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Happy Go Stuckey

Tethering Grace & Togetherness

Meaningful Christmas Books: The Legend of the Candy Cane

November 14, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey Leave a Comment

Before having children, one of the things I most anticipated was how we would celebrate Christmas as a family with little ones around. When we did add to our family, I remember buying Lucy’s Christmas stocking months before she was even born. I was ecstatic to find a little board book of the Night Before Christmas with sweet Victorian illustrations. She sat there in her Christmas blanket sleeper that first year, 6 months old and all smiles– as we read the Christmas story from Luke 2 and she kept batting at the Christmas lights like a new puppy.

_MG_7645As she has grown year by year, there are some traditions we continue and others we leave behind so that we can grab hold of another– but reading books by the Christmas Tree remains at the top of our list! One year I tried that “Pinterest-y” idea of wrapping up 25 Christmas books and having the kids open one each night to read– but we missed not having all the books to choose from throughout the month. This year, I’m planning to fill a large basket with all our Christmas books and place it under the tree to pick from. Besides, wrapping 25 EXTRA things? AintNoMamaGotTimeForThatatChristmas.

One book I am so happy to add to our collection this year is The Legend of the Candy Cane

The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg tells an inspirational story of a little girl named Lucy (!) who discovers the joyous meaning of the candy cane when she meets Mr. John Sonneman and his candy store. Mr. Sonneman moves to town and turns an old building into a wonderful candy store full of all kinds of treats, and allows his new friend Lucy to help set up shop. He takes the time to introduce her to the candy cane and the beautiful meaning of Christmas it points to. The friendly pair then take candy canes to all the residents of the town inviting them to come to Sonneman’s Candy Store Grand Opening. This story takes a simple Christmas treat and makes it something much more meaningful as it rightly ties Christmas and Easter together.

_MG_7641

_MG_7639There is no shortage of whimsical illustrations– the book itself is pure joy to read for both child and parent. The portion with the candy store looks good enough to eat and the pages which portray the first Christmas are serene and uncluttered, pointing straight to Jesus.  As a parent in a stage of life who reads a lot of children’s books– I appreciated the illustrator’s attention to detail. And even though the story is quite complete, the language is simple enough for my Five year old to help read. Another aspect I love about this particular printing of the book, is that it’s a board book– which makes it fairly indestructible even at our house!

I asked Lucy what she liked about The Legend of the Candy Cane and she said, “Well it has Jesus in it. And candy. I love both of those a lot.” 

I received a free copy of The Legend of the Candy Cane (published by ZonderKidz) from the BookLook Blogger program in exchange for my honest opinions and review, but I certainly would have purchased a copy for our house anyway.

If you would like to add The Legend of the Candy Cane* to your Christmas book library, you can get in on Amazon right now for only $9.99! (And if you have Amazon Prime, you can get free shipping in two days. Fun!)

 

*Affiliate Link with Amazon
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Hey There!

I'm Cynthia and I'm so glad you're here. I am an introvert with an extrovert's love of gathering people together. I love good books and capturing moments. Whether you visit me here or on my own front porch, I'll be the one holding the Iced Coffee for us both.

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happygostuckey

Throwing it back but not way back: remember last y Throwing it back but not way back: remember last year when we *discovered* the whipped, frothy, goodness of Dalgona Coffee?

I made it again today for the express purpose of seeing if it would still work with less sugar and I rather like my lightened up version!

(Tip: in my opinion, it makes enough for two— especially because I use instant espresso— so it’s pretty strong! Not warm where you are yet?  Tap the little flag to save this post for later.)

✨Whipped Coffee✨ 
2 TBS. instant espresso
2 TBS. cold water
1 TBS. maple syrup or simple syrup
1-2 glasses of ice and milk

Whip/ Beat the espresso, syrup, and water with an electric beater, immersion blender, or hand-held milk frother until frothy and light in color. Scoop over the milk and ice and enjoy!
🪡Do I seamstressed to you?🪡 Really though, 🪡Do I seamstressed to you?🪡 

Really though, after completing my first embroidery project, I feel like it might just be the cheapest, prettiest, stress relief out there. I am officially a believer in relaxing this way. And PS, if I can do it, you can.

