Holiday Parties - Advent Day #7

I do not remember any holiday parties, but we did have lots of family gatherings. Especially on Christmas Day. Our whole family would gather at my house (which was my grandfather and grandmothers house).  Fourteen plus of us. Even after some of us were married, we always went to their house Christmas morning. We would open gifts for a little while, eat breakfast, then back to more gifts, because then others would have arrived by then. What great, great memories. So when we all got together it was like having a big party.

The Chinese Gift Exchange

 For the past eight years, we have had a New Year's Eve Party at our house. It is usually our church family and family. We meet at 8 pm, we eat, we play games, waiting for the the new year to come in. Every year our gathering seem to grow by one or two, because one of the young people will have a new baby that year. This year will be no exception, Kylie (Austin & Jordyn's cousin) will be attending her first New Years Eve party this year. One of the main attractions at this party has always been a Chinese Gift Exchange. We have a blast with this. The gifts aren't that expensive (so everyone can participate), but we sure have fun playing it.

Santa Claus - Christmas Advent Day #6

Santa Claus, did I ever send a letter to Santa Claus? Oh my, yes. For as long as I can remember there has been a letter to Santa Claus. Every Christmas the highlight would be Aunt Dee and Uncle Dennis who came from West Virginia. And Aunt Dee would always make a big deal about our letters to Santa Claus. Up until a few years ago Aunt Dee would still come up for Christmas, and every year there would be a letter to Santa Claus. Of course, as we started leaving home and starting our own families, we began our own letter writing. But Aunt Dee would still write about all of us in her letters to Santa. We have been writing letters to Santa every year since we have been married. Then as the kids got older they started taking over that responsibility. Heather still writes our letters. I just wish, way back when the kids were younger that I had kept all of those letters. I have been for several years now, but not all of them have been kept. Did I ever set on Santa's lap? My biggest memory of that is seeing Santa in the Poland's store in Bel Air. But I think I was afraid, and not sure I ever actually sat on his lap. Our Santa was always my grandfather. I did not catch on to who it really was until I was about 7 or 8. Of course, being the oldest of my brother and my cousins, I could not say anything to the others. But they all eventually figured it out. Even when Chrissy was little, Poppop would put on his Santa suit, and come over and visit Chrissy. It took her several years to warm up to being so close to Santa Claus, even in the mall. But she finally learned to like Santa.

Outdoor Christmas Decorations - Advent Day #5

Did someone say Christmas Decorations? As long as I can remember, there have always been Christmas decorations outside. My grandfather lived for the holidays and I believe he was one of those who went "all out". He went far beyond expectations. He is a painter by trade and is not afraid of ladders or heights. And every year he would get up on that two story house (on a ladder) and put the lights up. He so enjoyed that. Not only the house would be decorated, but the yard, the rose arbor, the windows, whatever he could get lights on or around, he would do it. I especially remember one Christmas season, it was a Sunday, and my Aunt and her kids were up visiting with us. ( My Mom, brother and I all lived with my grandparents.) It was getting to be dusk and all of us kids were inside watching Rudolph. After my grandfather got everything decorated, we all went outside to watch them be turned on. What things we take for granted as kids. He is up in years now, and I have noticed that he doesn't quite do the "all out" decorating he once did. Once Ricky and I were married, we started our own decorating. It seemed the older we got, and the more kids we had, and the older they got, the outside decorating became so much more fun to do. When we lived in our mobile home in Whiteford (for 18 years), is when we really started doing the outside decorating. It seemed that in those days, I was really keen on candy canes, and you could see quite a few in the yard, or deck. Ricky would get on a ladder and put lights all up on the top of the trailer. Now that we live in our house (for the past 8 years), our decorating became more involved. As my grandfather, my husband is also not afraid of ladders or heights. So ever year we have had lights on the house, but also everywhere in the yard. We have accumulated alot of outside decorations. Of course some have lasted through the years, but most has not. This year we are starting to replace out old strand of lights for the new LED lights. This year we were able to get enough for the top of the house. We have slimmed our decorating down some, but we still have alot. Of course, we now do it for the grandchildren (that's what tell ourselves anyway), but I think we mostly do it for ourselves. But, our big children would not let us forget if we did not do the outside decorating too. It's one of those things we have all come to expect and to enjoy. I love riding around looking at the decorations from others. One of those places we like to go is to Herr's Chip factory in Nottingham pa. They go all out and it is drive through. All of us have piled into the van every year just to ride up there and see it, with a stop at Wawa after for hot chocolate. Another place we like is to go to 34th Street in Hamden in Baltimore. So I guess, while we can, we will doing this outdoor decorating for Christmas, although we say it is for the kids, but I know better.

