Mirage???

Nope, it was as close to the real deal as Tampa kids get. It is hard to imagine snow on an 80 degree day, but the kids loved it. As a holiday celebration our homeschool group went ice-skating and it included "snow play"....I'd call it slush play, or left over zamboni scrappings play, but the kids thought it was the perfect snow. They climbed, slid, threw snowballs, made snowmen, got wet, got cold (as cold as one can get when it is 80 degrees outside). It was fun to watch them play, and to see little and big kids alike enjoy a novelty not many had seen around these parts.

Reason for the season

Sarah captured the reason for the season for a coloring contest at our church....and our budding artist won!

St. Lucy's Feast Day

St. Lucy's feast day is such a fun celebration. I encourage you to read about it to understand the symbolism. According to the Swedish tradition, the eldest daughter awakens early to make breakfast for her family, usually a sweet roll or bread. Sarah just loved to do this....she awoke extra early and had to wait a bit! She wore the traditional white gown, with red sash (a scarf), but we opted against a crown of candles atop her head...if you know Sarah, you will understand why. It was a fun way to start a feast day where we then talked about the life of St. Lucy at breakfast.

http://www.catholicculture.org/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2007-12-13

More Advent Ideas

Here is a summary of the remainder of advent ideas/projects that we currently have under way....

We have a Jesse Tree which involves a dead tree branch and 24 homemade ornaments symbolizing the lineage of Jesus. My husband talked me out of making crafty ornaments symbolizing the people or events for the tree. Instead he suggested I let the kids draw the pictures....and I'm really glad I did. It was a fun project for them that involved some hands-on-learning. While it took a minute to get over the "it doesn't look the way I would have done it" mentality, they came out really cute. It will be fun over the years to remember their cute stick figure drawings. (I had them laminated, in order to make sure they'll be around years from now). For more info on a Jesse Tree or to get the scripture verses to read when hanging the ornaments daily see
http://www.catholicculture.org/liturgicalyear/activities/view.cfm?id=545&repos=3&subrepos=1&searchid=139777

We also have a crib for baby Jesus that I bought online last year. Whenever the kids do a good deed, they can grab a piece of "hay" (ie yellow construction paper) and write the deed on it. They then put the "hay" in the manger so that on Christmas baby Jesus will have somewhere soft to lay his head. See a sample
http://www.catholiccompany.com/product_detail.cfm?ID=3724&category=1272

We also celebrated St. Lucy's feast day in style, but that is a post all its own.

Holiday Travels

We will be traveling to Cleveland this Christmas by way of Charleston. The kids are so excited. I discovered the "excitement" when I walked into their rooms and witnessed them packing.....on Monday....for a Saturday departure. Hangers everywhere, many small, stuffed bags, mismatched clothes, books, toys....oh the excitment!

The "Change"

To most people, the change probably means moods swings, and hot flashes, but not to the mother of a toddler. To her, the prospect is much more stressful. The change happens when one morning you arise and realize your cute, snuggly, obedient, somewhat calm toddler has.....changed into something.....else. Like a defiant, stubborn, willful, driven, (did I mention stubborn) toddler. As of 3 days ago, we are undergoing the change in our house.

Looking on the start of this event for the third time, I can smile. Yes, life is in some ways harder these days because most things need to be done "myself". And clothes need changing mid-day, for no reason. And toothbrushing is painful....(for the toddler who will now be sat upon by mom, who will crank open his clenched jaws....there will be NO cavities), time-outs which did not exist before now happen daily....they happen for bodily harm inflicted on siblings, which never really happened before either.....but....

I now know these days that feel long, are really rather short. Whether it happens at 2, 3, or 4, it happens. And after a while, your sweet child returns, only with new adventures, abilities, and skills. Months from now sweet Sean will return....and by then he'll be pooping on the potty!!

This post can serve as the warning to all the relatives we will see on our Christmas adventure!

Our Lady of Guadalupe

I love celebrating feast days with the kids. It is such a fun way to pass on items of our faith in a special way. These are new traditions we are making, and I hope they evolve over the years into traditions the kids keep forever.

Today is the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. We will read http://www.tomie.com/books/spotlight_on_guadalupe.html and watch http://www.amazon.com/Juan-Diego-Messenger-Of-Guadalupe/dp/B000A0GXPG. We started the day with Mass where we celebrated the apparition of Mary to St. Juan Diego in Mexico nearly 500 years ago. The story is amazing and the kids love the book. We will then make a version of these crafts http://www.illuminatedink.com/products/4/12/95/. And for dinner.....why Mexican food of course. What else but a fiesta on December 12th?

My only other recommendation is to check out what festivities your local parish may have. Our parish has a large latino population and this feast day is so special to them. We missed the event on Sunday, but they had a special procession, Mass, and Mexican feast. The girls attend in native dress, while all the little boys were dressed as Juan Diego. It will be on the calendar for us next year.