So one week left to get on the Nice list! Do you ever wonder why we celebrate Christmas on December 25th or how “Silent Night” (one of my favorites) came about? Well, gather round my little elves for fun facts time:
- Christmas Eve in Japan is a good day to eat fried chicken and strawberry shortcake.
- “Silent Night” was written in 1818, by an Austrian pastor, Joseph Mohr. As Christmas Eve came, that year, the organ in his church was broken, so together with his friend, Franz Gruber, he wrote this new tune for the service that night, and played it on his guitar for his congregation.
- The first department store to feature a visit with Santa was the J. W. Parkinson’s store in Philadelphia in 1841. No other department stores copied this event until 1890.
- The Christmas abbreviation-Xmas-is thought by some to be sacrilegious, but in fact the first letter of the Greek word for Christ is chi, which is X. Before the invention of the printing press, “Xmas” was often used to save time and ink.
- We celebrate Christmas on December 25th because in the fourth century, Pope Julius I announced that Christ’s official birthday would be December 25th.
Surrounded by Love by Deb Strain for Moda
Waterfront Park by Violet Craft for Michael Miller
French Courtyard by Sue Daley Designs for Riley Blake
Felicity by Bren Talavera for Robert Kaufman
Happy Holidays!
Kate