An Olde World Christmas

The ladies of our church had our annual Christmas party last night, this year's theme was "An Olde World Christmas." The tables are set to seat eight, with a hostess at each table. Each table this year was decorated as a different European nation. I chose to decorate my table based on my heritage. Both of my maternal grandparents are Dutch, so my nation was the Netherlands. I pulled out the wooden shoes that my grandfather gave me as a young teen along with carrots and golden chocolate coins. The children of Holland place carrots and hay in their shoes for Sinterklaas. These are replaced (by Sinterklaas) with small gifts. I had fun researching the differences in how we celebrate here and how they celebrate overseas.

The other hostesses chose England, Spain, Ireland, France, Germany, and Switzerland. Each hostess was very creative in their decorating, however, as each hostess told of the traditions in their nation much of the same practices were woven into each culture. The two ladies who decorated the food tables did an amazing job. Their tables looked like they were decorated by the professionals at Williamsburg. One of the side benefits of this style of decorating is that instead of using disposable plates, cups and plasticware, each hostess brings their own china, glassware and silverware. The guests then brought food—much of it ethnic—to keep up the theme of the evening.

This is a great chance to invite family and friends or just to get to know other ladies in the church that your paths don't cross very often.