December is the favorite month of the year for most people. It brings many holidays and special times for families to share. No matter what holiday you celebrate, it is a magical time for everyone! The three major holidays that happen this time of year are Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa. Each is significant in its own way and celebrates an important event in history. Together, we are going to learn a bit more about them so that we can all understand why December really is a wonderful way to end the year!

Hanukkah is the "festival of lights." It celebrates the miracle that occurred when the Jews were rededicating their Temple and found they only had one day's worth of purified oil to burn. The miracle occurred when this oil lasted eight days—the length of time needed to purify new oil. The Jewish people celebrate each day of Hanukkah by lighting a candle on a menorah, one candle each day during the eight-day celebration. They gather their family together to light the candle and share a small gift of money, candy or other trinkets on each night to remember this wonderful event. Stories are shared, music is played and sung, and children are often found playing the traditional game of Hanukkah. The game is played with the dreidel, a spinning top with four sides. Each side has a Hebrew letter and the four of them together stand for “Great Miracle Happened There.” If you would like to learn more, you can read about the History of Hanukkah at the History Channel website.

Many of the traditional foods of Hanukkah are fried, in honor of the oil that lasted so long. Such foods are potato latkes and jelly-filled donuts. There are popular sweet treats as well such as Hanukkah gelt cookies and macaroons. Click on this link for more tasty Hanukkah Recipes.

To learn even more about this special holiday, check out the following site that lists some of the Hanukkah Traditions that are observed during the festival of lights. This year Hanukkah will be celebrated from sundown on December 19th through sundown on December 27th. We hope all our Jewish members of Womens-Place have a very Happy Hanukkah this year!

Kwanzaa is a relatively new holiday celebration, but just as significant and beautiful as the rest. The first observance of Kwanzaa was celebrated in December 1966, and the word Kwanzaa is a variation of the Swahili words for "first fruits of harvest." The holiday was begun by the chairman of black studies at California State University, Long Beach, Dr. Maulana "Ron" Karenga. He wanted to create a holiday that celebrated and strengthened the cultural bonds of African-Americans. The holiday serves to promote unity amongst African-American families and communities. The main message of Kwanzaa revolves around the idea of "Seven Days, Seven Principles." Each guiding principle is represented by a symbol signifying the important values of African-Americans all over the world. During the days of Kwanzaa, families light seven candles that are held by a Kinara. There are three black candles that represent race and unity, three green candles that represent hope and the Motherland (the continent of Africa), and one red candle that represents blood, the liquid of life. Each day one of the candles is lit and everyone discusses the principle represented by that day. Rather than gifts of extravagance, gifts with meaning and gifts that are ethnic in subject are exchanged during the holiday. Traditionally, the gifts are exchanged on January 1st, but they can be exchanged at any day during the holiday. Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 26th through January 1st each year. You can read this site to learn more about the History of Kwanzaa and the seven symbols and guiding principles of the holiday.

During Kwanzaa, many wonderful foods are eaten, and most of them are traditional Caribbean and Southern foods such as white rice with fried plantains, candied yams, black-eyed peas with ham and fried okra. On the evening of December 31st, a lavish feast called Karamu (kah-rah-moo) is prepared and shared with friends and family. For more delicious dishes, check out this site with Kwanzaa Recipes. We hope all our members who are observing Kwanzaa have an enjoyable celebration!

Christmas is a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. The date of December 25th was set in commemoration of Jesus’ birth in the year 336 A.D., after many years of unsuccessfully trying to determine when the actual Nativity took place. In the year 349 A.D., Pope Julius formally selected the date as "the day of Christmas." It has been celebrated throughout the Christian world since then and was brought to America during the westward expansion. Christmas as we know it has been firmly entrenched in the American culture since the late 1800s. To learn more, check out the following site that explains more about the History of Christmas.

Some of the traditions of Christmas include displaying and decorating a Christmas tree, waiting for Santa Claus to bring presents on Christmas Eve night, and families often gather to exchange gifts on Christmas Day. Children get especially excited about the gifts they will receive from Santa on Christmas morning. Check out our article on 20 Gifts Under $20. Also, you can read the article on the following site to learn more about Christmas traditions. And, just for fun, here is a link to How "Merry Christmas" is said around the world.

Christmas is filled with wonderful foods! Everything from the traditional Christmas feast to the cookies and candy shared with friends and family. Our Womens-Place Cookbook is filled with recipe ideas you can use to make your holidays special. We hope all our Christian members have a blessed and Merry Christmas this year!

No matter what holiday you celebrate this month, we here at Womens-Place wish you the very best, and hope your December is filled with all the things you love most!

~Julie is the Mom of two crazy boys and wife to one crazy man. She looks forward to another exciting holiday season and making many new memories with her family.