Women’s Little Christmas
In Ireland, there is a fun tradition known as “Women’s Christmas” or “Little Christmas”. Traditionally, this occurred twelve days after Christmas on January 6th to align with the Feast of Epiphany, which typically marks the end of the Christmas season. And the reason that it’s called this is to honor all of the hard work that women put into making the holiday season happen. On this day, men would take on what would have been seen as the traditional "female" household duties for the day. There was to be no cooking, cleaning, or looking after the children for women. Although it began all the way back in the 18th century, the tradition of Women’s Christmas is still strong in western Ireland. For some it may have been a house party or a quiet tea with friends. For others, it may have been a night out at a public house. Some choose to exchange gifts, others not. One thing was for certain though, and that is women were expected to rest.
Although our Christmas festivities were still ongoing, we decided to observe this halfway point by showing appreciation for Bekah’s dedication in making our season joyful. Ben orchestrated a surprise evening for Bekah, taking charge of all household and childcare responsibilities for the night. Bekah was instructed to simply hop in the Uber that had shown up at our front door and ride to an address where more details awaited.
Upon arriving at O’Shaughnessy’s (a local distillery), Bekah was pleasantly surprised to find her good friend (and frequent 25 Dates of Christmas participant) Claire waiting for her. Ben had conspired with Claire to make this evening both fun and special for Bekah and to enjoy a much needed night out. Meanwhile, back at home, Ben embraced more traditional Irish Christmas customs, preparing Ballymaloe sausage rolls with caraway seeds for the kids' dinner, playing instrumental Irish Christmas music by Craig Duncan, and leaving a dozen candles in the window per Irish tradition.
Bekah and Claire enjoyed their festive Irish holiday drinks and lively jigs by the Irish Rovers and after wrapping up their delightful outing, they returned to Claire’s home for Galette des Rois (Epiphany King’s Cake), Irish Cream Hot Chocolate, and a fitting movie choice—“Bad Moms Christmas,” adding a humorous touch to their celebration. And with this fun and relaxing evening behind us, we’re all recharged to head into the second half of our holiday season!
ACTIVITIES:
Women’s Night Out at Irish Bar
12 Candles in Windows
“Bad Mom's Christmas” Movie
FOOD & DRINK MENU:
Bunratty Meade Irish Wine
INTERESTING READS & CONTEXT:
