2 days for Christmas

Hello dear friends,

I thought I wouldn't stop by before Christmas, but here you are, and here I am :-)
I am particularly happy that our dearest friend Denise is back on-line. Hi Denise! We've missed you, and were so worried about you!

We are two days away from Christmas eve, and I am looking forward to switching off must-do-contacts and concentrate on family and friends.

We are facing some challenges right now. Both C and myself have some exams to do that are not particularly pleasant, but we must do them. So please say a little prayer for us, that our exams come out nice and clean.
Prayers work miracles, especially on Christmastime!

The general gloom in this part of the world thanks to Greece's politicians and the world money lenders is suffocating at times. If you smile, people look at you as if you were a wierdo. We are all supposed to bend our knees and cut open our veins for the parasites to feed themselves on our blood. We won't do it, some of us won't at least. So we are holding on tight and try to avoid people who bring us down with their moods and pessimism.

In this spirit, last week we hosted a little party at the shop, for our customers' kids and everyone who wanted to come. People were so surprised we did not charge anything. They were expecting to pay, and many did not come because they thought they ought to. In the 14th year in this part of the world, and I still feel like an alien at times.

OK, stop wining, dear, it's Christmas!

See my new blog theme? You know I like changing it, like every other month? This time, Dani, a lovely person and a skilled blog designer made me a custom header and a new background. So I am all dressed up for Christmas, blogwise!

So, ladies, I am puting on some sparkly lights, blowing red lipsticked kisses your way, and wishing you a night of wonder and love in your hearts and souls.

From our family creche to you all out there,

Merry Christmas!

 

2010 Christmas Tour of Homes

Hello dear friends,

Welcome to my 2010 Christmas Tour of Homes post!

This year we started the festive season by decorating first our shop,

...and then our home...and garden...

We wish you all a very blessed, peaceful Christmas season, and a lovely 2011!

P.S. Snow with cherry syroup, anyone?

{With many thanks to The Nester for hosting}

Merry Christmas!

Snowtime!

Hello dear friends,

This morning we woke up to snow. Not too much, but enough to keep the kids and ourselves from going to school and work in the morning.

 

i love the blue light of the morning

...our garden...

...our doggy neighbour...

...hot chocolate time...

I hope you are all baking and decorating, 

and getting ready for a beautiful, blessed and merry Christmas!

Christmas ding-dong-ding!

Hello dear friends,

I hope you are all doing OK. I popped over to see you tonight, and most of you haven't posted for days-just like me! Are you busy decorating and baking? Or is blogging simply taking its toll on your lives and you want to do more living and less blogging?
I wasn't in the mood for blogging either. But since we decorated our home and our shop, I thought I'd stop by and add some festive cheer to my cyber-home. I have also been posting over at the Happy Turtle about Christmas crafts and finds, so when I'm not here, try over there and say "hi!".

God willing, I hope to stop by again for a couple more Christmas posts. 

See you soon,

A feeling of Christmas

 

The first touch of Christmas...

A TV ad I like

 

F decorating the shop for Christmas

Wishing you all a lovely December and a Merry Christmas

Epiphanies

Epiphany in two ways. First of all, the religious aspect of the days. C and I went to church this morning. A little while after we arrived the 1st chapter of Genesis was being read. A blessing of the water followed. Tomorrow takes place the blessing of the sea, rivers and lakes which is quite picturesque. I remember the ceremony my grandfather officiated in England. There were Scottish pipes, the Mayor, the Archbishop, little girls dressed in white, the chorus and the people and we all went to the sea near Dover to throw the cross into the sea. Then young men would jump into the sea to catch it. What a blessing.
The thing is, we don't know a good time when we have it, especially when we are young.

On another epiphany. Last night I found a copy of The Secret, in Greek. I am not into reading in Greek, apart from newspapers and magazine. English reads, blogging and the occasional speaking with the girls' English teacher is what keeps my English quite flexible after all these years. But yesterday J was playing with wii, and I was siting next to him, watching, when I grabbed The Secret and began reading quite mindlessly.

I have done my fair share of new age reading, and since Christ showed me the way to Him, I avoid reading the stuff. There was some sense into the idea, though. I have had a lot of negative thoughts recently. C is in his own world for the past few weeks. I am bored with all the paperwork at work and resent the burden. The arrival of the moody in laws didn't do much to cheer me up. You know that kind of unease you feel when you want to do better but you feel like hybernating.

