258 responses so far ↓

• 1 Dana // Dec 4, 2009 at 12:22 pm

  My favorite Christmas memory is of my mom taking my sister, brother & I to see the nativity scene at the Catholic church at night. We weren’t catholic, but we would stand in the snow in the dark & sing Away in a Manger & Silent Night. We loved it.

• 2 Harriet M. Welsch // Dec 4, 2009 at 12:33 pm

  When I was in 8th or 9th grade, well past the age of a true believer, it snowed and snowed on Christmas Eve. We were supposed to bring cookies to a family party at the home of some friends, but we didn’t think we’d be able to get the car down our long, unplowed gravel driveway. Fortunately, they didn’t live too far away. My mom walked over early and my dad and my brother (who is three years younger than I) and I walked through the heart of the snowstorm. The streets were completely quiet. All of a sudden, as we were crossing a small side street, we noticed something moving through the snow down the road. We looked through the heavy snowflakes and saw Santa, heaving a huge sack onto his shoulder. I glanced up to see where we were and stopped dead in my tracks. My father and brother turned around to see why I had stopped, and I pointed to the street sign: “St. Nicholas Lane.” This happened a long time ago, but we still talk about the time we saw Santa Claus coming down St. Nicholas Lane in a Christmas Eve blizzard.

• 3 Nichole // Dec 4, 2009 at 12:36 pm

  Every year, my dad would drive 701 miles to pick me and my brother up. Then he’d turn around and drive us all the way back to spend two holiday weeks together before making the 1,402-mile trip again. That’s an excellent way to make a kid feel loved.

  A less-endearing tradition: My brother, step-brother, step-sister and I getting up before 7 on Christmas morning to run laps as stompingly as possible in an attempt to wake Dad and my stepmom.

• 4 evilsciencechick // Dec 4, 2009 at 12:45 pm

  My favorite holiday memory was when my dad bought my mom a new chandelier for the dining room. We had to sneakily install it late christmas eve, while my mother was upstairs. Now, she SWEARS she had no idea what we were doing, and was completely surprised when she came downstairs that Christmas morning. Even as a IAMTOOCOOLFORFAMILY teenager, I remember feeling like this was the most fun thing to do ever – surprise mom! And we were all in on it but her! And my brother’s and I got to help, which seemed so grownup to me (even though I think all I did was hold it to take the weight off while dad secured it to the ceiling). And to top it off, not once did my brothers and I snipe at each other.

  I’m sure we went back to fighting the next day.

• 5 Christine // Dec 4, 2009 at 12:47 pm

  My favorite is the year my sister got a puppy for Christmas. She was carrying my mom’s present downstairs with her as we were going to unwrap presents, as soon as she saw the puppy carrier under the tree she just flung my mom’s present to the side where it hit the tree because she was so excited for the puppy. It is especially a favorite this year because we just had to have the now grown dog put down.

• 6 erika // Dec 4, 2009 at 1:35 pm

  My mom is a queen of holidays. She’d open our window and leave trails of glitter from our pillows to the window when the Tooth Fairy had visited. She also leaves notes from the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, Santa, etc., in all-caps, saying how much they loved the carrot/tooth/cookies. She also put sooty and glittery footprints on Christmas from the fireplace to the tree. Big mess in the morning but we were thrilled! I hope to continue some of these things with my daughter(s).

• 7 Lori // Dec 4, 2009 at 1:54 pm

  A week or so before Christmas, my 4 siblings and I would get to fall asleep under the Christmas tree. All the lights in the house were turned off except the lights of the Christmas tree. I remember the glow from the tree and how special this was for my brothers and sisters. We would whisper until the wee hours of the night. (Or so it seemed! It was probably only 11:00!) This was such a special memory that I continued the tradition with my own family. My two boys would fall asleep under the tree several nights, and then usually my husband and I would then carry them to bed. One night the four of us slept the entire night under the Christmas tree. The kids were super excited to wake up the next morning under the tree!

• 8 Anne // Dec 4, 2009 at 2:11 pm

  When I was little my grandparents told me that for Santa to know which stocking was mine I had to rub it on my head before I went to bed. At the time this was Very Serious Business for my cousins and I, who didn’t want to accidentally end up with the wrong toys. In hindsight I’m pretty sure they did this just for the joy of seeing all the kids in their Christmas Jammies with their static-charged hair standing on end.
  The next morning we would wake up and open our Santa presents, and sometime mid-morning (after the grown-ups were finally up) someone would look out the window and see a bunch of presents in the yard that “fell out of the sleigh”. There were never any footprints in the snow leading out to the presents, which added to the magic belief that they TOTALLY fell from above. We’d scurry out in our boots and pajamas (no jackets, because that would take too long) and grab more presents to haul in the house. Often this was interrupted by a snowball fight breaking out among the boys. It was awesome.

• 9 Marianne // Dec 4, 2009 at 2:28 pm

  Christmas Eve my dad would put Emmylou Harris’ Christmas Time’s A Comin’ on the record player and we would all dance and sing at the top of our lungs.

• 10 Nikki // Dec 4, 2009 at 3:06 pm

  I remember driving home from my grandparents’ house on Christmas Eve… it was always really, really late, and we were really, really tired, and it was really, really cold. But it felt so snuggly in the car, and we could hear our parents murmuring in the front seat, and we were excited about Santa’s impending arrival… so lovely.

• 11 Heather Z // Dec 4, 2009 at 4:09 pm

  We spent every Christmas Eve at my great aunt and uncle’s house. My parents would put me and my brothers to bed for a little while at their home, so the grown-ups could visit a bit more. Then we would pile into the car and drive back to our house to await Santa. One night, in my great aunt and uncle’s guest room, my older brother and I saw Santa flying through the sky. We were absolutely, 100% convinced…at the age to be steadfast believers. I can still remember the feeling.

• 12 ona // Dec 4, 2009 at 4:28 pm

  Leaving fresh-baked cookies AND washed, sliced carrots for Santa and the reindeer on the counter before bed Christmas Eve, and then lying in bed with my sister straining to hear the thump of Santa’s sleigh landing on our roof. In the morning we’d wake in the gray light of dawn on the Oregon Coast and rush to the kitchen to check if Santa had really come. I remember the acute flush of joy and excitement I felt each time when I saw the empty plate, and read the note he left, thanking us for thinking of him and his animals. It’s a tradition I intend to keep alive with my own daughter as she grows.

• 13 An October Wife // Dec 4, 2009 at 5:09 pm

  Favorite Christmas memory? The year before my parents separated in 1985 they gave me a grey Pound Puppy. I still have it to and it’s reminder of a much happier time in my childhood. So, I guess that’s my favorite among many others.

• 14 Dory // Dec 4, 2009 at 6:38 pm

  My Uncle Cal would put out fresh hay on the lawn for the reindeer, and then after we fell asleep, he went back out in the freezing cold and gathered it all back up. Then when we woke up in the morning, we’d run to the front bay window to see, even before we checked under the tree. It was so magical!

• 15 Dawn // Dec 4, 2009 at 7:43 pm

  We moved away from family when I was five. Every other year we would make the ten hour drive back. We would listen to the Reader’s Digest Carol compilation albums the whole way, play car games, and my brother and I would bicker over who was taking up more of the seat. Then on Christmas Eve the entire extended family would gather at my Aunt’s house and have a huge slumber party. 30-45 people all crammed into one house. The kids would watch the news for Santa, the adults stayed up all night playing board games and putting out gifts. Christmas morning always started with a herd of stampeding children well before dawn.

• 16 Kizz // Dec 4, 2009 at 7:52 pm

  My best friend used to make dozens of loaves of cranberry bread for Christmas. It was crucial that each cranberry was cut in half. That was my job. We did that from the time we were 16 years old. We moved away but we came home for Christmas – no time to bake but she always brought cranberry bread with cranberries she’d had to cut in half by herself. This year she won’t be coming home for Christmas for the first time. Her father-in-law is gravely ill and she has to do what’s right for her family but I’ll miss her. So as I type this I’m in her living room watching Mamma Mia and enjoying the kick off to our early Christmas celebration. Today we exchanged presents. Tomorrow we bake at least 3 different kinds of cookies. There’s cranberry bread in the fridge and I’m debating whether to have some tonight or to wait until breakfast.

• 17 blackbird // Dec 4, 2009 at 7:57 pm

  I don’t think I’ve ever written about this…MY mother made two kinds of cookies every year. One was a butter cookie rolled into the shape (roughly) of a finger. She told us they were Lady Fingers. One cannot even begin to imagine what that kind of thing does to young minds.
  Anyhoo, the other cookie she made had Jello in it.
  They were pink and had a red-hot candy in the middle of them.
  I make both of these lame cookies every year.
  Aside from lame cookies?
  My parents decorated the entire house (and put up the tree) every Christmas eve while we were sleeping and told us Santa did it.
  THAT, I should blog about.

• 18 Brooke // Dec 4, 2009 at 8:30 pm

  Making cut out Christmas cookies is a tradition on my family. I’ll never forget being dusted in flour and icing the warm cookies just so I could eat one!

• 19 Sara Ziemendorf // Dec 4, 2009 at 8:45 pm

  I’m sure I’m not alone in loving the peanut butter cookies with the standard hershey’s kiss on top. I cannot resist that still.

• 20 Melanie // Dec 4, 2009 at 9:30 pm

  As a child, we spent every Christmas Eve with my dad’s parents, and then after Santa came to our house in the morning, we would drive over to my mom’s parent’s house. I love getting to see most of my extended family in a 2 day span. Man, I wish my kids had cousins to experience that feeling of a huge family.

• 21 Kendra // Dec 4, 2009 at 9:38 pm

  We listened to the Chipmunks’ Christmas Album over and over and over again. In fact, sometimes when I hear Christmas songs, the Chipmunks’ version (in my head) drowns out the version I am actually hearing.

• 22 Ashley // Dec 4, 2009 at 11:39 pm

  I know a lot of people do this, but as children we were always allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve, and it was always a new pair of holiday pajamas that we would wear all day on Christmas. Even though we knew what we were getting, it was still exciting. My little boy is almost one, and this is his first Christmas. I think I will keep the tradition going!

• 23 Clair // Dec 4, 2009 at 11:45 pm

  From the time I was very little until I was 12 or 13, my mom would put the three of us to bed on Christmas Eve, and then wake us up to get ready for Midnight Mass. We’d leave cookies for Santa and carrots for Rudolph on the dining room table, and the whole family would get in the car and drive together to church. We’d come home from Mass around 2 am, the cookies and carrots would be gone, and all our presents would be under the tree. My mom still won’t tell us who played Santa, but I think I’m happier not knowing.

• 24 Carol Mitchell // Dec 5, 2009 at 7:41 am

  Every Christmas season I make about 8-10 different varieties of cookies to give to teachers, customers etc. I also make about 8-10 different batches of spritz cookies. One year, after finally finishing up, I had bagged the cookies and placed them on top of the fridge. I have 4 dogs and at the time only six cats. My daughter had a recital and we all rushed out of the house(running late as usual!). When we returned, all but two bags of cookies had somehow been knocked off the fridge and the entire kitchen/dining room was covered with cookie/bag debris. I knew that my animals all got along…but I never knew that they were stealthy ninjas and worked together to get things done!! Needless to say, I worked double-time that weekend to bake more cookies, and I made sure I locked them up in the pantry. Good thing none of the animals know how to open a door….

• 25 Cindy // Dec 5, 2009 at 8:29 am

  I love driving around and looking at Christmas lights on Christmas eve.

• 26 Ami // Dec 5, 2009 at 10:21 am

  We didn’t have any great Christmas traditions in our family — mostly it was my dad getting really p.o.’ed at putting up the Christmas lights and swearing and stomping around about it. But, as an adult, I am trying to make some good traditions for our family, and we usuallly bake a red velvet cake and sing Happy Birthday Jesus. Also, kids can open stockings before we get up, but have to wait for us to open anything under the tree. Oh! Wait! I just remembered a pleasant tradition from my youth: my mom always gave me a piece of jewelry (sometimes real, sometimes just fun) from “Mrs. Claus” and I do the same thing for my daughter. :)

• 27 Mami2jcn // Dec 5, 2009 at 11:03 am

  As children my husband and I always opened gifts on Christmas Eve, not Christmas Day. We’re continuing that tradition with our children.

• 28 Mami2jcn // Dec 5, 2009 at 11:05 am

  I blogged about this:

  http://grand-giveaways.blogspot.com/2009/12/visa-100-gift-card-sponsored-by.html

• 29 Eleanor // Dec 5, 2009 at 1:38 pm

  When I was a teenager, my father’s youngest sister moved into my parents’ (two-bedroom, one-bath) house with her two daughters, who were about four and two at the time. They spent that Christmas with us, and it was the first time I wasn’t one of the kids for Christmas. Instead of listening to the myths, I got to create them. I told them about leaving cookies and milk for Santa, I helped them hang the coolest ornaments on the tree, and (favorite thing) I showed them NORAD’s Santa-tracking website. Seeing Christmas from the other side for the first time is my favorite Christmas memory.

• 30 Emily D // Dec 5, 2009 at 2:00 pm

  My favorite family Christmas tradition is eating Mexican food for dinner on Christmas Eve while wearing Christmas pajamas. Specifically we have chicken tortilla soup, taco salad, tamales, and of course chips & salsa. It is the perfect meal because it can all be made ahead of time. This way, we all get back from the Christmas Eve service, get comfy & festive in our PJs, and dinner is ready without any fuss! We do this with the whole family – aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, great grand kids- about 25 of us. As a result any time I eat tamales I always feel like it’s Christmas!

• 31 Jenny B // Dec 5, 2009 at 3:53 pm

  One of my favorite memory to date is the first Christmas with my quadruplets. It’s hard to believe we’re coming up on our 3rd Christmas together as a family now. We are SO blessed and nothing will top that first one with my husband and my babies. We finally felt complete after much heartache and struggle.

• 32 Susan // Dec 5, 2009 at 5:23 pm

  My family spends every Christmas Eve helping at a Toy Store for disadvantaged families. We get to celebrate Christmas with them and they leave with 4 new toys for each of the kiddos, plus other fun treats. It is so much fun to spend time giving like this with my family every year.

• 33 Neena // Dec 5, 2009 at 6:25 pm

  My favorite Christmas memories were the annual Christmas Chinese dinners. As a Hindu family, my parents participated to the extent of putting up a small fake tree, giving a few gifts, and then trooping to the Chinese buffet and eating Mongolian beef. I loved it and now try to carry on the tradition with my own husband and daughter.

• 34 April // Dec 5, 2009 at 6:40 pm

  My favorite memories are from when I was 4-6 and we lived closer to my grandparents. My aunts would drive up too and we would all spend Christmas in my grandparents tiny house. I’m an only child, and the only granddaughter, so I was pretty spoiled! We would play Pictionary, eat Honeybaked ham and the chocolate covered macadamia nuts my other aunt would send from Hawaii. I’m not sure what happened, but think there was some sort of family drama involved. My grandmother started developing Alzheimer’s, which began with her saying horrible hurtful things to my aunts and my dad, and I think that’s about the time it started. We stopped visiting at holidays, and now, years later, I’m still trying to recapture that warmth and familial feeling I remember from so long ago. Wow. Sorry for depressing up such a nice post! Woo. Christmas!

• 35 Jamie // Dec 5, 2009 at 8:00 pm

  Sure, i loved baking the Christmas cookies and candies with my mom. But the best part was always when it was time to eat ‘em. Yum, mom’s peanut butter and chocolate fudge. Nothing beats it.

• 36 Linda V // Dec 5, 2009 at 8:01 pm

  The biggest is probably the most simple-having only the Christmas tree lights on in the evening and enjoying the glow of the tree.

• 37 Maiken // Dec 6, 2009 at 1:32 am

  Until a few years ago my four sisters and I all insisted upon sleeping in the same room on Christmas Eve. The tradition did not end because we were too old (I was 31 the last time) or because we couldn’t always comfortably sleep in one room or because spouses thought it odd. The end came when one of my sisters caved because her first child could not seem to sleep in a room with ten people. We do still stay up late talking and squeezing in as much time together as possible now that we have miles or responsibilities apart from one another. My sisters are Christmas for me.

• 38 kimblahg // Dec 6, 2009 at 1:42 am

  My favorite Christmas memories center around Christmas Eve family traditions of opening one present each, going to the children’s mass and to my uncle’s house. I loved watching all the Christmas lights go by on the drive home while listening to carols.

• 39 Dawn J. // Dec 6, 2009 at 2:02 am

  Every year we went to my grandparents house for Christmas holidays. There were lots of traditions that I remember, but my favorite is my Aunt Patty reciting the story of The Littlest Angel every year. I can’t recite it but I still read it every year.

• 40 Deanna G. // Dec 6, 2009 at 11:00 am

  My favorite holiday tradition from childhood is making Latkes in the morning on the first day of Hannukah! With lots of powdered sugar on top :)

• 41 Deanna G. // Dec 6, 2009 at 11:01 am

  Tweeted!

  http://twitter.com/calidreamin87/status/6402565314

• 42 Lori // Dec 6, 2009 at 1:55 pm

  Hi there!
  After looking at the recipe on the Hershey site for the chocolate crescents, I must say yours look WAY better. Did you roll them differently? I would really like to try making them, so can you tell me your recipe?
  Thanks!!

• 43 Marianne // Dec 6, 2009 at 3:52 pm

  A few years ago I spent Christmas in Athens where I was studying. Since I’d spent 2 Christmases away from home before, I knew that if I didn’t plan fun for myself, I’d pine. I ordered Nigella’s then-new cookbook, Feast, as well as National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (my mother’s favorite holiday movie), and A Christmas Carol. I had dinner with school friends on Christmas Eve, and planned to get together with them again Christmas day, but after many of them got smashingly drunk on absinthe, I wasn’t very excited (since I don’t drink, and absinthe-drunk seemed a lot uglier than normal-drunk, and not actually a very festive way to celebrate the birth of baby Jesus).

  I left for midnight mass with a friend, and then walked home in the wee hours. It was a long walk, but Athens is very very safe, even late, and it was nice to walk in the cold and think.

  When I got back to my apartment I watched A Christmas Carol and fell asleep on the couch. When I woke up I opened my package from my parents which included the traditional Christmas-day puzzle, some of my favorite handcream, and a fold-up pull-cart to tote groceries from the market (like a little old Greek lady).

  Since I was dreading getting back together with the same friends, I was trying to come up with an alternative plan for my day and had come up with laying on the couch reading Bronte novels. But I got a call from a little elderly couple who I’d met at church inviting me over for an American-style Christmas dinner, and they said they’d invited over a few other single girls as well. When I got off the phone I cried and cried and then packed up my puzzle, and re-wrapped the handcream, and the little folding cart and showed up with presents in hand. I’ve never been so grateful for other people’s kindness or for the presents that my parents sent me that were actually perfect for sharing.

  When the called that night I cried and cried again because it had been one of the best Christmases I’d ever had.

• 44 Shelley // Dec 6, 2009 at 9:54 pm

  My favorite memories are making cookies for Santa Claus, reading The Night Before Christmas with my mother, and getting to open that one gift on Christmas Eve. Christmas was always so so so exciting as a kid.

• 45 Trisha // Dec 6, 2009 at 9:56 pm

  My favorite holiday tradition was going out and looking at all the christmas lights in the local neighborhoods. It would be me my brother and sister all in the backseat and that seemed like the only time we all would all get along! Life was so much simpler than!!

• 46 Todd Jordan // Dec 6, 2009 at 9:57 pm

  My fondest Christmas tradition from childhood? My dad secretly waking me up first of the kids and letting me wake up the other two while he pretended to go back to sleep.

  My best Christmas memory? So many good ones, but one of my favorites was the first Christmas with our daughter-in-law. They had married in November but she was already preggers. At Christmas she was really showing. Her favorite thing is chocolate. We bought a box of those mixed ones. She sat with us and indulged. It was a wonderful Christmas morning with her. I’ll cherish it always.

• 47 Robyns Online World // Dec 6, 2009 at 9:57 pm

  I have so many great holiday memories – the one I have been thinking about most today though for some unknown reason was my dad taking my brother and I shopping each year. All year long my mom would give us her Eagle stamps to collect (yep I’m showing my age) and then on Christmas Eve Day each year my dad would take brother and I to the Rexall drug store where we would be our gifts for family. Dad didn’t have any rules except that we had only the Eagle stamps to spend, no extra money. I remember picking out each gift so carefully – a pen for my aunt who worked at the bank and wrote a lot, gas-x for my dad who always had gas (I thought this was a hilarious and practical gift), baseball cards for my brother, all sorts of little items. I just always loved doing this each year!

• 48 Trisha // Dec 6, 2009 at 9:58 pm

  I tweeted!
  http://twitter.com/Haydensmommy05/statuses/6419034374

• 49 Alpaca Farmgirl // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:00 pm

  My favorite Christmas memories involve driving around looking at Christmas lights and listening to Christmas carols in the car.
  I still do that with my children.

• 50 Shawna OBrien // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:02 pm

  My absolute favorite holiday memory from childhood was my 5th Christmas. I remember having a big Christmas tree with lots of presents. I received a hand built doll house with furniture. We had a wonderful Christmas dinner and everyone was happy and my mom had a great job. This is the only happy Christmas memory that I have from my childhood. My family pretty much fell apart after this. I’m married now with 2 young boys of my own. My husband has a large supportive family and I can tell you that Christmas is always a happy time now especially for my kids.

• 51 Todd Jordan // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:04 pm

  tweeted – http://twitter.com/Tojosan/statuses/6419183233

• 52 jana // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:08 pm

  This is a long story, but I’ll try to get to the point. One summer when I was a kid, my mom and dad paid for me to take a painting class through the community center. I was really into art and loved every session of the class. On the last day, my teacher brought in a few of her really amazing paintings to show the class. When she got to the last one, I gasped. It was a painting of an old man, napping in a lawn chair during our town’s annual festival. The old man was my grandpa! I told my teacher, and she explained that she had taken a photo of my grandpa when she saw him “resting his eyes” during Tulip Time a few years ago.

  I told my parents about it that night, and they couldn’t believe it.

  Years later, after my grandpa had died, my dad and I found the painting for sale in our small town’s gallery. It was way, WAY out of my dad’s paltry budget. But somehow, he scraped together the money, and bought my mom the painting of her late father.

  We have a picture that we always laugh at when looking through family albums of my mom, holding the painting of my grandpa that she had just unwrapped. She’s all puffy-faced, teary-eyed, but squeaking out a smile.

• 53 Pictou // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:12 pm

  John Henry Faulk’s Christmas story. This link has the transcript and an audio link. Listening to the story is a treat, John Henry Faulk’s voice and Texas accent is a treat.

  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5028755

• 54 Pictou // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:13 pm

  P.S. –not entering the contest, just want to send the link to you.

• 55 dr. dave // Dec 6, 2009 at 10:51 pm

  My favorite Xmas memory is from the year my Dad stole our Xmas tree from the median of a highway on Xmas eve. He crawled under it with a saw and had my uncle pull the pickup around. When he came back around, my Dad ran for the truck only to find he tree was wired to the ground. Another lap with the truck and a few more cuts and we had ourselves the freshest Christmas tree any of us could remember.

  Now if that doesn’t bring a tear to your eye… ;)

• 56 Mitzi // Dec 6, 2009 at 11:50 pm

  Angie, Thanks so much for asking others to share their holiday memories. It has been a joy to read everyone’s heartfelt stories!

  I usually bake 20-25 different types of cookies, with a minimum of 3 batches of each. It was kind of my thing to give big cookie platters out as gifts. I cannot imagine how your mother baked THAT MANY cookies. I felt like I was constantly baking in every spare moment that I had. I have yet to bake a single cookie this year. I will bake a few batches and I am going to try my hand at baklava this year. This year, homemade canned goods instead of cookie platters will be my gift.

  As far as Christmas memories go… I guess some of my best were on Christmas Eve. Santa always visited our house on the evening of Christmas Eve…we would come home from either visiting my grandparents or going to mass that evening, and the living room would be filled with presents for my brothers and I. We still have that tradition at our house. We exchange gifts on Christmas Eve and go to midnight mass. On Christmas day, we stay home and prepare a great meal and play games all day! Some years, we have all stayed in our pajama’s.

• 57 The Coffee Lady // Dec 7, 2009 at 6:19 am

  Jesus, there’s no way on earth I can make you cry. If you were 10 in 1980, then you’re the same age as me – how come your memory also isn’t shot to pieces?

  I remember the boyfriend I had when I was 17 coming round to our house to put up the decorations, and then we couldn’t take them down again because at 6′ 3″ he was a foot taller than anyone in our house.

  Also I remember a fluffy mohair jumper that really itched.

  Do I get a prize?

• 58 Beverly Atkins // Dec 7, 2009 at 11:34 am

  My favorite memory (and this goes way back) is that every single Christmas we’d all pile in the car and my Dad would drive us around to look at the lights. Now this was 50 years ago and the lights were nothing compared to now but the ride with my Dad was something I’d give my eye teeth (not sure where that saying came from) for today.

• 59 Michelle // Dec 7, 2009 at 11:44 am

  My favorite holiday memory is everyone standing around the menorah and my sister and I argueing over who got to light the candles. I know it seems like a petty fight but my sister and I would joke around about it all year. It’s honestly one of my favorite memories.

• 60 Christine // Dec 7, 2009 at 12:25 pm

  The year I got rollerblades for Christmas. I had woken up Christmas morning and my mom was still sleeping. The video camera was sitting on the coffee table. I decided to turn it on and watch some family films. Well, there was my mom wrapping my new rollerblades. She had videotaped it for my dad who was in Iraq at the time in the first gulf war.

• 61 Kristen // Dec 7, 2009 at 12:41 pm

  Spritz cookies! Every year my mom, sister and I would make spritz cookies and spend hours decorating them. It’s something I can’t wait to do with my kids.

• 62 Swedish Pankakes // Dec 7, 2009 at 3:26 pm

  Being a large family with a dad in the ministry, we never had money. In fact, I remember a few Christmases in which we didn’t know if we’d get any presents, but my parents always wanted to stress how giving was just as special as receiving. So, every Christmas, they would take us four kids to the dollar store to pick out gifts for us to give each other.

  These gifts were always so heartfelt and special, that my parents’ goal of ingraining within us a “giving spirit” is still with us to this day.

• 63 Trish // Dec 7, 2009 at 4:51 pm

  My favorite childhood Christmas memory was one year at my grandma and grandpa’s house when my sister and I both got a china doll for Christmas, I think she was four and I was nine. But my best Christmas memory of all is from 1992, the year my son was born. Due to a falling out between my grandma and stepmother, I did not see my sister after I turned 12. It was pre-cell phone and internet days and I didn’t have their address or anything. The Christmas I was 22, my mom called me to say she thought my sister and stepmom had visited her church. She was able to call them and set up a visit. It was the BEST Christmas ever! I got to be with my sister and she got to meet her newborn nephew. I just cherish that day so much, it was the start of a wonderful relationship we’ve been able to have as adults.

• 64 Kendall // Dec 7, 2009 at 4:59 pm

  My absolute favorite Christmas memory is my baby sister’s first Christmas. I was only five at the time, but I so enjoyed being a big sissy, and I loved sharing my excitement with her!

• 65 Lani // Dec 7, 2009 at 6:04 pm

  I think my favorite memory is on Christmas Eve all the kids would sleep in the same room… kind of a big sleep over! (I think my parents did it so they could keep track of us a little easier!)

• 66 Emily // Dec 7, 2009 at 6:15 pm

  My favorite tradition is on Christmas Eve, we go out to eat for Mexican food. My husband loved the idea so much, we’ve brought it to our own family now. Some people think it’s weird but we’re from south Texas so whatever.

  PS totally making those crescent roll thingys STAT.

• 67 Ani // Dec 7, 2009 at 7:11 pm

  Christmas at my grandmother’s house, with all the cousins coming together in a melee of humanity. Good food, lots of love, and did I mention good food? 20 years gone, and I miss her still.

• 68 Sarah, Goon Squad Sarah // Dec 7, 2009 at 10:11 pm

  When I was 11 we moved to Tampa. Our first Christmas in Florida just felt wrong with it being 70 degrees outside.

  So we went swimming.

  The pool was cold as hell, but the whole family got in and we had a great time.

• 69 Amanda // Dec 7, 2009 at 11:39 pm

  Every year on Christmas Eve, we make homemade Mexican food from recipes handed down from my grandparents and my great grandmother. Even on those years when we can’t all be together, we all make the same dishes! This year, my parents are coming to Texas to be with us for the holidays. I’m already getting excited about cooking enchilada sauce with my mom.

• 70 Joan Berntson // Dec 8, 2009 at 8:45 am

  So many memories, so little time! I’m not sure if I should talk about the time my mom got her hand caught in the mixer and I had to call the neighbor to come and extract her (not sure if she was making Christmas cookies, but it might have been), or tell about the Christmas that Santa brought all 3 of us girls sleds. Like the old fashioned kind with metal runners and everything, and we used them to slide down the (little) hill in front of our house. Or the memory that sticks in my brain from when my kids were little was the Christmas we were building our house (14 years ago) and I got up at 3 am and went out and varnished doors and trim until about 6:30 when I got a call that I was needed to feed the baby and make Christmas dinner for 15 people!

• 71 Deb on the Rocks // Dec 8, 2009 at 1:00 pm

  My grandmother was a Danish immigrant, and she loved Christmas and sharing Scandinavian traditions with us. Some were challenging, especially when fish products were involved. But most were charming and delicious and felt like home. Advent calendars and little Kringle elves and almond cookies and spiced wine and tiny open-faced ham sandwiches and unpronounceable songs say Christmas to me.

• 72 Angela at mommy bytes // Dec 8, 2009 at 1:09 pm

  Listening for Santa’s sleigh. One year we thought we heard it!

• 73 kimmie // Dec 8, 2009 at 3:35 pm

  My absolute favorite holiday memory is when we were little was building snow forts, snow angels, and snowmen with my sister. I still remember the cold and soggy mittens and getting snow in my socks and up my back, but it was so much fun and totally worth it! :)

• 74 Betsy Harris // Dec 8, 2009 at 3:45 pm

  When I was child, we lived in Massachusetts. Our next door neighbors owned some horses. They used to take us caroling in a horse drawn sled. I loved being all wrapped up in blankets in the back of that sled singing Christmas songs and drinking hot chocalate.

• 75 Ris // Dec 8, 2009 at 3:46 pm

  My favorite memory is one from only a few years ago. My sister and I realized that it was Christmas Eve and we didn’t have any stocking stuffers for our parents–nothing! We hauled it to Walgreens and bought the goofiest stuff we could find. We must have been on a sugar high but it was so fun-dashing through the store, breathless from laughing too hard, joking like we hadn’t in years. And my parents got a huge kick out of the random stocking stuffers the next morning!

• 76 Elizabeth // Dec 8, 2009 at 6:15 pm

  I have SO many wonderful holiday memories, one of which was baking with my mom, and we used lots of Hershey products. In addition to the standard peanut butter kiss cookies, we used peppermint patties layered in brownie batter, and mini reese’s w/ brownie dough in a mini muffin pan. The reason we used so much Hershey’s stuff was because we were collecting the bags from the miniature candies. In the 80s and early 90s, Hershey had a promotion where people could buy ornaments if 2 proofs of purchase from a bag were submitted. Well, there were 3 ornaments every year, and my dad always bought 3 of each because he wanted my sister and me to each have a set. So that was 18 bags of Hershey’s miniatures a year!

• 77 Elizabeth // Dec 8, 2009 at 6:34 pm

  Tweet Tweet! http://twitter.com/ebogie/status/6478670979

• 78 Annette D // Dec 8, 2009 at 7:01 pm

  As a child we used to have all our families over for Christmas. One year when I was around 6 or so, my older cousin decided to entertain the younger kids by making shadows on the wall. He covered a lamp with my little sisters baby blanket and began the show. The problem was that so much heat was built up with the blanket over the plastic lampshade that it caused the shade to begin to smoke and melt. We were all nearly overcome from toxic fumes!

