Christmas pict- 2011

Santa Lucia Day -2011

Another Santa Lucia Day has come and gone. I really like that we celebrate this tradition. Of course, we don't follow it exactly as they do in Sweden, but it has become a nice way for us to take treats to friends and neighbors.

It is celebrated not only in Sweden and Norway, but also Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Finland, Hungary, Malta, Bosnia, Bavaria, Croatia, Slovakia, and St. Lucia, West Indies.

It is a story of an Italian saint that when Christians were being persecuted and went into hiding in the middle ages, a young girl took them food. In order to have both hands free, she wore a crown of candles on her head. She was a martyr and died for her beliefs. The King of Sweden was looking for a way for his people to turn to Christianity, heard the story, and declared December 13 to be Santa Lucia Day and the official start of the Christmas season.

In Sweden, the oldest daughter gets up early in the morning, takes Lucia Buns and coffee to her family and neighbors. They have large processions and parades of Lucia and her Star boys. The star boys come collecting money for the poor.

We started celebrating this holiday when Madeline was 3 or 4. We decided we wanted to honor our ancestors by starting a tradition in our own family. We have changed a few things. We take treats to neighbors at night. This year, I made traditional Pepperkakor cookies, gingerbread cookies, and German Pretzels (prayer bread). The pretzel recipe is similar to Lucia buns, excluding saffron and raisins, and we love them. Besides, they are a nod to our German ancestors. Niko and Christopher are wearing Norwegian clothes (more ancestors) instead of the Swedish star boy outfits. Maybe next year, we'll add British crackers and a French pastry to include all our ancestors into our Christmas tradition...

Happy Santa Lucia Day! God Jul!

O Christmas Tree!

What is one of the cutest things? Listening to Niko sing "O Chihhmaaa Rree, oh Chihhmaa Rree."

Holidays are even more wonderful with children! They get so excited about the tiniest of details. They actually stop and smell the flowers, even when they are fake.:)

Thanksgiving

I'm thankful for:

Family

Friends

Gospel

Home

Cars

Jobs

Peace

a child's view of the world

& the beauty of nature to name a few

We celebrated at my brother's. I had to work Thanksgiving Day. Our celebration was short but sweet.

Halloween 2011

Niko loved Halloween. He loved to say trick or treat, he loved the candy, and he even went through the spook alley in the church hallway at our trunk-or-treat event. Madeline and Christopher enjoyed the holiday, too. You're never too old for candy and playing dress-up. Here in our town, everyone is out to enjoy the evening whether in costume or not. It helps that we usually have good weather. It is a great way to visit with neighbors whom we don't always get to see because of our busy schedules.

Happy 40th Birthday Rick!