Christmas Trivia

Here is some festive and useless information:

• “Rudolph" was actually created by Montgomery Ward in the late 1930's for a holiday promotion. The rest is history.


• If you received all of the gifts in the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas," you would receive 364 gifts.


• The first Christmas cards were invented in 1843, the Victorian Era.


• Holly berries are poisonous as are mistletoe berries but ironically both plants are considered lucky.


• In 1843, "A Christmas Carol" was written by Charles Dickens in just six weeks.


• More diamonds are sold around Christmas than any other time of the year.


• In Mexico, wearing red underwear on New Year's Eve is said to bring new love in the upcoming year.


• It was believed to be lucky to eat an apple on Christmas Eve.


• In Germany, the last ornament on the tree is a pickle shaped ornament. In the morning, the child who finds the Christmas pickle gets a special present.


• In Greece, burning old shoes during the Christmas season is said to prevent misfortunes in the coming year.


• In 1647, the English parliament passed a law that made Christmas illegal. Festivities were banned by Puritan leader, Oliver Cromwell, who considered feasting and revelry, on what was supposed to be a holy day, to be immoral. The ban was lifted only when the Puritans lost power in 1660.


• In Britain, eating mince pies at Christmas dates back to the 16th century. It is still believed that to eat a mince pie on each of the Twelve Days of Christmas will bring 12 happy months in the year to follow.


• It is estimated that 400,000 people become sick each year from eating tainted Christmas leftovers.


• Santa's Reindeers are Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen.


• The best selling Christmas trees are Scotch pine, Douglas fir, Noble fir, Fraser fir, Virginia pine, Balsam fir and white pine.

So now you know!