Put a Jingle In Your Jangle

Just a bit of fun to put jingle in your jangle this morning. Featured dancers: daughter Shirley, son Michael and Shirley's son Christopher.  Video made 2020

Oh, the smell of gingerbread!

 Yesterday was fun.....

18 of us gathered in the community room and decorated gingerbread houses. Daughter Shirley headed up the event, made all the houses, bought candies for us to use, made the royal icing for decorating and then was our instructor and cheerleader. 

The new staff is doing an outstanding job making sure we are having a good time. Here they are with Shirley. 

I had decorated a gingerbread house once, probably 30 years ago and I was a bunch younger then! 

Here is the one I decorated yesterday.

We all had the best time. Every house was different and all of them were very well done. 

And, we were treated to some light refreshments! 

It certainly put me in the Christmas mood.

day # 6 of Blogmas

Taking Down The Christmas Tree

 You can't say that my family is 'normal'. Anytime Shirley collabrated with her Dad there was something funny, weird, outrageous going on. 

Take 1997. It's time to take down the Christmas tree so John (that's my son-in-law) opens up the window and he and my hubby, Elbert, cut the lower limbs off and toss them out the window.  

But.... I see a sparkle in Shirley's eye.... something's about to happen. And, this is what transpired. 

It was so funny and remains a favorite Christmas memory of mine to this day. 

A Special Christmas Gift.

I've been participating in Blogmas. Never heard of it before but it looked like a fun thing to do. I really didn't know what it was so I googled it!! Don't we google everything these days! 

Blogmas is a seasonal blogging challenge. It occurs every December and bloggers use this time to commit to publishing new blog posts.

Some bloggers will try to publish one new blog post a day for the entire month of December, while other bloggers may commit to a smaller number of blog posts, like one every other day or one a week during December.

My Blogmas post for today concerns a tradition from my childhood. My aunt Lena was a teacher and she always saw to it that I got something 'educational' under the Christmas tree. When I was five, I got this large book. It was "Raggedy Ann in the golden Meadow". Beautiful, colorful pictures to look at. Later, when I learned to read it was a favorite of mine.

Guess what! I still have that book today, 85 years later! Think I'll drag it out and read it. Then I'll display it for the holidays. Sort of a Trip Down Memory Lane for me and a 'shout out' to the aunt who first taught me the importance of reading. 

Angels We Have Heard on High

 I'm sure we all have our favorite things that we drag out year after year before Christmas. I fell in love with my first paper mache angel and started to collect them. Everyone thought they'd help and I got a ton of angels of all sorts, shapes and sizes. Not really what I had in mind but I loved their thoughtfulness and effort. 

My first angel was bought at the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina. She had on a regal gown of purple and a wreath of holly in her hair. I wrote the date inside her gown and where I bought her. 

I soon added one with a lovely pink gown all draped paper-mache. She seemed to be in prayer. 

Then I got a very elegant one, she wore a dark green top with flowing white skirts. 

I got rid of most of the 'extra' angels (no place to store them in this apartment) but I did hang on to a few.

One I had crocheted, years and years ago. I have no idea how old she is. 

I couldn't get rid of my musical angel, either. She's a favorite. I often turn her on to play a sweet Christmas tune as she turns around and around. 

and then there was a fad going around where everyone was making little angel ornaments out of ribbon. I was pretty 'crafty' minded for several years so of course, I joined in. Here are a couple I still have. 

What's your favorite Christmas collection? 

December - a special time in my life!

 I read a friend's blog this morning. Now I had never heard of blogmas (something bloggers did in years past) but as I understand it, you post something every day of December (I think you use old posts or you can do new ones about Christmas) Anyway, go to  https://eatingwellonasmallbudget.blogspot.com/ to check it out. 

I thought I'd try it. Something new to do (not that I don't have a lot going on) hehe. 

So here goes:

I met my husband on a Christmas Eve, the year 1947. He was a clerk at a store where my folks were buying last minute Christmas gifts. There was an instant connection. In Feb 1948 he entered the Navy and we spent most of our courting time writing letters to each other. He even proposed to me in a letter. I have it to this very day, 74 years later! 

                    In 1950 on Dec. 10th we married 

              so December is a very special month for me.