The Twelve Days of Christmas....

We lose a lot because we dump Christmas almost as soon as Boxing Day is gone.    It was a good tradition to hold off the celebrations until the 24th (which is what happened when I was a boy) and then Christmas tapered off through  those extra days.   In some houses, of course, the decorations are still kept until Twelfth Night.

The song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas" was first published in 1780.   The cumulative nature of the song means that the total number of gifts delivered over the period comes to 364 delivered by the twelfth day.   

Today is the sixth day of Christmas.  You may confidently expect to have Royal Mail delivering some laying geese, gold rings, calling birds, french hens, turtle doves and a partridge.    Need more room in the garage.

#1 grandson was born on the 10th day of Christmas.  "Leaping Lord" describes him perfectly.   

PNC Bank publishes the Christmas Gift Index every year.  The cumulative index adds up the cost of all the gifts - people are hired, not purchased - and in 2015 the bottom line came to  $155,407.18 !