Sorry I'm late to the party!!
Countdown to ChristmasHello and welcome once again to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 where we hope that 4 questions help you to blog, meet people and think about things in general. Sometimes the simplest questions can be a bit difficult to answer.
Christmas is celebrated all over the world.
Let's talk about the countdown to Christmas .
1. What was the countdown to the holidays like for you as a child? Special projects at school.. at home.. with friends? Do you use an advent calendar?
This picture was several years earlier, when I was still "a little angel". That was my costume for the church Christmas program that year. I was 3. I haven't been an angel since, I'm afraid. LOL.
At our home when I was growing up we usually did not put up our Christmas tree until Christmas eve, and we would help decorate it before we went to bed, but we never saw the finished product until the next morning when we woke up. And yes, we definitely hung our stockings by the chimney with care. These weren't any fancy stockings, but just regular old socks! I remember getting nuts, candy, and maybe an orange in the sock. I don't really remember any particular gifts in our stockings, but these socks were kind of small (at least mine was! LOL)
Decorating the outside of the house wasn't as big of a deal as it is today, but here's my sister and I posing by the front door, and there is a pine bough with a Santa Claus face in it for decoration. This was Florida, so that is why we were bare legged and only wearing sweaters!
Regarding a "countdown", I remember my sister and I had a little Advent Calendar with windows/doors that we opened each day that had some kind of picture about Christmas in it. I am sure we also had an Advent wreath at Church, but I don't remember much about it then. Later as an adult we re-introduced the Advent Wreath to our family and our churches where we served, as it had not been their tradition to have one. You can read more about the Advent calendars and wreaths if you click on any of the Advent topics in the right sidebar on my page under "Some Special Topics". To me, celebrating Advent is a special way to prepare our hearts for the true meaning of Christmas. It is a great way to teach our children about the real Christmas story.
2. As a kid did your family stay home on the holidays or go visiting around ... what do you do now?
I think I took this picture, so I am not in it. That is my cousin Becky standing in the background, and she is wearing a "shag wig", which was popular that year. I also had one, but apparently no one took my picture wearing it. It was a big deal to me, because it was blonde, and I was a redhead, so it was fun to pretend I was a blonde for a while. LOL. This is at my grandparents' house. We usually rotated around for Christmas dinner: one year at our house, one year at my grandparents, and one year at my Aunt Marion's house (she is on the left). We all lived within 10 miles of each other.
Oh, one more thing...in the evening when it got dark we would drive around town and look at the Christmas lights. There was one home in the town where my Grandparents lived that we always went to look at. The house had a big bay window in the front, and they always had a beautiful dancing ballerina doll in that window! She was quite large, maybe at least 4 feet tall I would guess, and it was the most beautiful sight to see! I wish someone had taken a picture of it because I would love to see it again.
What do we do now? Well, usually we have our gift opening time in the morning after breakfast and before dinner, depending on who's coming and how far they have to travel. Most often now it is just our own immediate family who live here in town (our kids and us) for Christmas day, and then if we are going to get together with the extended family it is usually on another day since we live about 2 hours apart and it is just too much to try to do in one day for everyone. Sometimes we wait until New Year's and have our extended family Christmas gathering then. It just depends on everyone's schedules, which seems to be getting more complicated as the years go by.
Me on Christmas morning...many moons ago...I sure was excited about getting that Doctor's Kit!
3. What foods did Mom and Grandma make for those days? What snacks were out? What is the food situation in your home today?
Regarding our food situation today: LOL. If anything gets baked or made special, it will have to be in a week or two...right now I'm busy with shopping, preparing for our Christmas Cantata at church and various other church activities...all wonderful times of celebrating Christmas with our church family...but I don't have a lot of extra time for making things...however, it's just hubby and me and we don't need a lot of extra goodies around us...We'll see what develops between now and Christmas day...
4. What is Christmas dinner for you and yours? Goose? Turkey? English Roast Beef?
4. What is Christmas dinner for you and yours? Goose? Turkey? English Roast Beef?
This year we are having Lasagna again. We've done that over the past few years, because it is easier to make and bake in the oven while we are opening gifts, etc., and not a lot of fuss and clean up.
Tomorrow night we will be going to visit the little church in Florahome, and have a caroling and candlelight service. Our church choir participates in this every year, and it is always so special. We end up with our candles outside, and sing Silent Night in front of this Nativity Scene, but it is usually dark at that time, and is so pretty with the candles lit. Tomorrow is supposed to get rather cold again, so it will feel a lot like Christmas! Then we go into their nice fellowship hall and have a time of refreshments and fellowship.