• 79 Barbara S. // Dec 8, 2009 at 9:16 pm

  As a child my mother’s side of the family got together on Christmas Eve after the church’s candlelight service for dinner and gift opening. As we were finishing dinner, we would hear sleighbells at the front door. One of our parents would go to the door to find out what it was about. Standing there in the door was Santa Claus. We truly believed it was Santa. He handed out one gift to each of the us kids. Then he would say Good Bye and fly out the front door. It was the most exciting thing that happene d to us. n As we got older we tried to figure out who it was in the suit and couldn’t figure it out untilI was a teenager. At first it was my aunt Emma Jane, then my grandfather.
  When our families got too large for all of us to be together, then my mom hired a friend to do the same thing at my mom/dad’s house for the grandkids. Then my brother did it for a few years.

  This was so exciting to see the kids’ faces when Santa came in the door with his large bag and passing out those gifts.

• 80 Barbara S. // Dec 8, 2009 at 9:20 pm

  I tweeted about this giveaway:

  http://twitter.com/pine1211/status/6483460485

• 81 Barbara S. // Dec 8, 2009 at 9:23 pm

  I posted on my blog about this giveaway:

  http://meditativereading.blogspot.com/2009/12/suddenly-puddings-are-baking.html

• 82 Jennifer // Dec 9, 2009 at 9:01 am

  My fave tradition was the Christmas Eve PJ’s, which I carry on with my own girls. So sweet!

• 83 Joy // Dec 9, 2009 at 9:14 am

  My favorite tradition is making a gingerbread house :)
  mjharvey26 at yahoo dot com

• 84 JennaG // Dec 9, 2009 at 11:18 am

  We always have blueberry pancakes for breakfast on Christmas morning. My husband’s family always did this, and he says it’s a rule!

• 85 kilowatthour // Dec 9, 2009 at 1:00 pm

  i pine for your kisses, lady.

  my favorite tradition is the reading of “the night before christmas” which, yes, kind of makes me cry a little.

• 86 Willow // Dec 9, 2009 at 2:35 pm

  My favortie memory has got to be waking up on early morning in the 80s to find a new Macintosh computer flashing “Merry Christmas! From Santa!” and I knew in my 8 year old heart that Santa was real because my parents would never have purchased a computer.
  Favorite traditions this year are under attack from my brothers who don’t want to get together Christmas Eve to open family gifts and eat meatballs. They are so wayward.

• 87 Jane // Dec 9, 2009 at 2:57 pm

  We call those Styrofoam cookies…or at the ones of us that don’t like them call them that. I just call them yummy. Our best tradition is tromping up and down the hills at the tree farm looking for the perfect tree.

• 88 TJ // Dec 9, 2009 at 3:01 pm

  My favorite Christmas tradition is probably a little unique to our family, but we all like to try to be the first to yell “YOU RUINED CHRISTMAS” at someone else, like for unwrapping a present incorrectly or taking a bathroom break in the middle of present opening.

• 89 Tanya // Dec 9, 2009 at 3:17 pm

  My absolute favorite Chrismas memory is the year my parents put us to sleep for the night – got busy playing Santa and putting out our Christmas presents, then left for Christmas midnight Mass (I’m not sure what they were thinking leaving us asleep, but my oldest brother was definitely old enough to babysit us).
  Anyway, one of my brothers woke up, saw that Santa had already visited and woke the rest of us. My parents came home from Mass to find their children already playing with everything we could get our hands on. I distinctly remember that was the year I got peel-off nail polish and a Fischer Price Record Player.
  My parents had to convince us that it was indeed still the middle of the night and we HAD to go back to bed and we most definitely could not begin opening presents at 1 in the morning.

• 90 Andrea // Dec 9, 2009 at 4:10 pm

  I’m all homesick for my family Christmas this year since we won’t be heading back to Minnesota this year to join my family. We usually have too much family, holiday craft projects, lasagna or pizza for Christmas eve so we can get to business unwrapping presents. We make lefse and krumkake and eat that along with the many other cookies that have been made in preparation for the holidays and just enjoy spending time together enjoying the views of the snow covered lake.

  That didn’t help with my homesickness…

• 91 Shera // Dec 9, 2009 at 5:51 pm

  We weren’t allowed to touch the gifts until the adults FINALLY woke up, but stockings were fair game. I remember waking up at 3:00 am with my brother, raiding our stocking loot, and playing paddle-ball until dawn.

• 92 Greg // Dec 9, 2009 at 6:12 pm

  Yum!

  greglee87@gmail.com

• 93 Karina // Dec 9, 2009 at 6:12 pm

  I just love making holiday treats.

  karina@ussery.net

• 94 Peg // Dec 9, 2009 at 9:12 pm

  Baking dozens and dozens of cookies for christmas eve with the grandkids!

• 95 Catrisha T // Dec 10, 2009 at 12:03 am

  My favorite family tradition that I did when I was little and still do as an adult and my son will do this year as it’s the first year he’s old enough is done on Christmas Eve’s Eve. All the women and children on my mom’s side of the family get together and bake dozens of sugar cookies. The adults do icing when they are done usually and the children do the candy decorating on top them. Then after sampling a few, and placing some on a platter for the family gathering the next day, we all package up the rest of them and take them to the homeless shelter for those less fortunate than us for their Christmas dinner.

  catrisha{underscore}tittle{at}yahoo{dot}com

• 96 MeghanK // Dec 10, 2009 at 8:56 am

  I loved waking up Christmas morning (in christmas pjs of course) and opening one gift while we waited for my dad to go and pick up my grandma and grandpa. It was always so tough to wait, then on top of it all…they wanted coffee when they got there. We have many old photos of me and my brothers waiting at the front door for them to ‘get there already’. Now, I can’t wait to pass on the ‘tradition’ with my own son. But, this time I’ll be the one wanting all the coffee!

• 97 Kaitlin // Dec 10, 2009 at 8:57 am

  Every year for as long as I can remember, my brothers and I each get one day (separately) to go out Christmas shopping with our Dad. We could pick where we went shopping and also got to pick where we went out to eat. The tradition started so we could do our shopping for Mom, but it’s definitely more about getting a day of quality time with Dad :)

• 98 Valarie // Dec 10, 2009 at 11:18 am

  Probably my favorite Christmas memory is of Christmas shopping with my Dad. Each year, he and I would shop for a gift for my Mom. I felt so very, very special and lucky to be spending time alone with my Dad.

• 99 artistic baker // Dec 10, 2009 at 3:08 pm

  My favorite tradition is looking at all the Christmas lights in our neighborhood!

  artisticbaker at gmail dot com

• 100 Christy // Dec 10, 2009 at 4:29 pm

  All really enjoyed reading everyone’s comments – all the different Christmas traditions and memories. I’m going to try making the Nighty Nights!

• 101 Linda Stewart // Dec 10, 2009 at 4:31 pm

  The Christmas my sister and I got matching pedal cars. OH MY … that was the best Christmas ever! That was the same year we got US Army jumpsuits from my Uncle who was stationed in Vietnam. He had our names embroidered on them and they were absolutely beautiful. I still have mine! Both of my girls have worn it for pictures and I’m planning to make Lil Man’s picture wearing it this year. In a few years I will pull it out again to make Lil Bit’s picture wearing it.

• 102 em-jay // Dec 10, 2009 at 5:33 pm

  My Gram was just like your mom, apparently! She would spend weeks baking cookies AND candies, and I never could count how many varieties she had. But there was one room in her house that was unbearably cold, and she could store the trays upon trays of goodies in there before packaging them up for family, friends, gifts, etc. I REALLY wish I had even SOME of those recipes she used… After she passed away, my mom, aunt, cousin and I tried to duplicate some of the recipes, but with only one day to do it, we sure didn’t accomplish as much! She must have been wonder-Grandma!

• 103 Kimberly/Mom in the City // Dec 10, 2009 at 5:36 pm

  Our tradition is letting the kids stay up as late as they like.

• 104 amber // Dec 10, 2009 at 10:07 pm

  Love the pics you posted! Your girls look so happy :) Yummy recipes, I need to try these. Growing up, my grandmother had a special tradition of giving me and my little sister 12 gifts, one to open each of the 12 Days of Christmas, leading up to Christmas. My sister and I always had such joy with it! Not to mention, my grandmother had 10 other grandkids to do the same for! So it took a lot of time, money, and love. It was so special. I plan on doing this with my children when they are old enough. it will always remind me of my grandmother, she was wonderful and always made life, and the holidays, so so special! Thank you for the lovely giveaway.

• 105 amber // Dec 10, 2009 at 10:08 pm

  I tweeted:
  http://twitter.com/lipstickncandy/status/6554236530

• 106 Heather // Dec 10, 2009 at 10:55 pm

  It’s a cliche, but I have such fond memories of my dad reading Twas the Night Before Christmas to us on Christmas Eve.

• 107 Wehaf // Dec 10, 2009 at 11:00 pm

  My favorite tradition is that my mother always read to us from “The Father Christmas Letters”, by J.R.R. Tolkein, in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

• 108 Kelsey Kim // Dec 10, 2009 at 11:28 pm

  My favorite from growing up is turning off all the lights except the Christmas tree lights, and me and all of my siblings gathering around it and just talking about Christmas, and how we couldn’t wait for Santa to come!

• 109 Heather! // Dec 11, 2009 at 11:32 am

  My favorite holiday memory was a tradition my parents started, and we’ve carried it onto my family. We would gather on Christmas Eve and exchange one ‘comfy’ gift each (pjs, slippers, etc.). Then we’d each choose an article or poem from old Ideals magazines and read it aloud. Lastly, my father would read the Christmas story from the Bible. We’d all go off to bed with a fresh reminder of what the season is all about!

  h4schaffer at gmail dot com

• 110 Robyn // Dec 11, 2009 at 1:05 pm

  My most memerable childhood moment was waking up in the middle of the night to catch my grandma stuffing the stockings! The jig was up!

• 111 Becca // Dec 11, 2009 at 1:59 pm

  One of my favorite holiday memories is putting out the milk and cookies for Santa! I’m married with kids now and it never gets old!

• 112 DG // Dec 12, 2009 at 4:43 pm

  My favorite family tradition is going to church on Christmas Eve and coming back to watch It’s a Wonderful Life! I remember watching it for the first time as a 4 year old and never get tired of this timeless classic!

  dreamzz12{at}aol{dot}com

• 113 DG // Dec 12, 2009 at 4:49 pm

  blogged

  http://the-prestigiator.xanga.com/718160538/hersheys-kisses-chocolate-holiday-recipes-giveaways/

  dreamzz12{at}aol{dot}com

• 114 DG // Dec 12, 2009 at 4:52 pm

  http://twitter.com/DeeGee13/status/6610351250

  tweeted!

