does xmas still hold something special!!!

the festive season has come around and its the time when children get excited with anticipation of xmas eve and father xmas,well! does santa still hit the spot? do you still hold xmas dear?,and do you recall that xmas eve night when sleeping was impossible,and thoughts ran riot! a very special time of the year for sure,my recollections when I would have been around 9,sleeping was the hardest to get going,with so much of xmas day running around your mind,the thoughts of what will I find in my sack? oh hurry up morning I cant wait,my sis who was 6 then and myself,we shared a bedroom then and kept each other talking thro the darkness,every once in a while I guess we would drop off,then waken,in the darkness we looked to the bottom of the bed to see the sack still empty,not knowing the time but just wanting the dawn,eventually we'd fall asleep and waken around 6.30 as was usually the case,oh the joy of seeing that sack filled to the brim but it was still dark and mum and dad were still sleeping,we'd wait! but not for long,as it was too exciting wondering about all those lovely presents cram packed into those sacks,waiting was over we couldn,t hold out any longer,light on,into the sack, picking out the presents one by one, opening and saying! oh look what I've got,wow fantastic! toys and more toys what delight what a xmas santa did us proud,well mum and dad ,but the magic is believing,and the smells and sounds of xmas had arrived,downstairs we'd go waking mum and dad first to tell them santa had been,mum and dad made all our xmases very special and so enjoyable too,we had uncles and aunts all staying in the one house 5 to a bed in some case,kids at the bottom of the bed,and nan and grandad the top,wonderful it was,the fun and laughs were around for several days,grownups larder stocked with beer and spirits,the mums and nan preparing xmas dinner and having the obligatory sherry while laughing,and cooking the turkey,the smell mmmmm!!! such a good time in my life all made by mum and dad god bless them,sadly mum passed away a few years ago,and dad has to go on alone now at 88 he does well and we look after him and see him often and every xmas we get together albeit not the same as the magic belongs to the children,and where once they made your xmas special we like to think we did the same for our children and still do! never let the feeling go as at this time of year everyone feels better and happier and that can only be a good thing,well hopefully you all have the merriest of xmases and long live santa claus....

 

Many of those very things you mentioned still warm the cockles of my heart in memories, the anticipation, the wondering "what" would be there under the tree. And the meal of course. Wonderful memories which I still treasure. When I went back to college to finish my B.A. (after a 26 year hiatus) in 1992 one of my professors had never seen the movie A Christmas Story, with Darin Mcgavin and Peter Billingsly.

It had just run the night before he heard myself and another laughing about it just before class, since we had both watched it again. Laughing about the Bumpus' dogs, the Chinese turkey, the "prize" and everything else. Great flick and funny as hell everytime I watch it I laugh.

If you have never seen it, here is a link to the trailer on YouTube, as well as a couple of other clips. Watch them all, they are a hoot and if you can get the movie do so. That Christmas morning with the hoar-frost out the window and the presents under the tree are perfect memories of mine as well. While none of mine were "exactly" like that, there were many similarities as well.

Goto:

a christmas story - Google Videos

I always loved the "double dog dare" etiquitte skip to "triple dog dare" as well.

 

I am grinning reading the posts about the Christmas Story...got to love that movie...we watch it every year (and sometimes twice)....Alot of the memories I have of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I carry on with my family today...tis some of the best times of Christmas forging the old with the new and carrying on traditions and values from generation to generation...Love, Family, Faith, Kindness, Happiness..etc...might sound kind of cheesy, but tis what the Holiday is all about IMHO...

 

Following Mr Wigen and Miss Lynne on this one.. I too make it a tradition every year to sit down and watch A Christmas Story with my kids at least once!... if not two or three times "Fra-Geeee-lay"......... "that must be Italian" (Mr Parker) "Uh, I think that says FRAGILE, dear" (Mrs. Parker) Classic!

Growing up as a kid, I can recall special moments with my brother that I will never forget... we truly had the best Christmas's a kid could hope for. One thing I will never forget was my father video taping the whole experience! At the time, I was extremely embarassed... but now that I am older, I am very appreciative of these treasured moments. I can watch them whenever I want, and actually make it a tradition every year to do so when we visit the parents house. The transition of being a kid during Christmas to adult is mind altering, a shot in the arm if you will. A little sad, but the harsh reality of maturing and filling the role of parenthood considering my case. I look forward to this Christmas season, and wish all of you a safe and memorable holiday.

warmest regards,

Jem

 

Ray, some of my fellow collectors in the area decided to throw together a 1940s Christmas and we were going for an English style right here in Indiana. This past Saturday we brought it all back to life rolled out our Victrola my wife and her friends and kids put on their 40s attire we ate jaffa cakes, branston pickles and had a nice roasted turkey all around the union jack. We even listened to old war broadcasts from the BBC. Nice evening to reflect on the hard and simple times. Christmas holds something special to us and to our children it is the one time of year that at least humanity is civil to itself. Now I get to see the excitement on my childs face as they wait for Santa and merriment of gifts. I on the other hand look forward to seeing what new item my wife has added to my tools or military collection. God bless you all and have a wonderful Christmas. Peace

 

Long before the movie A Christmas Story appeared, I had received a BB gun for Christmas. A Daisy pump, not a lever action, and as a result when my own son turned eight in 1978, he too received a BB gun for Christmas. But he got a wonderful Crosman pump that could be varied in power by pump numbers, from a minor BB gun velocity (three strokes) up to near .22 velocity and power (ten strokes).

His mother was not pleased, but Jason was beside himself with joy and anticipation. He never "put his eye out" either. The following year when he turned nine, he received a neat little Yamaha MX80 motorcycle.

I had started with a Harley Hummer my Dad gave me when I was nine, and his Yamaha was far superior in both speed, handling, and safety to that old HD I rode. He never killed himself or anyone else with that either.

 

Clint,

That was going to be my next question "did he shoot his eye out?" thankfully, all ended well. I was given an electric train set by my father one year, we had the best time picking out trees and buildings for the city we were going to make. My father had bought a big piece of ply wood, and had purchased a cherry Union Pacific die cast rig to complete the deed. I had a couple flat-bed logging cars, a few covered boxed cars, and a caboose of course! I spent a lot of my time in the land of fantasy with this set up

107thcav,

great story... a pleasure to read

all the best,

Jem

 

thanks guys/friends,very special memories shared too,it's a pleasure too share and recieve some of yours,to lou,mark,clint,107th,robbielynne,may all your xmases remain the way they were when you were young,treasured,very special xmas wishes to you all,ray....

 

part 2......presents opened and enjoying xmas morning,playing with everything,planes,models to make,john bull printing set,cowboy outfit,obligatory for boy's,annuals to read,toy soldiers,lead back then,and my mum and her sister used to paint 100s of the damn things at home,to earn extra money,if I'd only known the value of such things then,this yr 1957 an archery set wow what joy,I cant recall better times to have lived thro as a child,loving parents do make it a special time for you,morning rolling along, uncles and aunts turning up,great people to be around, such fun too,12 o/c off they'd go for the traditional lunchtime drink at the local pub,2.30 ish you always knew when they were coming up the street heading home,as my uncle charlie would start singing same song every year," I love my wife" such a fun person to have around especially at xmas,dinner ready everyone sits down to eat,lovely turkey dinner mmmmm!!! of course the xmas pudding, fingers crossed to find a silver threepence in mine,which I always did,uncles would take a snooze till around 5.30 then in time for tea up they'd get 2nd round nice turkey sandwiches and pickle onions too, plus the ham,the pork,the pickles,what a blow out! into the evening parlour games,cards,or charades,oh was uncle charlie good at that! laugh! just so funny he made it,I remember one year, his charade he had to do, quote " excuse me milkman,have you got half a stork on,"no madam" he replied,it's the way my apron hangs" we rolled up with laughter,how I miss all those fantastic xmases,everyone jolly and all got along which made it work well,so many crates of beer,it was nice just to hear and watch the grown ups having fun into the night,but around 9 we had to go to bed and you could hear them downstairs laughing joking,I used to say to myself,one day I'll be down there with them when I get older.I recall one xmas when the family all popped out to visit someone I think? not for too long,as I was on my own,no home alone back then,anyway! being a little devil? and liked to have a little drink of beer,I found an opened quart of cider bottle,ah! I thought,no one wil know if I take a drink from the bottle,so! stopper removed,up to mouth,long swig,ooopps!!! when I'd stopped! a taste? nothing like cider hit me! oh hel!l mum had filled this bottle with floor polish which she took from work,oh my tummy,I did not feel too good dont say a good clean out,yeh,days of sick and not good,but I lived to tell the tale,hope this has amused and given you some idea's of my xmas childhood.p.s. stork for those that aren't sure? was margarine,hope that now makes sense..... merry xmas....ray..

 

My childhood memories of Xmas?

Being given a present at 12:00 midnight every xmas eve since it was xmas morning. Living in a house with 2 parents and 8 children it was madness from the get go, with children screaming and yelling, 'Santa's been'. Then we would all sit down around the lounge, and be handed presents from our parents that santa had given us, then we would pass each others around, and my brother was always the last one up and he always insisted on a shower, shave, breakfeast and sometimes a little tv. Do you know how hard it is to control 7 children waiting for presents that they know your brother has. lol
I knew he did it on purpose.

Then once that was over, we would all sit around and talk about what we had and what not until xmas lunch. The lunch has turkey, chicken, lamb, pretty much everything, as well as all our family traditions.

Now I am older and have a family of my own I am hoping I can start my own traditions.

 

thanks for telling your xmas memory tom.merry xmas.ray..

 

thanks for that clint,very enjoyable,in fact! I have just this minute bought the dvd off ebay,cheers! my first xmas present,kidding grandchildren will enjoy it too....

 

just a thought! the icing on the cake so to speak,do you get many white xmases? depending on what part of the u.s. I suppose...for the guys in the states...

 

Today (Tue. 8th) we are supposed to have a "high" of 0 F° (-17.7 C°), right now it is -6 F° (-21 C), which is up from an overnight low of -10 F° (-23.3 C°). The forecast for the upcoming week is looking "up" in that the highs are supposed to climb back into the double digits on the plus side.

One never knows about Christmas itself anymore, sometimes we have snow and frigid temperatures, sometimes now snow, and Chinook winds that melt everything. The coldest temperature on record for Montana is also the coldest temperature for the entire lower 48 U.S. On January 20, 1954, -70 F° (-56.7 C°), not counting any "wind-chill". Our average high in January is in the upper 20-lower 30s F°.

But we have had some weird ones here in Big Sky Country, our favorite saying here is; if you don’t like the weather, wait an hour or so. On July 5, 1937 the temperature topped out at 117F° at Medicine Lake in northeastern Montana. This tied the all-time high temperature for Montana previously established at Glendive on July 20, 1893. Combined with the -70F° at Roger's Pass in 1954 (#6), this makes the all-time temperature range recorded in Montana 187F°. This is ALSO the most extreme temperature range experienced in any of the 50 United States.

See:


National Weather Service - NWS Great Falls

Loma, Montana holds the United States record for the greatest recorded temperature change. On January 15, 1972 the temperature went from a nippy -56F° (-48C°) to a balmy 49F° (9C°) in less than 24 hours. In a much smaller time frame, on January 11, 1980 the temperature at the Great Falls International Airport rose from -32F° to 15F° in seven minutes as warm, Chinook winds eroded an Arctic air-mass. This 47° degree rise in seven minutes stands as the record for the most rapid temperature change registered in the United States.

See:

Chinook Winds - A False Spring

Here is the "view" out my front window this morning, there is a "bit of snow", but not all that much yet.

 

thanks clint,it starts early in dec usually then? how bad does it get and for how long,have you been snow bound many times,ray..

 

Actually, Montana has a record of snow fall in most months of every year. I think that only July has never had any measuable snow at any elevation. Since I moved into Billings permanently in the 80s, I've never been snow bound. That isn't to say I haven't just "hunkered" down and waited out a blizzard or two, just that I've never felt I was completely without the ability to get around.

Out on the farm/ranch that was a different story all together. One time back in the seventies we had drifts higher than our telephone and power poles, and the cows walked up on the roof of the barn waiting for me to come with the feed. My bulls were buried under the snow on the barn for three months, and I had a hell of a time getting hay and water to those guys. But that is the exception not the rule.

Billings is sort of the "banana belt" here in MT., the city didn't even have snow removal equipment until the late seventies. Before then they just borrowed the county equipment when it was needed, but the county residents outside of the city limits started to complain about that, so Billings invested in plows and such of their own.

 

truly remarkable weather extremes clint bet you dont miss those days? having to go out in conditions that bad must have been hell.thanks again for answering with relish,ray..

 

thanks for telling that jeff,agree totally with wanting your children to have the same great xmas time as we did,and hopefully carry the tradition on,regards,ray..