A Christmas Dream To Remember

Have you ever had a Christmas dream, something that you wanted so bad that you dreamed about it every night until Christmas? Of course, you are more likely to have this happen to you as a child than as an adult – and that is what this story is about.

I can remember my little brother waking me up one night to tell me about his dream. He was so excited he could not sit still. He really thought that he had actually seen Santa and his reindeer. He started trying to tell me about what he saw but he was so excited and was talking so fast that I could not even understand him.

I just told him to go lay back down and we would talk about it in the morning. I don't think that my little brother went back to sleep that night but he did leave me alone until morning. That next morning my little brother was there to wake me up bright and early, he couldn’t wait to tell me about what he had seen the night before.

He said he heard a noise that woke him up and then he went down stairs to see what it was and to his amazement he saw that it was Santa. From the steps you could see him; he just sat there and watched Santa quietly put the presents under the tree, one by one, pulling them from his big red bag.

Santa was about done with the presents and then it happened, the stair creaked and Santa quickly turned around and saw my brother. Santa called him by name and asked him to come over to the tree. He then asked him if he thought he was a good boy this year. My brother just stood there shocked and did not know what to say to him. He said that he did not even hear Santa as he stood there starring at his big red suit his long white beard and his big black shiny boots - he just could not believe it.

He was actually in our house! “SANTA…,” my brother finally asked him, “did you ever get my letter.” My brother continued with his story telling us what Santa said to him. “Santa said that I won't be disappointed when I open my presents. Santa said that I was good this year, that he had been watching me closely. He then told me to go back to bed and that it is not too late, he can take these presents back.”

My brother then ran up to his room just in time to see Santa and the reindeer. Santa was yelling “Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry Christmas”, then they flew away into the night. He woke up after Santa had left and then he realized that it was all a dream.

He still wanted to tell me because he was scared he was not going to get anything because he did not go back to bed when Santa told him to. Isn't it funny when you want something so bad that it is all you think about and you dream about it? My little brother was only 6 years old when this happened and we still remember that night to this day.

Simple Santa Letter Results In Merrier Christmas For Children

The results are in; an ongoing study conducted by “Package From Santa”, which has covered several years and countless types of feedback, confirms that a Santa Letter will make Christmas merrier. While the focus of the study was the effect that Christmas letters from Santa have on children, the research revealed that even adults appreciate a note from Santa Claus.

For children, the importance of Personalized Santa Letters seems to stem from the fact that they want to be remembered by Santa Claus and insured that they are on his ‘Nice List’. Adults’ feedback often referenced childhood memories that a Santa Claus letter would bring back. Many said they had cherished letters from Santa that are their favorite Christmas keepsakes from memorable holidays of the past.

Parents have always known about the magic of letters from Santa, and now there’s a study to validate the fact that a simple Santa Claus letter can make Christmas merrier for children and adults alike!

Christmas Around The World

Christmas is celebrated on different days and in different ways all around the world. Although many countries celebrate Christmas we may not quite recognize it as such because it is done in a very different way.

In China, Christian children decorate ornaments made from paper. For example flowers, chains and lanterns to hang from the trees. The Chinese Christmas tree is called ‘tree of light’.

The non-Christian Chinese call this season the spring festival; which they celebrate and pay their respect to their ancestors. The children are the main focus of these celebrations and they receive candy and clothes. The Chinese call Santa Claus Dun Che Lau Ren, which means Christmas old man.

In Egypt the Coptic is an Orthodox church where Christmas is celebrated on the 7th day of January. Advent is observed for forty days and during this period people can not eat meat, poultry or dairy products. Everyone goes to church on Christmas Eve night. After church they go home to eat a special dinner know as fata, which is bread, rice, garlic and boiled meat. On Christmas morning people visit family and friends and take with them kaik to give to them, it is to be eaten with a drink called shorbat. Christmas is a public holiday for Christians.

In Ireland Christmas lasts from Christmas Eve to the Feast of Epiphany on January 6, which is also known as Little Christmas. Little red candles are usually placed in the windows as a guide for Joseph and Mary as they might be looking for a shelter. Irish women make a seed cake for each person in the family.

After the Christmas meal bread and milk are left the door and the door is left opened to show hospitality. It is an Irish tradition to leave minced pies and a bottle of Guinness as a snack for Santa.

