What is a favorite childhood memory you have from a holiday (could be any holiday)?

[OneStepAtATime]

Just curious.  My mom and I were talking about certain happy holiday memories we had as children and how sometimes they were obviously big moments but sometimes they seemed insignificant to others but were huge to us.  Any special childhood memory tied to a holiday?

[Laura Corin]

Bringing the Christmas tree home on Christmas eve and setting it up during the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols on the radio; seeing it the next morning all dressed and sparkly.  Lighting the candles and watching it glow.

 

The feeling of the Christmas stocking on my feet on Christmas morning.

[OneStepAtATime]

Oh those sound lovely, Laura!

 

I remember one Christmas when I was a young adult my best friend since childhood had come home temporarily from Africa.  I spent the night at her dad's house so we would have more time to catch up.  On the spur of the moment we decided to sleep in the living room under the Christmas tree.  It was a really big tree.  I remember looking up through the branches, the room only lit by the colorful Christmas tree lights, while sharing memories with my childhood friends.  We talked in giggly whispers and it was just like being little again.  I loved that moment.

[hjffkj]

Mine was when I was 8 and my dad was in the hospital and not expected to ever leave it. He was in terrible condition and while they were still trying to save his life they didn't have much hope.

 

Anyway, he worked for a community college at the time and they told my mom to give them her 7 kids Christmas lists and they'd take care of christmas for her. The kids didn't know this at the time. So mom had us make lists from a toy catalog. As many other 8 year olds I added anything that looked awesome to my list. There were probably 20 gifts on the list, including a new bike.

 

Come christmas morning our living room was more filled than ever. I ended up getting EVERYTHING on my list, including the bike. The 3 other young siblings had the same experience as me. One brother even got an exercise bike.

 

As a kid is was the best because of the sheer number of gifts and all of the being exactly what I wanted. As an adult I still love it because of how well my dad's workplace treated their employee's family during what was the worst time of my mom's life.

 

It is made better by the fact that my dad survived after 9 month in the hospital and he's still in great health today.

[OneStepAtATime]

Wow, hjffkj. What a special memory!

[hjffkj]

I have tons of little memories that I cherish dearly too. Like staying up late with siblings on Christmas Eve, getting the tree with my dad and picking out a mint at the register, helping dad put new bulbs in the lights for the tree.

 

My brother who is twelve years older than me used to come home on Christmas Eve and hadnt started his shipping yet, so I'd go out with him to do All if it.

[OneStepAtATime]

I remember in one state we lived (moved around a lot) the church we had been attending had started building a bigger sanctuary.  The roof wasn't finished yet, only the framing and some of the walls were up.  The church held a candlelight service Christmas Eve in the new sanctuary.  The weather was perfect, not too cold, not too hot, not windy, no rain.  We held candles and sang songs and looked out at the stars through where the roof should be.  The sky was so clear it was just filled with stars.  I was maybe 8 years old.  I can't even describe the feeling.  

[ScoutTN]

Big snowfall (about 2.5 ft.overnight) on Christmas Eve when I was 8 and we were all at my grandparents with cousins, aunts and uncles. All the fun of Christmas, plus sledding, snow forts and snowball fights. 

 

Decorating the chapel at my school with fresh greens my 9th grade year. We had two days off school to do it! We cut all the greens, made garlands and wreaths and hung/placed everything. Tromping out in the cold woods, singing, learning new things, friends, cocoa, the beautiful old chapel alight with candles and smelling of beeswax and pine. Lovely!

 

Going to church late on Christmas Eve with my mom's side of the family. Coming in from the the frosty night with my head full of carols, to enjoy eggnog, rum cake and cookies by the fire before bed. 

 

Spending the entire day after Christmas reading new books and eating leftovers. As a teen at a super-competitive boarding school, this was such a treat for me. The free time and a stack of new novels or treasured favorites in hardback were so restful. 

 

 

 

Edited December 26, 2017 by ScoutTN

[happi duck]

Standing next to my late mum singing Silent Night while holding candles.

[gstharr]

I have no fond childhood memories. My family was poor and Christmas was always disappointing for me.  But, my first home purchase closed a couple of days before X-Mas, and the nearby  tree lot  sold all left over trees for $5.00 on X- Mas Eve.  The Living room has 22ft ceiling, and I got a 15 ft tree for the first X-Mas in the new house.  