• 115 eileen marie // Dec 12, 2009 at 5:12 pm

  My absolute favorite memory from Christmas past was when I was given the choice of the very hot Cabbage Patch doll or a real live bunny-difficult choice for an 8-yr-old! I chose the Cabbage Patch (I know, I know.), but when I woke up I found a tiny little black bunny hopping around under the Christmas tree AND an oddly shaped oblong box wrapped in holiday paper-I got both of my wishes. :) (Pets make bad presents, but we took very good care of Nibbles.)

• 116 Mindy // Dec 12, 2009 at 7:22 pm

  Blogged

  http://mindymerenghi.blogspot.com/2009/12/blogher-special-offers.html

  mdmerenghi@gmail.com

• 117 tuesday // Dec 13, 2009 at 5:29 pm

  we always went to mass on Christmas eve. I lvoe that the streets were quiet, the church so pretty all decorated. I love that I take my kids every year.

• 118 Lori A. // Dec 14, 2009 at 9:58 am

  I always have a memory of the nativity scene at Church. I always loved going to look at it before and after Mass.
  ljatwood at gmail dot com

• 119 Lori A. // Dec 14, 2009 at 9:59 am

  tweeted
  http://twitter.com/ljatwood/status/6663597693
  ljatwood at gmail dot com

• 120 M. Webster // Dec 14, 2009 at 2:22 pm

  When I was little, all I wanted for Christmas was a shiny, new, purple bike. My parents didn’t have much money, and my mom warned me that they wouldn’t be able to afford to buy me one. I said that was alright because Santa Claus would bring me one. I wrote several letters to Santa explaining that he just had to bring me the bike for Christmas, since my parents couldn’t. My mom kept telling me not to get my hopes up, but I knew that Santa would come through for me. On Christmas morning, I raced to the living room and found the most beautiful bike with a giant bow on it placed near the Christmas tree. I still don’t know how my parents managed to pay for it, but that year will always be my favorite Christmas.

• 121 Milissa Burdette // Dec 14, 2009 at 2:34 pm

  Christmas morning, my husband and I always go to my mom’s house for breakfast and we all open our stockings. A few years ago, my mom’s house was being foreclosed and she would be moving right after Christmas. So she decided that she did not want to put up a tree, decorations, or the stockings. Since I had already bought all of the “stocking stuffers” to place in her stocking, I had to come up with another idea to present them to her. So I found some gaudy christmas socks and placed one item in each sock. When we went to her house Christmas morning, I hid the filled socks around her house and turned them in a scavenger hunt. She had to seach around to get her gifts. It was so much fun! It it now a new tradition that we have done every year since.

• 122 Anna S. // Dec 14, 2009 at 3:29 pm

  my favorite memory is decorating our tree and getting all the old ornaments out

• 123 Nancy // Dec 14, 2009 at 4:36 pm

  Church on Christmas eve and then opening the presents the next morning.

• 124 Emily N. // Dec 14, 2009 at 7:22 pm

  Go to a movie together or watch a classic at home.

• 125 Beth // Dec 14, 2009 at 11:05 pm

  My grandmother always filled the stockings on Christmas eve. My mom now does this for my children.

• 126 birdie // Dec 15, 2009 at 11:49 am

  We sat down as a family and watched Snowball Express- this really stupid old Disney movie. Its totally awesome.

• 127 Christy // Dec 15, 2009 at 9:39 pm

  My favorite Christmas memory is a new one–making the Christmas Eve drive with my husband to his parent’s house to start the holiday. We listen to Christmas music the whole way and talk about all the things that have happened in the past year…2009 was a big year for us–we had a baby girl!

• 128 Justine // Dec 15, 2009 at 10:00 pm

  When I was 20 and my sister was 15, she secretly bought me a PET RAT while she was on a school field trip to the mall. She somehow snuck the rat back to school on the bus, hid it in her locker (in a little cage) for the rest of the day, and then brought it home and hid it in her closet for a week before Christmas. She had lots of help in her sneakiness… when I finally found my cute little brown rat under the tree, there were about 30 names on the gift tag!

• 129 Blue Girl // Dec 15, 2009 at 10:15 pm

  I want to start a tradition of making a gingerbread house with my kids!

  bluegirl1423@gmail.com

• 130 Tracy // Dec 16, 2009 at 3:54 pm

  One of my favorite memories is of my grandpa. He was the most impatient of all of the “children”. He would shake all the boxes to see if he could guess what was in them, and he would pick at the corner of the wrapping paper to see if he could see what was in the box. He did that every Christmas, up until he passed away at age 94.

• 131 Jessi // Dec 17, 2009 at 1:13 am

  One of my favorites was baking cookies with my grandma. I’ve never heard of the pudding ones though! Sound yummy.

• 132 jami // Dec 17, 2009 at 8:36 am

  My dad was a church music director, so Christmas, and especially Christmas Eve was always crazy busy, with services finishing around midnight Christmas Eve. At which time we’d all load into the car and drive 4 hours to my grandmother’s house. (sidenote: as an adult, it is clear to me that they were insane). The drive always started off with a lively argument between my parents about who had messed up “oh holy night” – my father, the director, or my mother the soloist. This usually went on for a half hour or so, with no resolution. My sister and I would fall asleep, only to suddenly wake up as we got off the interstate in Birmingham, and drive up the hill to my grandmother’s house. All of the houses were dark, with the exception of the trios of orange candles in her front windows. I loved those orange candles.

• 133 Elizabeth H // Dec 17, 2009 at 9:28 am

  My favorite Christmas memory is welcoming my newborn son. After two days of labour, pitocin and finally an emergency c-section in the wee hours of the morning on Christmas Eve–I suddenly had this wonderful creature. My husband decorated our hospital room with a little tree and lights; he even brought and filled both of our stockings. It was lovely, even if my Christmas dinner was beef broth and jello!

• 134 Carrster // Dec 17, 2009 at 1:02 pm

  My favorite Christmas memory was one Christmas Eve driving home from my Grandparents house. My sister & I (she 4 years older than me) in the backseat playing our “whoever-spots-the-most-Christmas-lights-or-lit-trees-on-their-side-of-the-car-as-we-drive-through-neighborhoods” wins game. As we drove down a familiar street, my sister proclaimed “Oh my gosh! There’s Santa on the roof, we have to get home!” Lo & behold there WAS a man on the roof….I don’t remember if he was dressed as Santa or not (I was probably 3 or 4)…before my Dad could put a disclaimer on the event, he saw Santa too. There is nothing more magical than the whole family “believing” at the same time.

  (now, who was this guy? Some creepy dude breaking into someone’s house? Someone making ‘reindeer noises’ for his kids on the rooftop? or the actual Santa Claus – the world will never know…but I have my memories).

• 135 Nancy // Dec 17, 2009 at 1:13 pm

  My favorite family tradition when we were kids was being allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve. Looking back, it was my parent’s way of keeping six kids entertained for a long evening ahead:) They made sure the gifts we had to choose from were games that would keep us busy for hours.

• 136 Shelly // Dec 17, 2009 at 3:25 pm

  When we were growing up (little, under the age of 13), we weren’t allowed to come downstairs to see the Christmas tree and all the gifts Santa magically put there overnight until our Grannie and Poppa could drive to our house from theirs, because they wanted to be there to see our faces when we saw Santa’s handiwork for the very first time. Waiting at the top of the stairs for them to drive the (seemingly forever-taking) 15 mins from their house to ours on Christmas morning was torture. I remember getting MAD that it seemed so unfair — having to wait 364 days for Christmas to arrive, and THEN an extra 15 mins for the Grandparents to show up. Arrrgh! But now that I”m an adult, I can see how special it was to my Grandparents to be included in the Christmas-morning chaos, and to get to experience it right at the beginning, rather than coming over after all the presents were opened.

• 137 Sal's Girl // Dec 17, 2009 at 5:47 pm

  Not many family type memories as we were Army and usually overseas somewhere. I do remember that we didn’t have stockings, we had shoeboxes! Asked my mom once why shoeboxes but she said she couldn’t remember.

• 138 Kathleen Heffner // Dec 18, 2009 at 2:07 am

  My mother made our stockings out of felt and they looked like boots. They were covered with wax, so when it came time to decorate for Christmas, she would stuff them with paper and set them on the hearth so they would be shaped correctly. They were always filled with a tangerine, mixed nuts (in the shell) and traditional Christmas candy.

• 139 Mellissa C // Dec 18, 2009 at 3:25 pm

  When I was a kid we would have a christmas day brunch. I do that now with my children!

• 140 No Minimom // Dec 18, 2009 at 10:04 pm

  Those cookies look delish! That was a tradition with my family, too. We used to go to my mom’s house and make loads of Christmas cookies together. Then my mom would bust out the keyboard (piano, not computer) and we’d all sing Christmas carols. It was like our very own Partridge Family episode.

• 141 Jeanette Huston // Dec 19, 2009 at 7:52 pm

  My best memory was the holiday right after boot camp. I was so happy just to be home. It was one of the few times my whole family was together.

• 142 Jeanette Huston // Dec 19, 2009 at 7:53 pm

  I blogged this giveaway here

  http://mommyblessingsinsmallbundles.blogspot.com/2009/12/chocolates-holiday-recipe-sweepstakes.html

• 143 Jeanette Huston // Dec 19, 2009 at 7:54 pm

  I tweeted you here

  http://twitter.com/gijeanie/status/6845039276

• 144 Tabitha McCausland // Dec 19, 2009 at 8:12 pm

  My favorite Holiday memory was when I was 10 years old. I am from Florida so I had never seen snow before. We went to North Carolina because my Aunt Joe had died (not the part that is a favorite memory of course) and although I had only met her once she wrote to me and called me all the time! She had told me just two weeks before that it was going to snow on Christmas this year and that she wished I could be there with her to see it. She passes away four days before Christmas and I was given a note from her on the day of her funeral (Christmas Eve) which she was getting ready to mail to me before she died. It said many things about how much she loved her niece and that she couldn’t wait to see me again but the part I remember most was that she would bottle up some snow on Xmas and send it to me…. Of course what she didn’t know was that the forecast for Xmas was no snow and my Mom had prepared me once again for not seeing snow before we left the next day. The next day everyone was right there was NO SNOW!! We packaged up the car as I cried and sulked and kissed all my relative good bye. I got in the car with my Mom and drove the long country road from my Aunt’s house and just before we turned onto the main road…..it started to SNOW! I remember my Mom telling me it was Aunt Joe saying good bye to me and giving me her last gift! I must of played for over an hour on that road running around and trying to catch snowflakes on my tongue. My first time seeing snow and my last memory of my only aunt that is my favorite holiday memory and I don’t think it will ever be topped!

