photo credit: Iain Farrell

Thanksgiving time is for families and friends to get together and be thankful for all their blessings bestowed upon them during the last year, and throughout their life.

I am very grateful for having a wonderful, loving family, and for all the blessings we all are enjoying.  Being a grandmother is the most rewarding experience in the world, and right now, my husband and I are blessed with two beautiful grandchildren, and more to come in the future.

I am also very thankful for all my friends whom I personally know, and all of my blog readers.

THANK YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH for visiting my site, leaving comments, and being part of my everyday life, connected via Internet.

This December I will celebrate my 2nd Blogging Anniversary, and am very pleased to inform you that my readership started with 600 visits per month, and currently it stands at 4500, and growing.

ALL THANKS TO ALL OF YOU!

Besides  this blog, suburbangrandma.com is also actively connected through Facebook and Twitter.

I am equally thankful to all my followers from Facebook (95 as of this post), and Twitter (69 and growing).

If you enjoy reading my posts, please keep the list growing by becoming my follower, and spread the word to your family and friends.

My readers come from 89 countries, all over the globe, so today I would like to list the top ten, as per the Analytics Report, and thank everyone for their time and loyalty:

1. United States of America
2. Canada
3. United Kingdom
   
4. Australia
5. India
6. Philippines
   
7. Brazil
8. Ukraine
9. Germany
10. Netherlands

Seeing these results fuels me with additional energy, perseverance, and a definite continued dedication of my time and effort, to keep my blog going that much stronger.

H A P P Y   T H A N K S G I V I N G!!!

Last year I posted pictures of Korovai and Wedding Cakes from weddings I have attended, and promised to do the same from all future weddings I will attend.

I had the pleasure of attending three weddings this year, and will share some of the special traditions and pictures from each of these weddings.

Today I will share my stories and pictures from a Ukrainian-Greek wedding, my husband and I attended, which took place at St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church, in Toronto, Canada.

This wedding was very special to us, since the daughter of our long time friend was getting married, and also because the wedding ceremony was taking place in the same church as the filming of the, the ever so popular movie, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”.

The church ceremony was traditional Ukrainian, which is very similar to the Greek tradition as well, since Ukrainians accepted Christianity from Constantinople in 988.

The reception took place in a very tastefully decorated banquet hall, with delicious food, and exquisite Venetian Hour.

It began with the traditional Ukrainian bread, wine and salt greeting of the newlyweds, by their parents.

The Bride and Groom also followed a Greek traditional game of guessing who will be the “boss” in their household.  They stood side by side, slightly apart, each held one end of a loaf of bread (Challah loaf) with one hand, and tried to pulled it away from each other.  The person who ended up with the larger portion of the bread in their hand, will play the dominant role in the family.

I will not disclose who the winner was (Bride or Groom), but am encouraging you to leave your guesses in the comment section, and I will reveal the answer to the 10th commenter.

The wedding fun picked up with the traditional Greek Dance, a line dance similar to the Italian Tarantella, or the Jewish Hava Nagila, and the fun kept on escalating as the reception continued.

The Bride also chose to incorporate a Ukrainian tradition of exchanging her veil for a head scarf (babushka).

This tradition takes place toward the end of the wedding reception.  The Bride is seated on a chair in the middle of the dance floor.  Her mother takes the white veil off her daughter’s head, and replaces it with a white flowered head scarf, while special songs are being sung by a chorus of ladies.  The veil is then passed around, and worn by singles ladies who takes turns to dance with the Groom.  The Bride engages in a dance known as “veil dance”, as the guests line up to dance with the Bride, offer money for the dance, and are served a cordial drink.

Another tradition present at almost every Ukrainian wedding, is the gorgeous bread called Korovai, which is basically a gift to the Bride and Groom, by the Bride’s mother.  The Korovai symbolizes love, prosperity, and fertility wished upon the Newlyweds.

At last, here is the very traditional part of every wedding in United States, and obviously Canada – The Wedding Cake.

This Bride and Groom selected Peacock as their wedding theme, hence also reflected on their wedding cake.  The Peacock on this cake was created from sugar. Each feather was made separately, and individually hand painted before being attached to the cake to crate this beautiful display of the full view of the Peacock.

