Celebrating Saint Nick's Day

it's officially st. nick's day again!

last year was the first time i adopted this tradition for our own family.

i'm not catholic-- or all-consuming german-- like the hubby,

but i have always enjoyed being included in this tradition by his family... 

it's such a wonderful way to honor st. nicholas, and to take time to recognize all of the patron saints.

 again, last year was B's first year...
 i look back on this post and can't believe how small she was. :(
it makes me miss that sweet, innocent starter-toddler...
you know, before pushing boundaries because her day job.

i tried to keep things similar this year... sticking to shoes and cozy jammies.  
necessities, yet still luxuries.
but i decided to throw in some sweet treats (or "chocky-co's," as brynn calls chocolate anything),
and the new tinker bell movie... "secret of the wings."

i also set up her Little People Nativity, which hasn't seen it's baby Jesus in quite some time.

this girl loves her some baby Jesus.

the other day, she yelled out, "help me, baby Jesus!" while trying to get out of a diaper change,
which gave me and allen a good laugh.

(for those that don't already know... "help me!" is not an uncommon phrase to hear from B. 

nor is the very dramatic question, "what's happening?!")

drama. momma. 

  shoes full of chocky-co.

 of course, brynn paid absolutely no attention to anything... except the candy.

sister already has a sweet tooth that rivals mine. ;)

 ... and this was her expression when i told her it was chocolate. ;)

 the sweet tooth has been satisfied ;)

{and i love that she is such a mini-daddy right here}

   

i always strive to keep the focus on the real reason we celebrate christmas...
but i can understand how difficult it is to keep all of these traditions from becoming confusing.
brynn has only recently learned who santa claus is.
... and, in true brynn-fashion, she decided to start calling him sanky cause. 

sure, whatever.

of course, as a mother, i don't want my child to get caught up in the materialism
and selfish tendencies that seem to come hand-in-hand with this season...
allen and i try not to over-indulge in our gift giving for brynn, but we also want her to enjoy herself...
and we want her to feel the same christmas cheer that we felt as children.
that is what is important to us.

simply giving gifts will never compensate for setting an environment that encourages happiness, fulfillment, gratitude, and generosity in our children.

happy st. nick's day!  

  

i saw this on pinterest a long time ago, and have since adopted this little rhyme

when buying gifts for the kiddos...

Source: doitandhow.com via Emily on Pinterest

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Celebrating Saint Nick's Day