Epiphany Royal Celebration

Happy Traditional Epiphany Day!
January 6, 2011


While much of the world left Christmas behind over a week ago,

I have truly been savoring the season.

Gratitude for my Catholic faith overflowed this week as things

slowed down after the flurry of Advent activity;

I have FINALLY been able to enjoy Christmas!

Twinkling lights and peaceful Christmas music lingered in my car CD player

AND in my soul all week long...

Today was the 12th Day of Christmas and the celebration of the visit from the Magi to the manger~ 
The traditional Epiphany Day.
(Matthew 2:1-12)
I suppose it's also time to make the transition from Christmastide to Ordinary time... 
(after this Sunday)
Though I AM tempted to wait until 
The Presentation of the Lord in February;
For some reason, I am just not ready to say goodbye 
to Christmas quite yet!


Regardless of the quiet digging in of my heels, we made the best of this ending.
Marking the closing of our Christmas season,
we enjoyed an evening of celebration, complete  
with an Epiphany Royal Supper!


~The evening began with the Traditional Home Blessing~
The “C, M, B also stands for the Latin blessing Christius Mansionem Benedicat which means “May Christ Bless this House”.
Be sure to visit Catholic Icing for Lacy's post on the Epiphany House Blessing and more linkys for Epiphany ideas:)

We have started a tradition of choosing a Patron Saint for our family for the New Year.  We have been doing this via the Saint Generator.
Dad picks companion saints for our family 
to follow, learn about, and pray with us through the New Year.

Our Epiphany Royal Supper Menu:
Crown Pizza
"Golden Pear" Winter Fruit Salad
Royal Punch
Dessert:  King's Cake

We brought our Three Wise Guys to the center of our 
dinner table to join our Royal Supper, also posted over at Catholic Cuisine.


Rod cut a family-sized Take and Bake Pizza
in half and then carved 
2 crown shapes from the top and bottom halves:

The "Golden Pear" Winter Salad
was a new and simple recipe I tried  
It turned out incredibly Yuuuuumy!


Bosco Pears
Ambrosia Apples
Oats and Honey Granola
Greek Yogurt~Honey Flavored

The Epiphany~ Manifestation of the Word made Flesh~
Gave us reason to CHEER!

I also wanted to share this simple recipe for our

~Royal King's Cake~

One of our family favorites!

Ingredients:

Yellow Cake Mix

1 pkg. Vanilla Pudding mix

4 Eggs

1 Cup Dry Sherry Wine

3/4 Cup Vegetable Oil

*Beat all ingredients together on high for approx. 5 minutes*

Spray Bundt Pan and Bake at 350 degrees 

for 45-50 minutes

Sprinkle with Powdered Sugar

(We added the Royal Garnish for our Epiphany Celebration)

As the Magi brought gifts to Jesus,
we closed out the evening by bringing Him our hearts,
renewing our love and commitment
to the Christ child and Savior of the world.

After crowning the King of Kings, 

Each person thought of one way to improve their spiritual life and wrote the promise or "gift to Jesus" on a paper heart.  We placed our hearts at the feet of the Christ Child for the evening.
The hearts will be taped on bathroom mirrors or school stations to remind us of our 
New Year's gift to Jesus.

This weekend we will take down our Christmas decorations...

I don't look forward to the bare nakedness of my home after the last 
string of lights are put away.
But the beauty of our faith DOES remind me of the cycle of our human spirit as we
constantly strive for our ultimate goal.
We are continually reminded that we must decrease and empty
ourselves in order to open up a space to receive the graces of heaven.
I may not want "Christmas" to end but it is a reflection of what's best for me and for us all.


As our homes reflect the emptiness of "Christmas", they also serve as visual reminders to renew our
strength for the journey in this New Year.
We are called to rediscover the sanctity of our every day lives in Ordinary Time...
Only from death, can we be raised to eternal life.
"Naked and stripped there came forth
from her, He who clothes all."
~St. Ephrem the Syrian~