Since last night I have been practicing. Whenever a dull/negative/bad thought comes into my mind I chase it away. When I can speak about the in laws, I don't . I just did, but that was to give you the idea. I pretend, I make do. I believe it works.

Happy Epiphany, then. In many parta of the world, today it's Christmas, as of the old calendar. So the festive time continues.

Christmas and New Year's: the food

Good morning, dear friends,
I hope you all enjoyed the festive times with your families and loved ones.

We spent Christmas and the New Year's in our little town. We didn't travel this year, as we did in 2007. first of all we were working at the shop and second, business is tighter these days, so we could not afford closing the shop on a working day. But that is OK with me. Every year is different, and we all need different ways to relax in different times of our lives. Sometimes we need to move, sometimes we need to stand still and live in the moment.

Happily, there was cooking involved, but we were selective. There were cakes involved...

There is something comforting in baking, I think. A quite primitive feeling of the caring womanhood.

On the other hand, we refrained from too much cooking.Cheese and ham and some ready made delicacies made it to our table.

 

Russian salad, by Greek makers BEM showed up, as did MERENDA, the Greek equivalent of Nutella.

We did do some cooking, pork as is the Greek custom, with orange for Christmas, with chestnuts for the New Year.

 And then there was the wine and drinks. Not much, but as we don't drink during the rest of the year, it is more fun!

 

Recipes: Vasilopita, i.e.St.Basil pie. Christopsomo, i.e. Christ bread. Russian salad

!Happy 2010!

Happy New Year

So, here I am in front of the empty white space. I know of a few things I want to tell you. Some I feel I ought to tell you. Like,what we did for New Year's. Post some photos, perhaps. Relate the folklore. List the films we've seen and those we did not.

Instead, I'm going to wish you all a blessed 2010. May Christ bless the new year's wreath with all that is good and happy.

For the rest, you may read here about St.Basil and the Vassilopita. With love.

Lucky foods for the new year

:Noodles:

In many Asian countries, long noodles are eaten on New Year's Day in order to bring a long life. One catch: You can't break the noodle before it is all in your mouth.

:Pork:

Due to pigs' dining habits, many countries, including Austria, Cuba, and Spain, view pork as a good-luck food. As pigs root for food, they keep their feet planted and push their snouts forward, signifying progress and future properity.

:Lentils:

Thought to resemble coins, lentils are eaten throughout Italy for good fortune in the new year. Plus, the legumes plump (with water) as they cook, symbolizing growing wealth.

:Fish:

In North America, Asia, and Europe, people eat fish to celebrate the new year. In some countries, people associate fish with moving forward into the new year since fish swim forward. Other people think fish symbolize abundance since they swim in schools.

:Greens:

It's no coincidence that this good-luck food is the color of money.[or perhaps the other way around: the dollar is the colour of fresh, abundant greens!] Greens, such as kale, collards, and cabbage, are traditionally eaten on New Year's Day because of their association with wealth and economic prosperity.

:Black Eyed Peas:

A common good luck food in the southern United States, black-eyed peas are thought to bring prosperity, their shape and abundance representing coins. Hoppin' John is the classic Southern New Year's dish.

:Pomegranate:

Long associated with abundance and fertility, pomegranates are eaten in Turkey and other Mediterranean countries for luck in the new year. [In Greece custom has it to throw a pomegranate on your doorstep, filling your way with its plentiful seeds]

:Citrus:

When the Chinese celebrate New Year's Day, they often set out bowls of oranges and tangerines to promote prosperity. This tradition developed from a play on words: "tangerine" and "orange" sound much like "luck" and "wealth," respectively, in the Chinese language.

:Grapes:

At midnight on New Year's Eve, revelers in Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries eat 12 grapes — one for every strike of the clock and month in the year. This custom grew from a grape surplus in the Alicante region of Spain in 1909, and celebrates the coming of a sweet year.

:Round Cakes and Breads:

Eating round or ring-shaped cakes, pastries, and breads is a popular New Year's tradition in various countries. In Greece, families bake vassilopita, a cake containing a hidden good-luck coin. Italians eat sweet panetonne, Mexicans enjoy the ring-shaped rosca de reyes cake, and the Dutch indulge in puffed, doughnut-like ollie bollen.