This morning I am headed to our Women in Faith's Christmas party at our church Fellowship Hall. I'm making some punch and an Amish Fruit Salad. It's always a very special time of Christmas fellowship with our ladies. So I need to get a move on or I'll be late!
Silent Night by Mariah Carey
1 Silent night! Holy night!
All is calm, all is bright
’round yon virgin mother and child!
Holy infant, so tender and mild,
sleep in heavenly peace,
sleep in heavenly peace.
2 Silent night! Holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight.
Glories stream from heaven afar,
heav'nly hosts sing, “Alleluia!
Christ the Savior is born!
Christ the Savior is born!”
3 Silent night! Holy night!
Son of God, love’s pure light
radiant beams from Thy holy face
with the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth!
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth!
4 Silent night! Holy night!
Wondrous star, lend thy light;
with the angels let us sing
"Alleluia" to our King:
“Christ the Savior is born!
Christ the Savior is born.”
Another great post my friend. Thank you for the many smiles. Wishing you a beautiful day.
ReplyDeleteI love that you have all those old photos! So fun to look at and remember.
ReplyDeleteMy Dad usually took slides, so we don't have many print photos.
Looks like wonderful Christmas times!
I love that picture of you and your sister outside by the front door with your cute little dresses and cardigans. I feel like when I was a little girl that driving to see lights was driving to see the Christmas trees in the front windows. That was the extent of most lighting. My mother had a hard time when she moved here about 9 years ago, because her townhouse didn't have a front window to put the tree in. I really think she lost all interest in the tree. She had obviously cared more about the tree from the road than at all in her home. HA! Those sand tarts sound so good.
ReplyDeleteI so enjoyed reading about your past Christmas celebrations and the way you now celebrate. So many of your family traditions are the same as yours. Even childrens programs. I was Mary a few times but usually an angel or in the choir. I also look forward to the advent story and candles. Our main focus as a child was church activities and it's the same now. Much like you. I'm leaving for Bible study in about half an hour and it's my turn to drive so I'm very happy the predicted snow didn't arrive! Tonight is caroling, but since I still have no voice I may just join in for hot chocolate afterwards! :-)
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful day my friend, celebrating the coming Messiah. Then and now!
Blessings and love,
Betsy
we had turkey for TG and Christmas, the only time of the year we ate turkey. and the table groaned with food. the majority of the Christmas dinners were just us 4, several times all daddies brothers came for Christmas and we ate at his sisters house, which was my second home since we lived in a remodeled chicken coop in their back yard. we moved to KY when I was 10 and came back to Savannah Christmas of 1959 . the KY Christmas was always the four of us, and a nice Christmas, we always got a couple of toys, no stockings. we got new shoes, a new coat if we had grown out of the old, new underwear and pjs, slippers. practical things. we were dirt poor Baptist preachers kids, but we thought It was wonderful we got new clothes. I always got books and dolls my brother got little men. army and cowboy soldiers. trucks etc.
ReplyDeleteafter I got married, we always ate at mothers because she loved to cook. my brothers wife and I bought the food, mother cooked it and the two of us cleaned up the mess she made. she baked pies and cookies and cakes and 3 different salads, enough that all 3 families had left overs. no outside decor, and a tree in the house was always placed like everyone else did back then, where it could be seen through the living room window. mother would get me to beg daddy to go ride and look at the trees, because he always said yes to me and no to her.
Oh my, how I can identify with these sweet images ... because, of course, I lived them too. Love 3 year-old angel Pam, and the expression on your face at that doctor's kit! I don't recall our little family of 3 having any particular traditions or special meals, except for gathering late Christmas eve with egg nog in hand to open presents. Christmas morning we'd attend church, then if there was an availability for my dad to work his 2nd shift he'd likely accept. Double holiday pay, isn't something he'd want to miss out on.
ReplyDeletePam, I enjoyed reading and seeing your Christmas memories. Love the picture of you getting the doctor kit for Christmas. You really were excited about that! And then how sweet that you were holding your new baby doll in the kitchen picture.
ReplyDeleteHi Pam. It was super fun to take a trip down memory lane with you and see all of your old family photos. Looks like you have some wonderful Christmas memories.
ReplyDelete