What takes you back to your childhood Christmas?

[catnapper]

I went to visit my neighbor the other night, and sitting on her coffee table were some pixie elves from the 50's and 60's. Oh my goodness, I was immediately transported to Christmases long ago. Grandmom always hung those elves on the tree and created a "centerpiece" out of them on top of the TV with them sliding down a snow covered hill (white cotton sprinkled with glitter covering a a few small boxes :D)

I've been thinking of them ever since.... they mean Christmas to me! They are definately not my style of decorating but just seeing them put a huge smile on my face. I wonder where I could find one or two of them, just to have sitting on my desk or placed somewhere where I could see them and have me tak a momentary trip back to the charmed Christmases of my childhood.

What takes you back? Is there a certain song, movie, decoration, food?

[caseysmom]

I was just telling my daughter the other day how I remember getting a Jane West doll and horse when I was probably in first grade...we went online and found a picture...my daughter got a kick out of that...Jane's claim to fame was legs that move!

I also remember the light bright which is still around and the easy bake oven.

[cyber-sibes]

LOL! I just posted that very thing on this link from Dorothy39 - here (http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=117812)
For me it was the Chip & Dale cartoon - all dressed up for Christmas with their little Santa hats! My aunt had those little elves too. I will always remember when I got a Lassie dog for Christmas!

[jackmilliesmom]

My childhood memories are of baking and cooking, my mom's aunt used to come to our house for Christmas and she was a cook for one of the big houses in Dublin and she would make the most fantastic food for Christmas and everytime I take out her recipies coming up to and at Christmas it transports me back to my childhood. I recently had some friends over and I cooked for them using her recipies and they were all very impressed it was sooooo cooool - so thanks Aunt Nell RIP

My other memories are of my dad on Christmas morning when we would drag him out of bed and get him to go down and check to see if Santa had come and he would sneak down and purposely (sp) step on the creaky step just to give us a fright and then he would stop for a second and then continue down the rest of the way and then call us down to see a half eaten mince pie and two gulps gone out of a glass of guiness it was coold.

One tradition that still lives on though is at Christmas on Christmas morning we all go the my gran's house (my mom's mom) and there she has all her children and their husbands and wives and all of us grandchildren and santa comes to her for everybody (we do chris kindle) and she lines all of her grandchildren including me at the grand old age of 33 on her stairs and we have to sing christmas carols for her and the rest of the family it is wonderful but now becoming at tight squeeze with 36 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren. but what a tradition it is wonderful.

[RedHedd]

The Frank Sinatra Christmas album always does it to me. We used to have these HUGE family gatherings on Christmas Eve. Even "Santa" would be there - probably one of my uncles or even my dad dressed as Santa - we never figured this out. But the family ALWAYS had a session of singing Christmas Carols together, usually to Frank Sinatra, but sometimes it was the sing-along-with Mitch Miller album or even Harry Bellafonte. Hearing any of those carols always makes me misty-eyed. :)

[pitc9]

When I listen to my John Denver and the Muppets Christmas Album!!

Oh that takes me back!!!

[Pembroke_Corgi]

When I bake! My mom and my brother and I used to have so much fun making sugar cookies, cutting them out, and then of course frosting them!

When my mom comes for Christmas this year, I'm going to have everything ready to bake some cookies! :)

[Dorothy39]

As a Tradition, Our Father would "sing" Christmas Carols to us , in the darkness of our big Bedroom, on Christmas Eve~ :o

I still hold onto that precious memory , each and every Christmas Eve ;)

(Yes, I sing one "song" along with "HIM ", on Christmas Eve)

[cyber-sibes]

Baking cookies takes me back. My mom was a wonderful baker and baked & gave away dozens and dozens of cookies & nut rolls to everybody, so our house was FILLED with good smells. There were cookies literally everywhere! Our dog used to sneak up & snatch the ones that hung over the edges of the tables, LOL! I loved to sit in the kitchen & eat apricot filling :p So I bake her recipies for cookies every year in her honor, and give lots away too. When my sons were home, they like baking with me, too -- the tradition lives on!

[cmayer31]

My childhood Christmas memories are getting a tree and cutting it down and then decorating it. It was very important to my parents to have both my brother and I there for an entire night of decorating the tree. Also, there's not too much of a reason to use fire places around here, but every winter my grandfather would have a big fire in the fireplace and we'd sit around the tree telling stories and enjoying good company.

I miss those times more than anything. :)

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

When I see those old-fashioned little Santa-lamps.... . We had those, and I was always fascinated by them...