The artwork was stunning, and the cake was decadent.

We had a very busy summer this year, full of long distance traveling, and it’s not over yet.

We attended girl baby shower, a boy baby shower, couple of wedding showers, plus few weddings, and other family functions.

At least this year the gasoline prices were much lower than 2 years ago…lucky for us, and all the other travelers.

You already have seen many pictures of my suburban gardening, flowers, and snow, so here are some of my pictures from the trips:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:

Washington, DC:

New York City:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada:

We really enjoyed the events we attended in these cities, as well as the site seeing.

I love watching the busy city life, and admire the convenience, but I enjoy the relaxing atmosphere of the suburbs.

Saint Nicholas, was the “gift giver” I was familiar with during my childhood.  He had a white beard, was dressed in bishop’s garbs, carried a crozier, and arrived on a white horse. On December 6th, he was visiting well-behaved children, and placing candy and cookies under their pillows. If you were really good, then he would drop off more goodies on Christmas Eve. You also were expected to know your Catechism, in case he decided to quiz you, before leaving you a gift.  We recited prayers and songs dedicated to St. Nicholas, instead of leaving him milk and cookies.

I was not familiar with “Santa” the chubby, jolly old man with white beard, dressed in a red suit and an elf‘s hat, with deer pulling his sleigh. Oh well, those were the days, when Christmas was about the Birth of Christ, rather than Christmas shopping, and children were happy with whatever they received, even if it was not exactly what they wished for.

My children grew up knowing both “gift givers”; St. Nicholas on December 6th, and Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. You would think that it couldn’t get better than that…..until, one year they asked if we could celebrate Hanukkah, so they could receive gifts for eight days….…..figure that!!

St. Nicholas was a bishop, who was born in a small city in Greco-Roman Lycia, an area known now as Turkey. He was a bishop of coastal city of Myra. He was a man of great caring and generosity, and gift giver to children and the needy. There is an urban legend that St. Nicholas dropped gold coins into the hanging stocking of three young ladies, who were too poor to get married, as their father did not have enough money for a dowry. St. Nicholas  is also known as the father of Orthodoxy. He lived a long life and died on December 6th, 343 A.D.

Saint Nicholas Day is a commemorative celebration of St. Nicholas,  and is celebrated on December 6th, according to the Gregorian calendar, or on December 19th by the Julian calendar.

I have great respect for Saint Nicholas, and would like to introduce you to this celebration around the world, but mostly in  countries nearest to my location. As for the jolly old man in a red suit, that will have to be another story, later on.

I came across a site which alphabetically lists 34 different counties, from Aruba to United States, describing their traditional celebration of St. Nicholas Day.  I will share a few inserts with you, but for more detail and countries of your interest, you should check out this  site.

Ukraine
St. Nicholas, Sviatyij Mykolai, comes to Ukraine on December 6th (or the 19th in the Orthodox/Julian calendar). It is a happy day with visiting and sleigh rides. Schools have plays telling Nicholas stories and the saint visits local churches. Dressed as a Byzantine bishop, the good saint is often accompanied by angels. He quizzes children on their catechism before giving gifts. St. Nicholas Day is the main day for gift-giving, though gifts are also becoming associated with Christmas Day. Today many Ukrainian churches have St. Nicholas celebrations to help children understand that the holy man Nicholas came long before Santa Claus.

Poland
St. Nicholas, called Sw. Mikolaj, is a saintly, dignified figure in Poland; he comes as a bishop, carrying crosier. Descending from Heaven with an angel helper, he travels on foot or in a sleigh pulled by a white horse as he visits homes in the countryside. When he appears, the eager children cry, “He has come! He has come!” St. Nicholas’ presence fills the room with his smile, the twinkle in his eye, and his welcoming, booming voice. Children recite their catechism and prayers.

St. Nicholas rebukes or praises, as appropriate, before distributing holy pictures, red apples or oranges, and pierniki (saint cookies made with honey and spices). If he doesn’t come in person, treats are put under sleeping children’s pillows or left in freshly cleaned and polished shoes left out for the saint. St. Nicholas acts in his traditional religious role as a protector and patron saint while encouraging Polish children to be well-behaved, as there are switches for naughty children.

