A Simple St. Lucy's Day

I like to present my children with the lives of saints, men and women who have sought to honor and glorify God by being faithful and obedient even. I look for opportunities to share with them stories of the Saints, missionaries or others, such as Corrie Ten Boom, who persevered in their faith regardless of their circumstances. Although I am not Catholic, I find that the Saints Feast Days provide a natural opportunity for me to do just that; there are predetermined days for recognizing them and many have traditions that are simultaneously easy to incorporate into our lives while being memorable.
For years we have recognized Saint Nicholas' Day and this year we opted to recognize Saint Lucy's Feast Day, as well. Our recognition of the day was largely a history lesson sweetened with cinnamon rolls. Unable to make the traditional braided bread, I had hoped to braid these purchased cinnamon rolls. I was unsuccessful but the boys really didn't mind. They munched on these sweet treats while we read about Saint Lucy.

Legend has it that, in the fourth century, Lucy, a Christian, was betrothed to a pagan. She refused to marry him and gave her dowry away to the poor. The rejected bridegroom then denounced her as a Christian to the Roman government. Lucy was initially ordered to burn a sacrifice to the emperor. She refused. She was then to be sold into slavery and taken to a brothel. "The Christian tradition states that when the guards came to take her away they found her so filled with the Holy Spirit that she was as stiff and as heavy as a mountain; they could not move her even when they hitched her to a team of oxen. Even after implanting a dagger through her throat she prophesied against her persecutor." (Wikipedia) Some narratives include the story of Lucy being tortured by eye-gouging.

One of the things that we found most interesting as we were learning about St. Lucy was the time period in which she lived. The last history lesson we read prior to taking our holiday break had to do with Diocletian, a Roman emperor in the early fourth century. Diocletian was determined to obliterate Christianity. His wave of persecution was the last of ten that existed from the time of Nero until about 311. Diocletian gave himself the title of Dominus Noster (Latin for "Our Lord") and demanded to be worshiped as Jupiter. Many Christians were tortured and put to death because of their refusal to worship Diocletian. As revenge on the Christians who wouldn't bow down to Diocletian, he attempted to destroy all copies of the scriptures. He also forbade Christians to meet and assemble and had churches destroyed. "It is recorded that in Phyrgia, an entire Christian village and its inhabitants were burned. Not one man, woman, or child spoke against Christ to save their life, but each painfully endured the fire. And supposedly, under Diocletian, there were so many Christians thrown to the wild animals in the sporting arenas that the animals became full and quit eating! It was a horrific time to be a Christian in Rome." (The Mystery of History Vol.II)

It was during this time, under Diocletian's rule and oppressive edicts, that St. Nicholas was imprisoned and St. Lucy was martyred.

Although there are many around the world who are being martyred for their faith in Jesus Christ and, it can be argued, Christianity may be under attack in our own nation, our family risks very little in professing our faith yet the Bible does tell us that we will face persecution and trials related to our faith. Even though these trials may be more subtle than facing the jaws of a lion or being engulfed by flames I pray that our family would stand firm in our faith.

Welcome to Our Home for the Holidays

Welcome...

to my Christmas open house!

For the most part, I decorated the front porch with items that I typically have on my porch but I added sprigs of evergreen to give it a festive feel.

Now, come on inside and take a peek at the living room.

I bought this vintage aluminum wreath at one of the Christmas open houses I attended; however, when I went to decorate I struggled with where to place it. Then, as I was about to return this frame to my studio for some future project, I had the inspiration to mount the wreath on the frame allowing it to stand on a table by my front door.
I am so glad that I found a way to enjoy this; it would have been a shame to have had to box it up for another year.

I always place my collection of vintage nativities on the mantel.
This "modern" one was a gift from my mom a couple years back,
don't you just dig it?

I made another vignette on my tv armoire.

It's a collection of vintage trees,

crocheted snowflakes my sister, Roxie, made nearly twenty years ago,

vintage books,

and other baubles, as they struck my fancy.

