Christmas Memories

[Kaycee]

Lets get into the spirit of Christmas.

I've had good, and I've had bad, but never ugly Christmases, maybe an odd Christmas.

The best Christmases will always be my childhood ones where there were loads of presents food and fizzy. And relations everywhere. A real Dalmation Christmas.

My oddest Christmas was about three years ago when no 4 son, at 13, was in hospital on a drip and being treated for cellulitus. I am telling you those ham sandwiches, which was the only thing we had time to sort out for Christmas dinner were delicious. It is strange being in a hospital on Christmas day, and it is very quiet and surreal.

My worst Christmas is what nightmares are made off, but I will never forget it, nor even want to forget it even though it was my worst and was over thirty years ago when I was a mere teenager.

Cathy

[Guest AutumnE]

Im sorry you have had hard christmas's, especially with your son

My christmas has never been bad yet (knock on wood) . For me our main family my mom, dad, sister and her family, me and my family is what has made it special. I can honestly say even growing up not one gift ever made it special to me either. My best memories are having my dad home since he worked so much overtime always except christmas, baking goodies,and singing songs. Also when we were little he would tie our sled to his tractor and pull us around the yard over and over again regardless of snow lol! Im sure our neighbors had a kick out of it but it was sooo much fun. Also our backyard would flood in the back every year without fail during fall so come winter it would freeze and voila our skating rink. One of our gifts each christmas was new skates to skate in our backyard with.

I could say otherwise about extended family! OY they are definitely characters! But I dont include them in my christmas thoughts

[Kaycee]

It was only two bad christmases, the rest have been pretty wonderful.

My parents did spoil us with the presents, but by the time we left school it was slim pickings.

I always found it so hard to go to sleep Christmas eve, I was so excited. I remember one year trying to sleep through the two days prior to Christmas.

We don't get the snow here, and our Christmases are in the middle of summer, but your mention of the sled made me remember feeding hay out to the cows in winter with a horse pulling the sled. It was freezing, but such a beautiful memory. Then a few years later it would've been with a tractor. That was such a long time ago, and not a thing to do with Christmas.

Cathy

[Generic]

I remember a year where I was in the ER on Thanksgiving, my birthday (Dec. 6th), Christmas eve/day then New Year's day. It started out by my mom accidently giving me the wrong pie on turkey day. I knew as soon as I tasted it that it was the wrong pie and spit it out.

I was so sick on Christmas, my mom opened my presents for me. I didn't even care that I got anything.

Looking back I laugh about it now, but my mom still feels bad about it. And Yes It was all from accidental glutenings. Back then we were still getting the hang of it, I think I had been on the diet about 6-9 months.

-Laurie

[Adelle]

I don't remember much.. But here's how my sister and I learned the truth about santa. We woke up in the middle of x-mas eve night... Santa was here! We saw a costume clad man walking around our living room (we were 3 and 4 at the time). Sneaking across the hall, we quietly woke my mom who told us to stay in her room (which we didn't). Mom held santa at gunpoint until the police showed.....

Some dide broke in and was trying to steal our presants (we were poor and didn't have anything but re-wrapped toys etc).

Afterwards she explained that she wasn't going to hurt santa, as there is no such person.

My saddest x-mas to date!

[Kaycee]

Adelle that is so sad how you learnt the truth about Santa. That sort of thing sticks in your mind forever. But having Santa held at gunpoint conjures up some interesting images.

It reminds me of the time when I was about 7 and I still believed and my cousin, who was a year younger than me put me straight on the Santa business. I was so devastated, how could he do that to me. I refused to believe.

Another nice Christmas was Christmas eve when we had moved back up north and everyone had gone to bed, and I was in the dining room doing a crossword on my onw, when I saw Santa walk past my window. Nobody believed me that Santa walked past our house that night. Honest I was not seeing things. Nor had I been drinking.