:And what not to eat:

Steering clear of "unlucky" foods is just as important as serving the good stuff. You wouldn’t want to ruin someone’s entire year by serving them something as unlucky as chicken, would you? According to many cultures, eating anything with wings is a no-no for New Year’s because it could fly away, taking all your luck. Chicken is especially bad because the bird scratches backwards (unlike the forward-thinking pig), possibly leading to setbacks. Backwards-swimming lobsters are also a bad omen for the same reason. The color white is a symbol of death in the Chinese culture, so avoid eggs, tofu, or white cheese. And above all, don’t clean your plate too thoroughly — many cultures believe that leaving a little leftover food on your plate will usher in a year of plenty.{ Source }and { Source}

 Every ethnic group has its own traditions, its own unique luggage. That is what makes us all so different, so special, so rich and so alike in our desire to bring beauty and meaning to our human experience.

From me to you, a Happy New Year 2010.

Yes, I believe in Santa Claus!

Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of New York's Sun, and the quick response was printed as an unsigned editorial Sept. 21, 1897. The work of veteran newsman Francis Pharcellus Church has since become history's most reprinted newspaper editorial, appearing in part or whole in dozens of languages in books, movies, and other editorials, and on posters and stamps.

"DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.

"Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.

"Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.'

"Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

"VIRGINIA O'HANLON.

"115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET."



VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Nativity Message

BARTHOLOMEW
By God’s Grace
Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome
and Ecumenical Patriarch

To the Plenitude of the Church Grace, peace and mercy from the Savior Christ Born in Bethlehem

Beloved concelebrants and blessed children in the Lord,
Heaven and earth have united
Through the birth of Christ.
Today, God has appeared on earth,
And man has ascended to heaven.
(Christmas Hymn)

The distance and separation between God and humanity resulting from sin has been abolished with the assumption of the entire human nature by the Only-Begotten Son and Pre-eternal Word of God. It was God’s good will – that is to say, His initiative and will – that the incarnation of His Son should abolish all such distance uniting heaven and earth, as well as creation with its Creator.

During the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos, the Church chanted: “Today is the beginning of God’s good will and the proclamation of human salvation.” During that feast, through the dedication of the blessed Mary to the temple and her preparation there to become the bearer of the boundless God, the road was paved for the incarnate dispensation of God, which foretold our salvation.

During the feast of the Annunciation, when the divine conception of the Inconceivable occurred through the Holy Spirit within the womb of the Theotokos and divine nature began to coexist with human nature in order that – as St. Athanasius the Great articulated it – “we might become deified,” the Church again chanted: “Today is the beginning of our salvation and the revelation of the pre-eternal mystery; the Son of God becomes the son of the Virgin.” Thus, the “divine good will” welcomed at the Entrance, as well as the salvation commenced and revealed at the Annunciation, are today rendered a tangible reality, as we celebrate the great and holy day of Christmas. Today, “the Word assumes flesh and dwells among us” (John 1.14), while the Angels celebrate the event, chanting: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will among humankind.” (Luke 2.14)

With the Incarnation of the Divine Word, the salvation of the human race has already potentially occurred. For those who believe in Jesus, live in accordance with this faith, fulfilling His commandments and practicing His teaching, are thereby elevated to become the friends and participants of God! They become “partakers of divine nature” (2 Peter 1.14), gods by grace! This takes place exclusively within the Church, where we are reborn in Christ and adopted by the Father through Holy Baptism and through the holy Sacraments, as well as by cultivation of virtue in order to be filled with divine grace and the Holy Spirit, growing “to maturity, to the measure o the full stature of Christ” (Eph. 4.13) until we reach the level of saying, like St. Paul: “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Gal. 2.20) Those who acquire such perfection are not regarded by Christ simply as His friends or brothers, but are recognized by Him as members of His Body. This is why, from the height of the Cross, he would say to His Most Holy Mother about the Evangelist John: “Woman, here is your son,” and to John: “Here is your mother.” (John 19.26-27) Christmas, therefore, opens wide the door of human “christification” and deification by grace; and for this reason, “the entire creation rejoices in celebration and the heavens delight with us” on this day of significance and salvation.” (Hymn of December 28)

With these joyful and hopeful realities before us, from the sacred See of the Ecumenical Patriarchate at the Phanar, we extend to you our fervent festive congratulations and wholehearted Patriarch wishes on this central feast of the Christian calendar. We greet all of our beloved faithful throughout the world, the beloved children of the holy Mother Church – clergy of all levels, monastics and laity, pastors and parishioners, and especially those suffering, experiencing sorrow, need or trial. May the pre-eternal Son of God – who was born in a cave and lay in a manger – who for our sake became Son of Man, render all of us worthy of his self-emptying love and of His sacred, venerable incarnate dispensation.

