Christmas Star Sunday

[Kittykatt]

Triple Dog Dare!

Pick 3 things
Do them
Post your TaDas!

»»—-Cheers! WTG! Ygg!—-««

Don't think about it. Just do it!
~~ I Triple Dog Dare ya! ~~
Good Morning!
»»————　✼　————««

[Kittykatt]

The Star of Bethlehem, or Christmas Star,[1] appears in the nativity story of the Gospel of Matthew chapter 2 where "wise men from the East" (Magi) are inspired by the star to travel to Jerusalem. There, they meet King Herod of Judea, and ask him:

Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.

Herod calls together his scribes and priests who, quoting a verse from the Book of Micah, interpret it as a prophecy that the Jewish Messiah would be born in Bethlehem to the south of Jerusalem. Secretly intending to find and kill the Messiah in order to preserve his own kingship, Herod invites the wise men to return to him on their way home.

The star leads them to Jesus' Bethlehem birthplace, where they worship him and give him gifts. The wise men are then given a divine warning not to return to Herod, so they return home by a different route.

New research published in the Journal of the British Astronomical Association adds credence to a theory that the Biblical Star of Bethlehem was a real-life astronomical phenomenon.

[Kittykatt]

Happy Sunday, everyone!

[Kittykatt]

To do:
Cuddles and snack for Matilda, Jude and Freddie
Bible reading and meditation
Update latest Waitrose order
Cup of tea
Get up!
Scrub out litter trays (DH)
Change sheets on bed
Shower/wash hair/moisturiser and sunblock/ clean and floss teeth
S/S bathroom
Physio exercises
Get dressed in casual clothes
Give everyone fresh water
Cat breakfast and meds /supplements
Breakfast and meds /vitamins for me
Quick kitchen clean up
Hang up towels that washed overnight
Load DW
Quick PUPA downstairs
Quick dust and Hoover downstairs
Change into smarter outfit
OTD to church
Coffee with DF E
Back home again, change back into casual clothes
Meat in oven
Hang up sheets to dry
Coffee with DH
Put potatoes and veg to roast
Put up my vitamins and supplements for the week
Weigh out Jude's and Matilda's dry food for the week
Quick PUPA upstairs
15 minutes in tiny front garden
15 minutes in back garden
Dish up lunch
Walk Freddie
Lap time with Freddie
Lap time with Jude
Cuddles with Matilda
Head rubs with Freddie, Jude and Matilda
Play with Freddie, Jude, Matilda
Fold laundry and PA
Run DW when full
Unload DW
Post list with my plans for the week
Clothes laid out for tomorrow

Extras:
DH's phone!

[Gma]

Karlos Kaufmanis, a scientist who left Latvia with his wife after WW2, came to teach at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota. Amazing and delightful people, my parents were their sponsors for citizenship. He went on to teach (I think physics or astro-physics) at the University of Minnesota. After she learned enough English, she also taught, mathematics at University. Before that, she was the cleaning lady at the dormitory where my parents were "house-parents." Professor Kaufmanis was one of the original scientist who in the 1950s identified the scientific truth of the Star of Bethlehem. He was a popular lecturer who shared his knowledge with the general public. I was young, like maybe sometime in grade school, when I heard his lecture on campus, so don't remember much of it. (I was blessed with amazing opportunities as a child because of my father's professorship at that college.)
Apparently the Greek word that we translate "star" in Matthew can be translated "heliacal rise," a coming together of 3 planets that each had a spiritual significance in the astronomy/ astrology of the time. I only remember vaguely that one represented kingship, don't remember the others. The conjunction of 3 planets does make a bright light in the sky, like a bright star.
In our children's Christmas program, there were 4 boys: 3 represented the Magi. The 4th had a pole with a star hanging from it like a flag would. He led the "wisemen" around the church, up and down the aisles, until they came to the place where the children representing the Holy Family were. I thought it was a delightful touch, demonstrating "following the star."
Our famous Christmas in Christ Chapel (https://gustavus.edu/about/administrati ... st-chapel ) this year focused on the Matthew story, reflecting on how often in life something does happen that we must go "a different way" from the way that has brought us to where we are. January 6 is Epiphany, (Greek, epiphaneia= appearance, make manifest, come to light) which is the celebration of recognizing the visit of the Magi, and thus sharing the good news of the birth to all the world, not just to the local Jewish community.
So that's my knowledge.

