These Guys Must Believe!

A few days ago I heard a brief news item about the 51st Annual World Santa Claus Congress. This is an international gathering of the representatives of Santa Claus from a number of countries around the world. They have been meeting annually for more than 50 years. Why that's almost as many years as I have seen! Why haven't I heard about this yet? It seems Santa Claus is gathering his representatives from around the world at an amusement park in Copenhagen, Denmark. This 3 day event attracts Santas from countries as far away from Denmark as Russia, the United States, and Japan. As this event seems to have grown from a local Summer Festival, most of these Santas have come from a number of the Scandinavian Countries. Most of the news stories covering this event were dated Monday, July 21, 2008 and the festival went through Wednesday. Santa took this opportunity to practice some of his Christmas Holiday skills such as belly shaking chuckles and Christmas tree decorating. The Santas were also able to discuss some of the more important issues facing Santa Claus today like “How do we get into people’s homes when there are no chimneys?" asks Fred Rootveld, a Dutch Sinterklaas. For more information about Santa Claus and this important news item you may follow some of the following links:

Reuters India

ABC News

Washington Post

USA Today

For more information about Scandinavia you may follow this link:

Scandinavian Tourist Boards

Now you know how Santa Claus spends his summer vacation! Please remember that Santa has given at least a portion of his summer vacation time to help prepare himself for making your Christmas Holiday a more cheerful and memorable occasion.

Milk and Cookies

Christmas Traditions are an important part of the family holiday season. One of the more popular traditions associated with Santa Claus is the practice of leaving a glass of milk and a few cookies out for Santa to snack on as he makes his rounds. Perhaps this is the reason for his jolly, fat appearance in most depictions. The snack is most certainly welcome while completing his traditional, timely task of delivering gifts to all who have made it to his list. You know, "making a list and checking it twice", after all Santa must keep an accurate accounting for all those toys and gifts to be delivered to all of the world's children. He must certainly appreciate the thoughtful nature of those children who have left him that snack. You may want to have Santa, as well as your family and friends, rest up for a few moments and enjoy a small snack at your home during the Christmas Holidays. May I suggest the following recipe for cookies:

.

ROLLED CHRISTMAS COOKIES*

4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cups sugar

2 tsp.ground allspice

1 1/2 cups butter

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3 Tbsp. cold water

Sift the first 3 ingredients together. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse corn-meal. Stir in eggs and water. Mix well. (This dough is stiff, so do not add any more water.) Chill until the dough can be easily handled, about 1 hour. Roll to 1/8 inch thickness on a lightly floured board. Shape with assorted cookie cutters. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets in a preheated oven (400 degrees F.) 7 to 8 minutes or until lightly brown around the edges. decorate before baking with glazed fruit or colored sugar, or decorate with confectioners' sugar and water icing after baking. Yield: 9 dozen assorted sizes and shapes.

* This recipe is from

The Family Cookbook

by

Gertrude Wilkinson

formerly home editor

Liberty Magazine

1962 EDITION

Copywright MCMLIX by

WORLD SCOPE PUBLISHERS, INC.

New York, N. Y.