Celebrate Today- ceremonies and celebrations to make your days count

Our Advent calendar helps us count days until Christmas.   My grandparents created a beautiful Advent calendar out of wood.   They cut out and painted 25 ornaments to be hung on the wooden tree, and one ornament is put up for each day.   When my brother and I were little, we would get to pick odd or even numbers and put up ornaments on those corresponding days, and we have continued this same tradition in our family.    As we got closer to December 25, the tree had more and more ornaments helping to build anticipation for Christmas.   For some reason or another, my grandfather would always put the turtle on the top of the tree as a joke instead of the sweet angel that my grandmother most likely intended to go on top.   Through the years, it has been fun to continue that tradition and make sure that the turtle keeps his place on top of the tree. Through the years, it's the little traditions like this that bring joy and help us remember and celebrate our family tree.  

St. Nicholas' Feast Day is December 6th, but it seems that as with holiday busyness and with a lot going on, some celebrations have to get extended or postponed.  Grace abounds this season. :)  So, we celebrated a couple days late with our annual secret St. Nicholas candy delivery. We covered little candy bars with these St. Nicholas' papers (instead of the traditional practice of baking St. Nicholas cookies) and delivered them to neighbor's doorsteps under the cover of the night.   (It's like "booing" around Halloween and dropping off May Day flowers in the spring.  We practically have one time each season to try to knock on neighbor's doors, leave a treat, and run like the wind trying not to get caught!)  There is a wonderful reflection on St. Nicholas  here  from a weekly blog that shares on art and faith.  I loved the benediction in the reflection:   "May God give us all a heart of mercy like St. Nicholas; eyes that see the needs