Twelve Days of Christmas

Last year, we were “Secret Santa”-ed by friends who dropped off a scripture and corresponding figure for a nativity scene for each of 12 days prior to Christmas.  We loved it!  It was such fun to look for our daily surprise, and we loved having a fun reminder of the reason this season is celebrated.  It was sad when it was over.

This year, we decided to do something similar for a family we know.  We’re doing a variation of the Twelve Days of Christmas.  Of course… we had to leave notes explaining some of our weird gifts.  I rhymed the first note, and you can’t just rhyme one…  I’ve ended up doing the whole thing in rhyme.

We JUST found out that the family we’ve chosen will be leaving to visit their family for the holidays, so it’s not working out quite like we thought, but it’ll still be fun…  They’re a young couple.  He’s working and going to school.  They have a little girl (almost 2) and the mom is expecting a baby in 2009.

We’re stuck on what to do for day 12.  I’m outta ideas.  If you have any suggestions–that follow our theme and won’t break the bank–please, let me know!  Remember, we’re going to wrapping up in January….

Twelve Days of Christmas

Day 1 – pears (fresh & canned) and poinsettias kitchen towels and potholders

Roses are red – A pear can be green
It’s the Twelve Days of Christmas from friends unseen!
We’ll have to be tricky – NO doorbells for warning.
We may come at night, afternoon, or the morning!

Some gifts may be yummy, or thoughtful, or wacky,
(There may even be one or two that are tacky!)
Remember we’re doing this all in good fun,
Get ready… get set… your Twelve Days have begun!

On the FIRST day of Christmas,
my true friends gave to me -
a partridge in a pear tree…

The partridge left the pear tree,
he must have flown away –
we gathered up the fruit he left,
to share with you today.

Pears of course are meant for Fall…
which doesn’t seem quite right.
Poinsettias are for Christmas
so we’ve brought you some tonight.

Day 2 – dove chocolates

This glad Christmas season is so full of fun!
We’re happy to share with your family… then RUN!
How grateful we are that you’re playing our game –
You’ll now find that Christmastime won’t be the same.

On the SECOND day of Christmas,
my true friends gave to me -
two turtle doves…

The doves we were seeking were so hard to find!
The time was too short!  We were in slight bind!
When what to our wondering eyes should appear…?
Two Doves that were sure to bring you good cheer!
We’re so glad to be able to keep up this lark -
so enjoy your two doves – one milk and one dark!

Day 3 – 3 cans of chicken noodle soup

On the THIRD day of Christmas,
my true friends gave to me -
three French hens…

Other birds from our song have had no cause to boast,
The French hens, themselves, have now given the most.
They’re no longer here – too bad they’re not with us.
We hope that you’ll find ‘em all… warm and nutritious.

Day 4 – 4 packs of toilet paper and candy pooping reindeer

On the FOURTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
four calling birds…

We warned we’d be tacky, this day was the cause –
four birds a callin’ has given us pause.
Who needs birds?  They’re too noisy!  So here is the scoop…
We’re giving a reindeer who makes candy “poop”.

“But WHAT calls us?” we asked.  And the answer we found,
is one we all know – it’s not that profound:
Nature’s call to the toilet is private, we confess,
so don’t run out of this or it causes much stress!

Day 5 – 5 cans of pineapple rings

On the FIFTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
five gold rings…

“Five golden rings…” is how the song goes
but the meter is off, and it makes lousy prose.
Now here’s a new spin on the lyrics-a-rhymin’,
but the words that we have still don’t work with the timin’:
Here are five rings of gold that are much less ambitious –
gold rings of pineapple – sweet and delicious.

Day 6 – a dozen eggs, sausage, biscuits, and orange juice

On the SIXTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
six geese a laying…

There are plenty of geese.  We could catch one I guess,
but then you’d be knee-deep in their icky mess.
Well… count your blessings.  We’re slow on our legs.
You’ll get no noisy geese, but just some of their eggs.

Just eggs?!  As a gift, it’s a little bit lame.
We had to add something to spice up our game.
We’ve thrown in some sausage, some biscuits, and juice.
NOW look at the breakfast you got from a goose.

Our game we’ll now pause since you’ll be out of town,
but no problem… we’ll continue when you’re back around.

Day 7 – bubble bath, soap, louffas

On the SEVENTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
seven swans a swimming…

Welcome back! Happy New Year! We hope you had fun!
We’re still singing our song because we were not done!
The song says “twelve days” – not seven, not six –
so now we’ll resume our ol’ same silly tricks.

The partridge was missing. The turtle doves? Gone!
Maybe we’ll have better luck with a swan….

Here, geese are aplenty – of swans, that’s not true…
the weather is cold and so South they all flew.
But the swans shared a secret: to alleviate troubles,
just take a hot bath, in a tub full of bubbles.

