12 Days of Christmas meme

One holiday movie I recently watched

The Toy that Saved Christmas (Veggietales)

Last two holiday websites I visited

http://www.janbrett.com/trim_a_jan_brett_gingerbread_baby_house.htm

http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/Palace/6475/candycanelane.html

Three favorite items of clothing

long skirt with pockets

a nice sweater

soft fuzzy socks

Four favorite things to eat

steak

toasted homemade whole wheat bread with Leslie’s apricot jam

cheesy broccoli n’ bacon soup

Freschetta’s combination pizza

Five things I ate yesterday

cream cheese frosted gingerbread pieces

Multi-grain Cheerios

sautéed mushrooms, onions, chives, with canned corned beef, and leftover canned green beans (Danny made it and it was yummy!)

whole wheat bread

milk

Six things I need to do today

laundry

give Katie box of toys/books for Zoe

fix sewing machine

sew three little pairs and one big pair of pajama pants

dust

teach kids preschool and kindergarten lessons

Seven gifts I’d like to receive

piano lamp

piano tuned

liposuction

nanny

maid

electrolysis

grant to pay for my degree and time to finish my degree

Eight ingredients my kitchen shouldn’t be without during the holidays

eggs

cream cheese

flour (white, wheat)

sugar (C&H white, dark brown, powdered)

butter

nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans)

unpopped popcorn kernels

corn syrup

Nine Christmas songs I like to hear

Mannheim Steamroller’s Silent Night

Carpenter’s Merry Christmas Darling

Baby, it’s cold outside

Santa Baby

Mary, did you know?

Christmas Shoes (meaning bawl my eyes out “like to hear”)

I heard the bells on Christmas day

Mary’s Lullaby

Still, still, still

Ten memorable Christmas gifts

King-size quilt Mom made me two or three Christmases ago—it’s so beautiful, definitely my style, and was difficult for her to quilt because it was king-size instead of queen-size or smaller—so it’s even more special—and it’s on my bed 80% of the year

Memory quilt wall-hanging from Mom

snowman comforter – Danny and I gave this to each other the Christmas that Pookie was almost one. We were so poor. It was our only present to each other. Pookie got a forward facing carseat. And Santa brought a beef stick for Danny.

Freezer—last year when Danny was in the shower the doorbell rang and a man was waiting there with a clipboard. He verified our address. I told him we weren’t expecting anything. He assured me we were and did I have a space prepared for it. I told him, “How big of a space?” He pointed to a humongous box. We had to remove the basement door to get it through and move everything out of the way. So, I found out early that I was getting a new freezer. I think it was two days before Christmas. And what a wonderful huge freezer it is.

Yellow blanket fixed—one year the night before Christmas I noticed my very favorite yellow blanket was missing. I tore through the house accusing Mom and Danny of throwing it away. So Mom went and got the present and let me unwrap it early. She had fixed it.

A cheeseball with crackers, a packet of microwave popcorn, and a bottle of sparkling cider—our first Christmas married someone left this anonymous gift on our doorstep.

Canning jar of homemade hot chocolate and a sandwich bag of decorated marshmallows—my youngest sister Rachel gave this to me one year. I think she was six years old and my mom had helped her. I think about it every year.

My bedroom chair recovered and painted—my brother painted and recovered my bedroom chair one year. What a wonderful and unexpected surprise!

A bicycle when I was five or maybe six years old. I remember seeing it waiting for me when I came downstairs.

A walkman with a tape of Whitney Houston’s hot songs of the time

Eleven favorite Christmas traditions

Baking shortbread while decorating the Christmas tree

Reading from Luke and acting out the Nativity on Christmas Eve

Christmas music

Christmas lights—and laying under the tree looking at the lights

Making English toffee

Christmas placemats and table setting

Feeding hungry missionaries

Christmas Eve potatoes (funeral potatoes)

Cinnamon rolls and hot chocolate for breakfast Christmas morning

Advent calendar, Christmas count-down chain, or Christmas count-down candy string

church Christmas program

Twelve fun childhood Christmas memories

Sneaking into the living room early, early Christmas morning, hiding behind the couch and singing Christmas songs.

I taught my fourth grade class We three kings of orient are. Tried to smoke a rubber cigar etc . . . -- when the music teacher had to leave for ten minutes and left me in charge. Boy did we get in trouble when most of the kids sang that version for the school Christmas program!

The firetruck came around base with Santa on it the week before Christmas. The elves tossed tons and tons of packages of candy and gum.

waiting for and trying to catch my sister Rachel’s secret Santa.

Picking a hard candy out of the tin of old-fashioned Christmas candies that my Dad would buy for us each year. I always picked the ribbon ones if there were any left.

Hearing sleigh bells Christmas Eve when I was supposed to be sleeping

Spying on my parents’ Christmas party when I was supposed to be sleeping

Hearing the doorbell ring, and eavesdropping as someone brought our dog Tara to us Christmas Eve, when I was supposed to be sleeping. There was no sleeping after that!

The next December my sister Leslie told me (while I was laying under the tree with Tara looking at the lights) that dogs are colorblind and can’t see all the pretty lights. She also told me that we had to give Tara to another family because it was almost Christmas. wicked girl.

Mom telling us while we were out shopping, “Go wait in the car and don’t turn around when I come out.”

Mom screaming when she was pulling the Christmas tree out of the box and a centipede crawled out with it. (I suppose some of these aren’t fun memories.)

Making stained glass cookies and Christmas card ornaments with Mom Christmas 1984.

Thank you Jane for this fun meme. And if you’d like to do this meme, please do!