Cathy

Cathy

[Kaycee]

I am a little concerned that most of the memories for this thread seem to be sad memories, but they all mean a lot to us personally. Is that all we have, sad memories? Some of mine granted are sad, but those same memories are beautiful.

I was hoping for a bit of laughter and cheer, mixed in with maybe a sad poignant memory or too, but I guess I started off the thread on the wrong footing, so what else can I expect. Sorry about that.

I do hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas this year, with lots of cheer and that there be no tears, only ones of happiness.

Cathy

[ravenwoodglass]

Some of my best memories are also my ugliest. We had an aunt that had the worst taste you could imagine, you know the kind- they give you footie pj's on your 16th birthday. Every Xmas we always opened her gifts first. They always put a smile on your face, the best example was the year she gave my Mom a set of luxurious bath towels, they were olive green and fushia. Horrendous they were but they always made us think of her and smile when we used them.

Other than that memories of dinners at my cousins house will always warm my heart.

My biggest disappointment wasn't in a present I got but one I gave. I saved for weeks to get my little brother a hot wheels set. I couldn't wait to see his face. Then he opened a bigger box before mine and it was a bigger, better hot wheels set with tracks. I cried for hours because I didn't put that smile on his face.

[Jestgar]

My worst/best Christmas was when my dad was in the hospital, just having undergone surgery for prostate cancer that they had discovered just before Thanksgiving. All of us came to the hospital (7 kids, assorted spouses) and brought decorations,lights and stuff for his hospital room. His doc saw how we all interacted and decided that he would be better taken care of at home, and released him on Christmas Eve.

[jerseyangel]

My worst/best Christmas was when my dad was in the hospital, just having undergone surgery for prostate cancer that they had discovered just before Thanksgiving. All of us came to the hospital (7 kids, assorted spouses) and brought decorations,lights and stuff for his hospital room. His doc saw how we all interacted and decided that he would be better taken care of at home, and released him on Christmas Eve.

What a nice story

[Lisa]

When my daughters were young, one would wake in the wee hours and wake the other. They would sneak down stairs and grab their stocking and tip toe back upstairs, hide in a closet and go through their goodies from Santa. (I always put a pair or two of shoes on the last step and they always knocked the shoes to the floor, and that was my cue that they were up and around).

I miss hearing those shoes fall. In later years, I had to knock them in the head with the same shoes just to get them OUT of bed at 11:00am.

Lisa

[Generic]

I think one of the best memories for me was when I was 3 or 4. I got from santa a "rocky rollie school bus". It was one of those weeble wobble things. LOL. I was so excited. I think my mom still has that thing up in the attic. Oh the memories that are stashed up there.

-Laurie

[Lisa]

I think one of the best memories for me was when I was 3 or 4. I got from santa a "rocky rollie school bus". It was one of those weeble wobble things. LOL. I was so excited. I think my mom still has that thing up in the attic. Oh the memories that are stashed up there.

-Laurie

Oh, I love the weebles........ weebles wobble but, they don't fall down.

In fact, when I was recovering from symptoms of celiac, it was a joke in our home. "Mom wobbles, but she doesn't fall down" It sure is good not to be a weeble anymore.!!!!

[happygirl]

Thanks for the laugh, Lisa. I needed that!!!

Christmas is the most magical time in our family. My mom works so hard to make it so great for us...as kids, teenagers, coming home from college, and now as we are all "young adults" (and she has two grandkids, who are my nieces). Going to Christmas Eve service in our Christmas dress that we carefully picked out, singing the hymns with my Grandma who would fly up every year (she used to wear her fur coat and I thought that was the coolest thing), then we open presents Christmas Eve. We'd go to bed so that Santa could come (and we would see Rudolph's nose blink through the curtains and hear the reindeer on the rooftop....but magically only one of my parents would come in to check on us when we'd hear Santa and his sleigh....hmmm )

This year we'll all be together at my Grandma's starting Christmas Day....Grandma, parents, brother/s-i-l and two nieces, including a 1 month old baby!, hubby and myself, and sister. Can't wait :) Love the full house...esp since they all cook and bake wonderful gluten free delights for me. Even my 86 year old grandma knows how to read labels, knows what "safe" means, and knows about cross contamination on the counters and condiments. How lucky can a girl get?!!!