In Belgium they have two Santas. St Nicholas visits the kids who speak the Walloon language and Pere Noel visits the kids who speak French. St Nicholas actually visits the kids twice. He comes first on December 4th to ask the kids if they have been good throughout the year and then again on December 6 to give the good kids their present. The bad kids will usually get sticks or twigs left in their shoe or in a small basket inside their room. Christmas is on December 6th; it is a religious occasion and celebrated in a church with a nice service.

The world is a huge place with lots of different countries and ways of doing things. It’s interesting to compare and contrast our beliefs and traditions. No matter where you are or how you celebrate I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas.

Create A Beautiful Christmas Gathering The Simple Way

Are you having guests over for the holiday season and don't know what you are going to about cooking, entertainment, food and drinks, and maybe even decorations? Well I am about to give you some simple, quick and inexpensive ways to make your Christmas gathering a beautiful occasion this Christmas season.

Something that you could serve that is quick and easy is a party tray. Whether it be a cheese tray with a variety of cheese and crackers, or a meat tray with sliced summer sausage or pepperoni, or it can be a vegetable tray with a variety of vegetables and some dressing to dip. This is a fun and inexpensive treat that all of your guests will love- even vegetarians.

For entertainment at your family gathering why not play a game or two? Charades or Christmas bingo are always fun and easy to prepare for. Charades is a great game for larger groups of people, you need two teams; one person from each team is given a secret from a movie, song title or a book to mimic to their team. The team has to try and guess it within 2 minutes.

Teams take turns and earn points for the correct answers in the time limit. No verbal cues are allowed. Creativity can be used when designing your own Christmas bingo game or you can purchase manufactured games in card shops. The point is to make things fun.

A great game for young kids is pin the tail on the reindeer. It is the same concept as pin the tail on the donkey but you use a reindeer instead.

Decorations can also be a worry, but I will share a few ideas that have worked for me in past years. One suggestion is to purchase plain wreaths (they can be artificial or real) and decorated them yourself with pinecones, berries, ribbons and small Christmas ornaments or anything else festive that you can find. Wreaths look great on your front door or above fire place as they give off a warm and festive feel.

Another idea is using old Christmas cards around the house. For instance you can put them on a mantel or if you have steps you can line them up the stairs. If you have small children they might like to make a Christmas count down calendar to count down the days till Christmas it's is a great way to get the kids involved for the season. You can try any of these easy ideas to make your next family gathering special for you and your family- they will help to make memories that will last a lifetime.

Christmas Then And Now

If you are like me you were fortunate enough to grow up with grandparents and even great-grandparents that were around on holidays and other special occasions. I remember how I loved listening to their stories of adventure and old times. Of course, as a child, some of my favorite stories were about Christmas and how they celebrated.

I can remember sitting and listening to my great- grandmother for hours as she told stories about the gifts that she received as a child for Christmas. The ones that stand out are handmade clothes, hand carved jewelry boxes, knick knacks carved from wood, and rag dolls. She said that sometimes they would even get fresh fruit such as oranges and apples as presents.

At that time she lived in a very rural area so a trip into town was required if you were going to enjoy fruit – and that was horse and buggy days. Times sure have changed!

As time went on department stores opened up everywhere and shopping became more convenient. Then along came shopping malls and soon the hassles associated with shopping, things like finding a sitter for your children so you can shop for their Christmas gifts, searching the parking lot over for a place to park, or standing in long lines to pay.

Christmas is not supposed to be stressful. It is a time to be with family and friends and enjoy each other. We need to simplify things so the holiday season is more joyful.

The modern, less stressful way to shop is online. You can go to dozens of stores in just minutes and do not have to deal with the hassles of physical shopping. Just wait for the kids to go to bed - you can even shop in your pajamas and have a little snack beside you. The reality is that you can get all of your shopping done in one night without ever leaving the house.

It is amazing how Christmas has changed over the years, and how shopping has evolved. Maybe online shopping can help put the focus of Christmas back where it should be, back on spending time with the ones we love.

This holiday season we plan to keep it simple and just spend quality time with our loved ones. Each of us will be making a handcrafted gift for other family members. We plan to make this a new Christmas tradition. With so many people having financial problems I believe simple traditions will become increasingly popular.

A Christmas Dinner Fit For Santa Himself

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Last year I went to my mother-in-laws for Christmas Eve dinner. As our tradition continues, everyone read the Childrens Letters to Santa that would be placed beside the snack we would all leave out for him. And the children merrily shared their Custom Santa Claus Letters from the North Pole with everyone.

