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Well can yoo believe it ~ it’s December already?!  There’s not much to do in the garden at the moment ~ so over the weeks leading up to Christmas, I’m going to tell yoo all about the English traditions that utilize things from the local countryside, or maybe even your own garden, to mark the festive season.

This week I’m going to tell yoo a bit about Yule! Many of you will send or receive Christmas cards with Yuletide greetings on them. And maybe you’ll even burn a Yule log in your hearth ~ or eat chocolate Yule log ~ but do you know why?

Yule, is when the dark half of the year relinquishes to the light half; it is  known as winter Solstice Night (21st December) and is the longest night of the year! Much celebration was had in the past on Solstice Night, as our ancestors awaited the rebirth of the Oak King, the Sun King, the Giver of Life that warmed the frozen Earth and enabled seeds to grow that were protected through the fall and winter by hibernating in the ground.  They lit bonfires in the fields, and crops and trees were “wassailed” with toasts of spiced cider. Starting the very next morning at sunrise, the sun climbs just a little higher and stays a little longer in the sky each day, beckoning in Spring and Summer. So although it seems wintery and dark ~ we are nearly at the turning point of the year!

And of course nothing symbolizes holiday coziness better than the yule log, the centerpiece of any fireside gathering. The tradition of yule logs has its roots in pagan rituals. In fact, the word “yule” is old English for the festivals known to take place in December and January. Northern Europeans, like Vikings, celebrated the Festival of Yule to honor the winter solstice by journeying into the woods in search of a hearty oak tree.  The event was a family affair, with family members venturing out in search of a choice cut of wood. They would return with the most robust log they could find and burn it in deference to various gods as well as in celebration of life and prosperity. English Christmas traditions called for the yule log to burn as a sign of goodwill through all 12 days of Christmas, during which time family members would refrain from labor to celebrate the season.

While a proper yule log isn’t a common sight in 21st-century fireplaces, it can still be found in holiday kitchens — in the form of a dessert. It is a sponge cake replica of a yule log often covered in chocolate and frosted in a wood-grain pattern, then decorated with a sprig of holly. Mom always has a chocolate Yule log on the Christmas table.

So with all this in mind, I went in search of a Yule log from the garden …

A Yule log should be Oak ~ so if yoo haven’t got an Oak Tree, yoo’ll hafta go further afield …

When yoo find one … you’ve got to be able to burn it in the hearth ~ so make sure it’s not too BIG!

Or if yoo haven’t got a hearth, get your mom to make one of these instead ~ and make sure she puts plenty of butter in the butter icing! Yummy! :

Once yoo’ve found yoor Yule log, take a rest … yoo’ve earned it! Or find yoorself a nice BIG leaf to play wiv!

Love Alfie Marshall xx

Proud Vice President of the:

PS: Don’t forget to visit my mentor Jonesie   (President of the Society of Feline Gardeners) to see wot she’s all been up to in the garden this week! There’s a Mr Linky on Jonesie’s bloggie so you visit all the other feline gardeners who’ve done a post this week.

 

Yesterday Dad gotted the ladder owt and went up into the loft ~ he made us wait the other side of the door ‘cos he said we wasn’t allowed in the loft, ‘cos it was dangerus. Alfie thort that was very UNFAIR ~ so he did laser eyes to show Dad he was cross!

 Dad was up in the loft ages, and we could hear all sorts of rustling and thumpy noises gong on up there. We was scairt in case whatever was dangerus had gotted Dad!

 But eventually Dad re-appeared wiv all sorts of interesting bags and boxes! And they smelled delishus!

Alfie checked owt the tree:

 And I checked owt the Chrismouse wreath:

 I climbed throo the hole in the middle to make sure it was BIG enuff!

 Alfie helped Mom get the decorashuns owt of the box:

 Then Dad gotted on the ladder and started putting the Chrismouse garlands up around the doors:

I snoopervised Dad, to make sure he was putting ’em up right. ‘Cos this is my 2nd Chrismouse, and I know the protocol!

 I helped as much as I could:

 So Dad gave me some Temtayshuns! (Turkey flavor!)

 Then Alfie hadta have some (‘cos in our howse we do equal shares!)

Then Alfie Marshall had a closer look at the garland (I think it was just an excuse to stay on the ladder even longer ~ ‘cos he loves the ladder):

Then Dad said he wanted to put the ladder away … 

And Alfie Marshall started moaning abowt still wanting the ladder owt an’ it snot being fair ~ and I walked off in a Huffle, ‘cos it was my turn to go on the ladder next! (huffle is a noo verb coined by Huffle Mawson ~ it means strutting off to show you’re sulking a bit!)

 Then the excitement got to us and we had a bit of a smackdown!

 Then Mom started saying stuff abowt our Chrismouse stockings would be taken back down if we didn’t stop rassling …

 And I suddenly remembered wot I don’t like abowt December!  Yoo hafta be good all the time or yoo get nasty mean threats about yoor Chrismouse stocking being empty on Chrismouse day …    :sigh:   …  so it’s stressful!

Love Milo (and Alfie) xx

Tuxie Toosday and stuff …

Set the YouTube going first but I should warn yoo ~ Mom said it is the MOST annoying YouTube ever! An’ she defies yoo to listen to it the whole way throo! But we LOVE IT! It’s pawsome!

Well, can yoo beleeve it, it’s December already? So if yoo haven’t entered your photo on the Calendar Cats blog ~ yoo’re in danger of running owt of time! 

The Cat Realm in their last Dare had asked to create fun games and things for the Cat Blogosphere to do. This project here is one of the two winning entries (Diamond Emerald-Eyes entry being the other) ~ this was our idea!

The Calendar Cats blog will collect and show ALL entries for the nude cat calendar for the CB 2010.
A bit later in December the CB will do some voting for the 12 best entries who will then be published in the CB calendar 2010.

So if yoo haven’t submitted your pic yet, NAG your beans straight away (don’t take no for an answer!), then visit the site for the rules (yoo hafta scroll down) and enter your Sooper Dooper Nude  pic TODAY! OK?

Love Milo xx

 

Mancat Monday

On cold wintery evenings Mom closes all the curtains to make our home cosy ~ an’ one of my mancat duties is I hafta check owt that there are no introoders hiding behind them. It’s scarey ~ but someone hasta do it.

Love Alfie Marshall xx

Hi Efurrybuddy,

My little bruvfur Alfie’s favoritist toy in the whole Werld is the set of springs that my beautiful gerlfrend Dommy sent us. They were supposed to be to share but he has hogged them all for himself. He just plays and plays wiv them EVERY single day, over and over again. He LOVES them. The trubble is he keeps losing them!

So every morning when we are all awake, we hafta do a spring hunt ~ that is we all hafta search the howse top to bottom for the springs ~ so Alfie can lose them all over again (‘cos otherwise he sits looking at us all wiv big mournful eyes and mopes abowt until we feel guilty). It’s like Groundhog day! We find them under cupboards, tables, beds, in the barf-room, in the toybox, even in shoes ~ yoo name it, we find ‘em there. And does Alfie help us? Noooooo! He sits guarding them until we’ve found every last one.  Then he loses them all over again.   :sigh:  But they make him so happy that we haven’t got the heart to say, NO,  find ‘em yerself!  He is my baby bruvfur after all.

 

Do yoo have a Groundhog event each day in yoor howse?

Love Milo xx

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