Childhood Christmas Memories

*Putting out milk and cookies for Santa (and then I think at some point it was suggested to switched it to Coke and pretzels...hmmmm?)
*Sneaking downstairs and seeing my parents putting together my first 2 wheel bike (and never telling them)
*The original Noma Bubble Lights on our Christmas tree, I could watch them for hours
*Houses all decorated in blue lights
*Driving around after dark to see all the Christmas decorations and lights
*Christmas parade in town with the Miss Merry Christmas float
*Shopping on Main Street for gifts and not a mall
*Saving up my money and buying my mom a nativity set from the fancy gift store in town
*Bob Hope and Andy Williams (with the Osmond Brothers) TV Christmas Specials
*Waiting forever for my parents to get up (and have their cup of coffee) so we could open our gifts
*Watching my dad put together a crystal radio set my brother got
*Getting a 3 foot Patty Play Pal doll from my Aunt and Uncle, taking it with us when we went out to a restaurant for dinner, and the waitress setting a place for it
*The bright pink embroidered comforter my brother sent when he was stationed in Korea
*Taking my new skates to Tommy's Pond and spending hours skating or going down the hill there on a sled or "Flying Saucer" I got one year
*The living room floor being covered in a sea of gift wrap (and my mom sometimes opening something carefully and saving the paper to use again, oh and always saving the bows of course)
*My mom calling back home to her parents, brothers and sisters and having a hard time getting through and when she did her Midwest accent would start to come back, and the saddest Christmas when my granddad died
*Seeing pictures from when we were little of the Christmas tree with all our gifts after they were opened and remembering certain toys
*Baking dozens of cookies to give away
*My mother making up a meal for a neighbor and always taking it over before we sat down to eat ours
*During Christmas vacation going into New York City. My dad would drop us off with my mom and we'd see the animated windows in the department stores, see the tree and skaters at Rockefeller Center (sometimes bringing our skates but we were never there at the right time to catch a session)
*Seeing the Christmas Show at Radio City Music Hall twice
*Going Christmas caroling in the snow
*The Christmas pageant at church, especially the year my brother forgot about his beard and he walked down the aisle with it hanging around his neck
*Midnight service with incense, candles and beautiful music, all made even more special when there was snow falling as we left the service, and after we'd go to the street that was lined with luminaries just to see the beautiful lights

Copyright © 2005 Deborah Sharp Loeb