Leslie Anne Tarabella Southern With a Gulf Coast Accent

The year I thought I would definitely win the Mother of the Year award, I decided to secure the trophy and crown by throwing a little Christmas party for my boys. I convinced my husband to dress up in an old Mardi Gras tunic and tie a folded tablecloth around his head to make him look like a biblical Wise Man. The invitations, (no emails, but hand addressed invitations for extra points) announced the, “Follow The Star” party — certainly the kiddie party of the holiday season.

This is a few years later when my Joseph was “Joseph” and he and Mary shared the same orthodontist.

After the gang arrived, we had story time that reminded the wiggly children about the journey the Wise Men took to find the baby Jesus. Then, right on cue, the Wise Man showed up at the door in his sparkling ensemble, and invited the children to come with him to follow the star. (This is where people usually sigh and say, “only in Alabama”).Totally amazed and thrilled to the point of shaking, without yet having had sugar, the children ran out the front door to find the first hidden star snuggled amongst the azaleas. The sturdy cardboard pointy star was covered with glitter and a tiny arrow pointed in the general direction of the next star, wedged into the bark of a pine tree.

Each star pointed to the next, and yuletide craziness ensued as the children scrambled, rolled, yelled and hollered all over the yard. First around the front yard, then into the back, across the street to the wooded vacant lot, and finally back to our yard, where at last, the weary travelers found the babe ( a borrowed doll from the little girl next door) snuggled on a bed of pine straw (all the hay had been sold weeks before for Halloween). The Holy child, wrapped in swaddling clothes, also came with a plate of homemade, star shaped cookies. Hallelujah! The angels and children rejoiced.

Returning to the house, swinging the baby by its leg, the miniature Wise Men made star-shaped glittery necklaces to remember the story and decorated more star cookies to take home. By the end of the afternoon, everyone under the age of 10 was covered with dirt, icing and glitter, and those over 10 who were parents, just wanted to go home and play the other Bible game, “turning water into wine.”

On the way out the door, one little boy was . . .  click HERE to finish reading the story at AL.com