I decorated the larger tree with ornaments of family members that I created

and with paper chains made from old dictionary pages.

Now on to the dining room...

My china cabinet is home to a village of (mostly) vintage houses and kitschy vintage characters

and shiny baubles.

Little vintage things that make me smile with delight each year as I unwrap them.

On the buffet is a collection of blue, white and glittery silver.

Bishop gave me the silver deer a Christmas or two ago and, thus, require an arrangement that highlights them.

The buffet is also home to our advent calendar - a string of white pockets with silver numbers stuffed with candy to to aid us in our countdown to Christmas.

The dining room is also home to our Christmas tree and advent wreath.

It is such a pleasant room full of Christmas treasures and Christmas memories.

I am hoping that you enjoyed this little tour and
another day I will give you a tour of the kitchen.
I am also hoping that your Christmas season full of treasured memories, precious moments, joy and special delights!

Christmas Tree Memories

We began the month of December by decorating our tree as a family.
While sipping hot chocolate and munching on sugar cookies I read aloud a book by Aliki,"Christmas Tree Memories."
It is a sweet story of a family that gathers around their Christmas tree on Christmas Eve and,while looking at their ornaments they remember past family moments. The kids remember making pinecone ornaments with their grandmother and making spool figures with their mother while having chicken pox. After reminiscing about each ornament they go to bed thinking of beautiful memories and knowing that they will be making more on Christmas Day.

We then pulled out our boxes of ornaments, one box for each of the children filled to the brim with ornaments collected since their birth.
It is our family tradition to give the kiddos an ornament each year at Christmastime. We try to select something that is representative of an accomplishment or a memorable event that took place throughout the year.

Other ornaments found within the boxes would be those gifted by other family members and those made by the kids at school, church and home.
I, of course, have multiple boxes. Some of my ornaments were given to me by my mom and by my granny. Some of them I have bought to commemorate an event and others are just cool vintage ornaments that I just can't resist.

All of these come together to create what I believe is the most beautiful sort of tree - a family Christmas tree full of family memories!

I have made note of each of the kids ornaments, who gave it to them and the special significance, if any, behind each of them. One day I would like to create 'Christmas Tree Memories' books for each of them. In the meantime, those scribbled notes and these journal entries will have to suffice. The motorcycle ornament was given to Bishop as a toddler. He so loved motorcycles; noticing them and looking at them in awe everywhere we went. Motorcycle was apparently quite a mouthful and, for the longest time, he would call them "momocycles." The pirate ship was given to Maceo last year because he had been pirate in the community theatre's production of Treasure Island.

And, of course, there are memories in the form photos on our tree. There is a picture of Keegan as a sweet little four year old, Maceo with the children's choir at church, and Maceo after having participated in basketball camp. I love those smiles!

Ahhh...here are some sweet ornaments. Maceo has a love of all things Native American (he actually collects Indian pottery) so I got him the totem pole one year to document that love. The ornament with the owl and books was given to Christian in honor of his high school graduation. Mickey Mouse was a gift to Christian from his paternal grandparents. Keegan has a Minnie. On the far right you can see a smidge of the Liberty Bell ornament given to Herb to represent his time spent in Philadelphia. And, the blue vintage ornament is one of a set of four that my brother gave me after finding out that I love kitschy vintage ornaments. There is a scene found within that ornament, a wiseman kneeling before the King.

Oh how Christian loves his San Francisco 49ers. This ornament takes a place of honor each and every year. The airplane ornament was a gift for Maceo the year he took his first airplane flight. He went to Philadelphia to visit Daddy. Just prior to taking this trip Maceo had developed an interest in the NFL, he memorized the names of each and every team, and he insisted on asking EVERYONE what their favorite team was. In Philadelphia he continued to survey everyone and found that everyone in the city of Philadelphia is an Eagles fan. Surprise! The ceramic sheep was a gift from Grandmama and in the top right hand corner you will see an ornament created by Christian for Herb. This ornament is a true gift, as Christian thought of what would be meaningful to the recipient regardless of what he really thought. Christian, the 49ers fan, actually wrote "Go Steelers" and "Steelers are #1" on that ornament. The vintage ornament found just above the 49ers ornament is really very special to me. This ornament belonged to my granny. The last Christmas she was alive, she allowed me to choose one of her ornaments to place on my own tree. At that time I was a mother of one and pregnant with my second. I sat on the floor at her feet as she sifted through her box. I think she knew that this would be her last Christmas. It is a precious memory and a treasured ornament.

The poseable Santa was given to Maceo for his first Christmas. He was only four months old and looked at it quizzically. Bernard the mouse was a rare gift directly from Grandaddy to Christian and dangling off the bottom branch are a pair of crocheted ice skates created by my Granny.

With each year that passes these ornaments become even more special to me.
They remind us of the things we have done, the places we have been, and the people who are most dear to us.
Taking the time to decorate the tree together, chatting as we go, telling stories of the ornaments on the tree help bond us together as a family.
How I treasure sweet Christmas tree memories!

Holiday Organization - It's a Good Thing!

I am feeling a tad discombobulated. Everything is seeming to take more effort than it should; I feel as if I am swimming upstream. And it is in times like these that I am pleased that I have done some advance planning. This planning ensures that the most important holiday traditions will actually happen regardless of how I am feeling.
This year I made a holiday organizational binder from materials I had around the house.
I had purchased this really cute polka dot binder a couple of years ago thinking that I would use it as a cookbook but it proved to be the perfect base for this project.
I then used scrapbook paper to make dividers for five individual sections.
And I used vintage Christmas postcards and tags as accent pieces.

The five sections of the binder are Stir Up Sunday, Advent, Christmas Gifts, Christmas Food, and The 12 Days of Christmas.
The Stir Up Sunday section contains recipes for the hot chocolate mix that we always stir up on this day. It also contains recipes for cookies I had hoped to mix up.
The second section is for Advent. It contains a calendar of activities that I hope to complete in the twenty-four days leading up to Christmas.
There are also to-do lists, menus, and shopping lists for those activities.
For instance, for Saint Nicholas Day, I included my sugar cookie and speculatius recipes, historical information on Saint Nicholas, the craft activity that turns a simple chocolate Santa into Saint Nicholas, and a shopping list that reminded me that I needed gold coins and oranges.

The Christmas Gift section simply lists what I have for everyone and what I still need to get.
The Christmas Food section is much like my Thanksgiving folder, it contains menus, recipes, shopping lists, and timetables for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meal preparation.

The final section is for the 12 Days of Christmas. It is similar to the Advent section in that it has a calendar of activities for those days (i.e. the Feast of St. John is on December 27, Bishop's birthday is on January 5, and we will recognize Epiphany on January 6) and will contain related ideas for making each of those days special.

I am really pleased with how my binder turned out.
This method of organization really does help inspire and motivate me. It really helps me prioritize and make meaningful choices during this time.
And it makes it easier for me to complete those things that are the most important to me and my family.
Even as I am writing about it I am finding that my mind is clearing up just a bit and I can feel a bit more motivation stirring within me.
It's a good thing!

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

Two Sundays of Advent have passed, thus two candles of the advent wreath have been lit.
The advent calendar accompanied by evening readings have begun.
The Christmas tree is decorated and Maceo has had his Christmas choir performance.

Today we woke to our first snow and we ventured forth in the snow to view a performance of 'A Christmas Story' at our community theatre. It was well done and verrrry funny!
And now, we celebrate St. Nicholas Day!

