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how to spot a reindeer

It's hard to spot Santa and his reindeer, because they travel fast and far. Here are a few things you can do to improve your chances.

Steps

  1. Make sure you know what a reindeer looks like. Study pictures of reindeer and keep them handy on Christmas Eve.

  2. Learn how to watch the night sky. Sometimes you can see Rudolph's nose glowing as Santa whisks by on his sled, but you have to look really hard. Once you find Rudolph, though, you can usually see the other reindeer following behind.

  3. Listen. You might hear the jingling of sleigh bells or - if you're really lucky - the reindeers' hooves on your roof. Read "The Night Before Christmas" to get an idea of how the hooves might sound.

  4. Learn the names of all Santa's reindeer. If you actually get close, you might want to call them by name, just like Santa does. The names of Santa's reindeer, in addition to Rudolph, are Dasher, Dancer, Donner, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Prancer and Blitzen.

  5. Get online on Christmas Eve to track where Santa and his reindeer are as they sweep across the skies. When you know Santa is in your area, you might have a better chance of seeing the reindeer.

  6. Add a few extra cookies for the reindeer when you leave a snack out for Santa. You just might get lucky and hear Santa feeding them while they wait on your roof.

Warning

  • Don't be too sad if you don't spot a reindeer. They are so quick that not many people are able to find them.

Adapted from ehow.com.

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merrry christmas!

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We discovered today that a ministry project we just went to print on, bears a typo. I wrote the copy and did the editing, so, alas, it is my own fault. When I realized that our Christmas cards (which will soon return from the printers and be mailed to over 200 people) say "Merrry Christmas", I gasped. (For those who didn't notice what's wrong --- as I didn't all the dozens of times I looked it over --- it has one "r" too many!)

My head started to spin. How can this be?! I looked it over umpteen times. How could I have missed it?! I immediately told Niel that we need to scratch this whole shipment and reorder it all. When he reminded me of how much it cost, I knew that wasn't an option...

Niel bounced right back from this earth-shattering discovery. He said that people will just think we're being emphatic. He started proclaiming, "Merrrrrrrrry Christmas!" (Think Tony the Tiger...) He said it over and over: "Merrrrrrrrry Christmas!" Well, that got me laughing and took my mind off my mistake...for the moment.

Later, when it was just us, I told Niel that I was really upset over this. My perfectionistic tendencies couldn't bear the overwhelming weight of defeat. I was feeling upset not just for myself, but for how this misrepresents the ministry.

Me: "I feel like a failure."

Niel: "Well, this just shows that you're a human being who makes mistakes like the rest of us."

Me: Sigh...

Niel: "Now maybe you won't be so hard on me next time I make a mistake. Cause then I'll just say 'Merrrrrrry Christmas!'"

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presidential pardons

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There's a turkey farm not too far from my parents' house. All autumn long, there are hundreds (thousands?) of white turkeys roaming the field. The day after Thanksgiving, however, the field is empty. Not a bird to be found. A moment of silence is required when we drive by...

Each year, my dad jokes about springing the turkeys -- freeing them before they become centerpieces on dinner tables. Of course, we never do. This year, we at least paid these rather unbecoming birds homage by taking their pictures.


Although we didn't spare any of our local turkeys from their doomed fate, I take pleasure in knowing that our President will pardon a few...

Happy Thanksgiving!