My mother-in-law is a talented cook and she made a wonderful chicken dish; it was crispy on the outside but tender and juicy on the inside. It was scrumptious! I have included a dessert recipe to top this delicious meal off, and trust me, everyone will love this. I can't imagine a better meal for the Christmas season. This recipe only calls for about fifteen minutes prep time after marinating overnight. Whether you plan to have a large or small group this year, this recipe has you covered as it provides about 16 servings. You will need the following ingredients:

• 16 boneless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
• 2 cups sour cream
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons celery salt
• 2 teaspoons pepper
• 2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 to 2 cups crushed butter flavor crackers
• ½ canola oil
• ½ cup melted butter

Directions:
Place the chicken in two large zip-lock plastic bags. In a bowl, combine the sour cream, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings. Pour over chicken; seal bags and toss to coat. Refrigerate overnight. When you are ready to cook, drain and discard the marinade. Coat chicken with cracker crumbs; place in two large well-greased baking dishes.

Combine oil and butter; drizzle over chicken. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 50-60 minutes or until juices run clear. Now time for that dessert I was talking about. Nothing says Christmas season like this delicious and easy Slow Cooker dessert. Santa Himself may decide to show up early so he can have some! You will need:

• can (21 ounces) apple pie filling
• cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
• cup canned pumpkin
• 3/4 cup egg product
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• teaspoons baking powder
• teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
* Ice cream

1. Spray 3 1/2- to 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Spoon the apple pie filling into cooker.
2. Beat remaining ingredients except ice cream with electric mixer on low speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl constantly. Pour batter over pie filling.
3. Cover and cook on High heat setting 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Serve with ice cream.

This year I plan to cook this same meal for my family. And while the dinner cooks I will help my children write their Authentic Letters to Santa. It has always been a family tradition of ours to write the letters around the dinner table. Last year the kid's letters from Santa even came with genuine reindeer food that they set out for the reindeer to eat. Each year I look forward to seeing the look on my child's face when he opens his North Pole letter. I can't imagine Christmas without it. The Personalized Christmas Letters can even make adults believe in Santa again.

Even Santa Himself Is Doing Christmas On A Budget This Year

With the economy in the shape that it is in most everyone is trying to do Christmas on a budget this year. Every day it seems like the unemployment rates are raising. Most people are trying to save as much as possible in these uncertain times. Here are some ideas to help you save on Christmas this year.

There are lots of simple ways to save money on Christmas, without sacrificing everyone's enjoyment. By simply going back to the basics you can save money on decorations, ornaments, and you can create homemade gifts that your kids would actually enjoy helping you make. Even Santa Himself would love these ideas.

I’m including a couple examples of simple ornaments that I have made in the past with my kids. They enjoy being creative and the time together is a true bonding experience. Crafts are fun and easy, and they can save you lots of money. Check out these ideas!

You will need:
• Gold Bells
• Small Bow
• Green Pipe Cleaner
• Paper Clip or Ornament Hanger

Instructions:
Slide six gold bells on a green pipe cleaner. Twist the pipe cleaner into a spiral tree shape that narrows at the top. Tip: a 20 ounce coke bottle works well for shaping. Twist the top end of the pipe cleaner around an opened up paper clip or an ornament hanger. Our bows have a thin wire that we use to twist around the top of the tree. Try putting glitter on it to add more effect.

Popsicle sticks can be used for all sorts of craft ideas. Here’s one idea:
Lay one Popsicle stick down flat vertically, and then lay others over it, horizontally. Glue in place, and then cut the shape to form a tree. Paint and decorate any way you want it. Don’t forget that those custom Santa Claus letters can be decorated with glitter and stars and other eye catching extras.

Another idea for cheap ornaments is purchasing the plain glass ball ornaments and having the kids decorate them. They can add the year as part of the decoration, which adds to the keepsake.

Even though we are doing Christmas on a budget this year we could never take away are children's Letters to Santa. They love to sit and write their letters to Santa every year. It is a great experience to see what your children write to Santa and it helps you understand what they are wanting for Christmas. Every year when the North Pole Letters arrive, their faces light up with excitement - this is a wonderful tradition we will be sure to continue. When we first got our Custom Santa letters it was certainly a surprise to see how authentic and real they were.

The Personalized Christmas Letters are beautifully crafted and they are a keepsake you and your children will always cherish. The letters from Santa will always be a tradition in our family, and one your family will also enjoy.