Girls' nativity

I got this little nativity when the girls were tiny -- maybe one and three -- so that they could have one to actually play with, unlike my gorgeous porcelain nativity that few people are allowed to touch. This one actually came from Avon, which seems odd to me. There were three little sets to complete to whole shebang: the Holy Family, the three animals (cow, donkey and sheep) and the Three Wise Men. The little stable, which is the perfect size, is one I bought at Dollar Tree years and years ago.

This nativity used to sit on an end table in the living room where the girls could easily reach it, but it now sits on my kitchen window sill. In keeping with our tradition, Mary and Joseph are there waiting the birth of their Babe on Christmas Eve -- Jesus will appear in his little manger-bed right after we get home from Mass -- and the sheep, representing the shepherds, will arrive soon afterward. The three little Magi will travel around the kitchen (unlike their fancy-schmancy porcelain counterparts, who travel all over the house) and arrive bearing their gifts on Epiphany Day, January 6.

I really love this sweet little nativity set and it holds lots of happy memories for me whenever I look at it, not only of the Child Jesus, but also of my own children, once so very small and now getting so grown up.