Has anyone seen those elusive 3 French hens? One day, I'm must look up the origins of that song.
There's nothing special going on here today. It's just going to be the girls and I all day. We may go out for lunch, and then spend the afternoon at the library. Maggie loves that, and Audrey hardly ever gets to go since she's in school all day, so it'll be a special treat for her.
And here I always thought the twelve days of Christmas were the days leading *up to* the 25th! I suppose I should do some research as well! Maybe when you're at the library you'll come across something... My kids LOVE the library. You can't get them out for hours!
We're winding down from another busy day. The kids are waiting on me to read them Harry for the evening. They're getting their laundry away and PJs on. I treated Kadyn and Avery to a bubble bath this evening. They had a blast! I had a ton and a half of laundry to fold and so I just let them play in the tub while I did it all. Our washer is in the bathroom. Multitasking at its best!!!
Sounds like the kids are done with their chores so I'd better get in there before they make up some kind of wrestling game! I'm sure I'll be back later - Tom's working until all hours of the early morning tonight so I'll be all by my lonesome here at home.
The 12 days are after Christmas because Jesus was baptized on the 12th day. I think the tradition of celebrating like that started in England.
So I decided I will not be cleaning my house until the weekend that way I won't be disappointed if I don't get to it again. Cottage Have a great time at the library. Kara The bubble bath sounds divine.
For some reason now I want to stay home and take a bath and read a good book. I don't think my boss woul unerstand Have a great day.
Oh yes! I second that, a nice long soak in a bubble bath would be an excellent way to spend my morning, too! Unfortunately, it's not going to happen. I'll bet the kiddies smell nice and cuddly after their baths, Kara. I always look forward to snuggle time, when the little ones are all clean and in their jammies, and we snuggle up to read a story. It's a special time.
Thank you, Dawn, for the the info about the 12 Days of Christmas. I knew it was the days after Christmas, but I didn't know anything else about it. England, you say? Hmmm, I wonder how hard it was to obtain a partridge in a pear tree?
OK, I got curious and I'm striking out looking for Christmas dresses on clearance so I went on an on-line search for the meaning of the Twelve Days. Here you go:
1st Day: The partridge in a pear tree is Christ Jesus upon the Cross. In the song, Christ is symbolically presented as a mother partridge because she would feign injury to decoy a predator away from her nestlings. She was even willing to die for them.
The tree is the symbol of the fall of the human race through the sin of Adam and Eve. It is also the symbol of its redemption by Jesus Christ on the tree of the Cross.
2nd Day: The "two turtle doves" refers to the Old and New Testaments.
3rd Day: The "three French hens" stand for faith, hope and love—the three gifts of the Spirit that abide (1 Corinthians 13).
4th Day: The "four calling birds" refers to the four evangelists who wrote the Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke and John—which sing the song of salvation through Jesus Christ.
5th Day: The "five golden rings" represents the first five books of the Bible, also called the Jewish Torah: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
6th Day: The "six geese a-laying" is the six days of creation.
7th Day: The "seven swans a-swimming" refers to the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord.
8th Day: The "eight maids a milking " reminded children of the eight beatitudes listed in the Sermon on the Mount.
9th Day: The "nine ladies dancing" were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
10th Day: The "ten lords a-leaping" represents the Ten Commandments
11th Day: The "eleven pipers piping" refers to the eleven faithful apostles.
12th Day: The ‘twelve drummers drumming" were the twelve points of belief expressed in the Apostles’ Creed: belief in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, that Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary, made man, crucified, died and arose on the third day, that he sits at the right hand of the father and will come again, the resurrection of the dead and life everlasting.
Thanks, Kara! Wow, us Catholics are a sneaky bunch, but strong in our faith! It sure wasn't what I was expecting about the song, though. I had visions of an enamoured young man trying to woo his beloved! I love what it really means, though, and now whenever I hear the song, it will really be special to me.
Here's another explanation. Whatever the origin, some of us do carry on with Christmas into January. I've often thought the season was way too short for all the hype and work involved. Since my tree stays up until 12th Night, my family never put it up until just a week before the Day. Actually, here in the Great White North, we should just keep Christmas all winter to brighten up the cold and dark.
Hershey and I are tired today! I am delighted to hear that my company has canceled although sorry they are all sick. We are going to have a quiet day with a wee trip to town after I do the gym thing this morning. I don't feel like cooking, cleaning or changing a bed until the next onslaught on the weekend. I may even do some sewing today now that the gift wrap crud is cleared off my sewing table!
Have a delightful day and just ignore those noisy calling birds. We should never have given them cell phones!
Kara That is so interesting.... I have sung the song forever with no understanding of the meaning. I love a clean house as well, but not so much the cleaning. It will be worth it though.
Cottage Enjoy your day! My girls adore the library as well.
Thin Hope that you have a good day at work.
Ruth There is something to be said for quiet days at home. We enjoyed our lazy day at home yesterday. I think Abigail got a bit bored, but one of her friends down the street invited her for dinner and playtime, so that was good. Hopefully it will warm up here a bit today, so she can play outside and get some fresh air.
Me- Laundry and cleaning on the agenda for the day. It felt so good to be on plan and healthy yesterday! It has been a long time since I have made it through a whole day on plan.
Morning chicks, I have just got my chicks out of the house for the day. DS has riding camp, and DD is spending the day with a friend. I have hopes of getting a lot of work done today, although what I really want to do is go back to bed with my book.
Thanks. Kiko, but my ticker may be lying right now. That weight is from last Saturday, and I have lost the cookie battle quite a few times since then. I just won't weigh again until Tuesday AM, maybe I can get things under control by then!
oh, cottage, how I would love an afternoon at the library! When I was a kid we lived a block away from the public library, and I was there every day practically. Where we live now, we have a bookmobile, which is great, but not the same...I am part of the friends of the library group that is pushing to get one built here. Right now we are on the schedule for 2012. So exciting! Ruth, that little animation is so cute! Have a wonderful lazy day. I like to leave up some lights too, Jan and Feb are always so dark and get me depressed, so I have a bubble light candelabra and night lights that I leave out until then. I always feel better with some colorful sparklies and candles going. Kara, Good luck in the dress hunt! Dawn Have a good day and make sure you get that bubble bath tonight!
Kiko - It's good to talk to you again. I was up in your neck of the woods a week ago at a going away lunch for a friend at GattiTown. Brian and I will be back there on Sunday since her daughter wanted to see Brian before they moved. Maybe that would be a good place to get the kids together sometime (although the food is NOT even close to South Beach).
cottage - I think I read somewhere that the added meaning was created after the song was written but I'm not sure. The bulletin at our Catholic church last week had a neat article discussing when Christ might have been born. Basically it said that the sheep were only grazing in the fields from April to Oct and the census was only taken in the summer due to the winter weather when people couldn't travel so it said the best guess was somewhere around Sept.
kara - Which Harry are you reading? We're finally up to the last book and it was so hard to put it down last night and go to sleep. Once we finally finish, I think we're going to start at the beginning. I never read the first few but just saw the movies.
thin - Robert has a friend who has a 12th night party every year. I'd forgotten about the baptism being the reason. Thanks for the information.
Ruth - Good job about getting to the gym. Brian only got the tree put up a few days ago and it is only partly decorated. It's about all we could manage this year with everything that has been going on.
Me - Robert is back to leaving the house after dinner and coming home after we go to bed and leaving before I get up. I have no idea if he is going to get the stuff at the hardware store that he said he would since he apparently isn't talking to me. Oh, well, maybe he is looking for a job. Brian and I got the primer done in his bedroom yesterday. Today we'll start with the Aztec tan. I don't know when the hole in the window frame will get patched since Robert was supposed to talk to the guy at the hardware store about the best way to do it. I have some guy friends who do this stuff for a living who can help but Robert is threatened by them so I've been holding off calling them. I might just have to call if he doesn't help.
Well don't I feel smarter today? Thanks girls for sharing that, I also had no idea!
