Tuesday, December 12, 2017

A Night In Bethlehem Table


Silent Night,
Holy Night,
All Is Calm,
All Is Bright....

Gather with us tonight as we
celebrate the Reason for the Season,
the birth of Christ, with
a dinner called
A NIGHT IN BETHLEHEM.

Last year we decided to make the night
we celebrated the Nativity separate from
gifts and crazy excitement of Christmas
Eve and make it a more special and spiritual
event.  

Last year we called it
 A Night With The Shepherds.
We were dressed in our Middle Eastern
outfits and ate Middle Eastern food.
Haha!  That didn't go over so well with
the grandkids.  I should have called them
burritos, as they got scared off.



This year we decided to call it 
A Night In Bethlehem and wanted
to make it more special by sitting on the 
floor and serving a little more familiar
food, but maybe in a style like they
might have eaten.

We started with long folding tables
and set them on #10 cans on the carpet
in the great room.

Tablecloths covered the tables and were tucked
underneath.  I spread out a beaded table topper
and then placed wooden serving boards
around the table.


I had purchased a lot of these small wooden
serving boards at Home Goods quite
a while ago and decided that would be
their "plate" and all they needed was
a knife for cutting and spreading.



The food was beautifully displayed
as an assortment of Charcuterie boards.

The menu consisted of a variety of cheese,
crackers, naan bread, prosciutto wrapped cheese,
hummus, nuts, fruit and honey with honeycomb.


I chose grapes and pomegranates,
Asiago and Manchego Cheeses and a variety
of flavored Brie, along with artichoke dip.


Sparkling apple cider is always festive
and the kids love to drink from goblets.

I have about 20 goblets from Dollar Tree,
and there is no fear about broken glasses
since they can easily be replaced.  A glass
goblet makes it so much more special for
the little ones.  We have used these for
a lot of family events for two years, and
the funny thing is, none of them have broken.


We didn't have quite enough of the small boards
so I used a few larger boards.  Everyone loved
eating off the boards.


These two cuties helped me set up and 
immediately Jacquelyn wanted to get
dressed as Mary.



Zack also got dressed in a shepherd's costume.
They then proceeded to answer the door when
the remainder of the family came, and told them,
"There is no room in the inn," and closed the door.

Of course, they enjoyed that fun.



The adults had a little fun with
costumes too, as they reclined at the feast table.


Baby got into the fun as she
acted as a servant, feeding her daddy grapes.



As dishes were being cleared, the rest of the costumes
were being donned.

Usually the girls fight over who is Mary,
last year the prized costumes were the
camels, but this year we had tender
feelings over who got to be the
pretty angel.



Of course, we try to be kind and take turns.
This little one informed me that she wants
to do the Nativity again for Christmas Eve,
and could I be sure and get another angel
costume for her since this one was a little big!


Jokingly, we asked the 2 1/2 year old if she
wanted to be the baby.  She crawled right into
the manger and posed with her eyes closed
the whole time.  The day after she came over
and said she wanted to sleep in the manger
again.  Oh the magic of children!



Mary gave love to her little one with pigtails!


We have a collection of sheep who
attended the dinner and the nativity.

You can see Zack riding his camel.


We didn't have all of the little ones here
for dinner this year, so we are always able
to fill in with adults.

We are a rather crazy crew, but
the night was magical and brought
a wonderful spirit into the home as
we prepare to celebrate the
birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I will be posting this with


















Jacqueline
Jacqueline

Chocolat - French for Chocolate. I adored chocolate from a young age when I had to sneak in the cupboard to find where my mother had hidden the Nestle's Chocolate Chips. Having read about the famous chocolat shoppes in Paris, when I finally got there I was determined to try a chocolate from every Paris shoppe. I invite you to share my adventures in creating, in travel, and in life.

19 comments:

  1. What a wonderful way to teach the children about Christmas by allowing them to participate and tell the story. Your Nativity feast is such a great idea, too!

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    1. Yes, I think we will make the feast a new tradition! I love how the grandkids get so excited!

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  2. What a wonderful family get together - the children will always remember these special times!

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    1. You know, I have decided to help them remember! I am going to post a book I created from last year's Christmas that I will give them this year. I know in my own life my memory has been jogged by pictures and I want them to remember all the fun they had with Grandma and Grandpa!

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  3. Such a lovely theme and for the adults and kids to dress up is priceless. Love the idea of eating Mediterranean food. A great way to celebrate the birth of Christ's coming.

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    1. It certainly worked better than the chicken schwarmas last year! Haha - that scared them off!

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  4. Replies
    1. Haha! This is what energizes me! I get an idea and then run! I think I am pretty crazy!

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  5. What a great way to separate the celebration of Christmas. Your costume closet must be bursting, Jackie! Baby girl in the angel costume looking sad was pitiful, but the manger scene with the children stole my heart. Daddy being fed the grapes was hilarious, and so would the closing of the door by the two littles when guests arrived, I bet.

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    Replies
    1. I have to admit that Daddy being fed grapes was priceless, along with his reclining pose as he ate! He really looked the part. The next most priceless was the little blonde pigtailed Baby Jesus who was sticking out the other end of the manger! Good thing I nailed it together when I put it together!

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  6. I love, love, love this idea! Great way to keep "Christ" in Christmas!

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  7. This post truly delighted my heart. What a wonderful and delicious idea! You truly made a memory with your family. May you have an enchanting Christmas season.

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    1. I think eating on the floor for the Nativity night will be a new tradition! And no spills!!!

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  8. What a lovely way to celebrate the birth of our Lord! Teaching children (and adults) the real meaning behind Christmas.

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    1. The little ten year old boy said it was one of his favorite things! Hope they remember!

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  9. It certainly was a magical night Jackie! I love how you used the boards and the menu was perfect. The kids and daddy made me laugh! We react the Nativity some years, but have never planned our meal around it. Fun idea! Thanks for sharing with Creating Christmas.
    hugs,
    Jann

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    Replies
    1. Jann the meal was so easy! I got home from choir practice at church 15 minutes before they arrived - whew! The two little helpers just placed things on the table and were ready to answer the door and tell them there was no room in the inn!

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  10. Believe it or not, I just saw/read this! I'm glad I didn't miss it! What a wonderful way to prepare for Christmas! Thank you for sharing!

    Katherine

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