Everything Christmas by David Bordon and Tom Winters

Everything Christmas is a unique and appropriately titled journey through stories, recipes, gift ideas, songs, poems and even Christmas humor! This book could easily become your go to Christmas handbook. There is a chapter for each day of December leading up to Christmas day. The author typically starts each day with a Christmas story or poem followed by recipes and interesting Christmas facts. Each chapter then includes a mixture of craft ideas, gift ideas, carols, etc. One very interesting benefit of this book compared to other Christmas books is its focus on multicultural Christmas traditions. The author covers traditions from Argentina, Bulgaria, Denmark, Greece and many more. As a reader of many Christmas books, I have never read one that includes such diverse information. I found it really exciting and informative. One additional note, this book would be extremely handy for Christmas party games. There is a wealth of Christmas trivia that could easily be the source for hours of fun.

In summary, I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it. I believe you will be pleasantly surprised by the depth and diversity of Christmas information contained in this great book. Happy reading!

"I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review"

So, What is Advent?

Merriam-Webster defines Advent as 1: the period beginning four Sundays before Christmas and observed by some Christians as a season of prayer and fasting 2a: the coming of Christ at the Incarnation b: second coming 3: a coming into being or use. Hmmm... this definition does not seem to capture the glow and joy expressed when Christians talk about Advent.

Here is my attempt at defining Advent from what I have learned thus far:

Advent is a celebration of the coming birth of Christ. Advent started on Sunday, November 28 and concludes on Sunday, January 2nd. November 28 would also mark the "New Year" for the church calendar. I was not aware that church had a different calendar, so this was news to me. Advent celebrates the coming of Christ first by his birth, second by his desire to be in our lives and lastly by his impending return as judge. Preparation is the permeating theme of Advent. This is my best definition and I may be completely wrong. I am not a scholar in this area.

Now, I will tell you what Advent means to me. For me, this time is about taking stock of where I am and where I am going. This has always happened around this time of year for me, even before I knew about Advent. Thinking about it... this is my preparation. I have a long way to go in understanding and preparing, but at the end of the tunnel is God and I am on my way.

"I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen, not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else." from C.S. Lewis, Weight of Glory, "Is Theology Poetry?"