First and probably most obvious is the advent wreath. Despite clutter and the struggle to get other Advent decorations up, it's the first thing to be set up after Thanksgiving. It has changed a lot in the last several years, depending on what type of purple and pink candles I could find. Originally it was just little votive candles nestled in a grapevine wreath. Traditionally they are ringed in evergreen to represent the eternity of God. Last year I found a metal advent wreath in a thrift store for taper candles, but could only find white candles. So I taped pink and purple ribbon around the candles, which we are doing again this year. The color purple is symbolic of penance, and waiting, while pink (for the 3rd Sunday, Gaudete Sunday) represents the shift to the season of rejoicing. The Savior is almost here! The colors also mirror the vestments worn for the Sundays' Masses. Taper candles burn up incredibly fast, so we only light the candles for a short time on each Sunday during our special prayers. I'm looking for a pillar candle Advent wreath for future years so we can make the wreath lighting more of a special time. I would also love to use real beeswax candles, but they are super expensive and we do what we can.
On the first Sunday of Advent we begin the St. Andrew Christmas Novena. It's a prayer that's said for a particular intention 15 times a day.
Also on the first Sunday of Advent we start our Jesse tree. It is called a "Jesse tree" because of the description of Christ from the Book of Isaias: "And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root." Jesse was the father of the great King David and many times great grandfather of Jesus. The Jesse tree tells the biblical stories of Our Lord's ancestors daily up until Christmas day. We started our Jesse tree tradition a couple years ago using the Jesse Tree DVD from Holy Heroes, but setting up your own can be super simple with a small tree or even a branch, or a paper or felt tree you stick to the wall. A quick Google search will tell you the stories to read for each day and where to find them in the Bible. The ornaments, simply decorated with a symbolic image from the story of the day, become the countdown for Christ's birth as each day we hear again the beloved stories of creation, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to St. John the Baptist. On December 17th, for the last week of Advent, we start the O Antiphons, hymns from the Old Testament which are sung at Vespers, praying for the coming of the Messiah. The song "O come, o come Emmanuel" is a lyrical paraphrase of the O Antiphons. In years past we used paper ornaments but this year I made wood slice ornaments that are prettier and much more durable.
The Jesse Tree Ornaments are our countdown to Christmas.
I try to have the house decorated by the end of the first week of Advent including having the Christmas tree up. I know many Traditional families try to wait until Christmas Eve to get their decorations and tree up since the true Christmas season doesn't begin until Christmas, but I'd never get done if I waited. It really doesn't feel like Advent either without the trimmings. We do leave it all up until after Epiphany January 6th (when the three Wise Men found Christ), and the Nativity scene until Candlemas February 2 (the commemoration of the presentation of Christ in the temple). February 2 is the traditional end of the Christmas/Epiphany season.
Besides the tree, the nativity scenes are set up as they might have been at this time 2000+ years ago: inhabited by animals, possibly a shepherd tending his sheep, but no Magi, and no Mary, Joseph, or Baby Jesus. Mary and Joseph and trusty donkey are placed outside the stable, still journeying.
Also journeying are the three Kings, following a star. (They are currently passing the microwave in our kitchen.)
Baby Jesus is hidden away safely until He appears Christmas morning. His manger(s) await. Several years ago I began a tradition with the boys to help them prepare their hearts for Christ, which is what Advent is for, after all. As adults we can all benefit from visual cues at times, and children even more so. I made a manger out of sticks and encouraged them to earn "soft things" for Jesus's bed by acts of kindness and sacrifices. They lay strips of fleece in the manger anytime they do good. Christ, Who gives all things, is the one Who brings our Christmas gifts, not Santa. And He will not bring gifts to children who leave His bed hard and cold. Misbehavior results in strips taken out. Oh the terror when Gaudete Sunday rolls around and the manger is in a sad state with one scraggly strip of fleece!
We've never gotten to Christmas with an empty manger, but one year when it could have been better the first gift the boys opened at home was a box of rocks. Aidan cried, but dear incorrigable Gavin was so excited, he dumped that box of rocks in the back of the shiny new Tonka truck Grandma and Grandpa had given him and took off like he won the lottery. That boy. ❤
The Feasts We Celebrate During Advent
December 6 is the Feast of St. Nicholas...another reason Santa Claus doesn't visit us on Christmas. St. Nicholas' day is much earlier in the season, and Christmas is for Christ. The night before, the boys set out their shoes and find the next morning they've been filled with gold chocolate coins. We also read "The Legend of St. Nicholas" and watch the the cartoon, Nicholas: The Boy Who Became Santa.