I'll leave out the story of last Christmas, when we raced up late Christmas night after hubby worked, to drive 300+ miles to get to my parents. Hubby hit a deer. Hard. Finally get to my parents....and hubby finds out that his wife (i.e., me!) left his suitcase at home. Packed. Full of clothes. At home. Whoops.

[floridanative]

One of my most memorable Christmas' was when my younger siblings woke up about 4 am to find that Santa had already brought their long awaited trampoline. They went out in the pj's (no slippers) and jumped and screamed and probably woke up more than just me and our parents - lol! Luckily it was in FL so it wasn't that cold.

One of the funniest times (funny now anyway) was when Mmy Mother ordered me a stereo but when she picked it up she didn't confirm it was what she ordered. So I got up that morning with no 'big' gift since my stereo turned out to be a silver tea service set. I was so mad, really fuming that Mother could have made such a huge mistake. I was a bit of a brat as you can tell. Today I wish I still had the tea set - it would be much more valuable that the stereo that worked for about two years.

[Pink-Bunny]

My worst Christmas was the one where I lived with my dad at age 5.

My best Christmas' are always the best. I wake my gram up at 530 (yes I know Im 23). I tell her that Santa came and come on we have to open presents. My bf comes over at like 545 we open presents here and then we go up to his house to wake his mom and brother. We open presents there then. We have to rush to get ready to go to his gram's for dinner then rush to my cousin's for dinner. My cousin's house is a blast. We have 'special' gifts which is something weird or just plain 'what' that you get for free or close to free and hand them out. The first year Carl and I spent Christmas together I forgot to explain special gifts to him and my Uncle gave him a box for an iron (carl was excited) yet it had a jar of olives. Then we eat and talk then the women of the family put music on and dance around =)

At times I wish it were times of before my bf...that way I wouldn't be rushing around. But then again I found the love of my life.

[almostnrn]

One of my favorite Christmas memories was sneaking down the stairs in the middle of the night to see if Santa had come. My mom would leave the tree lit on Christmas Eve and it always looked so amazingly beautiful in the big dark room. It never mattered how many gifts were under the tree because the beauty of it always took my breath away. Then I'd creep back upstairs and toss and turn until the sun started to rise. There was one exception though...I was about 9 at the time. I don't have any idea what inspired me but I thought I would just open up ALL of my presents in the middle of the night. Just for the record I think I'd loose my mind if my kids ever did that. I guess I just got swept away in the moment but it was so peaceful and beautiful. My poor mother!!!

Once I grew up and moved away I could never wait to get to my parents house. Walking up to the back door the windows would be fogged up from my mom cooking and the back door would be open a little to cool off the house. Stepping through that door always made me feel like a kid again. The wonderful smells, Christmas music and my mom standing there with a big silly smile waiting to give me a kiss. Oh what I would give to have that one more time!

Most memorable....It was the first year that I had Christmas at my house. I was so excited and nervous to make it perfect and on top of all of that I was VERY pregnant. Just as my family was walking in the door, we were on the way out to the hospital. Apparently every other pregnant person in the county was in labor too so they sent me home for a little while. The house went into full blown celebration mode until my contractions got too close together and painful and I kicked everyone out of the house, lol. Finally at 10:00 pm my best gift ever decided to make a grand entrance. In the midst of a huge snowstorm my family came to see the baby and my day was perfectly complete!

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

[jerseyangel]

My favorite Christmas memories from childhood are of my whole family--aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents--having our huge Christmas Eve dinner at my grandparent's house.

The cooking would begin days before--we always had everyone's favorite pies! It was a traditional Italian Christmas Eve meal starting with deep fried smelt, various seafood dishes like squid in tomato sauce over linguini and baccala (salt cod).