[wintermom]

I have fond memories of spending Christmas at our rustic cottage that was winterized, but not for running water. We'd cross-country ski, skate on the lake, play board games and card, and sit by the fireplace. It was simple and lovely. I've forgotten the -30 temps. ;)

[Elizabeth86]

I was talking about this to dh the other day. I remember getting tons of presents and my mom always went all out for the holidays,but tbey never felt special. I was a super introverted and sensitive child and I found holidays a tad overwhelming and something usually made me cry. My very best moments in my childhood involved the every day mundane things I did with my mom. Just the 2 of us. She made every day special.

Edited December 26, 2017 by Elizabeth86

[OneStepAtATime]

I was talking about this to dh the other day. I remember getting tons of presents and my mom always went all out for the holidays,but tbey never felt special. I was a super introverted and sensitive child and I found holidays a tad overwhelming and something usually made me cry. My very best moments in my childhood involved the every day mundane things I did with my mom. Just the 2 of us. She made every day special.

You know this is something I have pondered. While there were a few gifts that I still cherish and I am happy to think back on when I opened that gift, what is truly special was not really the gifts (and some years there wasn't a lot of money for gifts). What mattered more to me overall were special moments and traditions and time spent with family and friends.

 

I could easily see how holidays could be more stressful than anything pleasant. My kids used to get overwhelmed. We had to take steps to keep things less so.

 

Thanks everyone for continuing to share.

Edited December 27, 2017 by OneStepAtATime

[poppy]

Our parents always hid our Easter baskets. One year, instead of hiding the basket, they put clues for a hunt.  We raced from one part of the house to another, it was so awesome. In the end  we found out my brother got a computer (Apple IIc, for those old enough to remember the mid 1980s) . I got a beautiful bike with a banana seat (again, it was the 1980s.....)    That was just joy.

 

Our house was, like, 800 square feet.  When I visit that house now, I laugh to think how we could have had a 30 minute scavenger hunt in that small space.  Kids can be happy anywhere if they are loved.

 

Just as sweet:  getting a big huge hug every year at Christmas from my granddad.  I saw him maybe 3-4 times a year, and it was always a good time.  But, when I think of him, it is hugging me at Christmas.  He died when I was maybe 12.

Edited December 27, 2017 by poppy

[Carol in Cal.]

My grandparents always hosted Christmases, but one year they went on a cruise instead.

We gave them a small portable cassette tape player, with a tape in it of us all performing--my brother and I played recorder, my sister played piano I think, there were Christmas carols sung on it, there was a personalized version of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas', and in the end we all yelled out "Merry Christmas!"

I don't remember Christmas that year, but when they got home they said that when they played the tape on the ship, my grandmother cried, and my grandfather said, "I'm never missing Christmas at home again!" and they never did.  That was the best.

[Alessandra]

Christmas -- I rememberer going to sleep under the tree.

 

Thanksgiving -- all the vegetables were from our own garden.

[OneStepAtATime]

Easter morning every year our Easter baskets would be on the kitchen table filled with our dyed Easter eggs. Also in those baskets would be a chocolate bunny and a little stuffed animal bunny. Every year until we were young adults. My brother and I loved it. We still have every one of our stuffed bunnies. My brother (not married, no kids) loved the tradition so much that he and Mom have kept it up but now it is a figurine or bunny ears or a bunny themed calendar or something along those lines. He takes her out for a meal and she gives him his bunny something. It's a special something they share and I love it.

Edited December 27, 2017 by OneStepAtATime

[Joyofsixreboot]

I was talking about this to dh the other day. I remember getting tons of presents and my mom always went all out for the holidays,but tbey never felt special. I was a super introverted and sensitive child and I found holidays a tad overwhelming and something usually made me cry. My very best moments in my childhood involved the every day mundane things I did with my mom. Just the 2 of us. She made every day special.

Flip side . I always pined for it to be like The Waltons or The Brady Bunch or even The Partridge family. I wanted crowds and noise and parties. Holidays were fine, just not over the top loud and busy. I created that as an adult though.

 

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[OneStepAtATime]

Flip side . I always pined for it to be like The Waltons or The Brady Bunch or even The Partridge family. I wanted crowds and noise and parties. Holidays were fine, just not over the top loud and busy. I created that as an adult though.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

Yeah, I wanted lots of family and people visiting and kids playing.  The Waltons and the Brady Bunch and the Partridge Family all seemed like they would have fun Christmases.  Once in a while we got to see my cousins at Christmas but mostly it was just my brother and me and a set of grandparents.  I tried getting Mom to adopt some additional children but no luck.  I did better convincing my parents to buy a set of encyclopedias.  LOL.

