Favorite Christmas memories.

Patches.

I remember coming home from the school bus and decorating the pine trees in the front yard with lights.  Walking circles around the trees, using a pole I devised with a wire hook to hold the string and reach an extra 10 feet.  These trees were probably 20-25ft tall so I also got to play around and learn how to safely lean a ladder on a tree, while on a hill.  One year Dad got extra into the decorating with me and suggested we do the 40 ft pine tree.  Man that took forever! A 30 ft extension ladder, my lanky frame reaching with a pole, barely getting the top, and then figuring out how to circle around.  It was so much work coming down each time and moving the ladder!  At one point I remember balancing on the ladder, and then our cat Patches climbed the ladder and jumped on my shoulder while I'm trying to work.  That cat had serious skills.

Giant snow mouse.

When I was a little kid I loved the mouse Fievel from American Tail.  Pretty cool character back then.  So what.  I also liked seagulls, my teddy bear and a stuffed puppy.  You got a problem with that?  Didn't think so.

Somehow this fondness for Fievel manifest into building a 12 foot tall snow Fievel in our front yard.  What would you have made if your goal was to make something 12 feet tall?

Certain ornaments and decorations.

I admit I'm a sucker here too.  There was a white porcelain figurine that wound up and spun slowly as it played Silent Night.  My favorite Christmas Song.

As for ornaments, I didn't know the full story behind most of them but as the 5th and youngest child in a family with a 20 year head start before I entered the equation, there were a lot of odd shaped ornaments.  Now most people would consider them gaudy, but several were hand made. Nothing really matched but all came with a story.

The Living Room.

We had so many gift opening in that same living room, but it was great that I can remember so many of my family members fitting into the seats and couches.  With a big family and some very generous parents the room was always knee deep in presents.  I was seriously spoiled, but both of my parents really enjoyed giving gifts.

Extended family cameos.

Not that I have a cousin Eddy (Christmas Vacation movie reference), but Uncle Bob would make a pretty solid substitute.  Many of these relatives wouldn't be seen that often, especially now with everyone either getting older or just spreading their own way, but both of my parents have 5 siblings as well so there was always a fairly large extended family on these occasions.

Aunt Rosies cherry cheesecake.

As a kid I didn't like cherries, but this was an exception.  This treat was always at my Dad's brother Randy's and Aunt Rosie's party.  Randy could always be counted on to provide the punch with sherbert.  I don't think our punch ever got spiked, but my cousin Steve will never outlive his puking in the chex-mix after consuming too many whiskey-balls (cookies).

Wooded Hills luminary display.

After church we always took our time to driving the entire subdivision display of streets and drive ways lined with candles burning inside of white paper bags. This is also when Santa would time his arrival at our house.