", "The Gift of the Magi", or books with wonderful Christmas scenes in them like "Little House on the Prairie", "Wind in the Willows", "The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew", or "Little Women". What I love about these types of books is that the story can be timed to reach the Christmas scene just before Christmas arrives - or just after. Here are some other book suggestions for Advent reading.

However you choose to celebrate or keep Advent, I pray it will be a truly blessed one for you and your family! 

A Poem for Advent 1

Sunday before Advent
by Christina Rossetti

The end of all things is at hand.  We all
Stand in the balance trembling as we stand;
Of if not trembling, tottering to a fall.
The end of all things is at hand.

O hearts of men, covet the unending land!
O hearts of men, covet the musical,
Sweet, never-ending waters of that strand!

While Earth shows poor, a slippery rolling ball,
And Hell looms vast, a gulf unplumbed, unspanned
And Heaven flings wide its gates to great and small,
The end of all things is at hand.

Behind on Advent already

A very late arrival home from Thanksgiving travels (midnight last night) has me catching up on Advent preparations today.  Sweet hubby dug out the Advent box this afternoon just before he hustled a car-load of children out the door (all ours, minus the baby, and two neighbors) to a church dinner and bonfire at a friend's farm near by.  So, Baby L (who slept for nearly 15 hours!) is enjoying, I'm not exaggerating, a very late breakfast (yes, it is 4pm)/early dinner (what do you call that, brinner?), while I dig through the Advent box.

I was happy to discover a bit of unremembered organization: Somehow last year I made an Advent/Christmas/Epiphany binder.  How do I not remember doing such a wise thing?  And then I even remembered to put it in the Advent box so I'd find it first thing this year?  My, my!  I was an organized thing last year.  And to top it off, I still have perfectly good candles for my advent wreath.  Which is good, because I suspect that there will be a scarcity of pink and purple candles at Michael's and Hobby Lobby this week.  And if I don't start something on time, I'm unlikely to try to catch up.  Which is silly, because "better late than never" is not always true, but in the case of Advent I believe it is!

So, if you are a bit behind, like me, it really isn't too late!  

Here are some ideas and links to get you started:

Leila, at Like Mother, Like Daughter, has begun blogging about her Advent, but I found this delightful introduction to decorating for Advent in her archives.  I really love her suggestion to decorate with bits of nature that seem to express an expectancy!

Ann Voskamp has created a lovely devotional for use with a Jesse Tree.  We've not done a Jesse Tree before, but I think this might be the year we do.  The devotional is free and it is a treasure!  And you don't need to search for the Jesse Tree ornaments, just print and cut out the ones included with the ebook.

Do you need "baby steps" for celebrating Advent?  Check out Jennifer Fulwiler's post on just that.


Blessings to you tonight!

Autumn in our new home

My cousin's wedding at Peace College in Raleigh, NC.  In the middle is my 93 year old grandmother posing with the founder of Peace College, William Peace.  Beside her is my cousin's great-Aunt.

My girls in matching colors (I also wore lavendar) - right down to their lack of shoes!

Lots of unpacking!  The girls had a great system: big sis stuffed newspaper in the box and little sis smashed it down.

I went on a retreat weekend with the ladies from my church.  We visited Montreat, NC, which is very near Asheville.  Beautiful autumn weather and leaves!

Louie, found in a dumpster feasting on scraps, became a member of our family.

Our Halloween (All Hallows Eve) was a bit different this year.  We attended a GREAT All Hallows church party and had so much fun, we skipped trick-or-treating.  We didn't carve a pumpkin, but we did decorate a few.




General goofiness ensues on a daily basis.

Explored the woods and began creating a scrap-wood fort (or something).