[Zinnia]

We spent most Christmases with just the 4 of us (most Thanksgivings we travelled).

 

When I was 8, the entire extended family came to my house. Great grandparents, grandparents, uncle, aunt. It was magical. Must have been a lot of work and trouble for my family, but I loved it so much.

[lmrich]

One year I saw a doll house in my dad's workshop that was clearly modeled after our house. I asked him about it, and he said he was making it for our cousins. Christmas morning, the doll house was not under the tree. The presents were all opened when my parents asked me to get something out of the kitchen, and there was the doll house. Then my parent's fixed the doll house up again and gave it to my dd when she was 6.

 

 

[Garga]

One year I saw a doll house in my dad's workshop that was clearly modeled after our house. I asked him about it, and he said he was making it for our cousins. Christmas morning, the doll house was not under the tree. The presents were all opened when my parents asked me to get something out of the kitchen, and there was the doll house. Then my parent's fixed the doll house up again and gave it to my dd when she was 6.

My father has some sort of social anxiety or aspergers or autism, never been diagnosed. It was really hard being raised by him. We had no connection at all. The first time I remember having a real conversation with him was 3 years ago (I’m 44 now.)

 

But I just remembered a doll house that he made for me. It was very rough, since he doesn’t really know anything about making houses, but he tried. I had totally forgotten that until now. There are very, very few things he did for me that were fatherly because his condition (is that the right word) makes it so he can’t be close to people. It has greatly warmed my heart this evening to remember that he made me that doll house, that I’d forgotten about. He tried to love me, though it almost never felt that way.

Edited December 28, 2017 by Garga

[laundrycrisis]

My mom made green holly cookies from corn flakes. One year, when I was around 7, we took them to a church potluck. Someone laid them all up and down the long buffet table as decorations. Going through the line, I put one on my plate. The lady next to me in line started telling me those were NOT food, not meant to be eaten, and had glue all over them. I looked right back at her and slowly took a huge bite and chewed while she flabbergasted away, and smiled at her with my mouth full of green goo. 😂

[OneStepAtATime]

My mom made green holly cookies from corn flakes. One year, when I was around 7, we took them to a church potluck. Someone laid them all up and down the long buffet table as decorations. Going through the line, I put one on my plate. The lady next to me in line started telling me those were NOT food, not meant to be eaten, and had glue all over them. I looked right back at her and slowly took a huge bite and chewed while she flabbergasted away, and smiled at her with my mouth full of green goo. 😂

:lol:

[KungFuPanda]

Endless summers running around barefoot with dozens of cousins while the adults were either cooking or on the porch playing music. Everyone who lived out of town seemed to come home to WV for several weeks in the summer and bunk with those of us who lived there. It was magical.

[Liz CA]

Anticipation was everything. Baking during advent with my grandmother is among my fondest memories. We always had Christmas on Christmas Eve and there were candles lit everywhere, a simple dinner and always a beautiful tree. Some years cousins / Aunt and Uncle came on the 25th or 26th and stayed through New Year's. Since there was usually snow / ice  where we lived, we did a lot of sledding and ice skating between Christmas and New Year.

[Carrie12345]

When we were little, our house was being remodeled from a tiny bungalow into a 2-story house.  They had already opened the wall dividing the new dining area and the sunk in living room. On Thanksgiving morning, we sat, eating our breakfast, and suddenly saw the tarped ceiling of the living room give way from all the rain, and come pouring into our house!

 

We moved in with my grandparents that day, and stayed for several months, so that included Christmas.

 

My grandparents always did Christmas big for the grandkids, including a couple of cousins who lived down the street from them. One of my aunts was also living with them at the time. Though they had a pretty large apartment over their tavern, filing it with gifts for 5 kids and 7 adults (basically X2 for 3 kids and 2 adults) for the holiday was out of control. And wonderful!!!  It was like Santa threw up all over the place, and absolutely perfect in my 7 or 8yo eyes!

[OneStepAtATime]

I'm getting chill bumps from reading all these posts.  Good chill bumps, not bad chill bumps.  lol. ...or am I the only one that gets good chill bumps?