Christmas Day 2020

Today was another family event! No cousins this time but a hyper, excited, real-life pup to play with, outside field toys, piano playing, one uncle, one aunt, 2 grandparents, and some stuff he's were enough to tire out the four-year-old, this Christmas Day! Elmo came with cookies and hot chocolate, and a little reindeer (moose?) friend came with a gift card for dinner out! Then there were the fun cards and what I dubbed "luna cash" for something luna-size fin from the great-grands! All in all, a great southern/southwestern dinner (what I call lunch) of good food and good company! 

As we learned our luna-lesson from yesterday, our day ended in a nice NC time zone timeline, so there were minimal fuss and luna drama but still a good amount of time for the family! The C Christmases were the only solid plan for this trip, so I am hoping tomorrow we can just take a day to relax and recharge after all this excitement. Wish me luck!


Christmas facts!

  • While CHRISTmas is all about the birth of Jesus, The religious text of the Bible doesn't mention a date! (Most historians say Christ was born in the spring) the date (DEC 25) does, however, coincide with the pagan holiday of Saturnalia (that honors the agricultural  God Saturn with gift-giving)
  • Evergreens are a mark that spring would return from ancient times of Roman and Egypt (Prince Albert of Germany started the western tradition of decorating Christmas trees indoors) and holly is the ever-present sign of the crucifixion crown of Christ
  • St. Nick was a true 4-century bishop that gave say all his money! The modern image of the jolly elf is a Coca-Cola marketing ploy in the 1930s, Rudolph was a ploy for saving Wards department store money on coloring books
  • The legend for Hanging Stockings is about a poor man and his 3 daughters and the generous bishop throwing gold down the chimney and it land g in their drying socks!
  • The Jingle bells song was originally for Thanksgiving and only after re-publishing in 1857 did it become the Christmas sensation and went to space in 1965 for a prank almost gone too far
  • The holiday was outlawed (1659-1681) before it was federal (at least a century or 2 later)
  • Jamestown settlers made egg nog from grog (rum!)
  • Decorating causes at least 1500 accidents a year, Canadian postal service decided to start a letter program for all the Santa letters sent, dry Xmas trees catch on fire  quick, and the term "Xmas from the ancient Greek alphabet and verbiage
  • Rockefeller tree started as a wee little unlit thing in 1930 from construction workers and grew from there
  • Mistletoe is considered an aphrodisiac from the time of the druids- it also is the twig that grows from bird dropping
  • During WW2, POWs were fired special playing cards so they could escape, also Norway gifts London a tree every year due to their help in WW2
  • Original tinsel was spun from silver and was banned in the USA for a time because it contained led (led poisoning, yikes!)
  • Most USA Xmas trees are farmed in transported through the states and Washington Irving loved I'm as so much he gave Ol ' St. Nick 8 tiny reindeer and help founded his society in New York in 1835


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