Happy St. Nicholas Day!

Today we are celebrating St. Nicholas Day at our house.

Now, we don't do Santa Clause around here (as far as encouraging our children to believe in him is concerned) but we do recognize that the modern day character is based on a historical figure who was very real indeed! The man, St. Nicholas, was the Bishop of Myrna in the earlier 300's AD. By all accounts, he was a very devoted Christian who gave gifts to those in need as a means of showing them the love of Christ. There is an excellent website on St. Nicholas which offers quite a bit of information about the man, as well as craft and game ideas and a very intriguing page questioning What St. Nicholas really looked like. (You ought to check that one out. Wild!)

While we don't want to do Santa, we don't avoid him either. (He's a fun character. He doesn't bug me.) Rather, we'd like our children to know where the idea of Santa originated. In this case, it points us to a man who sought to point others to Christ! So we mark the day by learning about him, remembering who he was and what he did, and - more importantly - by focusing on the idea of being grateful for what we have and learning how to look around us to find others who may be in need and considering how we might bless them.

This year I tried to add a couple of new titles about Saint Nicholas to our home library. I found My Christmas Stocking, by Crystal Bowman which was ok (think: 18-24 months.) However, it's not terribly descriptive. It gives the basic idea that there was once a man who cared for the poor to show them God's love. This book seeks to explain the use of stockings to small children in simplistic rhyme which is a great way to introduce the concept of Saint Nicholas, but it doesn't go quite deep enough (in my opinion.)



The better book (and the one we already owned) is St. Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend, by Julie Stiegemeyer.



This one tells the story of how Nicholas gave money to a family who had several daughters, all in need of a dowry so that they could marry. It explains that he was a very kind and generous man and tried to gift people secretly, at night, so that they would be blessed without knowing who it was that was blessing them. This one is perfectly suited for ages 3 and up and we like this one very much.Unless and until I find a better title, this one goes on my Highly Recommended list.

In honor of today we've invited some friends to join us for a Saint Nicholas Day Party. We have some games to play with the kids, stories to tell, books to read (ya think!?) and food to eat! Looking forward to the celebration and taking some time out to reflect on how we might show the love of Christ to others in our own lives. It's something to think about during this busy season. Meaningful and fun. I'm thankful for this tradition.

Do you and your family happen to celebrate St. Nicholas Day? If so, what are some things that you do in honor of the occasion? I'd be curious to hear your thoughts and gather some new ideas for next year if you feel inclined to share.