United States
Bishop St. Nicholas is celebrated by many churches and by communities which have a Dutch heritage. On the Advent Sunday closest to St. Nicholas Day, December 6, some churches have St. Nicholas festivals, large or small, with the good saint himself appearing to greet children, give instruction and encouragement, and hand out treats for children of all ages. In some places he is a focus in worship and in others he is part of a special fellowship event. St. Nicholas may also be the inspiration for a special Advent project—one which shows his concern for justice and relief of suffering. These observances are most prevalent in Orthodox and Episcopal churches, though not uncommon in many others, as well.

Canada
Many immigrant groups brought treasured traditions to Canada; Ukrainians and Dutch are among those who celebrate St. Nicholas. For Ukrainians, Christmas begins with St. Nicholas Day, when young children receive small gifts from their patron saint, Nicholas.

Parishes and schools remember Nicholas’ providing dowry money for needy young women by giving small bags of gold-colored coins to children. The children sing to welcome the saint, louder and more enthusiastically as they wait. The saint, on foot or by sleigh, comes dressed as a resplendent Byzantine bishop, accompanied by a troupe of angels. The angels help distribute goodies and small gifts.

Hopefully he’ll place something nice under your pillow on December 6th, or December 19th, depending on the calendar you follow.

Happy St. Nicholas Day.

photo credit: swimparallel

As you probably remember, there was a lot of talk going around about the new travel regulations to Canada and Mexico.  Well the talk turned to reality, and the new regulations have been approved and are being implemented.  I came across this article regarding the ID requirements for travelers to these countries.

As of Monday June 1, new ID system has been  implemented, which is much tighter than it used to be.  Please read the inserts I have selected for a quick overview,  however if you wish to read the whole article please click here.

New ID rules begin June 1 for Mexico, Canada trips
By MANUEL VALDES, Associated Press Writer Manuel Valdes, Associated Press Writer – Sat May 30, 3:23 pm ET

BLAINE, Wash. – New rules requiring passports or new high-tech documents to cross the United States’ northern and southern borders are taking effect Monday, as some rue the tightening of security and others hail it as long overdue.

• “Our research indicates approximately 80 percent of the individuals coming in now, U.S. and Canadians, are compliant,” and are crossing with proof of citizenship, said Thomas Winkowski, assistant commissioner for field operations at Customs and Border Protection.

• The higher noncompliance areas, he said, are primarily U.S. citizens in the southern border region.

• Travelers who do not comply with the new requirements will get a warning and be allowed to enter the U.S. after a background check, said Michele James, director of field operations for the northern border that covers Washington state.

• “We’re going to be very practical and flexible on June 1 and thereafter,” James said.

• The new rule, which also affects sea crossings, is the final implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, a security measure crafted from recommendations from the 9/11 Commission.

• Under the new rule, travelers also can use a passport card issued by the U.S. State Department to cross land borders. The card does not work for air travel. At $45 for first-time applicants, it’s a more affordable alternative to the traditional passport, which costs $100. More than 1 million passport cards have been issued since last year.

• Identification documents available under the “Trusted Traveler” programs are also accepted. Those require fees ranging from $50 to more than $100. These programs, developed by the U.S, Canadian and Mexican governments, allow vetted travelers faster access to the border. In some cases, members in these programs have their own lanes at border crossings.

• Enhanced driver’s licenses, which use a microchip to store a person’s information, also can be used to cross the northern and southern borders. Washington state, Vermont, New York, and Michigan are the only states that offer them so far. An application process and interview are required for these licenses.

• There will be some exceptions. Children under 16 traveling with family, people under 19 traveling in youth groups, Native Americans and members of the military will be able to use different forms of identification. Also, travelers in cruises that depart from a U.S. port, sail only within the Western Hemisphere and return the same port do not have to comply.

Tip:  To avoid any disappointments, please  get your ID documents in order before planning your trip to Canada or Mexico.