A Visit from St. Nicholas

"St. Nicholas or Santa Claus?" seems to be THE question this time of year over at my favorite Catholic homeschool site. Back before the kids really knew what was going on, I decided that at our house the guy in the red suit would only be St. Nicholas. We call him St. Nicholas, we know the story of his life as a persecuted bishop of Myra, we have read about his generosity during his lifetime and the miracles attributed to him after his death, and we understand a little of the history of his secularization. But first and foremost we know St. Nicholas as someone who wants everyone to know and love Jesus. For that reason, we celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas--which is today--by leaving out my (handpainted Hanna Andersson) clogs on the eve of Dec. 5 and wait to see what St. Nick will bring to remind us of Who it is we are preparing for. If we can, we go to mass on the feast since that is really the best way to celebrate. And we always love to have a tea party, eat special treats, and read books related to the day.

Last night St. Nicholas left a bag of gold chocolate coins and gold dollars and the Epiphany story the Legend of Old Befana by Tomie de Paola; he couldn't resist adding a Playmobil playset of himself since he is accompanied by an angel--not an elf--as befits a saint who lives in Heaven and not at the North Pole. By noon most of the gold dollars had been donated to the kids' Christmas present to Jesus which they have been working odd jobs to save money for for about a month.

I will spare you the adventures I've had trying my friend Michelle's Speculaas recipe. Suffice it to say that I have eaten enough "tasters" to know that I did not produce the same yummy cookie she made when we celebrated together last year and to know that I will not regret a single cookie that the kids will decorate and not eat this afternoon.

Saint Nicholas does make one more stop here on Christmas Eve. He leaves a small, faith related gift and a few Sees suckers in the kids' stockings before he takes a back seat to the Real Star of the Day.