Celebrating St. Nicholas Day!

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As a kid, we never celebrated St. Nicholas Day however, I always thought it was neat when my neighbors would tell me about how they put their shoes out and there were treats in them the next morning. In my years as high school teacher, the German teacher always celebrated with her students. She would ask them to bring in an extra shoe and leave it in her classroom overnight. Of course, there would be treats in their shoes in the morning. (I worked in a small Lutheran school therefore, this was manageable.) This year since we have our little one I thought it would be fun to incorporate the celebration of feast days into our Advent observance this year.

ST. NICHOLAS PRAYER

Loving God, we thank you for

      the example of St Nicholas,

      who fed the hungry,

      brought hope to the imprisoned,

      gave comfort to the lost,

      and taught the truth to all. 

May we strive to imitate him

      by putting you first in all we do. 

Give us the courage, love and strength

      of St Nicholas, so that, like him,

      we may serve you through loving

      our brothers and sisters.  Amen.

—by Amy Welborn

Shockingly, in the mail, Charlie received a letter from Santa himself!

It must have been dropped off when the other little treats were dropped off.

Getting Ready for Advent

Advent Wreath 2011

Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas. Therefore, this Sunday will be the First Sunday of Advent. This liturgical season is more than "just a countdown to Christmas". During these four weeks, we prepare our hearts and minds for the anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ as well as for the second coming. Advent is particularly exciting because it is the beginning of the church year. It is a nice fresh start!

What are you going to do to celebrate Advent?

As a family, we purchased a child friendly Advent wreath which will enable our little one to participate without mom worrying he will burn himself on the real candles. This year we will be away for the first Sunday of Advent so, we will take our wreath with us and celebrate with Charlie's grandparents. Because the wreath is new, it would be nice to have a little blessing ceremony as a family. The USCCB  has a bunch of great resources for Advent.

I can't wait to play O Come, O Come Emmanuel for Charlie during the week. He loves music and it would be wonderful for him to begin to associate this song with Advent. In Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers, there is a listing of the appropriate "O" verses for the days leading up to Christmas but you can also find it on the web.

During the last week of Advent, I plan to set up my nativity from my classroom so we can talk about why we are celebrating Christmas. My mother bought Charlie a wonderful book called, "What is Christmas?" It talks about how despite all of the secular Christmas preparations, the true meaning of Christmas is found in remembering and celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.

As Charlie gets older, I think it would be fun to celebrate St. Nicholas Day and the Epiphany in conjunction with Christmas. As a kid, I remember the neighbors celebrating St. Nicholas Day. I thought it was a neat idea. As an adult, I have gone to Epiphany service with some of my Lutheran coworkers because I found that they celebrated it more so than the Catholic church did.

This will be a great year to begin some new traditions! What are your Advent traditions?