Day 8 – udder cream (lotion with cow print packaging) and squirty whipped cream

On the EIGHTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
eight maids a milking…

On day eight, we’ll continue our musical theme
with a gift from the milkmaids it’s called: udder cream.
This cream is like lotion, for you to apply
to chapped hands and rough feet when the climate is dry.
It will heal your poor skin if it’s cracked or it’s bleeding.
We promise, those milkmaids aren’t being misleading.

The eight milk cows, too, have a present to give,
but, unlike the French Hens, they wanted to live!
The cows, for their present – they thought of dessert –
they’re giving you whipped cream, the kind you can squirt.

Day 9 – dinner

On the NINTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
nine ladies dancing…

The nine dancing ladies are done with their dance,
they had a good time, and now is YOUR chance.
Life is too short to spend all day cookin’ –
our children grow up, when we are not lookin’.

Today’s your day off!  No worries, no fuss!
Today’s your day off!  Enjoy dinner on us!

Choose to heat it up now, or you could eat it later…
This time of year – our cold storage is greater.
No place in the fridge?  In the freezer?  No room?
The garage can be storage ’til set to consume.

Day 10 – candy canes and Ben Gay

ON the TENTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
ten Lords-a-leapin’…

Leapin’ around means that muscles are sore,
but no need to worry or run to the store.
Here is a salve to help ease away pain,
and aid for your walk in the shape of a cane.

Day 11 – pirouline cookies & hot chocolate

On the ELEVENTH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
eleven pipers piping…

Here’s a cookie the pipers would like – sweet and cute –
a crisp, dainty treat in the shape of a flute.
But cookies alone? You need something more…
how ’bout piping hot chocolate for you to pour.

Day 12 – ???

The gifts that we’ve brought didn’t fit the ol’ song –
Calling birds? Noisy drummers? Who’d want them along?!
Of course… now it’s not Christmas, the season is past –
your Twelve Days of Christmas, sure went by fast.

You may know our secret.  You may have a guess,
but keeping the mystery surely is best.
This is the last day, that much is true.
We’ve had so much fun bringing these gifts to you.

On the TWELVETH day of Christmas
my true friends gave to me -
twelve drummers drumming…

In Memory of Cooper

Cooper, the four-year-old son of my friend was killed this past week when an unlicensed 15-year-old driving a mini-van accidently hit him while he was crossing the street on his bike.  His mother was just a few steps behind him and witnessed the whole thing.  I wasn’t there.  I don’t have an eyewitness account of what happened, but I do know that the lives of two families were forever changed because of that event.  One family lost their son and will never be the same.  The other family faces a lifelong cloud of guilt, the possibility of jail, and will also never be the same.

These families were neighbors-not next door neighbors-but people that live just down the street, that are members of the same faith, and know many of the same people.  As I’ve heard how our community is responding, I’ve been saddened to see that many people are taking sides.  Someone is circulating petitions to press full-charges (a matter that is in question due to the private roads where the accident took place).  Someone sprayed graffiti on their garage the night after the accident.  Now, in addition to the devastation they too are feeling at causing the death of an innocent child, the family of the driver has the added stress of feeling forced from the community.  They are planning to sell their home and move.

Maybe the neighbors who are doing this are trying to show solidarity and loyalty to the family obviously grieving the loss of their young son?  Maybe they see it as a way to prevent further underage drivers from causing tragedies?  I’m hoping their intentions are positive.

Accidents do happen; they often kill people; and frequently, it IS something that could have been avoided.  I believe when the Day of Judgement comes, and we’re standing before our Maker, that the family of that driver will be judged by their intent.  They didn’t wake up that morning thinking, “I’ll run over and kill someone today and ruin the life of his family.”  At Judgement, I think the people whose actions are malicious toward the family of the driver, have more to worry about than the driver himself because of their intent.  I believe God looks on our hearts and judges us, in part, by our intentions.

A great prophet once said, “See that you are merciful unto your brethren; deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually”.  Another said, “With what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.”  I think at Judgement, we’d all like more Mercy than Justice–we need to remember to grant our brothers and sisters on earth that same privilege.  Life is hard enough without us making it harder for each other.

God grant Cooper and his family peace, and also peace to the driver, his family, and our community.

Humbled Green Thumb

The past several years I’ve had amazing success in my garden. (We’re talking about over 100 cucumbers off of one plant or single tomato plants that are 5-1/2ft tall by 6 ft wide! and produced several bushels of tomatoes off just 5 plants!) I’ve mostly attributed it to the fabulous (10-52-8 ) fertilizer I’ve used. Recently, I’ve been reminded that no matter how green I might think my thumb is, I am ultimately dependent on God for a successful garden.

Even if I control the pests and provide the water, I can’t determine whether or not a plant is going to “take” or if the weather is going to be unseasonably cold or if a microburst blows the plant down. I am dependent on God to make the overall conditions favorable for my garden to do well.