Nicholas was born toward the end of the third century and died in Myra in the year 342.
He was born to wealthy parents who raised him to be a devout Christian. His parents died in an epidemic while he was young. "Obeying Jesus' words to "sell what you own and give money to the poor," Nicholas used his whole inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering." He devoted his life to serving God and was known for his generosity to those in need and for his love of children.
There are many legends surrounding St. Nicholas. "One story tells of a poor man with three daughters. In those days a young woman's father had to offer prospective husbands something of value - a dowry. The larger the dowry, the better the chance that the woman would find a good husband. Without a dowry, a woman was unlikely to marry. This poor man's daughters, without dowries, were therefore destined to be sold into slavery. Mysteriously, on three different occasions, a bag of gold appeared in their home - providing the needed dowries. The bags of gold, tossed through an open window, are said to have landed in stockings or shoes left before the fire to dry. This led to the custom of children hanging stockings or putting out shoes, eagerly awaiting gifts from Saint Nicholas. Sometimes the story is told with gold balls instead of bags of gold. That is why three gold balls, sometimes represented as oranges, are one of the symbols of Saint Nicholas. And so St. Nicholas is a gift-giver." (stnicholascenter.org).

We celebrated this day with a little pizza (always a favorite around here). I added a 'miter' to the pizza to tie it in to the St. Nicholas 'theme'. In order to have a more balanced meal, I also served raw vegetables.

For dessert we had St. Nicholas sugar cookies and almond speculatius.

As gifts for the boys, I made chocolate Santas into St. Nicks by adding a miter and a crozier.
They make me smile!

I also provided a basket of traditional goodies - candy canes, oranges, and bags of chocolate coins.

It was delightful!
And we pray that, as St. Nicholas did, we will be mindful of the needs of those around us and will seek to meet those needs with a generous spirit!

Savoring the Season

Saturday, the day after we celebrated Thanksgiving, this wreath, made by Bishop for me two years ago, was hung. And Sunday the first candle of the Advent wreath was lit.

We are greatly anticipating the arrival of Christmas.

Even then, we like to ease into the festivities.

We decorate progressively. We put up the Nativity in a progressive manner. We let the great story of Christmas unfold slowly, a little bit each day and each evening of Advent.

We try to savor it.

However, there are events on the calendar and activities we just enjoy trying to fit in.

So that we might stand a chance of doing those things while savoring each moment of the Christmas season I make lists and tentative plans.

This is what we are fully committed to doing during this time:

-Maceo, with his choir, will perform in a Christmas concert. He has a small solo - very exciting!

-Maceo, with his acting troupe, will give a Christmas performance.

-Maceo's troupe will have a holiday party.

-Bishop, with his cub scout troop, will march in the Christmas parade.

-We will celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary!

-We will work at the food pantry.

This is what we hope to include:

-celebrate St. Nicholas Day and the Feast of St. Lucy.

-celebrate Hanukkah.

-make gingerbread houses.

-make cookies and candies.

-deliver goodies to our neighbors.

-have the cub scouts over for milk and cookies.

-feed the birdies.

-make cinnamon and applesauce ornaments.

-make epsom salt votives.

-make luminarias.

-see A Christmas Story at the community theatre.

-see a new movie at the theater as a family.

-have a family movie night at home to watch Christmas classics.

-and, of course, decorate the Christmas tree as a family.

This last item I hope to do tomorrow evening, reminiscing about Christmases past while munching on sugar cookies and sipping hot chocolate.

I look forward to each activity on the list yet, I have learned, to be flexible, to let some things go, if necessary, so that each moment can simply be savored!

A Final Look

Advent has begun, the Christmas decorations are starting to come out of their boxes, and the Christmas notebook is filling up with lists and ideas.

I have put away all the Thanksgiving decorations except for the gratitude tree.

I am hesitating to disassemble it; I am so enjoying the grateful sentiments noted on each card.

I want to make sure that a sense of gratitude has truly made its way in to the deepest parts of my spirit. I believe that it will help me experience true gratitude for the gift of Jesus Christ, whose birth we are preparing to celebrate. I believe it will help me to stay focused on His gifts of grace and mercy. And, I believe, that it will help me share that gift, even in some small way, with those around me.

I am so richly blessed

and I am grateful!!!