December 8 is the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Since it's a Holyday of Obligation for U.S. Catholics, we attend Mass when we can. We read the Epistle and Gospel from the Mass of the day and have a special treat later. This year we had friends over for supper and they treated us with donuts!
The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, also falls during Advent (December 12), and is a feast we love to celebrate.
This day is so special for many reasons, but one notable reason for us is that on this day two years ago we found out that Our Lady of the Roses had sent us a little rose: we were expecting our first baby girl! (Those familiar with this apparition will remember that Our Lady filled Juan Diego's tilma with out-of-season roses and a miraculous image of herself to convince the Bishop she was real.) My previous pregnancy had ended with a miscarriage, and I suffered severe anxiety during this pregnancy, marked by terrifying episodes of bleeding that we learned were caused by partial placenta previa. Our Blessed Mother obtained for me comfort and peace during this difficult time.
Our Lady of Guadalupe became Adeline's special patroness. An image of her overlooks her bed, and she even has her own Our Lady of Guadalupe Shining Light doll. We celebrate by having Mexican food on this day and watching the Juan Diego cartoon.
There are so many other feast days and traditions I would love to do or elaborate on, but this space is all about reality. And the reality is that some days we're doing good if we simply remember what the date is amidst the busyness. We do what we can, and continue to marvel at those who set the bar so high. In my earlier days as mama I used to drive myself crazy about all the things I didn't. And you know what? Pushing and stressing myself to do those things just because others do them or because I thought they were amazing would not have made me a better mother, and most likely would not have made my children better people. "Simple" brings peace to our lives, and I'm all for that.
On December 14 we start Jesus' "birthday cake". While it's usually Amish Friendship Bread (ssshh! Don't tell the boys!) I chose it for Our Lord's "cake" because of the daily preparation the starter needs (like our souls during Advent), it's super sweet, cinnamony and delicious, and bread is so symbolic to our Faith. It is ready to bake December 24, with starter left over to share with friends. This year was a year we missed when it was the 14th, so there is no bowl of starter on the counter to share a photo of. Instead, I will bake an angel food cake on Christmas Eve.
We always take the whole week of Christmas off school, and sometimes we take two weeks off. We have a birthday boy a couple weeks after so it makes for a nice ending to the festivities.
Christmas Eve we read the Christmas story from the book of Luke and the kids get to open their stockings. One child gets a movie in his stocking that we watch that night (this year it's "Paul the Apostle" but in years past it's been "The Miracle of Marcelino", "The Reluctant Saint", "The Ten Commandments", etc. The others get audio books or music CD's, like "Advent at Ephesus". They all also get a snack to eat during the movie (this year its almonds, cashews, and Addie gets popcorn), a small toy, and a new ornament to hang on the tree. By the time they move out each should have at least 18 ornaments to take with them. With 5 kiddos we may have to start decorating the back of the tree..... This year I'm making new stockings for each child. I still have three to go!
Christmas morning the first thing they do when they wake is to look for the Baby Jesus in the manger. If they see Him they run to the to peer under it. No one is allowed to touch a thing until Mom and Dad have gotten their coffee and found a seat. This is if we have afternoon Mass (which we do this year!) If we have to drive a ways for Mass we wait until we're back home to open gifts. After Mass is when we break out the Christmas goodies and whatever "splurge" Crockpot meal we decided on. It's not uncommon for us to have hot wings for Christmas!
Our gifts are modest. We don't have a lot, but what we do we try to make as meaningful as possible. Since the Christ Child received three gifts for His birthday (gold, frankincense, myrrh) we imitate that by giving three gifts to each child. 1) something they want, generally a toy or building set, 2) something they need, which has often been clothes, coats, gloves, shoes, and one extravagant year, new bikes, and 3) a book. Gifts are opened one at a time, each one taking turns. We try to avoid the flurry of ripped paper and the impatience of the "what do I get next" mentality. It's hard, I know they're just kids, but we're trying to instill in their hearts a spirit of thankfulness and moderation.
Christmas day is just for our family. We go to my parents' to celebrate Christmas when it works for all of us to get together sometime Christmas week, and also to Eli' sister's. Eli's work also has a Christmas party every year, but he will be working during it this year. We try to keep other get-togethers to a minimum during this time.
Those are our main traditions. As the kids grow they will most likely grow and change with them.
O Come Let Us Adore Him!
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