On the Second Day of Christmas: The Festivities Continue

The original meaning behind the twelve days of Christmas song has to do with the fact that from 1558-1829, Roman Catholics were not allowed to openly practice their faith in England. Each one of the gifts mentioned in the song actually have a coded meaning. For example, my true love was Jesus Christ, the two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments and so on. It was a way to help children learn their catechism in a way that wouldn't be discovered. I found that very interesting. I'm thankful that I do live in a country where I can openly express my faith and I hope that never ends! 

Now on to the original intent of this post. I want to extend celebration of the holiday by doing a blog post for each of the twelve days of Christmas. Both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were joyous events.

It snowed most of the afternoon on Monday so we ended up with a beautiful, white Christmas!

Because I was busy with the service, this is the only picture I snagged of the three of them.

I'm so thankful that we invited our friend over. She lost her husband this year and was so filled with emotion. Sometimes I get frustrated with my children because it feels as if they haven't learned anything from us, but they were so sweet with her and chatted with her and included her in the family activities. In fact, as I was leading the singing I noticed all three of them move from one side of the room to the other and I couldn't figure out why until I realized they went to sit with her since she was by herself in the row of chairs. That made my heart full.

The joys of adult children. He could not stop laughing over this "crafty" gift I got him. It was a box of rope with instructions on how to tie knots. The thought of sitting around and tying rope made him chuckle.

It was such a relaxing day yesterday which was nice. We had a breakfast of homemade cinnamon rolls, fruit salad and cheese and then leisurely opened gifts. I put out the leftover appetizer/finger foods from the night before for lunch.

One of my favorite gifts was from Dan. He bought me a pair of snowshoes so I can get out and get some fresh air in the winter. I love them! After watching a couple of Christmas movies, we headed out to test them. The day was gorgeous.

We had a delicious dinner of spiced-brandy glazed ham with sides. After dinner I attempted to play this game with the boys. It takes a rocket-scientist to figure out the rules so we gave up after a while. I found an online site which explains it so we will try again today. I had to laugh because it was a serious gamer writing a review of it and he said that it wasn't a serious gamer-type of game and was good as a simple family game. Apparently, we are as dumb as a rock! lol

The kids did their own thing last night while Dan and I watched a basketball game. And so December 25, 2018 came to a close.

Today's plan is to head off to the movies at some point this afternoon. Right now the house is peaceful and quiet. The Christmas lights are on the tree and the furnace is humming. Another good day and shaping up to be a wonderful second day of Christmas!