If you look close, really close, you’ll see it-Tiny fingerprint touched to plastic jewels.

The first year I saw it, I sorta gushed and carried on. Busyness will do that to a mama. Completing a checklist in a busy season of life can make you feel kinda sorta honestly-not really complete and whole.

The next year, it was still there, that small sweet fingerprint touched to crystal. I flashed back to the year prior, thought I would/should be a polished homemaker by now, should’ve cleaned the residual oils that left that small print. But…dinner needed to be fixed, children needed clean clothes, and schooling needed to be completed.

I carefully wrapped the crystal ornament that sticks out like a sore thumb into tissue paper for storage that year, thinking I’d do a little science experiment to see just how many years that fingerprint might stay.

It stayed.

This year, I saw things differently. I noticed…

The unconventionally beloved “Good King Wenceslas” dates back to 1853 when English hymnwriter John Mason Neale first penned its lyrics. Set to the tune of the 14th-century carol "𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖳𝗂𝗆𝖾 𝖨𝗌 𝖭𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝖥𝗈𝗋 𝖥𝗅𝗈𝗐𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀," "Good King Wenceslas" focuses on the journey of a kind man who set out in terrible weather on post-Christmas holiday of Saint Stephen's Day to provide aid to poor neighbors.

This “𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨" was a real man, Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia, who ruled from 924-935. Wenceslaus was adored by his subjects. His great acts of charity led to him posthumously being declared a king, and eventually declared sainthood. He is now the patron saint to the Czech Republic.

The most-published Christmas hymn on the continent, "Joy to the World" is yet another song that was not intended to be a Christmas song.

English hymnist Isaac Watts intended the song to be sung for Easter. 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝘆𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀? 𝙃𝙚’𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛 𝙅𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙨.

So, maybe, this Christmas? Save this post and revisit before Easter. Bring the lyrics out this coming spring and surprise the kiddos, remind them Jesus is the eternal gift, not just in December.

And here’s And here’s the part that’s easy to forget-Mary was human.

Flesh, bones, heart, and soul human. She couldn’t have known how difficult her yes to God was going to be.

In Victorian times, it was fashionable to go carol singing with small handbells to chime carol tunes. At times, only the bells would be used to carry the tune, especially on colder days(𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘦-𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴).

Handbell ringing is still popular today.

One familiar Christmas carol is “Jingle Bells”…

There are times when the best decisions you will ever make will require you to walk some of the hardest journeys. That’s where we meet Mary, 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗆𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖩𝖾𝗌𝗎𝗌-

“O Little Town of Bethlehem” tells of the birth of Jesus. It was inspired by a traveler's Christmas Eve experience in the Holy Lands.

Phillip Brooks was a distinguished, intellectual man of…

The words of “Silent Night” were written by Austrian priest Joseph Mohr in 1816. Music was added in 1818 by his friend Franz Xaver Gruber for the Christmas service at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf, Austria. At Midnight Mass, Mohr and Gruber sang the six verses with the church choir repeating the last two lines of each verse.

Sometimes, in the day to day bustle, we feel alone or unheard. The holiday season isn’t any different.

You’ll find upon reflection, that 𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝗍𝗈 𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝗊𝗎𝗂𝖾𝗍 𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖾𝗌(even if they are few) 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎’𝗅𝗅 𝖿𝖾𝖾𝗅 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗐𝖺𝗋𝗆𝗍𝗁 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗌𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗈𝗇.

“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” actually started with the musical melody 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵!

Written in 1943 for the “Meet Me in St. Louis” musical, the original lyrics to were considered gut punching-actress Judy Garland refused to even sing them on set (claiming she didn’t want to make the young actress playing her younger to cry).

At a time when horrors of World War II were unfolding, bringing more heartache felt inappropriate.

“Little Drummer Boy”, originally titled “𝖢𝖺𝗋𝗈𝗅 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖣𝗋𝗎𝗆𝗌”, is a beloved Christmas Carol throughout the world. Both titles are nods to the repeating line 𝘱𝘢 𝘳𝘶𝘮 𝘱𝘶𝘮𝘱 𝘱𝘶𝘮 𝘱𝘶𝘮, alliteration to the sound imitation of a drum.

“Little Drummer Boy” has been attributed to…