  Thank you!

  Tabitha

• 145 catherine copeland // Dec 22, 2009 at 12:36 pm

  my favorite holiday memories involve my children. they participate in the school and church choir and I enjoy watching their holiday shows.

• 146 Jena // Dec 22, 2009 at 11:37 pm

  Well I just went with the first memory, and it was when I was about 6 years old. I woke up Christmas Eve night to an extremely loud (intentional) noise. I crept out of my bed and santa was standing at our front door. Now he still was a stranger so I didn’t let him, so he stayed outside untill my mom and dad said it was ok. (ha ha) he came in and brought my sisters and i our presants and I was in utter shock the entire time it was awesome!!!

• 147 Kara // Dec 23, 2009 at 12:46 am

  Wait, have I not commented on this yet? I thought I had.

  One of my favorite childhood traditions was new pajamas. :) Every year at Christmas I would get a new set of pjs & they were the present I got to open on Christmas Eve. So in many of the Christmas morning pictures I’m wearing my brand spankin’ new pajamas.

  I don’t get new pjs at Christmas now, which I should totally do for myself. :)

• 148 eryn // Dec 24, 2009 at 3:28 am

  My favorite holiday memory relates to my grandmother coming every year to stay with us on Christmas, and going nuts if we weren’t all up and at the tree by 6am lol She was more excited then we were!

• 149 eryn // Dec 24, 2009 at 3:29 am

  twittered here: http://twitter.com/Leighbra/status/6994125532

• 150 Charity S. // Dec 24, 2009 at 9:29 pm

  My favorite holiday memory is my grandmother making us goodie bags. She was living on a fixed income, and couldn’t buy 9 grandkids gifts. She would fill them with nuts, fruit, and a little bit of candy. She decorated the outside with little snowmen or santas. She died a couple of years ago..and I will always cherish the goodie bag memories. Thanks (I really miss her..starting to get choked up)

• 151 Charity S. // Dec 24, 2009 at 9:31 pm

  tweeted.

  http://twitter.com/ccboobooy/status/7019447599

• 152 Carolyn G // Dec 24, 2009 at 9:48 pm

  My most treaasured memory of the holidays is spending days cooking and making tamales with my mom and grnadmother. The hours spent with them in the kitchen taught me not only to cook but about life in general.

• 153 Carolyn G // Dec 24, 2009 at 9:48 pm

  tweeted http://twitter.com/carogonza/status/7019744943

• 154 Carolyn G // Dec 24, 2009 at 9:49 pm

  blogged at http://theartofrandomwillynillyness.blogspot.com/2009/12/kisses-dahlings-1231.html

• 155 Deb Anderson // Dec 25, 2009 at 12:36 am

  I think the one thing I miss most about the holidays when I was a kid is making snow cream! Yes, from real snow. Nobody does that anymore. I can still taste the vanilla…

• 156 Deb Anderson // Dec 25, 2009 at 12:37 am

  tweet
  http://twitter.com/tnshadylady/status/7024294235

• 157 Deb Anderson // Dec 25, 2009 at 12:37 am

  blog link
  http://tnshadylady.blogspot.com/2009/12/suddenly-puddings-are-baking.html

• 158 Erica // Dec 25, 2009 at 5:34 pm

  When I was little, it wasn’t so great. I got lots of “stuff,” but the family side of things was dicey. So I’ve worked now that I’m a mom to make sure my own kids have a safe, happy, gentle place and a holiday with good things to remember. We have lots of traditions.

  The one thing from when I was small that I love is one year my mom and I made clothespin ornaments out of a kit. They looked horrible, I was 3. But it was a great time and we were happy. Over the years most have been lost, but I still have one and every Christmas when I put it on the tree it makes me happy.

• 159 Jill // Dec 25, 2009 at 8:00 pm

  My favorite Christmas tradition are Homemade Pecan Rolls on Christmas Morning with Cranberry Juice. I’ve passed this along to my own family: couldn’t have Christmas morning without them!

• 160 Julie L // Dec 25, 2009 at 11:34 pm

  The most special Christmas memory I have is the last Christmas I spent with my dad before he died 2 weeks later from an unexpected heart attack. We hadn’t planned on going out that year-I live out of state from my family and traveling in the winter can be pretty scarey. But at the last minute, we did and I am so thankful that we went.

• 161 Jessie C. // Dec 25, 2009 at 11:56 pm

  My absolute favorite holiday memory is a few years ago that we had a reunion dinner in France with all family members!

• 162 Jessie C. // Dec 25, 2009 at 11:57 pm

  tweet.http://twitter.com/tcarolinep/status/7052756113

• 163 Jessie C. // Dec 25, 2009 at 11:58 pm

  blogged.http://tcarolinep.blogspot.com/2009/12/giveaway-fluid-pudding_25.html

• 164 Lynn Matthews // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:20 am

  every day we came home from school starting Dec 1 my mom would hang up 1-2 christmas decorations from the boxes she stored them in every year. my brother and I would allways race in to see who could find the first one
  lynnnjoe@hotmail.com

• 165 Lynn Matthews // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:22 am

  tweet!
  http://twitter.com/LynnAnnMatthews/status/7064102104
  lynnnjoe@hotmail.com

• 166 Eloise C // Dec 26, 2009 at 1:56 pm

  My favorite holiday memories are those of spending every Christmas with my whole family at my Grandmother’s house. My grandma made the whole dinner by scratch and the whole house smelled wonderful. She also loved to bake and made cookies, pies and rolls all with her own hands. We had so much fun together and every year my aunt and I always ended up in the kitchen together to wash dishes. Those were definitely times to cherish and remember. Thanks for the giveaway!

  furygirl3132[at]comcast[dot]net

• 167 Eloise C // Dec 26, 2009 at 1:58 pm

  I tweeted: http://twitter.com/furygirl3132/status/7067575719

  furygirl3132[at]comcast[dot]net

• 168 Anita // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:24 pm

  One of my favorite Christmas traditions from my childhood is having Mexican food on Christmas day (as our “main meal”). :)
  roseinthemorning [at] gmail [dot] com

• 169 Anita // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:25 pm

  I blogged about this…

  http://anitamartin.wordpress.com/2009/12/26/hersheys-chocolate-kisses/

  roseinthemorning [at] gmail [dot] com

• 170 Anita // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:26 pm

  I tweeted about this, too…
  http://twitter.com/HSBSuzanne/status/7080423755
  roseinthemorning [at] gmail [dot] com

• 171 Angela P // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:42 pm

  I will never forget the Christmas I was in 6th grade. My dad walked into the living room with a tiny little puppy in his shirt pocket. She was so small! We named her Lisa because her mom’s name was Mona. Lisa was a beautiful miniature daschund with shiny short black hair and brown paws. She was the runt of the litter so she never weighed double digits. She was so tiny her claws would get stuck in the carpet and when she would try to put her front paws on my brothers hand sized basketball she would fall over. She loved to sleep under the covers with me and woke me up with doggie kisses. We lost her a few years ago. She was the best dog ever.

• 172 Jennifer // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:56 pm

  My favorite holiday tradition as a child was doing Christmas baking with my mom. She was the best baker ever, and I really miss those times (mom passed away 3 years ago). On a funny note, I remember she left the kitchen for a few minutes one time, and has just added unsweeted Hershey’s chocolate to the mix. She told me not to sample it, because it didn’t have sugar. I thought “RIGHT!”. Sure enough I had to try it, and it was terrible. I was young and didn’t think unsweetened chocolate existed!

• 173 Jennifer // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:56 pm

  I tweeted about your giveaway:
  http://twitter.com/EightyMPHMom/status/7081158269

• 174 Jennifer // Dec 26, 2009 at 11:58 pm

  I blogged about your giveaway!
  http://www.eightymphmom.com/2009/12/link-em-up-thursday-giveaway-linky_23.html

• 175 kalee // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:00 am

  I love baking with my mom and grandmother.

• 176 Tracy // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:05 am

  A holiday tradition worth continuing, Our church has an annual giving tree. During the masses leading up to Christmas we can pick an ornament off the tree. You buy what is written on the ornament. It is then placed under the tree at church. Right before the holidays the gifts are sorted and combined to make a complete Christmas for a family, including food, toys, toiletries, clothes, warm coats, bedding etc. My mom did this and now I continue the tradition!

• 177 Susan Mayer // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:07 am

  One of my favorite Christmas memories the first year my older brother got lazy and stopped wrapping presents. The previous Christmas, my mom gave me two raccoon stuffed animals. One larger one, which I named Mama and one smaller hand puppet that I called “Baby”. Well, my brother got me the mini raccoon from the same series. He decided to give it to me by shoving it inside “Baby” the raccoon hand puppet. So I had no other good name for it than “Baby Baby” (since it was Baby’s baby!)

• 178 Susan Mayer // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:08 am

  tweeted http://twitter.com/scm74/status/7081439521

• 179 Janet Carpenter // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:11 am

  Memory…hmmmm. I was at the age where I questioned Santa. My family would go to midnight mass and when we came back Santa would have left our presents under the tree. I thought I’d kept my eye on mom and dad and no way they could have done it, but the presents were there. Still don’t know how they did it….

• 180 Janet Carpenter // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:14 am

  I blogged here http://giveawaysonblogs.blogspot.com/2009/11/december-giveaways.html

• 181 Janet Carpenter // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:14 am

  I tweeted here http://twitter.com/janetmom2maya/status/7081552427

• 182 Crystal @ Simply Being Mommy // Dec 27, 2009 at 12:16 am

  My favorite tradition was baking cookies for Santa. I still do it with my own children.

  crystal_reagan at hotmail dot com

• 183 Missa // Dec 27, 2009 at 1:20 pm

  My favorite tradition was going to great-grandma’s house (mom’s side) for the traditional Italian 7 fish feast on Christmas Eve, and then heading to NYC to my grandparent’s house (dad’s side) for dessert. I loved being able to see my entire family all together in one day!

• 184 Missa // Dec 27, 2009 at 1:20 pm

  Tweet! http://twitter.com/hunniebee724/status/7096447656

• 185 Heather S // Dec 27, 2009 at 9:41 pm

  We would always bake cookies then package them up and give them to friends and neighbors. I continue that tradition as it is fun and it makes people happy

• 186 Shawna OBrien // Dec 28, 2009 at 3:24 am

  Tweeted
  http://twitter.com/ShawnaMichelle2/status/7117382603

• 187 Sarah // Dec 28, 2009 at 11:57 am

  One of my favorite holiday traditions is making sugar cutout cookies with my mom and then decorating them with colorful icings and sprinkles, and other goodies. Lots of fun and I continued the tradition with my kids, and now we do it with my grandkids!

