In the run-up to Christmas I made Leah a makeshift nativity scene with her Lego. We had a collection of animals, a manger for the baby Jesus, mama Mary (who was actually Lady), and three wise men consisting of Policeman, Pops and Robin. Thinking about it now, I wish I had included some wise women into the mix. I’m sure Snow White would love to have had a walk-on part in the Christmas story and the female Vet would have been invaluable.
We didn’t have a Lego Jesus and so the baby bunny had to stand in for him. And very sweet and angelic he looked too. Leah was quite taken with this and told quite a few people that “Baby Jesus was a rabbit”. My parents heard about this and were a little worried about their second grandchild who has not been baptized and who now thinks that baby Jesus is a rabbit.
They sprang into action and bought her a Nativity scene with the instructions that she was to look after it (Be Careful. It can break.) and one day pass it on to her own children.
It’s gorgeous. Leah doesn’t get to play with it very often but when she does, she rattles off the figures with ease.
Leah: There’s Joseph. There’s Baby Jesus. There’s Mama. There are the Three Wise Men. There’s the sheep. And there’s the Leopard.
Dada: A Leopard!? What’s a leopard doing there? Oh you mean a shepherd.
Leah: Be Careful. It can break.
And so she is well on her way to being a Christian. The three of us went to our local Carols in the Park where she concentrated intently on the singing and later gave us her own version of “Away in the Manger”. It’s the standard version except for a small change.
Away in a Manger / No crib for a Bed / The little Lord Jesus lay down his sweet head / The cattle are lowing / The baby awakes … the little Lord Jesus asleep on the ham.
Well no wonder that the Leopard makes an appearance. If there’s ham to be had, the little Lord Jesus had better watch out!
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Here’s a Christmas collage. Leah loved her water table so much that she climbed into it.
And another addition to our Christmas rituals has been a Gingerbread House. My brother gave Leah a kit and so after a few attempts and some roof repairs, we — or should I say L – produced this. I think it’s rather good.
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The new nativity set is of course gorgeous, but I’m rather taken with the lego one. I am especially tickled by the thought of the female Vet as an indispensable addition to the scene! 🙂 The gingerbread house is most excellent too. And I love the photos of Leah in sunglasses – what a Hollywood diva! Fantastic.
Thanks Litlove. When I was posting this I wished I had taken a photo of the Lego nativity scene. And then I actually wanted to post something about the difficulties of being nearly two (those changeable moods for example) but the sweetness of this story won out.
Props to L on that gingerbread house, it’s fantastic! Happy New Year, Pete, and I must side with Litlove on this one – the Lego nativity sounds just as brilliant as the real one looks. And here’s a funny thing: I tried singing Away in the Manger to the TT a couple of times – something about the melody moves him so much his bottom lip trembles, his eyes fill with tears and he just seems completely heartbroken by it. We had to swiftly change course to Jingle Bells…
🙂 Happy New Year to you too! (And Llew and TT of course). I miss hearing all your news. I wonder what it is about Away in a Manger that moves the TT to tears. I’m sure it’s a good sign of empathy that they get so caught up these stories. I tried showing Leah a video of “Sammy the Turtle” but she was too upset that Sammy’s mommy was not there and so she ordered me to turn it off. I’ve been thinking of you all and wondering how you’re doing. I know Australia is a big continent but I was a little worried when I heard about the fires. And hope you’re getting to write regularly. Not on the blog of course (since time is so precious).
Oh, grrr – I’m having an awful time commenting here – my comment keeps getting eaten by wordpress! This is a great post – I can’t believe how much our daughters are growing! My new blog is thesesandwichdays.wordpress.com – I look forward to seeing you over there! Courtney
Grr indeed, this comment thing is a nightmare since the “post comment” sign disappears. Hi Courtney, thanks for the link. Blog looks great. Look forward to swopping stories about our girls.
How delightful this post is! I’m absolutely certain that there was a leopard at the Nativity…and ham…at least that’s how I remember it as well! I wish, wish, wish I could make my children this age again. How much fun they were (not that they no longer are…just a different kind of fun)! Cherish every moment…I know you both do. I really enjoyed this post and the lovely photos.
This is so sweet! Gingerbread house marvelous and Leah such a little person already.