At the Phanar, Christmas 2009
Bartholomew of Constantinople
Fervent supplicant for all before God

Singing the Nativity of Christ

A very Merry Christmas to all of my blogging friends.



The day's kontakion with English translation



The Apolytikion of the Nativity:

Your Nativity, O Christ our God, has given rise to the Light of knowledge in the world; for they that worshipped the stars did learn therefore to worship You, the Sun of Justice, and to know that from the east of the Highest you did come. O Lord, glory to You!




Popular Carols from Byzantium (Medieval)



Popular carols from Peloponnesus

"Live" Greek Christmas patisserie

As promised yesterday I am posting below a clip from one of our favorite TV shows. These clips show how to make a traditional Greek sweet for Christmas, melomakarona.
The directions are very straight forward and better shown live, so I am only posting here the ingredients.

Click here to view.

For the dough

 400 gr. orange juice

 530 gr. olive oil (you may partly substitute with sun flower oil)

 1200 gr all purpose flour

 30 gr. confestionner's sugar

 ½ teaspoon cooking soda

 ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

 1/6 teaspoon  clove

 50 gr sheep's butter, melted. γρ.

For the Syrup:
 500 gr water

 700 gr. sugar

 1 orange cut in half

 2 cinnamon sticks

 100 gr honey

To decorate

walnuts (or if you are allergic to walnuts, almonds, thinly cut)

 honey

 For the filling

 200 gr dried fruit (figs, apricots, sultanas)
~100 gr. honey

~220 gr. seasami seeds
~1 lemon peel grated

I may even be tempted to make some myself...

P.S. there are plenty more recipes in the sidebar. If you are interested in making another one, let me know in the comments and I shall publish the English translation here. Emjoy!

Things to do on the Sunday before Christmas

                                                  
                                          :Open some vintage glass Christmas decorations...:

:..and put them in a nice bowl :

                                           : Leaf through some festive books and magazines :

 

: Marons, that's chestnuts...I love them! :

 

                                                          :Watch The Holiday...and weep:

After some thought, I decided I am not making any sweets this year as I did last year. We shall be open all week, morning and afternoon. I'd rather have a go at putting an order to the chaos of our home. We just had a 7 day working week, morning and afternoon. We shall not be working on the 25th and 26th. I shall hopefully make some Christmas bread and a New Year's cake. But we shall buy sweets as I always end up eating the greatest share which is not to my best interests.

Stay tuned, tomorrow I shall post some festive recipes with you tube links where you can actually see them being made!

In defence of the Christmas tree

Several years ago during the Christmas season, a religious program on television caught my attention. The program featured a discussion on the dangers of cults, especially to young people. I found myself agreeing with the panelists as they warned young people about the hazards of involvement in occult or “new age” spirituality.
During the interview, however, one participant made a statement that shocked me. “…and the Christmas tree is pagan too…,” he asserted. The Christmas Tree? Pagan? Could it be that something most of us enjoy so much might be actually pagan in origin? Despite its growing commercialization, the Christmas tree is still associated with the fondest memories of our early childhood.

