Some Christmas Trivia - To Brighten Your Holiday

What do you think are the most Popular Holiday Treats?

• Candy canes
• Gingerbread
• Chestnuts
• Fruitcake
• Bûche de Noël or Yule log cake
• Rum balls
• Chocolate truffles
• Mince pie
• Pumpkin pie
• Homemade fudge
• Frosted sugar cookies
• Shortbread

And the Most Popular Christmas Dinner foods?

• Baked ham
• Turkey and stuffing
• Mashed potatoes and gravy
• Sweet potatoes
• Green bean casserole
• Turnip
• Brussel sprouts
• Cranberry sauce
• Red velvet cake
• Pumpkin pie
• Christmas pudding with rum sauce

Do you know How many Turkeys are Consumed at Christmas each Year?

Twenty-two million turkeys are consumed each year at Christmas in the U.S.

The U.S. is the top producer of turkeys, followed by France and Germany with. Canada in seventh place.

The top turkey eating country in the world is Israel, followed by the United States, Canada, France, United Kingdom, and European Union.

How did turkey become the bird of choice for holidays?

Across England there was a celebration of harvest in which they would roast goose. When the early settlers sailed for the New World, the Americas, their harvest festival celebration continued in their new home land but there just were not many geese around. But there sure seemed to be lots of wild turkeys. It was after that that the Christmas turkey tradition began to spread to other parts of the world too.

Do you know what poinsettias have to do with Christmas?

Poinsettias didn't arrive in the United States and Canada until the 19th century. The plant is named after first U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsett. He discovered this plant growing in the wild in southern Mexico were they grow as shrubs. In 1828 he sent cuttings of the plant to his South Carolina home. Its popularity grew over the years and by the 20th century it has become a holiday mainstay. National Poinsettia Day is celebrated on Dec. 12, honoring the plant and Dr. Poinsett.

88 percent of all plant that are bought during the Christmas season are a Poinsettia.

The most popular color of course is red, but now you can purchase poinsettias in pink, white, yellow and cream colors and they can also be spotted, striped or marbled.

"Flower of the Holy Night," is what they are known as in Mexico. One interpretation of the poinsettia is that it is a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem, which was the heavenly body that guided the wise men to the place where Christ was born. A beautiful Mexican legend tells the story of a girl who only had weeds to offer as a gift to the baby Jesus on Christmas Eve. It is said that when she walked into the church with the weeds in hand, they started to blossom into beautiful red plants that we now know as the poinsettia which are called Flores de Noche Buena in Mexico, Spanish for "flowers of the holy night".

Which Cities are Easiest for Santa to Visit?

Those with snow, of course! Anywhere in the world that has more than two feet of snow in December.

Who's Tracking Santa Claus?

NORAD! Who is NORAD? North American Aerospace Defense Command. They are the
Canadian and American agency and they defend the airspace of Canada, Alaska, and the continental United States. On December 24, it is NORAD’s responsibility in the tracking of Santa Claus's sleigh ride across the globe.

At precisely 5:00 AM, MST, a group consisting of more than 360 volunteers and the NORAD staff begin the task of tracking and also reporting the progress of Santa and his sleigh and reindeer around the world. This group of dedicated people are able to perform this task by receiving data from a worldwide network of radar and satellites in space.

Do you know any Reindeer Facts?

The only female deer that can grow antlers are the Reindeer.

Reindeer are herbivores, they eat vegetation. Leaves and herbs in the summer time and lichen and moss in the winter months.

Once snow has fallen, the Reindeer’s antlers act as a shovel, scraping the snow away to reach the nutritious vegetation that lies below.

Reindeer are found around the world and are a subspecies of caribou.

Male and female Reindeer grow antlers. The male sheds his late in the year while the female keeps hers until spring. All of Santa’s Reindeer keep theirs all year round.

Reindeer are not known to be fast runners. Only the Reindeer that pull Santa’s Sleigh can fly and are very fast flyers.

Just Who is Santa Claus?

The real St. Nicholas was a bishop in Myra, Turkey in the fourth century. He is known for his generosity toward children and the poor.

Dutch legend states that Sinter Klass, or St. Nicholas delivered presents at Christmas by an open window or down a chimney.

Thus is the beginnings of the legend that is known and loved today as Santa Claus.
Before the 16th century during The Feast of St. Nicholas, December 6th, gifts were known to be exchanged. It was after this time period that the German Protestants were known to be celebrating Christkindl, which was a feasting day for the Christ Child on December 25th. It wasn’t long before the two days eventually became one even though there a still people in Europe who will recognize both of these days and still celebrate them.
The name St. A. Claus can first be tracked in print as early as 1773. It wasn’t until 1809 that the Americans first saw a drawing of St. Nicholas in a publication called A History of New York in 1809, that then gave everyone a detailed vision of what he looked like.

The name St. A. Claus can first be tracked in print as early as 1773. It wasn’t until 1809 that the Americans first saw a drawing of St. Nicholas in a publication called A History of New York in 1809, that then gave everyone a detailed vision of what he looked like.

The idea that depicted Santa Claus as a very jolly old man, who could slide down chimney stacks in order to deliver gifts and who traveled around the world riding in a sleigh being pulled by reindeer that could fly was first introduced in a story called 'Twas the Night Before Christmas , written by Clement Clarke Moore in 1823.

Where did the idea of decorating a Christmas Tree come from?

One idea is that during the season of Advent in the Middle Ages a play was performed. This play had its origins in the story of Adam and Eve. An evergreen tree was used that symbolized fertility and renewal of life and was also decorated with apples.

It was later on in Germany during the 16th century when trees were adorned with things such as roses, candies, apples and colored paper.

The Christmas tree is thought to have originated in a play often performed in the Middle Ages during the Advent season. Based on the story of Adam and Eve, the play featured a Paradise Tree in the Garden of Eden that was decorated with apples to symbolize Eve's temptation. The tree used in the play was an evergreen tree, which symbolized fertility and a renewal of life.
Later, in 16th century Germany, people would hang apples, gilded candies, colored paper, and roses from tree branches.

The story goes that it was an etching of the British royal family in Windsor Castle in 1848, gathered around a Christmas tree that was responsible for the wide spreading of the decorated Christmas tree through Victorian England.

It is said that when German immigrants brought their tradition of decorating Christmas trees with them to the United States, it was then that this custom started to spend in the Americas.

As for the history of the Christmas lights, it was candles that were first known to be use. It was not until 1882 in New York City that the very first Christmas tree was lit up by electricity and .eighty small electric light bulbs. The very first string of electric Christmas lights were created by Edward Johnson in 1914, small lanterns and glass balls to hold the candles started to be used. Johnson was the vice president of Thomas Edison’s electric company.

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