Lilies and Oranges: Saint Nicolas Comes to Stockholm!

This past weekend, Saint Nicolas visited all the good little girls and boys in Belgium...and much to the boys' delight, the constant snow that has been blanketing Stockholm couldn't keep Saint Nicolas and his donkey from paying a special visit to 2 Belgian boys living in Sweden.

Saint Nicolas' last visit left a big impression on Jack. He fondly talks about the naughty donkey that went poo-poo in the house. And, he still seems to have a special place in his heart for the plane and train set that Saint Nicolas brought to him last year.

There was very much excitement in our house during the few weeks leading up to Saint Nicolas' visit. This year Jack had a very clear idea of what he would like to ask Saint Nicolas to bring him, a red guitar and a blue umbrella. He also had an inkling of what Timothee would like as well, a blue drum and his own train. Bonbons and chocolate might have made both lists as well... Once this was decided, there was no changing his mind. He "wrote" 2 letters to Saint Nicolas (one for him and one for his brother) asking for these special gifts if they were good little boys. Unfortunately, we missed Saint Nicolas' visit to Stockholm by boat the week before, so Jack left the letters on the blanket-covered couch hoping that the Saint Nicolas would see them in time.

The next morning both boys were up early, rushed downstairs and saw immediately that Saint Nicolas had come!! The juice, cookie and carrot that Jack and Tim left by the fireplace for their late-night visitors were gone...and there was muddy donkey prints all over the floor.

It didn't take the boys long to discover the couch...

...and all of Saint Nicolas' magic.

Each boy had a special spot with their name...

...and one of their slippers filled with chocolate.

Even with the short notice, Saint Nicolas definitely didn't disappoint....i think the looks on the boys' faces say it all.

A very giddy Jack...

Yay!...a red guitar!!

...and a knight's umbrella!

At first, Tim was more interested in the silver streamers, chocolate, and bonbons than anything else...

Tim and his very melted chocolate bear...

But with a little encouragement, he quickly found the pile of treats that Saint Nicolas left for him as well...

Our little drummer...

Trying his new drum on for size.

And he's off!

It was a very magical day for everyone. Jack just LOVED his guitar and didn't let it out of his hands for the next few days. After a few hours of strumming, he was even taking requests. He would go around to everyone asking "Quelle chanson?". We even made up a new song which we sang the rest of the day..."Merci Merci Saint Nicolas...tra la la"...which was very closely based on the song that Belgian girls and boys sing to Saint Nicolas when preparing for his visit, inviting him to come to their home.

Jack can't wait to use his umbrella as well...but he's patiently waiting for the rain to come. Each day when he sees grey clouds in the sky he says "Look Mama, rain!!"...unfortunately, so far they have only been snow clouds. I think he has a few more months until the Spring rains come.

We had such a great morning celebration. It was really fun to see how excited the boys were. Even Timothee was enthusiastic to see the traces left by our midnight visitors by the fireplace and the gift-covered couch. Sometimes it's nice to have an older brother leading the way.