For the first time, we celebrated St. Nicholas' feast day. My husband and I talked about truly celebrating the spirit of the day this year. We thought it'd be lovely to add a dash of (cinnamon) spice to the season and also a chance to open a few little gifts, so Christmas itself won't be gift-centered.
When the children woke up, they were surprised to find some freshly baked blueberry muffins for breakfast ...
We even put chocolate gold coins in their shoes, just like St. Nicholas did so many years ago.
EWTN, the Catholic t.v. channel, played two specials for children: "The Saint Who Became Santa Claus" and "The Boy Who Became St. Nicholas." So, we watched them, of course. Despite those lackluster titles, the specials were quite good. I know I learned a few extra tidbits about St. Nicholas.
Later, as the children's aunt helped mind the toddler, we launched into decorating our "gingerbread" (aka graham cracker) houses. I had formed the house structure with graham crackers and frosting the
previous night and let the icing harden to form a nice solid canvas for their candy decorating.The houses ended up looking nothing like the gorgeous sample gingerbread houses in the holiday issues of magazines. But the children didn't mind, so I didn't either. Most importantly, they enjoyed themselves.
And if the houses look a little off, well, they're like the kids itself: a little off center, sweet and fun.
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