This time of the year brings so many memories to my mind and I'm reminded of how much my childhood was spent during Christmas enjoying my family and the love that my mother held so dear for her children. She always made Christmas special for us and never let us feel like we were without, even though later I found out that money was always tight. With my own family, being in the military meant often being away from our families and so I tried to make the holidays as memorable as possible. Although my children are adults now, they still remind me of how much fun they had during Christmas and their memories of stockings and special gifts. I've forgotten that and I must admit that I thought they wouldn't notice, but clearly I was wrong. Sometimes, we forget that Christmas is about Jesus and He is all about love. To love each other means not just saying it, but showing it. I'm reminded daily about the love I have for my family. My husband, children and granddaughter mean the world to me and although I tell them I love them all the time, I could show it more.
I thought I'd take a trip down my memory lane of Christmas past. My heart and soul are filled with so much love when I look back at these photos and the memories flood back like a peaceful river. I don't have many photos, but each one represents a time in my life that clearly mean the world to me.
My mom was one of those moms. You know, very creative, can make something out of nothing kind of mom. I'm pretty sure that if it was possible to have a creativity gene, my mom definitely passed it down to me. During the holidays, my mom would create new pieces to add to her holiday decor. This particular year was her version of a gingerbread village. Now why she had it on the floor, I don't know. Later, she wised up and put it up on the table.
One of the things my mom made sure of was that my sisters and I always walked down the stairs one by one so she could get a picture of us. I think I was around 4 or 5 in this picture and it was the thing back then in the 70s to hang the Christmas cards on the wall. Of course she had to be creative in a budget friendly way, so she made an aluminiun foil chain for the cards to hang on and she also made my (and my sisters) PJs!
Christmas morning was so special to us and my mom always made sure of that. It may not have been a ton of stuff, but she always had a way of making each of us special by getting our gifts to match our personality. We had a routine- Get up, come downstairs to open up our presents and while we're having fun, my mom played Christmas music while fixing our traditional Christmas breakfast. That tradition has rolled over into our family. I always make sure that we have our traditional Christmas breakfast, similar to what my mother did.
I can't really remember if we had real or fake tree. I kinda remember, but I mostly remember the fake ones. I never cared one way or another if the tree was fake or not, but I do remember all of the unique ornaments my mother used. We were of the make your own type of ornaments. She was proud of the ones we made at school and those for sure went on the tree and she very crafty herself and made several that I still have today. I've gotten away from putting those unique, personal ornaments on the tree but I still have them. I think that next year, 2 trees will go up, one with the special ornaments that I hold so dear from my children and from my mother.
Today, my heart and soul are with these beatiful people. The memories and traditions that I have given to them hopefully will be passed on their own families and they will remember fondly the traditions of the Christmas breakfast, wearing of the holiday headbands and the annual photo. I hope that they see that what my mother gave to me, I'm giving to them.
I hope that, however you spend the holidays, you spend it with people you love. Make those traditions. Have fun, and tell each other you love them as much as possible. My sweet Mommy is no longer with us and I miss her so. But, the memories of her Christmases with my sisters and I will always be a cherished time and I'll fondly look back on them with love and happiness.
Until Next Time,
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