CHRISTMAS MEMORIES

A couple old pictures from when I was about 7 or so. It's the Christams room mom dad used to do. Shows some of it. :)







This year John and I inherited a few Christmas decorations. When his mother died we came home with her ceramic white Christmas tree and a few odd decorations. Last week as I was taking out all the decorations to decorate the house and going through things it brought back Christmas memories for me and as he was going through her things it brought back Christmas memories for him. I love Christmas. It is my absolute favorite holiday. Not because of the gifts or anything. Even this year even though times are tough I have to reflect on the good.(1) Christmas is first and for most important to me because of our Saviors birth. Without that we wouldn't exist and without Him I wouldn't have a savior and my life who knows where it would be.
(2) my family. Spending time with my family at Christmas. Sharing a memory together. My family means so much to me. We get together every year on Christmas Eve at my Aunt Jeannine's house. Now it's cousins Mike's house. Her son. I have gone since I've been born. My parents have been going to the get together for almost 40 years now. It's our family tradition and it's a good one. We have many good times.
(3) At Christmas I think of Christmas' past and think of all the great times as a child I had. There are certain presents I can remember getting and as a little girl those things meant a lot to me. They still do in a way because it's a great part of my childhood I hold dear to my heart. One year I got Strawberry shortcake roller skates.I really enjoyed those that summer. Another year I got a tootie Fruity Doll. It was banana scented. She had a yellow dress with bananas all over her. Another time I got along with my cousin Crystal that year a Cabbage Patch Kid Stroller. That was from my Memere Gilbert that year. One time I got a really nice doll bunk bed. It was brass with actual mattress'. It's hard to believe I remember so much. LOL!!

There were a few sad memories too of Christmas when I was a child. The time I lost my grandfather. We still did the Christmas get together we had every year at my Aunt Jeannine's house. It was sad that year. I was 10. I remember it well. There was one year that there was a bad fire right down the street from my Aunts house. We all were slightly scared and had heavy hearts for that family suffering on Christmas. There was also the time that my Uncle Stan died. He was Aunt Jeannine's husband. The first Christmas without him was tough too. Anyways-- enough on the sad. Here's more good.
(3) The decorations. I love decorating the Christmas Tree. I always loved it even as a child. Every year I take out the ornaments. Most of them are hand crafted either by me or another family member. I have a ornament I made in kinder garden I have on my tree. It's just a ball with my name on it. In the 2nd grade I did a reindeer. I have that also. I love looking at each one they each have a special story and a memory. The angel we put on top was John's mothers. It means the world to me to have her angle on top. We also have a few more angles of hers I doctorate the house with. She had given those to us a few years ago. I also have a few ornaments on the tree that are hand crafted by her. :)

Then there's the ceramic tree. I watched John putting it together and yuo could tell his whole heart was into it. We had the ligths on and had it lit and I cried. Good tears and sad ones too. There's also a crystal tree that was hers. It's on a base. You turn it and it plays music and has a color wheel in it and changes 4 colors. It's so pretty. I was in a tranquil moment when I had both trees on. It's our 1st Christmas without his mom so it's a little tough. Anyways

My mother this year gave me a gift I will forever hold dear to my heart. I had always hoped I'd have it someday and this year I got it. I had always wanted a manger scene but never had any of it. Years ago before my Pepere Gilbert died my father and him made a stable. It was the last thing they made together before my grandfather died. My parents every Christams had it set up. I have it set up this year. I have the stable they made and after Christmas last year I found a beautiful nativity scene on clearance. John put somw hay in it and I have it set up on the table. It's beautful. It's something I will always treasure.

When I was little mom always went all out on Christams with decorating the house and I loved it. We'd do the paper chains to hang around the house. We also did chains with that thin ribbon for the gifts they sell every year. I remember when I was around 6 or 7 they did a special Christams room in the house. It was all decked out. Mom had these matalic orniment things that you hang from the sceiling. They were beautiful. Well I always yard sale and hunt for goodies and I found 2 really close to what I remember having and I have them hung up in my house.I also found last year. These wall hangings made out of plastic. One is frosty and the other Ruldolph. They are really clsoe to ones I had growing. Pretty neat I think. I love all the old Christmas decorations anyways. I like holding onto the memories. Of couse I have our own things I have bought over the years to have our own memories. I just love the fact that I can decorate the house with things that belonged to my parents and Johns.



Crystal Christmas Tree







My Christmas Tree



My Tree



John's mother's Ceramic Tree



Ceramic Christmas Tree



Natavity Scene



Frosty & Rudolph Wall Hanging




Metalic thing hanging.



Metalic thing like mom used to have.