One of My Favorite Posts...A Few Christmas Memories and a Special Treasure...

I originally wrote this post December 22nd of 2010.   Some of you might remember it...it is one of my favorites...I hope you will enjoy it, too!  I've done a little editing, to bring it up to date...

 I love this old (over 50 Christmases ago now) photo of my sister and I (I'm on the right) with Santa!  My parents always made the holidays so fun for us...I remember my father decorating~ putting up our trees with colorful lights and ornaments, tinsel, and OH... the bubble lights!  How they fascinated me!  Dad always enjoyed decorating the outdoors~ he would put foil on the front door with a big red bow and greens we cut ourselves, and transform the column poles in front of the house into candy canes.  Our window panes were lit and decoratively sprayed with snow spray and stencils~ we lived in the south for much of my childhood, but you'd never know it by looking at our windows...I can still remember the scent of spray snow!

 

My most special gifts were handmade by my parents~ Barbie and troll clothes, a dollhouse and big doll furniture, and a fun toy box with Dad's hand painted characters from the Sunday Comics...
My mom did crafts with us and had fun art supplies~magical glitters, stars, and construction paper for cards, trees, and chains, and I remember making lots of special cookies~ especially cut-out frosted sugar cookies with sprinkles (dad did the spritz).  She made a VERY special apron for cookie baking- an appliqued and embroidered Santa face with a big pompom.  My sister and I spent many fun hours using it like a mask and pretending to be Santa.  Over the years, and many moves later (my father was in the Air Force for over 20 years) the Santa apron was sadly misplaced.
Two brothers arrived when I was older, and Christmases became even more fun watching them through little ones eyes.  We took many snowy evening drives to see Christmas lights, and played Christmas music on the stereo!   Here's a photo of the four of us... you might remember the furry hats in the late 60's...I LOVED that white hat!  Around this period of time my father was gone for a year in Vietnam~ a hard time for my family...


 
One day several years ago, I received an unexpected package in the mail from my mother...it was THE Santa apron!!  She had found it, quite by accident, in a storage barrel out in the garage!  She worked hard to clean it up and gave it a new fluffy white pom pom!  I had wished for it for so many years!  Needless to say, it reduced me to a blubbering girl, and is my Christmas treasure today!  It takes me right back to being a young girl again...





I think the things I do for Christmas today are directly influenced by my childhood memories...I love to have the outside of our home decorated!  For the last 40 Christmases, my dear husband has decorated every year (and I know it's not his favorite thing to do).  It has been a gift of love to me, our children, and now grandchildren, and I am so grateful for it!  Thank you sweetie...XO



And to my sweet parents...I know many miles separate us this Christmas, but we are with you in spirit...thank you both for so many wonderful Christmas memories, for always being there, and for being the best parents a girl could have!  I love you both!  Merry Christmas! 





Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas with those you love, as we celebrate our Savior's birth... I hope you make some of your own memories this year!

Until next time...I'll be baking cookies and wrapping presents...the kids and grandkids are coming Christmas Eve and I am so grateful they'll all be here!  I'll be back to posting after Christmas!  A big XO to you all!  Merry Christmas!

Until next time...