Snowflake Mittens

Yesterday was Ashley's birthday. I got her age right this year (37) of which she was glad.  She and Sonny went out early to finish up their Christmas shopping.  When they got back home, Ashley and I went out to finish up the loose ends in our Christmas shopping and baking.  We met Sonny for lunch at Purple Garlic (yummy meatball sandwich!!).  Sonny and Ashley did their annual baking of sausage balls while I made some chocolate pretzels and marinated mushrooms.  We went out for dinner at Josephine's for steaks.  So it was a pretty quiet day but we squeezed a lot into it!

Our cats are still taking a wide berth but they are tolerating each other at least and we are not having to keep them shut up and separated any more.  Here is a video I took today of them that is really cute!

And a little more Christmas trivia for you .....

There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me. What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas? 

From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember. 

• The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ. 
• Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.
• Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.
• The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.
• The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
• The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.
• Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching,Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
• The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.
• Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.
• The ten lords a-leaping were the ten commandments.
• The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.
• The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

 So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol...so pass it on if you wish.

OK - now for a card I made: 
I love the Perfectly Preserved set and how versatile it is!  Here is a Christmas card I made using the set.  I stamped the jar with Bashful Blue ink on vellum and stamped a snowflake in the center with White craft ink and embossed in white.  The mittens are cut out with a die that I have had for several years (Spell-binders I think) but SU has a mitten punch that could be used also.  I stamped and embossed the snowflake onto the mittens as well.