The stockings were hung by the chimney with care..

My mantle is decorated and ready for Santa!

There are several variations on the popular legend of Christmas stockings, but this one gets the gist across. Here’s how it goes:

Very long ago, there lived a poor man and his three very beautiful daughters. He had no money to get his daughters married, and he was worried what would happen to them after his death.

St. Nicholas was passing through when he heard the villagers talking about the girls. St. Nicholas wanted to help, but knew that the old man wouldn't accept charity. He decided to help in secret. He waited until it was night and crept through the chimney.

He had three bags of gold coins with him, one for each girl. As he was looking for a place to keep those three bags, he noticed stockings of the three girls that were hung over the mantelpiece for drying. He put one bag in each stocking and off he went. When the girls and their father woke up the next morning, they found the bags of gold coins and were of course, overjoyed. The girls were able to get married and live happily ever after.

It is also thought that the stocking tradition derived from the Germanic figure Odin. According to Phyllis Siefker, children would place their boots, filled with carrots, straw or sugar, near the chimney for Odin's flying horse, Sleipnir, to eat. Odin would reward those children for their kindness by replacing Sleipnir's food with gifts or candy. This practice, she claims, survived in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands after the adoption of Christianity and became associated with Saint Nicholas as a result of the process of Christianization.

Thus the custom of children hanging stockings on Christmas Eve was born. Originally children hung their everyday socks or laid out shoes awaiting St. Nick’s arrival of goodies, but eventually Christmas stockings were created for this purpose.


Today was stormy and dark all day. We had some more sleety snow and rain. not even nice enough to look out the window today. Tomorrow promises to be colder and windy, too.

I have my winter wonderland in the living room keeping me warm and cheery!