We would be at the table for hours--eating and talking and arguing

Afterwards, we'd go up to the living room and open gifts. Then, some of us would go to Midnight Mass--I loved to go at midnight and sit with my grandmother at her church. I really miss my grandparents, but I was so lucky to have them here for as long as I did.

[amybeth]

My Mom is the Christmas Master! Every Christmas is wonderful. Especially when we were little and the presents never seemed to end --- and we could eat all the sugar cookies we painstakingly decorated in the days before.

My best Christmas memories are ...

...eating Christmas Eve dinner on the floor next to the tree in the dim family room with the tree lit up and completely decorated with tinsel EVERYWHERE. (For the record my sisters and I HATE tinsel, but mom loves it - so we do it up for her)

...my Christmas Eve "Dates" with my Grandfather. We go together, usually just the two of us, to the 11 o'clock service at church and as the clock strikes midnight we whisper Merry Christmas to each other. The whole congregation lights hand-held candles and they turn the lights off to sing "Silent Night". It's beautiful!

...making Christmas wish lists in the heat of July because we got bored on summer vacation.

...as an adult, staying up with my parents to wrap presents, stuff stockings, and do all the "Grown-up" parts of Christmas with them. We usually collapse into bed at 2 or 3am by the time it's all done. It's neat to spend that time with them and imagine how much fun they had when we were all little!

[gfp]

I'd really not want to get into details but I loathe Christmas .... from my times as a child where XMAS meant everyone else laughing because we couldn't afford the same must-have-latest toy to my mum being ill most years through not eating in order to save up to buy the stupid presents that everyone at school would make fun of... of course I didn't realise my mom wasn't eating back then...

Now I just see XMAS as a HUGE waste.... It disgusts me to see people buying presents merely fort the sake of it... and because its expected when most of the presents will be cast away into bins etc. and while over 75% of the world still has no clean drinking water...

[Lisa]

Well then, buy a goat, buy a cow in a third world country and that gift goes on and on, in some one's name. I would be wonderfully pleased if someone would do that in my name.

Glad to see you back Steve with your grumpy self. Cheer up, this is the time of giving.

Lisa

[jkmunchkin]

Ok well since I'm Jewish most of my Christmas memories are of having "Jewish Christmas", aka going to the movies and having Chinese food. LOL!!

But my husband is Roman Catholic and seeing as how we dated for about 8 1/2 years before we even got married a little over a year ago, I've had a bunch of Christmas' now.

He is the oldest of 4 boys and a couple years ago when Furby was the hot toy for Christmas his mom decided to get each of them a Furby. Not sure why since he was in his late twenties at the time and the youngest was probably about 15, but whatever. Needless to say even though him and I had been living together for about 3 years at this point, his mom still wouldn't let us sleep in the same room. So he slept in the finished basement and I slept on the couch in the living room. Well that seemed fine until all 4 Furby's started talking to each other... in Furby language.... ALL NIGHT!!!!

I wanted to kill these things. Needless to say, we've never slept over again since then, and I have an extreme hatred for Furby. LOL!!

Oh, and I should add that his mom keeps the house insanely hot. I've actually been in the house in the summer where the house is hotter than it is outside. I sleep with the windows open or the air conditioning on year round, so you can imagine how happy I was sweating to death listening to 4 Furby's saying, "Coco La La."

[Rusla]

Well all of my childhood x-mas's were bad so, we won't get into that.

However, the best of the worst was when I was in the hospital, as per usual and in the hospital I started to make a stuffed bunny. When I came home I continued to work on the bunny. My little brother adored it but I told him it was for our sister.

He was so excited and happy on xmas morning when he unwrapped it and found out I had made it for him. So, that would have been the best of my worst xmas's.

Xmas really means nothing to me. I think everything should go back to the old ways of people making things for each other. One year I made stained glass lamps for everyone in the family.