Hello everyone, These personal Christmas memories that listmembers are sending in are just begging for a website where they can be preserved for the future. If I was not so busy in updating so many of my own websites, I would surely consider setting up such a site. Is there anyone out there who has the interest and time for such an endeavor? Now's your chance! :) Mary Ann Date sent: Sat, 2 Dec 2000 22:14:50 EST From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: [GERMAN-LIFE] Christmas Traditions > Hi Ingrid and Listers, > > We too still keep to the special traditions brought to the USA and our > church by our German ancestors. We have a beautiful brass candle stand on > our church upon which is twined with greenery and 3 purple candles and 1 > pink rose candle for the 4 Sundays of advent and one very large white > Christ candle that is lit on Christmas Eve. Each Sunday, which we will > begin tomorrow, is the lighting of a candle. Then each following Sunday > the first candle will be lit again, until all 3 purple ones and the pink > rose one and the white candle are lit on Christmas Eve. In our homes we > have one single electric candle in each of our windows and a set of 5 > candles we lights each week in our front window. > > Even though I am now 52 years of age, we still have an advent calendar in > our home and each night we open one of the little windows. I was > fortunate to travel to Germany in the summer of 1999 on a tour group with > my church and at that time I found several lovely advent calendars that I > can use for the next few years. > > We have also begun our Christmas baking. This morning my mother stirred > up our Lebkuchen. Tomorrow I will stir up, roll out, cut and let dry > overnight, our Springerele. I will be using 5 wooden Springerele molds > that have been in our family for 100 years now. Each year these molds are > lovingly used. They are now one of my most prized possessions. Christmas > in our home would not be complete without dozens of Lebkucken, > Springerele, Pfefferneuse, Spritz, Cinnamon Stars, and numerous other > cookies, all made by my mom and me. My grandmother and her sister, my > great aunt, taught me how to make Springerele when I was about 5 years > old, and I have made them every year since. > > I look forward to more great stories. > > Karen JENTER > Michigan > USA > > ______________________________