A Christmas History Lesson

The Twelve Days of Christmas is one of the most famous Christmas carols ever written. It has been sung for a great many years, and is known the world over. To most it is a delightful hymn, but it was originally created with a very serious intent. In England between the years of 1558 and 1829, it was illegal to practice Catholicism in public or private. It was essentially a crime to be Catholic in England during those years.
The Twelve Days of Christmas was written to help preserve the traditions of the Catholic faith during the years that Catholicism was banned in England. The song is steeped in symbolism, and the fact that it is so well known throughout the world is a testament to the faith of the followers of the Catholic doctrine. The symbols contained in the song are as follows:
1st verse "True Love" refers to God.
2nd verse "2 Turtle Doves" refers to the Old and New Testaments.
3rd verse "3 French Hens" refers to Faith, Hope, and Charity.
4th verse "4 Calling Birds" refers to the Four Gospels or the Four Evangelists.
5th verse "5 Golden Rings" refers to the first five Books of the Old Testament.
6th verse "6 Geese-a-laying" refers to the six days of creation.
7th verse "7 Swans-a-swimming" refers to the seven sacraments.
8th verse "8 Maids-a-milking" refers to the eight beatitudes.
9th verse "9 Ladies dancing" refers to the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit.
10th verse "10 Lords-a-leaping" refers to the Ten Commandments.
11th verse "11 Pipers piping" refers to the eleven faithful apostles.
12th verse "12 Drummers drumming" refers to the twelve points of the Apostle s creed.
I love this song. It is, by far, my favorite Christmas carol. I had no idea about the symbols contained in the song, until I googled the song lyrics one afternoon. I find it very interesting that a song we all know so well could contain so many hidden meanings. I would never have guessed that it was anything more than lovely Christmas carol. It s always nice to learn something new, especially about the wonderful celebration of Christmas. I hope you learned something, too. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!



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Baby Won t Wear Clothes

Most first time parents get a shock when at about fourteen months their darling decides they don t want to wear clothes! The first thing to realise is that there is nothing unusual about this it is just a small part of baby growing up.

Granted it can be quite embarrassing if you have guests around and baby decides to bear all! Embarrassing for you and the guest.

Don t get over excited and insist that baby wears his or her clothes ALL the time. No it is best if you set limits on when you will allow baby to un-cloth and when you will not all them to un-cloth. You are teaching baby a very important social norm at this point so be firm.

Once you have set your limits be firm, and enforce the rule. You may feel like screaming, but every time baby breaks the rules and starts to undress then redress him, again and again and again. Babies are not stupid and pretty soon they will get the message. Remember though babies are also great manipulators!

Think carefully about when you are going to let baby bear all. Common sense will dictate that this is best done when there is little likelihood of traffic into and out of the home. Baby may not be embarrassed by his physique but others outside the family might feel uncomfortable with a naked baby running around them.

Because baby will feel less restricted without their clothes they will be rushing around that little bit more and are therefore more likely to get a knock on some of their more exposed areas.

When naked time is over a good way of getting your child to re-robe is to let him or her pick their own clothing you can do this by laying out a small selection of suitable clothing. Most babies enjoy this exercise and in the long run they become more interested in clothing and it may even help them get over their naked period.

I ve watched parents visit their attitudes about their bodies onto their children. You are the biggest influence in your child s life and a little carelessness could make your child feel ashamed of his or her body.

Children have to explore in order to develop, and this is all part of that journey and with a little bit of though before hand you can let the child figure out that undressing in public is not right and this is much better than just telling them don t do that. That s bold.

