I’ve been under the weather which is why I haven’t posted in a few days. I was completely out of commission yesterday which was not fun at all. I didn’t even make it to Mass. Friday night we had dinner with JH’s family and called it a night very early. Saturday we traveled to St. Louis along with my parents to see The Judds, The Last Encore. Yes, The Judds. Yes, as in Naomi and Wynonna. Yes, I’m weird. I’m a Judds fan from circa 1985. My favorite songs were/are songs like Love is Alive, Why Not Me, Let Me Tell You About Love, I Know Where I’m Going, Rocking with the Rhythm of the Rain, Cry Myself to Sleep. I think I owe my love for the Judds to my cousin Kelly. I can remember (like it was yesterday) popping in one of The Greatest Hits CDs in the player that had a cassette attached to listen in the car. Do you remember those? Or am I aging myself? And oddly enough, one of JH’s friends from grade/middle school is The Judds backup singer!
So needless to say I was completely surprised and ridiculously excited when JH surprised me with four tickets as a bonus birthday gift along with my David Yurman pearl & diamond earrings!
We arrived at the concert overdressed. I had on a mini dress with a Kenzie jacket paired with tights and boots and my mother had on Dolce & Gabbana pony-hair heels! Ha! But as we’ve always said, it’s better to be overdressed than under-dressed. I had forgotten Wynonna had a second career of her own. Let’s just say her fan base is quite different. None the less, I had a great time singing along with all of the oldies! At the end of the concert, they asked everyone to sing Silent Night along with them (no band, no microphones) and it was so moving. A large crowd of people singing all the words to such a beautiful, peaceful song in the middle of the Christmas season. A wonderful way to the end the night.
Big huge thanks to my wonderful husband for paying attention to my weird likes!
Moving on to today… St. Nicholas Day!
“Widely celebrated in Europe, St. Nicholas’ feast day, December 6th, kept alive the stories of his goodness and generosity. In Germany and Poland, boys dressed as bishops begged alms for the poor—and sometimes for themselves! In the Netherlands and Belgium, St. Nicholas arrived on a steamship from Spain to ride a white horse on his gift-giving rounds. December 6th is still the main day for gift giving and merrymaking in much of Europe. For example, in the Netherlands St. Nicholas is celebrated on the 5th, the eve of the day, by sharing candies (thrown in the door), chocolate initial letters, small gifts, and riddles. Dutch children leave carrots and hay in their shoes for the saint’s horse, hoping St. Nicholas will exchange them for small gifts. Simple gift-giving in early Advent helps preserve a Christmas Day focus on the Christ Child.”
JH’s family celebrates the tradition of St. Nicholas Day by opening their Christmas stockings on December 6th every year. It’s such a fun, wonderful way to make sure we keep our focus on the real reason for the season – the birth of Jesus. I cannot wait to pass this tradition along to our children. JH and I will be exchanging our stockings tonight. I’ll let you know what I find inside mine!
Hopefully I’ll feel better soon and be back to regular schedule posting.
Happy St. Nicholas Day to all!
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
I love St. Nicholas Day– when I was in elementary school, living in Europe, we used to have to wear our rain boots out to recess (which was pretty much necessity anyway) and leave our “good” shoes inside with carrots in them, so St. Nicholas could exchange carrots for ginger snaps. Then he’d come around to every classroom with more little treats. SO much fun.
Have a fantastic time with your new tradition
Ooh I love The Judds! How fun you got to see them in concert!
What a special tradition to open your Christmas stockings on St. Nicholas Day! Have a great night, friend. xoxo
‘Overdressed and Early’ is the family mantra I was raised on- both of your outfits sound perfect! And how sweet of JH to give you those fab sparklers!
I can’t wait to hear more about your St. Nicholas celebration! What a great new family tradition for you to have. Since my dad’s office is based in the Netherlands, he visits there often and has taught us about Zwarte Pieten- those Dutch always fascinate me! haha
I hope you feel better soon! xoox
That is a wonderful tradition!
Now I have “Why Not Me” stuck in my head! I think The Judd’s were one of the first TAPES I ever owned. haha.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Judds. Why Not Me is my favorite, but I love them all. My aunt is good friends with Naomi, and when the Nashville flood happened my mom stayed at her house while cleaning up my aunt’s house. I was postively GREEN with envy.
oh I love St. Nicholas Day! Our family has a tradition of putting our shoes outside on December 6th. We would wait patiently all night for a loud knock that would mean St. Nick has come. We would run outside to find goodies in our shoes. I happened to be home for St. Nick’s this year and St. Nick still made an appearance. Like you, it is something I can’t wait to carry on to my family. Thanks for sharing.
How cute. We used to put our shoes out under the Christmas tree and get candy in them from St. Nick when we woke up in the morning.
I hope to do that with our children as well.
I love St. Nicholas Day– when I was in elementary school, living in Europe, we used to have to wear our rain boots out to recess (which was pretty much necessity anyway) and leave our “good” shoes inside with carrots in them, so St. Nicholas could exchange carrots for ginger snaps. Then he’d come around to every classroom with more little treats. SO much fun. Have a fantastic time with your new tradition
Ooh I love The Judds! How fun you got to see them in concert! What a special tradition to open your Christmas stockings on St. Nicholas Day! Have a great night, friend. xoxo