growing up, our family had many traditions. one of my favorites was
"12 days of christmas."
i was surprised to hear that not many people have heard of it.
we would leave something on someone's doorstep,
doorbell ditch them, & run our faces off,
every night for 12 nights until christmas eve.
we would always dress in all black,
hoodies & burglar masks...
and go at different times of the evening.
we have never got caught out of all these years.
impressive, eh?
more times than not,
the families we did this to were recently or currently in
an unfortunate circumstance.
whether it be a few goodies or books,
we always felt so good about doing it.
now that i am married,
mr. schroeder & i have decided to incorporate this tradition
into our own family and keep it going.
ripple effect, for sure.
this year, we thought of adding a little bit to the process...
the night you start, leave a letter on their doorstep
explaining that you'll be leaving a present for the next 12 days
& that from now on, they'll receive a phone call
that will just ring once .
in the united states, you can block your number by
dialing *67 and then your phone number.
recently, many numbers have not allowed this
to prevent blocked callers from reaching them.
that being said, be sure to try calling them first!
if their number is blocked,
do it the dangerous way.
ring their doorbell or knock on their door & run
every night. for 12 nights.
don't get caught!
we like to start on december 13th & end on the 24th.
my sister sent me some awesome little lines to use.
and i decided to share.
on the first day of Christmas,
we love playing santa's elves,
by "popping" by with some corn in "sprite" of ourselves.
[popcorn & sprite.]
on the second day of Christmas,
your doorstep we did clutter,
with loaves of bread on which to spread some jam & peanut butter.
[homemade peanut butter & jelly
OR a loaf of bread]
on the third day of Christmas,
we leave you something fun to bake,
hot chocolate & marshmallows
to make yummy hot cocoa krispies for your sake.
{recipe here}.
{recipe here}.
on the fourth day of Christmas,
not a word passes our lips.
so you may never find the elf who left the salsa & chips.
on the fifth day of Christmas,
if dinner is at a loss,
here is something quick to cook: spaghetti with tomato sauce.
on the sixth day of Christmas,
not only reindeer make a clatter.
you may find you make one, too, whipping up this batter!
{pancakes, cupcakes, or other batter}
on the seventh day of Christmas,
breakfast goodies we leave today.
have some cereal & hot chocolate to get you on your way.
on the eighth day of Christmas,
here is something for your tree.
to let you know you're thought of, with love, from our family.
on the ninth day of Christmas,
we hope you're doing well.
here is one of our favorite stories that sure is nice to tell.
on the tenth day of Christmas,
here is something sweet.
there's nothing like a little chocolate to make the day complete!
on the eleventh day of Christmas,
it's time to get some rest.
here is a movie & some popcorn,
we think you're simply the best!
on the twelfth day of Christmas,
Santa is never late.
Here are some cookies we have made because we think you're great!
i found some super cute printables for each gift you give!
click on the links below the photos to access them.
i am excited to hear all the stories of people & the new traditions they choose to start.
if you are a newlywed or starting new traditions,
please don't leave out serving other people.
that is what Christ did.
and to celebrate Him, the best thing we can do is to follow his example.