Some Fun(ny) Holiday Memories...

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I love the holiday season. For me it starts with Halloween and runs right to New Year’s Day. I was thinking about all the fun we’ve had on Christmas through the years. I treasure all our traditions, memories, and adventures, even the ones that went a little sideways.

When I was little, it actually snowed in Virginia Beach on Christmas Eve (once). When we opened the front door to our little porch, there were reindeer tracks in the snow. I had proof (though no photographic evidence…it was the 70s) that Rudolph and Santa were real. Sadly, I found out later the tracks came from our next-door neighbor’s German shepherd.

One year when I was really small, my parents and I stood in line to see Santa for what felt like hours at Pembroke Mall. I got all the way to the front and had a panicked meltdown. When we left, I was horrified that I didn’t get to tell him what I wanted, and I just knew Christmas was doomed that year. To my surprise, Santa still came, and he brought me some amazing toys. But how did he know? I never told him. I remember running to the phone that morning to let all my grandparents know that Santa’s for real, and that he delivered even if I didn’t have my picture made with him.

I was an only child and an only grandchild on all sides for almost five years. I had a sweet gig. Then along came my sister and my cousin just weeks apart. And my sister came home from the hospital on Christmas Eve. I wanted a puppy, and I got a sister, who was too wiggly to carry around. Talk about not getting what you asked for. It took a bit to adjust to a new baby in the house. She was loud and determined to do her own thing, but I wouldn’t trade her for anything.

My grandmother loved Christmas, and I would always spend the night after Thanksgiving with her, so we could put up her tree. I loved all her vintage decorations. She had a beautiful 1950s angel tree topper. When I came back later to visit the beautiful blond angel was bald. It fell off the tree, and her Boston terrier chewed the hair off.

The same grandmother was known all over the neighborhood for her special Christmas treats. And she loved festive hard candy. She’d put it out in a glass dish with no cover. Every time, we’d try to get a piece of the candy, it was all stuck together. She blamed it on the humidity, and we just chipped away at it until a chunk broke off. One day, I came around the corner and caught her Boston terrier licking the candy in the dish. It wasn’t the humidity.

One of the first times we hosted the holidays at our house, I wanted everything to go off without a hitch. I put the turkey and the ham in the oven, and when I went to check on them, the handle on the oven door broke off completely. I couldn’t get it open, and the door was too hot to touch. It took my husband and brother-in-law with a clamp and a pry bar several tries to get the door open. They couldn’t repair it until the oven cooled down. Thankfully, the meal wasn’t ruined or trapped in the oven.

After spending one of our first married Christmases in Virginia Beach with our families, we packed my tiny Ford Escort and headed back to Central Virginia. For weeks into the new year, my car had this weird citrisy smell that was overpowering at times. I got queasy from the scent if I ran the car’s heater. I tore that car up looking for whatever was causing the unusual smell. Finally, I told my husband about it, and he pulled the cover over the wheel well up. A bag of potpourri had fallen behind the spare tire, and the heat in the car seemed to enhance the aroma. Mystery solved.

What are some of your fun, if not funny holiday moments?

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday!

I hope you get to enjoy some family traditions and create new memories.

One of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions is to watch the WKRP in Cincinnati’s great turkey drop. Here’s the link in case you’ve never seen it.

In our house, it’s food, family, fun, football, and board games. Happy Turkey Day!

The Giving Season

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We are smack dab in the middle of the holiday season, and I’m still wondering where June and July went. It’s been crazy busy here, but I’m trying to enjoy the holiday season. I took a minute to reflect on gifts as I was standing in the check-out line at Target (No, I don’t do self-check-out. I get the worst customer service.) I was thinking about the things I’d given over the years.

When my nieces were little, (much to the dismay of my BIL), I gave the girls a karaoke machine. I was the aunt who didn’t give practical gifts. I bought the flashy splashy outfits and shoes that mom wouldn’t normally buy. I also gave them a photo book each year. (Thank you, SnapFish. I no longer have to pull out the scrapbooking supplies.) When I moved out after college, I didn’t have that many pictures from my childhood, so I made the decision to give them a photo book with their yearly highlights. They’re all grown up now, and I got to make a wedding book this year.

Now that all the nieces and nephews (and their spouses) are awesome adult human beings, I struggle with what to get them. I don’t get to shop in the hot pink toy aisle or chase after Ninja Turtle or Power Rangers action figures anymore. I’ve kinda turned into the giftcard-giving aunt. This year, I did find something fun, and I hope they like it. Funko Pop (I am such a fan of their pop culture figurines.) had an offer to create your own one-of-a-kind character. Here are the ones that I had made for Stan and me. His holds a camera and a pickleball paddle. I have a bottle of poison and the skull of my enemy. (You can see why we’re such a match.)

My parents, grandparents, and extended family always made the holidays special and magical. I love the LiteBright, the Easy Bake Oven, my sparkly blue bike with the streamers, the bright orange ride-on Corvette, all the Barbie gear, and my first brand new car. Stan and I got a puppy once for Valentine’s Day.

The gifts are awesome, but the time with family and friends is the best. I hope you and yours take the time to share each other’s company and to make some new memories this season.

What’s the best gift you’ve ever given?

Thanksgiving Traditions

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I love fall and the kickoff to the holiday seasons. There are so many Thanksgiving and fall traditions.

When I was little, my grandmother and I put up her Christmas tree on the Friday after Thanksgiving. It was always a magical time and a great capstone for Thanksgiving weekend. I love Christmas, and I usually put up four or five trees. They’re themed by decorations or color. We haven’t done the outdoor decorations in a few years, so maybe this year, we’ll Griswold the front yard.

Back in the heyday of the malls in the 80s, the Friday after Thanksgiving was always our biggest shopping day, and it was usually an all-day event that started before dawn. I like shopping online now, so I do most of mine from my desk. But those days at Lynnhaven Mall and Pembroke Mall were fun and crazy because my sister could never make up her mind, and we visited the same stores multiple times. And Thankfully, I never did get caught up in the Cabbage Patch fights. Though, my nephew did send me on a wild goose chase one year looking for a very specific blue Power Ranger (that didn’t exist.)

I have to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and all the Charlie Brown specials each year. They are such a holiday tradition. And Thanksgiving is also the kickoff to all the holiday movies. (And yes, that includes Die Hard.)

Since I’ve been married and we host Thanksgiving at our house, Turkey Day is for food, family, and football. (My team is playing their arch-rival this year. Pleeeeeeeese let us win!) We usually eat the big meal at lunch and then spend the afternoon and evening snacking on football food during the games.

What are some of your favorite holiday traditions?