Apparently my cold has decided to take up residence in my right ear, I don't know how to describe it other than it hurts like all get out and I can't hear.
Cottage A day at the library sounds great although after the kids opened all their presents yesterday we have enough books to start our own.
Kara I loved the Harry books but I can't imagine reading them to my kids, what an undertaking, you are such a great mother!
Dawn I don't think my boss would understand staying home for a bubble bath either!
Ruth Hope you have a relaxing day!
Kiko Good to "see" you back here, I know you have been busy. Hope you are enjoying your vacation!
Me My Christmas with the kids was great lastnight! I managed to get out of work at 1:30 and have everything ready just as they walked in the door at 4:30. Youngest DD was so funny when she opened the box of 18 Janet Evanovich books I bought her (all wrapped individually). Their "big" present was a Flip Video Camera each. Those things are really kinda cool. If you haven't seen them they are about the size of a cell phone, have no tape and hold about 30 mins of video. There is a small USB port that you flip out and hook it directly to your computer and then you can edit the video and upload it to email or whatever. You can also go through your video frame by frame and take snap shots off of it for digital photos. They all were thrilled with them! At 20, 18 and 16 it is hard to get it right now a days but I seem to have been sucessful this year! GO ME!
Hope you all have a great day! I will check back later, although I am going home early again today to spend time with the kids!
Kiko I told my mom how your mom was helping you clean as a present this year. I was hoping I could get her over here, she informed me she had already bought me presents...so no dice Schmoodle Good luck getting your list done today. Although I vote for the book in bed Barb I hope Robert finds a job ands quickly so you all can move on. Pacer Congrats on a very successful Christnmas celebration. I read somewhere that warm moist heat is supposed to be good for kids with ear infections maybe that would help your ear. If not you could use the heated water for tea Feel better.
O.K. I'm really leaving for work now. I've had to talk myself into it today. That's pretty sad considering it's a short week. Have a great day.
Hey all! I had to check in again before bed, of course. I've been working on our Christmas cards tonight. I really should have had them done weeks ago, but never got around to it. I need a holiday card-writing traditional day so I don't let it get this far again!
Stephanie, (if I remember correctly from my audiology classes) you probably have a pressure difference between your outer and inner ear, which is causing your ear drum to bulge and therefore causing you quite a bit of discomfort. I have no remedy advice, though. Sorry! My class only covered the physiology of the ear and deafness-related issues.
Barbara, I vote for calling the guy friends and getting that window fixed up in a jif. How are you supposed to finish the room with Robert dragging his heels and grumping about you not liking the gift that he didn't put as much thought into as he thought he did? He deserves a little splash of Barbara-can-take-care-of-herself reality! We're reading The Goblet of Fire, by the way. We had started the Narnia series before The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe came out in the theaters and after we finished them we started on Harry Potter. The kids love them and are constantly running about the house yelling, "Expelliarmus!" and the like, pointing pencils or sticks or broom handles or strings of Legos at each other. They're too much!
Schmoodle, I'm battling the cookies as well. They are persuasive buggers!
Ruth, I hope you have a nice day at home!
Dawn, I laughed so hard when you wrote about your mom's reaction to the cleaning hint! I can imagine that conversation was pretty funny!
I'm putting away the cards for tonight (I only got through "the Bs"! ) and hitting the sack. My belly is hungry so I'm afraid if I stay up much longer, I'll give in! Have a nice Thursday all!
Kara
Last edited by tomandkara; 12-27-2007 at 09:55 AM.
Third Day of Christmas Thursday
One day, I'm must look up the origins of that song. 
You can't get them out for hours!
They had a blast! I had a ton and a half of laundry to fold and so I just let them play in the tub while I did it all. Our washer is in the bathroom. Multitasking at its best!!!
It sure wasn't what I was expecting about the song, though. I had visions of an enamoured young man trying to woo his beloved! 
I really should have had them done weeks ago, but never got around to it. I need a holiday card-writing traditional day so I don't let it get this far again!
