12 Days Day 6: Cleaning House! w/Giveaway!

  Welcome to Day 6 of 12 Days. Usually celebrated on December 31st the sixth day of Christmas was also New Years Eve or Hogmanay.Like our New Years Eve's of today the day was filled with revelry , drinks, food and friends. I was also surprised to discover the origin my mother kept every New Years Eve that I continue to keep to this day: A Winter Cleaning. My mother always cleaned our house top to bottom on the days leading up to New Years Eve. On the actual Eve she allowed no dirty dishes in the sink or trash in the house! Our rooms also needed to be clean and fresh linens on the bed. In the past even the poorest homes practiced this as this excerpt from McNeill's The Silver Bough describes: Even in the slummiest houses brooms and pails,soap, polishing rags and darning - needles emerge from neglected cupboards and drawers,and the bairns children) receive a thorough scrubbing in honor of the New Year.    I find it amazing that my mother picked up this tradition somehow even though she was born centuries later in South Carolina!! love this tradition because it makes me feel like I'm starting the year,fresh and organized.  Now for the GIVEAWAY! I worked really hard this year to get through my groaning TBR pile , Ive donate books, had self imposed book purchasing bans, and joined every readathon and challenge that fit my book categories. One of my rewards besides great reading is this:  

 An Empty Bookshelf!!!!! Though my trip to ALA midwinter next month might change this clean space. The Prize for this contest is Six Books I've read/purged from my bookshelf:  

 RULES:USA ONLYYOU MUST BE 13 YEARS OLD TO ENTERCONTEST ENDS 12/11/10 LEAVE A COMMENT WITH YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS