Holiday Traditions?

[quirky]

From the time I was very young, I always gave my brothers soap on a rope for Christmas.

Nowadays, it's been really hard to find...so I had to stop the tradition.

Except, two years ago I found soap on a rope shaped like a sheep and I just hadta send it to my brother Matt.

Nothing says "Christmas" like sheep soap.
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[quirky]

At Christmas the tradition was to decorate to the hilt. When we lived in Maryland, my grandma and grandpa lived with us.

We had this Santa Claus face that, if you pushed his red nose, would play Jingle Bells. I put him on the outside of the downstairs bathroom door.

We kinda came up with this quasi rule that if you went into the bathroom and someone pressed the Santa nose, you had until it stopped playing to finish in the restroom.

No one was immune.

[KC8t80]

i think i am going to start a tradition of getting all my friends and family of the Grinch and lemony snicket......if they don't have it i mean.

[fluffy]

the Broons and Oor Wullie books..............a cadburys selection box, 2 tangerines and an Elvis CD................lol

those were my staples for many a year as a kid.............lol...
until i swapped Elvis for the Beatles

fluffy

[searching_for_sunshine]

i remember when i was little my parents would always give my brothers and me, socks. they would also buy me soap-on-a-rope to give my brothers and aqua velva aftershave for my grandpa. i actually found soap-on-a-rope this year in the shape of a snowman and it was peppermint soap. i had to buy it!!!

on christmas eve my mom would make, what we now refer to as "the white meal." she is norwegian so we would have what her family had growing up: lefse (basically a potato-based tortilla that you put sugar or butter on) creamed peas, mashed potatoes and torsk (baked cod). it was all white except for the little bit of green in the peas and yellow of the butter on the potatoes and to dip the torsk in...it sounds like a boring meal but it was so good. i really miss it.

i am really getting in the holiday mood...thanks for posting this topic and making me think...

[quirky]

Ha! My grandpas got Old Spice.

I still love the smell.

[searching_for_sunshine]

OMG, that brings back memories - the first love of my life wore old spice...i love the smell too!!!! (and still have a soft spot for him...sigh)

[kasper]

I don't know. It seems like to me all the tradictional things about Christmas stopped as soon as I got older. Its kinda sad I guess.

I remember when I was little it was such a big deal for our family. Me and my sis would take turns putting one ornamite on at a time on our tree. Which you can guess that took FOREVER just to decorate one tree. Each year we'd take turns between who got to put the star on the top.

Watching ABC family was very traditional for me. Just cause they have the same exact shows come on around this time that I used to watch when I was a kid. I would count down the days 'til the "25 days of christmas" was on. I still even watch it occasonally because it brings back memories and thats always fun.

Its kinda sad when I think about it... since so much has changed. Being a kid for me was lotsa fun

[kasper]

OH!!! And this one was a HUGE deal. Something I looked forward to. When my brother still lived with us... him, my sister and I would all sit around the TV and watch the cartoon "How the grinch stole christmas".

It was on last night and I sat there by myself watching it. Like I said, so much has changed!!!

[fluffy]

lol.............you need to tape it and the next time you are all together at xmas time force them to watch it with you..........lol....

they'll be missing it too y'know.............lol

fluffy

[quirky]

My uncle was born on Christmas...that was grandma's youngest son (she had three). A year after I moved to Illinois he had a major heart attack and died. So that was TWO of her three sons that she had lost in the space of two years.


My aunt and uncle had two boys, one that was in college and one that was a paramedic....but he had left for France a day before my uncle's heart attack.

He lived at home. His father had taken him to the airport the day before and said, "Have fun. I love you. I wish I was going with you." In retrospect...that was fortunate timing...I cannot imagine how hard it would have been for my cousin to try to save his dad, knowing that there was really nothing anyone could do.

Christmas rolled around that year as Christmas always will and there was a poignancy to it.

I had bought tapes of the Rankin Bass shows and as there began to be a lull in the daily activities....I sugggested we watch them. You know we were going through the motions but the experience was bittersweet.

There was a priceless tableau that ensued, my two cousins fully grown were laying in front of the TV side by side with their chins on their hands.

I'm glad I bought those tapes.

[searching_for_sunshine]

that was a really sweet thing to do quirky!

sometimes even the smallest thing can bring comfort through such a hard time...remembering the good times - it really does help

you're a good cousin

[thecablegal]

I always buy my Grandad the same aftershave every year. It's Clear Water from Superdrug, and it's got a lovely scent.

When we spent Christmas in Coventry when I was growing up, he'd always open the bottle and put some on himself, and some on me. It wasn't Christmas if he didn't do that.
Now that we don't go at Christmas, when I buy it, I open the bottle, and have a sniff. I LOVE the smell.

My Nan always used to have a box of Sugared Almonds from me, but she can't bite into them anymore.

I really miss them at Christmas, it's not the same speaking on the phone.