  Happy Holidays!!

• 188 Sarah // Dec 28, 2009 at 12:02 pm

  Tweeted:
  http://twitter.com/miss_moneymaker/status/7127976484

  sarahjd766 at yahoo dot com

• 189 Rebecca Graham // Dec 28, 2009 at 1:07 pm

  My favorite holiday memory was when my son came home from Germany for Christmas.

• 190 Susan // Dec 28, 2009 at 1:13 pm

  My little sister got sick Christmas Eve. She woke me up and I crawled out of bed, nestling her in my place. I slept on the couch until Christmas morning. That was the very best gift I could have given that year to her. My place, my love.

• 191 Cheryl (arress83) // Dec 28, 2009 at 1:46 pm

  My favorite memory is by a fireplace with my dearest uncle, my sisters and I worked tirelessly that day to create the biggest and tastiest cookies to share with him..
  As he sat down in the big easy chair grabbing the book The Night Before Christmas, we scurried into the kitchen where a large glass of milk and those treasured cookies sat on a tray..
  The look on my uncle face was priceless and the story and the cookies will forever remain in our memories..
  I tweeted your giveaway..
  http://twitter.com/arress83/status/7130785800

• 192 Kristen Stabler // Dec 28, 2009 at 5:13 pm

  One of my favorite childhood Christmas memories is my dad reading Twas the Night Before Christmas every year on Christmas Eve.

• 193 Julie Cutshaw // Dec 28, 2009 at 5:57 pm

  my favorite holiday memory when small , now we are talking way back in 1966 when i was 6yrs old along with my other 2 sisters which one was 2 yrs older the other 4 yrs young and that year we got to go with our dad to the woods to cut the tree which was always a cedar tree which i loved smelling that wonderful aroma which lasted for days and i wanted to help decorate it so much but remember as i tried to it kept sticking my hands ,arms, cedars are very prickly trees so i fussed at how sticky it was to my mom and she let me finally sit down and use a real needle to string the popcorn she colored with food coloring red and green and i just that was something eles getting to sew them on since she would never let me touch her sewing needle saying i was to young and i rember wearing her thimble too, and then we strung them on the tree and she took a picture of us girls sitting down in front of it after it was all decorated.and i had hoped for barbie doll clothes for christmas and opened a bunch my mom had made me one of which was a white wedding dress and veil for my doll and that just tickled me to no end even though I was told later I had to share them with my sisters dolls too, lol maybe thats part of why i love to sew so much now, great memory thanks for bringing it back.
  sewitupjulie at gmail dot com

• 194 Julie Cutshaw // Dec 28, 2009 at 6:01 pm

  my tweeted link
  http://twitter.com/itsallnew2me/status/7138046290
  sewitupjulie at gmail dot com

• 195 Kimberly // Dec 29, 2009 at 3:24 am

  My favorite Christmas memory is when I was four. I had just learned the song Away in a Manger. I was so proud to sing it and my dad listened to me sing it over and over.

• 196 Tiffany // Dec 29, 2009 at 4:33 am

  Our favorite family tradition it dubbed “the basket” Each year we think of a family in need. Then we fill a basket with food, goodies, and all contribute some money to put in a card. (My parents and siblings.) We then drop the basket on the door and run, trying not to get caught. I remember years that we almost got caught. Now that we are all grown, we still carry out the tradition and it’s just as fun and helps capture the true meaning of Christmas.

• 197 Alexa // Dec 29, 2009 at 9:13 am

  My favorite holiday tradition from childhood was taking the whole family to a candelight service at 11 pm on Christmas eve, mostly sung by the most beautiful and talented choir. The music and candles could bring the Christmas spirit to even the grouchiest of teenagers.

• 198 sarah // Dec 29, 2009 at 11:25 am

  The year i adopted my daughter.

• 199 Eileen // Dec 29, 2009 at 9:45 pm

  My favorite CHILD HOOD memory of CHristmas is actually just getting together with my mom’s family and hanging out with all our cousins. We would exchange gifts and eat WAY too many treats. I remember making the Divinity candy with my mom and stirring that stuff FOREVER, then sneaking bits of that cloudy treat! We didnt get to cook a lot…there were NINE of us kids and my mom just did the cooking…I was one of the younger ones so Im sure we were really underfoot alot.
  TREATS were just that…treats. Although mom made lots of pies and cakes, she didnt make other treats much other than at Christmas. When we got together we ALWAYS ate too much, drank soda til we almost burst, and went home in sugar coma’s. It was GREAT!!! We used to sneak the chocolate chips out of the deep freeze during the holidays and when she went to get them they would be magically gone. Hmmmm…must have been Santa’s little Elves!
  NOW, I make LOTS of holiday candies and love to bake. My kids and the neighborhood kids call me the Cookie Queen!

  ejrichter60 at gmail dot com

• 200 jeanine p // Dec 29, 2009 at 9:57 pm

  favorite tradition would be hanging stockings .

  but wowser you’re pics look so yummy

  jtrophy at gmail dot com

• 201 Lois // Dec 29, 2009 at 10:01 pm

  My favorite is going to my grandmother’s for Christmas Eve and curling in bed with mom and brother waiting to see if we could hear Santa on the roof.

• 202 Katherine // Dec 29, 2009 at 10:07 pm

  My favorite Christmas tradition is simple – We drive around Christmas Eve to check out everyone’s Christmas lights! One of my favorite things about the holiday is that people bedazzle their houses with the beautiful lights!

• 203 Katherine // Dec 29, 2009 at 10:08 pm

  Tweet! http://twitter.com/ktkatherine/status/7182207334

• 204 Andrea H // Dec 29, 2009 at 10:16 pm

  My favorite tradition is decorating the tree with the family while listening to Christmas music.

• 205 Andrea H // Dec 29, 2009 at 10:17 pm

  Tweet!
  http://twitter.com/simplyandreah/status/7182473135

• 206 Karen Bridges // Dec 29, 2009 at 11:34 pm

  Making sugar cookies with my Mom and siblings and decorating them with icing!! It was so much fun!!

• 207 Karen Bridges // Dec 29, 2009 at 11:34 pm

  My Tweet Link:
  http://twitter.com/SCMOMOF2BOYS/status/7172821035

• 208 Lydia // Dec 30, 2009 at 12:55 am

  Our family Christmas party! We would invite all of our aunts, uncles, cousins etc at our house, creating an awesome chaos of 70 people in our relatively small house! We even had a band playing Christmas music and we ate and danced at the same time, lol! My dad would sneak off at some point and come back dressed as Santa Claus, handing out gifts to everyone.

• 209 Lydia // Dec 30, 2009 at 12:55 am

  tweet: http://twitter.com/princessla66/status/7186972937

• 210 Jocelyn // Dec 30, 2009 at 1:11 am

  My favorite holiday tradition is funny more than sweet…It goes back to when my step-great-grandfather set a plate of Monkey Bread (bread with lots of brown sugar and eggs and nuts and generally sticky stuff coating it) on an empty chair at Christmas that happened to belong to my great-grandmother. When she reentered the room, she didn’t look at her chair before sitting down, and she sat on it. She then proceeded to get up, pick up the plate, and serve the bread to everyone! Since then, everyone always tries to make someone else sit in the Monkey Bread at Thanksgiving or Christmas. I succeeded when I was about twelve, in getting my grandfather to sit on it–the first time in fourteen years that someone had actually succeeded! That’s my best holiday memory/tradition :)

• 211 Jocelyn // Dec 30, 2009 at 1:12 am

  Tweeted: http://twitter.com/writersxxblock/status/7187394278

• 212 Jen // Dec 30, 2009 at 3:09 am

  Ever since I was born, it was custom that our family would meet at my aunt’s on Christmas Eve to exchange presents we’d gotten each other, and to catch up on what’s been going on. When I was young the tradition included me, my sister and our parents, our maternal grandparents and paternal grandmother, one of our uncles, one of our aunts, her husband and her two children. The family gatherings have gotten smaller and smaller with many deaths, finally cumulating when my aunt died of colon cancer two years ago. Now there are only seven of us left. It’s hard on my cousins, since Christmas was really their mom’s event. We still get together and remember, even if I’ve converted to a different religion, and even if our uncle isn’t technically a blood relative. We’re still a family, and that’s really all that matters.

• 213 Ann A // Dec 30, 2009 at 6:43 am

  My favorite tradition is to go site seeing at every Christmas decorated neighborhood; we’ve always drove around searching for the prettiest lit up houses and buildings. Always a treat to see in the night time.

• 214 NiceMatters // Dec 30, 2009 at 7:19 am

  My father built a lighted star using the old style C9 bulbs. Each year he mounts it to the top of the grain leg that feeds the silos on the farm – approx 75 feet high. Since I was small, this is a sign of Christmas. After college, marriage, and a child, we look for when we come home for Christmas.

• 215 Little Dutch Girl // Dec 30, 2009 at 8:37 am

  My favorite memory is about New Year’s eve in the Netherlands. My brothers and all their buddies would come over to our farm to shoot the lids off milk cans, and my mother and I would bake oliebollen (big sweet fritters). Good times…

• 216 Anne G // Dec 30, 2009 at 9:54 am

  My favorite christmas memory from my childhood was the year my mom found a cabbage patch doll for me. I wanted one badly, but they were so hard to find I didn’t expect to get one.

• 217 Anne G // Dec 30, 2009 at 9:54 am

  I blogged
  http://lunaj1456.blogspot.com/2009/12/hersheys-giveaway.html

• 218 Anne G // Dec 30, 2009 at 9:55 am

  I tweeted
  http://twitter.com/lunaj1456/status/7197762737

• 219 Susan Smith // Dec 30, 2009 at 10:33 am

  My favorite Christmas memory was getting together with my cousin on Christmas Eve and having a cookie decorating contest. Then we would eat the cookies.

• 220 WendyB // Dec 30, 2009 at 10:37 am

  Then I could buy $100 worth of the candycane kisses – yum! My favorite Christmas memory is my mom’s coffee cake that we’d have every Christmas morning. I still try to make for every holiday morning, but not nearly as successful as she was!

• 221 Julie Cutshaw // Dec 30, 2009 at 11:27 am

  my blog post link to the contest thanks
  http://mamawjsmomentaway.blogspot.com/2009/12/hersheys-is-giving-away-100-visa-gift_3935.html
  sewitupjulie at gmail dot com

• 222 NYCrystal // Dec 30, 2009 at 12:30 pm

  My favorite Christmas memory is that my parents would take me and my brother to Mexico for about a month, starting from about December 10th to about January 10th. Lots of fun Mexican small town traditions :)

• 223 Dawn // Dec 30, 2009 at 12:34 pm

  my favorite memory is being the first one up on Christmas morning. Our gift from Santa was set up under the tree, unwrapped, but I couldn’t touch it until all the other kids were up. I loved that feeling of anticipation, though I’m sure I did my best to subtly wake everyone.