[Donnaj4962]

I guess what takes me back the most is baking cookies. Dad would always take us five girls on a Saturday before Christmas and we would go to a tree farm and find and cut down our own tree! We would go home and Mom would have been baking sugar cookies. Dad would get the tree in the stand and ready for decorating while we girls would decorate the sugar cookies.

I always think about this as I decorate my own tree (although it is artificial) and as I decorate my own sugar cookies.

Although I don't have children of my own, I have started a tradition with my friend's children. They come over and help me decorate my tree and we bake cookies! It is like I am re-living my childhood dreams! I love it!

[lvpets2002]

:) Oh WoW Let Me Think.. My Grandmam making all white coconut cake with big pecan halfs all over it{oh so good}.. The night before Christmas & watching TV while they noted Santa flying in & my dad would take us kids to town to the Sonic for burgers & shakes while mom was wraping presents {which found out later}.. The next morning waiting in the hall before was allowed to go to the tree.. The snow outside [when it would snow in Tx].. The smell of the fireplace & spiced cider..

[wolflady]

...but now becoming at tight squeeze with 36 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren. but what a tradition it is wonderful.

Goodness! That is a lot of grandchildren! :eek: How totally neat that must be with everything together at Christmas like that:)

Things that take me back include music, cooking and getting the tree. My dad brought home a record when I was just a wee little one with a picture of a man's face and he had snow on his beard. Over the years, my sisters and I came to refer to that record as "the man with snow on his beard". It's really Roger Whittaker and this is the album:
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/B000003FSQ.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_SL210_V59812990_.jpg
Mom and dad would put a stack of records to play on the record player when us kids went to bed, and I would creep out of my bed and lay down in my doorway and just listen. Christmas ins't complete with the sounds of Roger Whittaker. Imagine my joy when I found this album on CD! ;)

My mom always makes the best cookies, fudge and hello dollies (these are like the 7 layer bars) and my dad makes snickerdoodles with my grandmothers snickerdoodle rolling pin. All of the sweets are made in early december before getting the tree. Getting the tree was always one of my favorite things. I grew up in Indiana, so it was tradition to drive for what seemed like forever to a Christmas tree farm. Complete with a saw, we would walk for miles to find just the right tree. Dad would cut it down and we'd drag it back to the farm where there was hot cider and treats for the taking. The tree would get strapped to the top of our van and we'd drive home very slowly. Once home the tree would get put up while mom got out plates full of cookies and fudge and also eggnog. The Christmas records would be turned on and we'd all listen while decorating the tree. Those are precious moments in my life, with my family all together like that.

**hugs**

[BitsyNaceyDog]

Justin and I have been talking about this a lot. We've been talking about things we want to do next year and in the years to come with our kid/kids. We both have things that are special to us and we want to pass those things on to our kids.

One thing that was special to me was going to my grandma's house on Christmas Eve. Every year she would give me and my sister each a pair of pajamas and a movie. We'd wear our new pajamas to bed that night and when we woke up excited in the morning we would watch the movie until our parents got up (we weren't allowed to wake them).

Justin had basically the same tradition in his family. His mom would give him and his sisters each a present to open on Christmas Eve and it was always a pair of pajamas. His mom has continued this tradition even now that her kids are grown. Every year we go to her house on Christmas Eve and we have a big meal and then we each get one gift, always pajamas!

My family didn't do stockings, but Justin's did and it's something special to him, so we now do the whole stocking thing. Justin had always gotten a PEZ dispenser in his stocking as a kid, so now every year I make sure he has a PEZ dispenser in his stocking. We also get each other a couple CDs every year and those go in the stockings. Mine are always Christmas CDs.

Something I loved as a kid was a countdown to Christmas calendar that we had. I told Justin that I wanted to get one for our kid in a couple years.

I have a nativity that my grandma gave me on my second Christmas. I still have it and sits on a shelf in my living room every year. That is without a doubt the Christmas decoration that is means the most to me.

[dukedogsmom]

I would have to say the little books of Lifesavers candy rolls. As kids, we would each get one every Christmas. A few years ago, I gave each of my parents one as a stocking stuffer.

[cassiesmom]

Very few things remind me of childhood Christmases. When I think about them I always seem to come up with things like photos of us, in our pajamas, uncombed and unwashed, opening gifts; getting a game that I had wanted very much and then not being able to make it work; and going from one relative's house to another in order to see entire family Christmas eve and day. I like it better as an adult.

[Felicia's Mom]

One thing I remember is helping my mother bake Christmas cookies. I especially loved to the sugar cookies. Cutting them out before baking and decorating them afterwards. :D