We don’t have the song The Twelve Days of Chrostmas |here in Norway, and it was unknown to me untill I bought the cd Christmas in Vienna 3 with Plàcide Domingo, Sissel Kyrkjebø and Charles Aznavour a few years ago. Sissel sing the song beautiful here, and it soon became one of my favorite Christmas songs. 
Last year I got a very special book for this collection, The Legend of the Christmas Prayer by Brian Morgan, sent to me by Rose in USA. Here is the start of the book: Once upon a Christmas time, long ago, a man who had a big heart, but little money, dreamt he could give his friends endless riches.....” In the end he gives his friends prayers, and there are 12 prayers in the book, beautifully written and illustrated with sayings from the Bible. This special book has become my favorie, and gives me the perfect Christmas mood.
Terje and Marta started baking the first Christmas cookies yesterday, two different sort. The house smelled perfect. Today we’ve been out skiing with my brother and his family, and it the backpack we had together with cheese sandwiches and hot chocolate, a small box with a few of the cakes. Actually thet are not to be eaten untill the holidays, which means Chrostmas Eva, or the night before, when we decorate the Christmas tree. But somehow they always taste better before Christmas J And more will be baked the coming weeks anyway.......
In 1999 I got an illustrated version of The Twelve Days of Christmas from an Australian penpal, illustrated with Australian animals, and two years later I got The Twelve Days of Christmas correspondence by John Julius Norwiah and illustrated by Quentin Blake from a friend in Cornwall – an absolutely funny version.
Well, two books meant a collection of course. And after that more friends have sent me 12 days of Christmas books. Jan has sent me a very special old one from 1958 (the year I was born) and terri has sent a couple of ones featuring 12 cats of Christmas. When I was in New York in November three years ago I bought Anne Gedde’s beautiful version featuring her wonderful baby photographs, and last year I bought from amazon the story behind the song, written by Helen Haide and illustrated by Laura Knorr.
The books are part of my Christmas basket collections now, one book every day (as long as I have book, there are not 24 yet!)