I have cut down one pile of paper into filing folders, recycle bin, and shredder. Now it's bedtime, and I will continue the paper patrol after church.
We have a blizzard forecast for the afternoon. A good day to stay in and and attack piles. Intermittently with cleaning the kitchen and baking a few cookies that I have already made the dough for. It feels so good to be making progress!

[Kittykatt]

Gma, thank you for sharing your knowledge, and for all the personal touches. WTG with the progress on your house! I'm glad your able to stay warm and safe in blizzard conditions.

[trissie]

You're making good progress on those paper piles, gma!
Happy Sunday to you too, kittykatt!
helia, yeah, I think we could open a dysfunctional families thread... there seems to be so many of them out there!

I must admit I am kinda losing track of the day of the week! But we are slowly easing back to normal. The living room was un-Christmassed enough to actually run the roomba again last night, and we're back to our usual seating arrangement with placemats etc instead of fancy tablecloth and stuff. Tupperware containers are slowly going back in storage, and the tin boxes used exclusively for Christmas pastry (each kind in a different box) have their content moved to a single box (or dealt with alltogether - the new recipe, honeycake balls, lasted less than 24 hours; the last of the third batch of beehives got eaten on Dec 26 and the last vanilla crescent - batch 2 - yesterday ) I really am ready for Christmas to be over!

TaDas
- up and attem
- dressed to shoes
- slow morning
- breakfast and coffee
- started DW because we failed to do so last night

ToDos
- morning routine
- start lunch
- 15 in living room

[FrenchFlybebe]

◕‿◕ * * * Good Morning! * * * ◕‿◕

And good afternoon too !

kittykatt, thanks for the start / I initially typed thanks for the star I hope your Sunday is going well. I suppose it's cold and sunny just like here.

Gma, thanks for the added information. Stay warm and safe ! I hope the piles of paper are good enough company in blizzard weather for you to make more progress.

trissie congrats on such success for your pastries ! Will you bring the leftover cookies to the cottage ?

Sunny and quiet. It's a normal Sunday here, I'm suppoed to go to payroll tomorrow. The school break lasts another week and MrNG will be working on his training report (he has to hand over a long report on his internship, as well as tests and quizzes). We are keeping the Christmas tree for awhile, usually until after the New Year, sometimes I manage to negotiate to keep it up until Epiphany - but after that it's a relief when the Christmas stuff and decorations is back in its box. 2 boxes actually. And the tree in the attic.
I'm in "almost New Year" mode now, and as a good procrastinator I'm looking forwards to a new start / blank slate kind of event. I want to get rid of a few chores before the New Year. Part of it has to be done in 2025 (financial stuff), part of it had to be done months ago and I want to free myself from it. MrNG did some major organizing in DS10's bedroom, we should do the same with DS7 but it will be way harder : stuff from DS10 was transferred to DS7. Also DS7 is not old enough to easily get rid of tiny treasures like pebbles and shiny papers and such.

TADAs
slow morning, slept late
all up, all fed breakfast
tauchg DS7 and DS10 a game of cards
prepped lunch, ate lunch (baked fish, fried fennel, roasted potatoes and carrots and sweet potatoes, chocolate cake)
cleanup, DW started

TODO
coffee break with Internet time (right now)
teach DS7 another game of card ?
get outside : the table tennis spot 5 minutes away ?
house tasks, to-dos from list, FACE session
unwrap new paper planner
easy dinner
also : set things up for the week, wash hair, bed early

[helia]

So glad Christmas is winding down for you, trissie. When do you leave for the cottage?
I've heard that about the star, Gma. Interesting. WTG with the paper control! We're forecast to have a rainy day. A little different for us this time of year.
Have a good morning at church, Kitty!
FFB, cheering you on as you free yourself from those tasks!

Today is our main holiday event. Sinter Klaas! Or the way we celebrate it. First, a breakfast of poffertjes at 9:30 a.m. Then, we'll spend all day making surprises (homemade items that roast each family member) and writing long funny poems to accompany each surprise. This year, we have 9 people. There are 2 teams: the poem writing team and the construction team, though someone on the poem team might help with construction and vice versa. The solid poem writers: me, R, RH, and J12yo. J12yo loves to write her parents' poems. She does a great job! Ds is always on the poem writing team, but he is not here this year. The construction team: dh, dd30, dd27. Dd27 is a strong poem writer too, but usually she is needed on the construction team as she has a broad range of strong crafting skills; often sewing is needed. S refuses to be on either team, so she runs errands and makes the pannekoeken (Dutch pancakes) for the evening meal. M is new to this; last year was her first year, and I think she helped the construction team. KE is just here for fun; she's not participating.

Other things I need to do today: A quick trip to WF, those last 2 thank yous, packing. I can do the payroll curriculum review later; it's not pressing at this point.

Next:
- put away groceries
- make fruit for breakfast: blueberries and strawberries
- back exercises
- s2s and self care

Later:
- leaves in the table?
- 9:30 poffertje breakfast - 10 people
- some qt
- make bed
- tidy MBR last 2 thank yous
- WF run
- write 2 SK poems
- lunch
- finish wrapping: dh - 3, dd27 - 1, J12yo - 1, baby I - 1
- finish folding and putting away towels
- get beef bones for Raven - gift
- make salad for 10 people
- help dd27 make 10 letter cookies
- 6ish dinner: pannekoeken, salad - for 10 people
- after dinner clean up
- poems and surprises
- open gifts
- clean up

TaDas!
- up; weighed - trending down. The increase in exercise and watching my food intake is seeing results!
- coffee
- email deletions + weather website; it looks like we'll have a couple days of sunshine in WA!
- welcomed dd27 and Fable; dd27 is here helping dh make poffertjes

WEEKLY ACTIVITIES
Sun special breakfast for 10? / write poems all day/ make 9 letter cookies with dd27 (she made one for KE yesterday)/evening - celebrate SK!/ Pannekoeken dinner for 10 people

Mon 10 am - leave for the airport to TRAVEL TO WA to visit ds, F, and baby I
Tue See Ss in WA?
Wed + Thu Visit/ help with baby and cooking
Fri TRAVEL home
Sat NOTHING

December Brain Dumps
This Week - House
- can I scrub the tile in our shower?
- clean sheets on bed

This Week - Deskwork
- make appointment with optometrist and food doctor
- schedule mammogram
- Memorial thank yous
- reach out to JK?
- finish charitable giving for the year

This Week - Christmas prep
- wrap gifts - wip

This Week - Errands
- get Mom's bags of stuff to the charity

General Brain Dump
- progress decluttering clothes - wip
- new phone eventually

Mom
- go through bag of Mom's knick knacks

[L.Ann]

I decided to leave my Christmas stuff up until the end of the week. I think I need rest more! Between the surgery, the Utah crowds visit, Christmas events and DD33’s birthday I was super tired. I will get everything but the tree done by next Sunday…. I may do the tree too but that’s m6 favorite thing so it stays up the longest!
One of my retirement goals was to read more nonfiction, helian which since I read almost none has been relatively easy. One of my friends reads a lot of it but I am more selective. I like it on audio too.

1-read
2-dress and pick up bedroom
3-walk outside

4-meds and temp for DD33
5-mop bathroom floor

Menus
Sunday-Cajun tilapia and roasted veggies
Monday-one pot kidney bean and pepper soup
Tuesday-bang bang chicken
Wednesday-DD33 out/leftovers for me
Thursday-fondue
Friday-chorizo enchiladas
Saturday-Thai sweet chili glazed salmon
Sunday-rest of enchiladas


Events
Sunday-
Monday-Little Bit 7:40-5, fasting bloodwork for DD33
Tuesday-Little Bit 7:40-5, breakfast with friends @8:30, 10:30 library storytime
Wednesday-Little Bit 7:40-2:30, 10-1 New Years Celebration at museum, DD33 w/ PS from 3-8????
Thursday-
Friday-DD33 has center
Saturday
Sunday

Weekly House Blessing-mop bathroom, dining room
Extra stuff-

Accomplishments
-stretching and knee exercises
-breakfast for me and dog
-delete email
-review credit reports