Christmas Cards - Advent Day #4

Christmas Cards I am sure that my family sent out cards, I was not involved with that much. Cards that were received were hung up on the wall somewhere. We still send cards, but with the cost of stamps, I send nowhere near what we used to send. And the cards we now receive has also dropped quite a bit from what it used to be. We always give cards at church and at family functions, but there are still those that I seem to mail each year. I can always know for certain, that we will get our first Christmas card of the season on the day following Thanksgiving. This happens every year and is from the same family every year. I always say I am going to do that, but I never seem to get it done or think about it till it's too late. We hang all of our cards up that we receive, usually in the kitchen somewhere. There are three cards that are kept year after year, and get stored away with all the Christmas stuff, and that are small cards, that have a pop out in them, that Linda and Tommy (Ricky's sister and brother in law), gave to Chrissy, Devin and Heather many years ago. They loved those cards. Now I still get them out and display them somewhere in the house every Christmas. Now Austin and Jordyn like looking at them too.

Christmas Tree Ornaments - Advent Day #3

Christmas Tree Ornaments We have a ton of ornaments that have been accumulating for the past 33 years. It's funny, but I don't remember much about the ornaments my family used or had. It seems like there were alot of round glass ones, but not sure if there were any special ones. If there were, they never made their way to me. As for us, though, it all began about 32 years ago on Chrissy's first Christmas, she was only 4 months old. It seems that having children of your own brings out that kind of thing, like ornaments for the Christmas tree. We have always tried to set our own traditions and customs, and I think we have succeeded. Before we moved to the house we live in now, about 8 years ago, we always had one tree... a live one... and all of the ornaments, lights etc went on it. Now, we usually have two. The one downstair is artificial and has all ornaments from the past on it, plus some new ones. I sometimes leave a few off the tree when I do the decorating, but this year, Devin and Heather decided to put up and decorate that tree, and they used every last one of those ornaments. It was nice hearing their reactions as they pulled out each one. Some were ones we had given all three of them for a special interest they had at the time, or many that they each had made from Sunday School, etc. Some have lost parts or have changed color, but sure do bring back special memories. So, as with our own kids, and now with the grandkids, I guess the ornaments will keep accumulating.

Holiday Foods - Advent Day 2

For as long as I can remember, my grandmother always made a ham and a turkey for Christmas, not to mention all the side dishes she made. The best side dish for me, was sweet potatoes. I can remember my grandfather always taking the ham or turkey in and out of the oven to check or baste it. We had a table spread full of food for Christmas. Even when she moved into the mobile home, she still cooked all of this food. I don't remember anything unusual. She even made from scratch all the pies and other desserts. She has been gone now for 21 years. Heather was not even two when she died, so she missed those holiday meals. I have such fond memories of those earlier Christmases. Between her and my grandfather, they always made Christmas something to be remembered. So I have always tried to make our Christmases something that our kids and grandkids will remember as fondly as I remember past Christmases. And those certain foods, that even now my kids have to have for the holidays, have now become a tradition.

The Christmas Tree

The Christmas Tree has always been a part of our holiday season. When I was growing up, my Mom, brother and I lived with with my grandparents. And we always had a live tree and sometimes a tree would be so wide around. Poppop always seemed to be the one who decorated the tree. I can't remember much about where a tree came from or who would get it, but it was always there. I carried this tradition over to my married life. Ricky's Mom and Dad were very conservative as far as decorating for Christmas. For many years his Mom had a little green ceramic tree that she put together and put up every year. My kids, each had their turns helping Mommaw put this tree together. Now, I have that tree, and the girls still put that tree together every Christmas and it gets placed somewhere in the house. And now we also have Austin and Jordyn helping. Ricky and I started out having artificial trees, then somewhere along the line, when the kids were still young, we started going to tree farms, to look and cut down that perfect tree. It was a family affair, even with the dogs. Then the kids got older and Ricky and I started getting a live tree at lots. Then last year, Devin and Heather decided we needed to go back to a tree farm and find that perfect tree. So, as I was told last night, they are expecting to go looking for that perfect tree again this year. Since we moved into our house, we now have two big trees and smaller trees in about every room. Last night, Devin and Heather decided to decorate the downstairs tree (which is artificial). I am not sure what has come over them. It is not decorated the way I would have done it, but, I have to say, that it looks pretty awesome. I guess they are carrying on the traditions we started. The highlight for me, is going to get the live tree, and decorating it, as my special tree. It sits in front of my picture window for all to see. Blue and white lights and ornaments. It becomes the center piece for all of our Christmas decorations and lights that we have out in the front of the house. Not sure how long Ricky and I will be able to go and have a live tree, but as long as we are able I would like to have a real tree. I love the way that every year that Christmas tree always looks different, different shape, different smell. We have thought about putting an artificial tree, or no tree at all in the living room, but it just would not be the same. And just as we have these traditions with our kids (and they have come to expect every year), we are making new traditions with the grandkids. Things they will always remember about Gammy and Poppy and our decorations at Christmas time, just as our kids remember certain things about my grandfather and grandmother, and Ricky's Mom and Dad, and their ways of decorating.