Who does not remember approaching the tree on Christmas morning? Today people are so captivated by it that some even put it up in November! It finds a place in the homes of believers and unbelievers alike.
Most people are aware that the Christmas tree came to America with immigrants from Germany, but just where did the Christmas tree originate? Are its origins to be found in paganism, as the speaker suggested?
The Christmas tree does not date from early Germanic times. Its origins are to be found in a tradition that has virtually disappeared from Christianity, the Liturgical Drama. In the Middle Ages liturgical plays or dramas were presented during or sometimes immediately after the services in the churches of Western Europe. The earliest of these plays were associated with the Mysteries of Holy Week and Easter. Initially they were dramatizations of the liturgical texts. The earliest recorded is the Quem quaeritis (“Whom do you seek?”) play of the Easter season. These plays later developed into the Miracle and Morality plays. Some were associated with events in the lives of well-known saints. The plays were presented on the porches of large churches. Although these liturgical dramas have now virtually disappeared, the Passion Play of Oberammergau, Germany is a recent revival of this dramatic form.
One mystery play was presented on Christmas Eve, the day which also commemorated the feast of Adam and Eve in the Western Church. The “Paradise Play” told the well-known story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Paradise. The central “prop” in the play was the Paradise Tree, or Tree of Knowledge. During the play this tree was brought in laden with apples.
The Paradise Tree became very popular with the German people. They soon began the practice of setting up a fir tree in their homes. Originally, the trees were decorated with bread wafers commemorating the Eucharist. Later, these were replaced with various kinds of sweets. Our Christmas tree is derived, not from the pagan yule tree, but from the paradise tree adorned with apples on December 24 in honor of Adam and Eve. The Christmas tree is completely biblical in origin.
The first Christmas tree dates from 1605 in Strasbourg. By the 1700s the custom of the Christmas tree was widespread among the German people. It was brought to America by early German immigrants, and it became popular in England through the influence of Prince Albert, the German husband of Queen Victoria.
The use of evergreens at Christmas may date from St. Boniface of the eighth century, who dedicated the fir tree to the Holy Child in order to replace the sacred oak tree of Odin; but the Christmas tree as we know it today does not appear to be so ancient a custom. It appears first in the Christian Mystery play commemorating the biblical story of Adam and Eve.
How legitimate is it to use a fir tree in the celebration of Christmas? From the very earliest days of the Church, Christians brought many things of God’s material creation into their life of faith and worship, e.g., water, bread, wine, oil, candles and incense. All these things are part of God’s creation. They are part of the world that Christ came to save. Man cannot reject the material creation without rejecting his own humanity. In Genesis man was given dominion over the material world.
Christmas celebrates the great mystery of the Incarnation. In that mystery God the Word became man. In order to redeem us, God became one of us. He became part of His own creation. The Incarnation affirms the importance of both man and the whole of creation. “For God so loved the world…”
A faith which would seek to divorce itself from all elements of the material world in search for an absolutely spiritual religion overlooks this most central mystery of Christmas, the mystery of God becoming man, the Incarnation. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” Enjoy your Christmas tree.

Originally published in “The Word” magazine, December 2002. The Very Rev. Daniel Daly is pastor of St. Nicholas Orthodox Church, Grand Rapids, MI.

Say "Merry Christmas"

I have posted something similar a few years ago. I found this one below along the same lines, at Sylvia's blog and I am reposting it here. The Southern Girl's Nest has a special badge that you can add to your sidebar.

T'was the month before Christmas


When all through our land,

Not a Christian was praying

Nor taking a stand.

Why the Politically Correct Police had taken away,

The reason for Christmas - no one could say.

The children were told by their schools not to sing,

About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.

It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say

December 25th is just a " Holiday ".

Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit

Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!

CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod

Something was changing, something quite odd!

Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa

In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.

As Targets were hanging their trees upside down

At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.

At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears

You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.

Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty

Are words that were used to intimidate me.

Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen

On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !

At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter

To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.

And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith

Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace.

The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded

The reason for the season, stopped before it started.

So as you celebrate "Winter Break"

under your "Dream Tree"

Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.

Choose your words carefully, choose what you say

Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS,

not Happy Holidays!



-author unknown

Merry Christmas to you all.

2009 Christmas Tour of Homes

Welcome, Christmas Tour guests!

Green

and Red

and Gold

and white
May All your Christmases be bright.

Beautiful Christmas cards

One of the nicest and most talented people you'll find in blogoland has just created a lovely set of Christmas cards. They are so chic and so unique, I invite you to check them out here.

Anne also creates beautiful interior landscapes, cards and notecards and accepts commisions.

Epiphany 2009

Epiphany is the final holiday of the Christmas season.We celebrate the baptism of Jesus Christ by St. John the Baptist. During the first centuries AD Christmas was celebrated together with Epiphany on January 6th. Many Eastern Christian churches still use the Julian calendar as opposed to the Gregorian one that is widely used. In fact Greece didn't adopt the new calendar until 1923 and many people, called Old Calendarists, still celebrate Christmas on January 6th.

