Winter's Beginning

A poem for you today . . .

Brrrrrrr! by Douglas Florian
(from Autumnblings)

When leaves are brown
And red and gold,
That's when you feel
Octobrrrr's cold.
When skies are crisp
And clear and still,
That's when you feel
Novembrrrr's chill.
When autumn winds
bend ends of trees,
That's when you feel
Decembrrrr's freeze.

Good Grief!

Matt and I had Children's Worship duty this morning at church, so we were in the Sunday School Classroom/ Children's Library with eight very wiggly children.  Part of me thought that I might be able to settle them enough to read a story, so I searched the bookshelves for some Christmas stories.  I pulled out what I found and made a stack, but by that time the boys had started a game of indoor soccer and the two girls were drawing.  No one was crying or fighting, so I thought I should leave well enough alone and maybe read the books another time.

I did find a gem among the books I gathered, though.  The Joy of a Peanuts Christmas: 50 Years of Holiday Comics! came home with us and I started reading it to Isaac during dinner this evening.  We made it through the first two decades before Isaac finished his grilled cheese sandwich and are saving the other thirty years for another time.  We both chuckled at various comics collected in the book.

At some point this season we will watch A Charlie Brown Christmas and Linus' speech will move me close to tears as it does every time.  I will hum along with "Hark the Herald Angels" sing at the end and marvel again at how succinctly Schulz was able to sum up the message of this holiday.

Many of the cartoons we have read so far in the first twenty years of the collection blend the secular and the spiritual aspects of what is Christmas in America.  And, while they point a finger toward what has become gross over consumption and the commercialization of the day, they also bring out the wonder and innocence of what it means to be a child at Christmas-time -- the anxiousness of wondering what Santa will bring, the Christmas plays and pageants in which children play the stunned shepherds or the awe-inspiring angels, the excitement of waiting for it to finally arrive.

I guess Christmas would come without Charlie Brown and his gang, but having them around reminds me to put away my wallet, not worry about how the tree looks, and think about where and how it all started.  That's a message that doesn't become out-dated.

Christmas Time's A'comin'

We are easing into the Christmas season.  The tree is up, but not completely decorated.   No other Christmas decorations have left the boxes they were packed in last January.

Christmas music is on the radio, though I am already tired of the same ten songs the dj's are compelled to play.  I keep saying I am going to load my Christmas music on my mp3 player, but I have yet to do it.

This evening we took Isaac and our friends' daughters to a Christmas pageant that some of my students were in. After the program we drove around looking at lights and went downtown to see the city's Christmas tree.

I read Isaac Olive the Other Reindeer by Vivian Walsh before bed tonight, and afterwards I brought the Christmas books out of storage.  And I predict that Dave the Elf will make his appearance tomorrow morning.  

Tomorrow we have the church children's Christmas party and I have bought our Angel Tree gifts and pajamas to donate to Foster Friends.  I am also making plans to take Isaac to see "Miracle on 34th Street" when they play it at the theater downtown.  

Tonight Matt and I said while driving down our friend's street to look at lights that it seemed like just last week we were trick-or-treating at those same houses.  I know that in a few weeks we will wonder where this time before Christmas went.  I want to slow down and enjoy it.  I am trying to think of some different activities we can do this year to help make the time special.  Mostly, I just want to have quiet time to relax with Isaac and Matt during this hectic season.

Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel

Isaac has to research Hanukkah, write down two facts and draw a picture of a symbol of the holiday for a school project this month.  We don't have any Hanukkah books at home, so I brought a non-fiction book from school and Matt borrowed some fiction books from a co-worker.  In an effort to avoid procrastination, Isaac and I read the Hanukkah books this afternoon and he wrote down his facts after we discussed what we learned from the books.

His favorite of the books we read was D is for Dreidel by Tanya Lee Stone.  He said it had more information than the other fiction books.  He thought we needed to read the non-fiction book, though, to get better facts.

D is for Dreidel is an alphabet book, which is probably obvious from the title.  Each letter is accompanied by a key word and a rhyme.  The common Hanukkah terms are covered, along with throw-ins like neighbor, uncles, and xylophone.  Never new those were Hanukkah words, huh?  Me either.

I was actually thankful for the books when I saw them on the counter this afternoon.  Since I am trying to write about a holiday or seasonal book each day this month, I need some variety. I plan to also read some Kwanzaa books to Isaac over the next few weeks.  We will need a break from Santa and his reindeer.

Here We Go . . . Again

I made it through the National Blog Posting Month challenge.  It was much easier, and more satisfying, than I thought it would be.  I had fun deciding what books to write about and picking out new ones to read to Isaac.  I found myself being much more intentional about what we read together, rather than just grabbing something at bedtime.  I am glad that I took the challenge of writing about something each day.

I actually don't want to stop posting, but I know that in the hectic pace of our daily lives this blog will get pushed to the background, behind the 100 other mundane tasks that need to be done each day.  I have liked having the daily time to reflect, but I know myself well enough to predict that just wanting to do it is not enough.  I need a challenge or a goal to keep me going.

So, I have given myself one . . . continue to post each day until Christmas about a seasonal (winter or holiday) book.  I have already started my list of books to write about.  My challenge will be to find enough new books to post here -- ones that I have not written about previously.

I am also giving myself this challenge the week before my book fair begins.  I am not sure if that proves how much I really like doing this or if I am just a glutton for punishment.

So, here we go again.  And to get us started, enjoy this poem.

Naughtumn by Douglas Florian
(from Autumnblings)

The trees are bare.

The birds have flown.

What's going to grow

This year has grown.

The leaves fall down

And then get burned,

As autumn slowly gets winturned.