Baby is now busy exploring the world around them, educate them well and it will pay handsome rewards in the future



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Fun Christian Kids Music Crafts: Passing on A Passion for Worship

Does your child love music? Most kids do. That is what makes music the perfect way to teach them about loving the Lord!
Though it may sometimes sound silly to adults, Christian kid s music is very important to the spiritual growth of your children. It gives them a chance go before God, worshiping in a way that comes naturally to them.
I remember the first time I ever felt the Spirit of God. I was a little girl, swept away as the choir of my grandma s church sang praises to Jesus.
That is how most of us first feel God s presence. While we are magnifying Him with our praise.
Even while they re young, your kids can still enter into the presence of God through praise and worship.
Having praise and worship time at home with your children can be great fun. Not only will they grow up with a passion for spending time with the Lord, they will begin to understand that worshiping the Lord is not only something we do on Sunday mornings. It s what we do every day of our lives.
If you really want your children to grow up with a passion for praise, let them personalize it. Help your kids make praise instruments that are as unique as they are.
Christian kid s music crafts can be a blast for you and your children. Just gather a few things from around the house, and you re ready to make a joyful noise!
Try making these two musical crafts with your kids.
Design Their Own Praise Banners!
First Grab Your Supplies: 1 sheet of construction paper Tape or glue Single hole puncher An empty paper towel roll 5 Ribbons To decorate: finger paint, crayons, markers, or glitter
Have your child begin by decorating the construction paper with pictures and words that remind them of God. Using glue or tape, secure their new picture around their paper towel roll. This will be the handle to their praise banner. Take the hole puncher, and make 5 holes around the top of the paper towel roll. Once all of the holes have been made, guide your child in threading each ribbon threw a hole, one by one. Once a ribbon has been threaded through, show them how to tie the two halves of the ribbon into a knot so that it does not slip out.
Tah-Dah! Now your child has their very own praise banner!
Create Their Own Praise Drum!
First Grab Your Supplies: An empty box of oatmeal or empty coffee can with a plastic lid 1 Sheet of construction paper Tape or glue To decorate: finger paint, crayons, markers, or glitter Have your child begin by decorating the construction paper with pictures and words that remind them of God. Use your glue or tape, and help them attach their new picture to the outside of their can to decorate their praise drum. Once they put the lid back on, they will be in business! The plastic lid will give their drum a light base sound.
And, just like that, your child has their very own praise drum! They can thump it with their fingers and hands. Or, beat on it with markers or wooden spoons. Either way, they will love praising the Lord.
About The Author Ameerah Lewis supplies Christian parents with free Children s Bible Activities and tons of other Family Bible study online resources for raising up godly kids. Check out her Christian Kid s Music Crafts page for illustrated directions on these and other musical craft ideas. This article may only be reprinted in its entirety-link included.



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Is My Teen Lying?

All teens lie, right? Teen lying is something that is done harmlessly and viciously. Teens lie for many reasons; most of them have to do with their ability to do it. Pulling a fast one over on mom and dad is something you probably tried too. But, in today s world, lying teens can get into a whole lot more trouble than you could. That is what makes it so important to know if your teen is lying to you and then to handle it.
Teens lie that their homework is done. They lie that they are fine when they may be dealing with heavy amounts of stress. They lie because they want to do something you are saying no to. They lie and they lie. Yet, what should you do if you think that your child is doing this?
Here are some things to think about.
What makes you think they are lying? If you accuse them of lying to you, they will never fess up to it. Instead, they may try to cover it up and they may get away with it. Instead of accusing them, sit them down and talk to them about it. Really, you just need to talk about it without yelling and accusations to make the problems less important. Teens lying may be built onto something. They may want to impress you with where they are in their lives. They may not want to disappoint you either. Make sure that you are not pumping them up so much so that they feel they have to lie to you. The lying teen may be covering up trouble. Know your teen and recognize the symptoms of other problems. Talk with them about things like drugs, alcohol and sex. Talk with them about how to react to these situations. Spot when you think there is a problem and work it out then.
While all teens lie from time to time, those that make it a habit may be covering up something that is much bigger. It is up to you to handle this now, before the teens lying gets them into huge amounts of trouble.
Resources: Help with Parenting Troubled Teens



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