Thank you, @thebarmyfox for bringing this lovely art into my life!
Joy is the courage of people who don’t have all Joy is the courage of people who don’t have all the answers, yet.

While you sit in a season of waiting,
the calendar can often be a cruel companion, reminding you that days go by, weeks, months— with what feels like very little change in the right direction.

Perhaps you can easily assent to: 
“Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

but you strain to see just how it will be when: “...a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12)

Wherever you and I are today— whether we wander, wait, stand firmly planted, or some pressed together combination of all three — we can take heart.

We are not alone.
And this will not be wasted.
What seems to be an unending blank space, an indefinite pause, is a space for new things.

Long before all is made right, and whether or not it all is tied up neatly with a perfectly crafted bow— we can know this:

We do not have to know the outcome to be faithful today.

✨Joy is not disregard for reality as much as it is obstinacy against despair.✨
Hi 👋🏻 I’m Cynthia and I’m a bit weary. T Hi 👋🏻 I’m Cynthia and I’m a bit weary. There. I said it. These days I’m gravitating to the true & the beautiful as rest for my weary self... and I wonder if you are too.

So much so, that I’m starting a new little offering, it’s called “The Feast: Wonder for the Weary” and the first issue goes out this weekend. It’s a bit more personal (okay this first one is WAY more personal. 🤭) It will be a little bit of everything, all with the goal of offering REST to both the feasters & foragers alike. If you’re already a subscriber— no need to do anything, if not— click through my bio to “keep in touch” and join the feast.✨
We are a people of both lament and praise. We hol We are a people of both lament and praise.

We hold questions without answers— yet we hold them in hands already full of good things.

We hold our daily bread, our daily gifts, and we hold the daily closeness of the God Who Sees.

The God who is no stranger to our lament, and Who Is the reason for our every hope.
He does not grow weary of our asking. Of our need to be told again, He will. 

You friend, are not invisible.
You are seen and cared for by the God who does all things well. (Even when they feel anything but.)
Married love ambition: making the kids roll their Married love ambition: making the kids roll their eyes at our “gushy-ness” as often as possible. 

President & CEO of the Lance Stuckey Fan Club— in every season, but especially on days like today.
Rainy day Mocha date, courtesy of our own toasty k Rainy day Mocha date, courtesy of our own toasty kitchen.😍🌧📚

On this chilly Saturday, we spent entirely too long browsing for books at our library and then all came home to a fire, mochas, and cocoa, respectively. Of all the things we do not know at this very moment, we know the gifts abound, and are worth counting.

PS, if you haven’t spread whipped cream on a foil-lined baking sheet to freeze, and then cut out cute shapes with cookie cutters to top your coffee or hot cocoa, may I suggest you get thee on that at once.
“If God sends us on strong paths, we are provide “If God sends us on strong paths, we are provided strong shoes.” — Corrie Ten Boom

✨File under, things to save in a fire.✨

The prayer journal pictured here contains six months of the hard & the sweet.
Six months of prayers asked & answered for ourselves and for others.
Six months of seeing through prayer, not how it changed our circumstances necessarily but how it changed us.

I always appreciate a record like this— being able to clearly see the paths we are led down, rocky though they may be? Priceless.

The ways God has come near us & drawn us to Himself again and again are written on these pages and I’ll treasure it forever.

Also pictured: Psalms Illuminated Scripture Journal. Highly recommend. Thank you always, @allifarnell
“The world is indeed full of peril, and in it th “The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.”
J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

While scrolling through my photos today, my heart was heavy to realize how far back “before” was.

Before masks and distancing, before loss, before other, more personal bits of hard. Multitudinous change, neither all bad nor all good.

With our free time, we’ve introduced our girls to Tolkien, Bilbo, Frodo, and especially Samwise the Brave. They are officially hooked and we are delighted to watch them discover another world where evil doesn’t win, and the courage of the small matters much. {they close their eyes at the Orcs and we haven’t had a nightmare yet!}🤞🏻😂😬
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