The most spectacular part of the celebration is the blessing of the waters, when the priest throws a cross into the water of the sea, river or lake, or if none of them is available, the baptismal fonts where christenings take place. If thrown into the ceremonial fonts, the priest retrieves it immediately. Otherwise, young men take the plunge and attempt to retrieve it.

I remember when my grand father was officiating in England. Every year distinctive guests such as the Archbishop of Great Britain, the Lord Mayor, and the Archbishop of Canterbury as well as Anglican and Catholic people were joining in the celebration.
The procession would begin with Scottish pipes, followed by young boys carrying the hexapteryga, metal discs with a representation of the six-winged Serapheim on a pole and girls carrying baskets of flowers the dignitaries, and the people.

This year we had a lovely, sunny day, quite cold, but rejuvenating. The girls stayed at home, but we took J and drove to our piece of coast. The water was clear and quiet. Once the bishop let the cross fall into the water (held by a ribbon) some twenty young men and a young lady fell into the water and began swimming towards it. As soon as the young man who retrieved it, gave it to the bishop, the Army band that was present played the Greek National Anthem.

You should really be seeing a video here, but Blogger refuses to upload it, so expect the festive spirit to visit again sometime soon!

A bright new last day of the year

Can you believe it? It's the last day of the year 2008. It's just before 8 a.m. here and the house is quiet. C is delivering a bed and he left early. He'll be back to hear the children sing the New Year's carols. Then they will go around the neighborhood and sing. Many children do so in groups of three or more, thus earning some pocket money. My children got 60 euros between them on Christmas eve. Today it's rather chilly at -6C, so if they don't want to go around a lot, they'll stay at home an help me make New Year's pie, or St. Basil's pie as it is called.

On New Year's Day every family bakes a Vasilopita to bless the house and bring good luck for the new year. A coin is hidden in the bread by slipping it into the dough before baking. A piece of cake is sliced for each member of the family. The first goes to Christ, second to Virgin Mary, third to St. Basil, fourth to the house, next to the dead, and then to the living starting from the male leader of the house. You may read more about the origins of this tradition in this short article.

Santa will visit our home on New Year's eve. He is not actually St. Niclaus, but St. Basil whose feast is celebrated on January 1st. He is the one bringing the gifts under the Christmas tree and New Year's treat pie takes its name from him.

The pies above were photographed at a city patisserie. Mine will probably be simpler looking, but I love its taste. Here is a recipe for you to try at home.

In other news, I had an impromptu tooth canal job on Monday evening. It began as a routine check, but I now have an aching tooth and gum. As I am not for antibiotics I am taking echinacea and Hepar Sulphur that my homeopath prescribed. I tell you, it's not very jolly having to bake one of the most important cakes of the year, vacuum and tidy up with an aching tooth.

The end of the year saw a very dear friend joining her husband in heaven. Our dear friend Margarita was one of the first people I met when I came to live with my husband's family in Athens. She always spoke the best of me to everyone, including C's mother. She knew I appreciated it and prayed for me and later for our kids every day. She was a mother and grandma in her 70s, but she wasn't ill. As her daughter told us, she just took a breath and passed away. May God rest her close to Him with her dear husband.

Finally, we didn't manage to get a bride for our Taki the cat, and as he was getting restless and even managed to escape once to F's great grief, we had to send him to the doctor. He had an operation yesterday and is now recovering at the vet's. He is expected home later in the afternoon.

It's 11.30 now. I have been on and off the computer, opening the door to kids and listening to new year's carols, refuelling my kids with candy and apples, then a moment ago sent them to sing the carols to the shop and C. I don't know if I shall have the time to blog tonight. Oh, did I mention? No, I did not. I subconsciously kept a festive announcement for the end of my post: We have a phone line at home! And as we are not working on January 1st, C said he will install our old computer and a new scanner/printer in the office nook. I am quite happy with my laptop, right now,though. I am getting to know it. My kids know how to use it better than me and its my present from last year!

Happy New Year everyone. May 2009 have for us in store good health, loving family and friends, enough prosperity to run our houses and help those in need, and Christ's ample blessings for our heart's, bodies and minds.

See you next year!