Hello friends & family! Another year has passed and it's Christmas time yet again! Yay!!!
Christmas is my favorite holiday and it brings me so much joy. But, I know that this time of year is sometimes hard for a lot of people. There seems to never be enough time - or money - to do all the things we want to do. I wanted to take the time this year to slow down and reflect on the happy memories of Christmas. And to rejoice in the wonder of the season with the same wonder as we did as children.
I'm gonna be honest. I have no idea who that Santa is. Clearly, my voice showcase the joy - or maybe a little terror - I was feeling at the time. But, I do have distinct memories of that ceramic Santa from my Auntie Ava's house. The red coat and black clothes were smooth and cool to the touch. The white fluffy bits of his outfit were rough and uncoated. I remember the size of the box cabbage patch kids came in - nearly as big as myself. I remember that ugly swivel rocking chair my mom had. My brother Andrew and I would tip it on its back and play spaceship. Note the blankie in the background - never too far out of my reach. I still have that blankie though it's just a knot of tattered rags now.
My mom sewed that velour suit Andrew is rocking. I think she even sewed my red velvet dress and I'm sure I threw an absolute tantrum. To this day, I can't stand the feel of velvet (shudders in horror).
This is the only picture I have of my cousins Darrel and Jennifer. Note my glassy eyes, no doubt from another tantrum. But, a gingerbread cookie brought me around. Speaking of gingerbread, I would always try to eat my Auntie Ava's gingerbread house. She'd catch me trying to take a nibble from the Nilla wafers on the roof and shout in disgust, "Sadie, stop that!". I'm sure it was years old and shellacked to high heaven.
If you look closely, you'll see little kissing angels. I still have those on display in my own home now. You can find dozens of these at any thrift store. My mom always sends me pictures whenever she comes across a set.
That's my mom's mom, my grandma Dorothy. Me, Andrew, and our cousins, Melissa, and the twins, Amanda and Rachel. My uncle's birthday is Christmas Eve so we'd usually go to their place to celebrate the holidays. One time I ate about a pound of those red and green colored pistachios and my mom panicked thinking they'd make me sick. To this day, I love a good special occasion pistachio.
My Dad helping me unwrap a gift while my grandma Vera and cousin Kirsten look on. And evidence of the pre-gingerbread man meltdown. But, look at Andrew's rad superman pajamas. Very cool.
Yet another dress my mom made for me. But, not to be outdone in the fashion world, check out Andrew's drip. God, I really hated having to wear those damned white tights that always slinked down throughout the evening. It was worth it though the next day getting the best gifts. I was obsessed with my white Barbie Ferrari. Forget that lame pink Corvette. Now I was ballin' on a whole new level.
Like most 80s babies, I had a huge Cabbage Patch kids phase. Seems like every year I got a new doll for Christmas or my birthday. But this one was my absolute favorite. I named him Nathan. He was my pride and joy.
This was quite the Christmas. A real showstopper. Mom and Dad must have had a collective great year at work, but this is the Christmas that lives in my memory forever. This is the year I got the dollhouse I had been begging for. So many memories with that dollhouse. My Auntie Ava and I put it together in her garage. We decorated the whole thing with wallpaper samples from a design sample book. And we made miniature furniture with hot glue guns and scrap wood from my uncle's collection. My furniture was relegated to the attic for lack of aesthetic appeal.
But, the big present that day, and really of all time - was my New Kids on the Block tickets. I screamed, I laughed, I cried, I'm sure I was even on the verge of throwing up I was so excited. I couldn't believe I was going to see Joey in person! Surely he would see me in the audience singing every line and doing all the dance moves and fall madly in love with me and we'd get married and live happily ever after. What a gift! All the other third graders in Mrs. Reese's class would just die of jealousy! Right before the concert, our whole family got a terrible flu. I recovered just in the nick of time, but my mom was still down for the count so she made my cousin Brandy take us. Best concert of my life!
I got a TV Tuner attachment for my Sega GameGear. I only recently told my mom that I would stay up all hours of the night watching TV. One year I got Mortal Kombat and played it all Christmas day and almost beat the game in 24 hours.
Looking pretty fly in my MC Hammer inspired outfit. I wore this to a production of The Nutcracker. Someone decided a bowl cut would look good. Ah, and the year my dad drove across town with a wrapped basketball hoop sticking out the trunk of his modest sedan. We got to unwrap it in the driveway as the neighbor kids looked on in envy. Don't worry, they played with it just as much as we did.
If New Kids on the Block tickets was the greatest gift on earth, then my Molly American Girl Doll was certainly a very, very close second. I begged and begged my mom for an American Girl Doll for months on end. I was so jealous of all of my friends that had one. They all had Samantha (that snob!) and Kirsten, but I had an absolute obsession with WWII (as all young girls do) and I desperately wanted Molly. And low and behold, I woke up and ripped open a shoebox sized present and unveiled that recognizable maroon box and I wept with joy.
I have so many clear memories so many wonderful gifts - some I wish I kept and some I have sentimentally stowed away. But, some of the best Christmas memories aren't toys and presents, but time spent with family. Watching A Charlie Brown Christmas or The Grinch. My mom serving sparkling cider in fancy champagne flutes. Decorating the tree with homemade ornaments. Reading The Best Christmas Pageant Ever every year. The time my mom had to work overtime and Andrew and I painted Christmas village buildings in her office break room. Despite my horrific painting skills, my mom always put my house front and center in her Christmas village display. The time we visited Santa and rode the monorail at the downtown Meier & Frank while my mom snuck off to buy me the last copy of Shirley Temple paper dolls. Walking through Peacock Lane in awe of all the lights and declaring, "ah, beauties," something my Auntie Ava always said whenever we'd drive around looking at Christmas lights. Watching the 24-hour marathon of A Christmas Story with my mom on Christmas Eve and bawling our eyes out at the end of It's a Wonderful Life. My mom even named her dog, ZuZu because she loves that film so much.
I was fortunate to grow up with extended friends and family that not only created but rejoiced in the magic of Christmas. May that magic find its way to your hearts this holiday season. Merry Christmas!