• 224 Jessica H. // Dec 30, 2009 at 1:53 pm

  My favorite holiday memory happened when as a girl I lived on an 80 acre farm in Colorado. Our family was very poor. We had no electricity, no running water (we had a well that we had to pump and did not provide continuous water). My memory of that Christmas was that we received so many wonderful presents, but they were all things my Mom made for us. But they were so wonderful. I remember I received a lap tray for homework and writing letters. We wrote a lot of letters to family members (could not afford long distance on the phone) and so this was a wonderful gift. All of the gifts we received that day were made with love and truly matched our personalities. I will never forget that Christmas.

  Thank you for the chance to win!

  girlygirlugh at gmail dot com

• 225 Jessica H. // Dec 30, 2009 at 1:55 pm

  I tweeted!
  http://twitter.com/girlygirlugh/status/7204977650

  girlygirlugh at gmail dot com

• 226 Cheryl F. {The Lucky Ladybug} // Dec 30, 2009 at 5:27 pm

  Our favorite family tradition during the holidays is leaving cookies for Santa :) *Thanks* for the giveaway!

• 227 Cheryl F. {The Lucky Ladybug} // Dec 30, 2009 at 5:27 pm

  Tweeted

• 228 Cheryl F. {The Lucky Ladybug} // Dec 30, 2009 at 5:27 pm

  Blogged

• 229 Pam Hoffman // Dec 30, 2009 at 7:00 pm

  You make ME cry!

  I am adopted and when I was about 7, and in the THIRD placement at a foster home, my sister and I were back together placed with a lovely woman we called ‘Grama Barber.’

  Well SHE make oodles of Christmas cookies at the holidays though I was probably only there for one Christmas as my sister and I were adopted together when I was 8, she was 5.

  In the new family, I was old enough to talk all about my first family and Grama Barber and those Cookies!

  I don’t think Grama Barber made 50 different kinds but she sure made a lot of different kinds and they seemed quite exotic to me (one type was Italian pizzels for example).

  And my new mom, Pat Hoffman, started that tradition for us in our new family too!

  I just LOVE Christmas cookies and I’m actually part of a group which cooks a batch each then gathers together to swap some of each so I have lots now too.

  Thanks for sharing this, it has brought up so many wonderful memories to me.

  Pam Hoffman at cox dot net
  http://mycre8tivelife.blogspot.com/
  http://twitter.com/PamHoffman

• 230 Pam Hoffman // Dec 30, 2009 at 7:04 pm

  I told the twitter world thru my most ‘followed’ account…

  http://twitter.com/ScrpbookRoyalty/status/7213719936

  Thanks for the giveaway,

  Pam Hoffman at cox dot net
  http://mycre8tivelife.blogspot.com/
  http://twitter.com/PamHoffman

• 231 brit // Dec 30, 2009 at 7:41 pm

  This is an unfair contest for those of us who have spent so much time and effort forgetting our childhoods.

  But I digress, my favorite christmas memory is watching my dad watch the christmas tree. I used to wake up early and find him sitting reading a book with the christmas lights on. I’m not sure what it all means, just that it is a major christmas memory for me….

• 232 Hersheys giveaway « Love Clothes, Makeup and Contests // Dec 30, 2009 at 10:48 pm

  [...] Hershey’s Visa Gift Card Giveaway at Fluid Pudding http://fluidpudding.com/reviews/suddenly-the-puddings-are-baking $100 Hershey’s Visa Gift Card Giveaway at Swistle Review [...]

• 233 Eve // Dec 30, 2009 at 10:54 pm

  Every year I make green bean casserole like my grandma made it when I was a child. Brings back memories. I loved it and so do my family.

  shopgurl101@gmail.com

• 234 Eve // Dec 30, 2009 at 10:56 pm

  http://twitter.com/shopgurl/status/7220806494 twitter shopgurl101@gmail.com

• 235 Eve // Dec 30, 2009 at 10:57 pm

  http://sweetqt.wordpress.com/2009/12/30/hersheys-giveaway/ blogged shopgurl101@gmail.com

• 236 anthy // Dec 31, 2009 at 12:12 am

  My absolute favorite holiday tradition, spanning back to when I was a teenager, is making broccoli-and-chicken omelets on Christmas morning with the whole family.

  Thank you for the giveaway!

  anthy_stl [ATT] yahoo [DOTT] com

• 237 anthy // Dec 31, 2009 at 12:14 am

  I tweeted about the contest! http://twitter.com/my_twitraccount/status/7223131053

  anthy_stl [ATT] yahoo [DOTT] com

• 238 Bing // Dec 31, 2009 at 2:02 am

  Our favorite tradition is a big end of the year dinner/game party. Thanks for the giveaway!

• 239 Erin from Long Island // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:12 am

  My all time favorite thing to do during the holidays is putting up the tree. No matter where I am or who I am with, it always results in good conversation and a trip down memory lane.

• 240 Erin from Long Island // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:25 am

  tweeted

  http://twitter.com/erunuevo/status/7228816543

• 241 Cheryl W // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:55 am

  A favorite holiday tradition from when I was growing up was “Find the Pickle”. The pickle was an ornament that my mom would hide deep within the Christmas tree. Whoever found the pickle ornament won a special prize. It is a fun tradition that we still hold near and dear.

• 242 Cheryl W // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:57 am

  Tweet

  http://twitter.com/HeartnSoulmom/status/7229519935

• 243 Angie // Dec 31, 2009 at 10:36 am

  One family tradition we have is on Christmas morning when the ENTIRE family gathers at our house, all the grandkids take a turn reading a few verses of the Christmas story from Luke. This year was the first year my son was able to take a part and he did a fantastic job!

  Thanks
  Angie
  rennieangie@gmail.com

• 244 Carie // Dec 31, 2009 at 1:58 pm

  My favorite holiday tradition is just simply getting together with family for a big meal & visiting.

• 245 jeanine p // Dec 31, 2009 at 2:50 pm

  Blogged about it here http://icoulduseadeal.blogspot.com/2009/12/hersheys-hits-one-out-of-park-with-800.html jtrophy at gmail dot com

• 246 Rebecca // Dec 31, 2009 at 3:46 pm

  My favorite memory will have to be this year.
  My husband and I have had no income for a whole year now….Yes, I said no income! Each month has come and gone and the Lord has supplied our every need.
  I have five children and knowing our situation none of them even asked for anything.
  My dad is a barber and he had a man come in and ask him if he knew any needy families this year and my dad proceeded to tell him our situation. The man that we do not know gave my dad 300.00 to give to us as a family.
  Over the month of December the Lord gave my family over 1800.00 to help pay our bills and have Christmas with my children.
  God is so good to me.
  I thank him for the good memories he has given me and my children.

• 247 kathleen poling // Dec 31, 2009 at 3:52 pm

  I have a lovely memory of the first year we made christmas dinner after a certain family member moved away and took her must-eat-at-exactly-5-pm stress with her. We ate at 8 and a new tradition of not freaking out was born.

• 248 Rebecca // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:11 pm

  http://mommiesgotfivechildren.blogspot.com/2009/12/hershey-giveaway-10000-giveaways-ending.html

  I posted this giveaway on my blog.
  I linked back to your site.

  Thanks for your hard work.
  Rebecca
  Pls follow my site.

• 249 Amanda Starr // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:17 pm

  The best memory is Christmas 2006, it was the year before my Dad died. He was feeling pretty good that day, all the family had fun and laughed and played around. It was really nice. Unfortunately our computer cashed recently so I lost all the pictures from that year but at least I still have the memories.

• 250 Angie // Dec 31, 2009 at 4:34 pm

  My favorite memory has to be simply when christmas was christmas when I was a child it didn’t seem all hustle and bustle
  grandparents lived for the holidays when my granparents were alive that simply made the holiday, made everything perfect family all gathered there and you just felt at home with Jesus-I miss my grandparents and my children having that full heartded feeling of christmas with grandparents. lvn777@charter.net

• 251 Courtenay // Dec 31, 2009 at 5:01 pm

  One recurring memory from childhood Christmases is that my parents would always play a Johnny Mathis Christmas album in the morning. They would start it before we were awake and it would continue all day.

• 252 Aimee W. // Dec 31, 2009 at 5:48 pm

  Since I was just a kid, my favorite holiday tradition has always been baking cookies. My favorite recipe is for Peanut Butter Heaven cookies. These bad boys are LOADED with peanut butter and have a mix of milk chocolate & peanut butter chips.
  Thanks!

• 253 Aimee W. // Dec 31, 2009 at 6:00 pm

  * Tweet *
  http://twitter.com/Nelsby/status/7250161503
  Thanks!

• 254 Michelle // Dec 31, 2009 at 7:31 pm

  My favorite holiday tradition is visiting the Christmas lights at Church of Joy.

• 255 Linda Kish // Dec 31, 2009 at 10:54 pm

  My favorite memory is the year I had 2 back surgeries and was unable to work. My son decided to save me money he would ask Santa for all kinds of expensive gifts. So, of course, I still spent too much but he was happy.

  lkish77123 at gmail dot com

• 256 Angela // Dec 31, 2009 at 11:39 pm

  My favorite memory is when I was 8 and I peeked @ all my presents and had my own personal Christmas. Whoever said that it ruins Christmas to peek at your presents was so lying.

• 257 valmg @ Mom Knows It All // Jan 1, 2010 at 3:41 am

  Our favorite tradition that’s come with me over the years is decorating the tree. My parents used to have all the kids get together so everyone would decorate part of the tree. Now we do that in my house.

• 258 cathy b // Jan 1, 2010 at 10:08 am

  when I was about 14, on Christmas eve, long after everyone had gone to bed, about 3 am… I awoke hearing some sort of rustling noise in the front room. My parents bedroom was upstairs and mine down. So I was a bit concerned. I carefully got out of bed, and quietly tiptoed to the front room. As I gingerly held onto the side of the doorjam, I peered out into the living room where the Christmas tree and front door were. There in the dark, with the exception of the Christmas lights, was my dad… laying on the floor, on his belly..under the Christmas tree! He was so carefully and as quietly as possible, looking for gifts with his name on them….then unwrapping one end, trying to see if he could what it was! then he would carefully rewrap the gift and look for another….I stood there for a few moments… capturing the scene in my heart and mind. It was one of those Kodak moments..one which I wish I could have come around the corner with and offered my dad one of the Hersheys Kisses from the bowl on the little sofa table table beside the tree. But alas, I knew it was a moment not to be disturbed. A moment captured in time… where I got to see the little boy in the heart of a dad!

  cathy b
  projecthope7 at gmail dot com

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