Christmas has always been special time for me. There is something very exciting about the whole preparation for it- taking out the decorations, choosing the dominant colour to decorate around the house, buying presents and wrapping them..
Then it comes Christmas Eve and it's time to set the table. In my native country of Bulgaria certain traditions are followed when setting the table. The number of dishes on the table should be uneven number, ideally seven or nine. There are foods like cooked beans and rice, dried fruits, nuts, garlic, honey, wine and bread which should be present on the table as it is believed that this would bring health, luck and profusion in the home. The bread should be with round shape and a coin is hidden inside it. The person who gets the chunk of bread with the coin would be the luckiest in the house.
When the meal comes to an end, the whole family should leave the table at the same time, which is believed to keep them united and close in the new year. The table shouldn't be cleaned but left like this for the whole night. I especially like that part as all you have to do is toss down the last of the wine and head straight to bed for a well-earned rest. Of course the next morning you wouldn't want to get out of bed knowing what a mess you have left.
But let me get back to Christmas decorations and gifts.
Last year I decided to make some felt ornaments for my parents' Christmas tree. My mom has always loved everything I have handmade, so i love making things for her. Here you can see some of them. The funny thing was that once they were ready, I put them aside, ready to be sent (unfortunately we couldn't spend the festive days with my parents so I had to send them by post). Half an hour later they were nowhere to be seen. After spending almost half an hour looking for them, I finnaly spotted them crammed in one of my son's trucks, ready to be "delivered" to his granny (at that time he was 2 years and 8 months).
