Thread: Saving wrapping paper and other holiday memories

I thought it would be fun to share memories of the holidays. As a child i remember having to save the wrapping paper (especially at Grandpa and Grandmas) so it could be used the next year. Had to carefully undo the tape and refold the paper without tearing it so it could be used again. When we cleaned out there house when they went to the nursing home, there was still used paper in the closet that i remember from childhood. (try it this year just to see how long people have the patience to do it. I guarantee it won't last long).

What memories do you have?

Depression era parents and WWII going on, everything, including fat from cooking was saved. Tin cans were opened at both ends and washed then stamped flat for the scrap drives. Paper saving extended through the Korean war. So did the removal of tinsel from the tree before trashing. Meat was scarce and Salt Cod, sold in the wooden box, was a cheap source of protein and served in a white sauce potato and fish stew. Having a birthday near to Christmas meant that one or the other's gift was going to be underwear and a shirt. One gift, per person, was common then. Fathers got a hand tool and Mothers got a Kitchen hand powered item! Try that nowadays!

I still believe we were of the fortunate generation; knowing that things would get better!
Happy Holidays!
~Richard

PS. We also had may aunt that was a war widow and her child living with us for quite a while.

I remember certain extended family members making a grab for the nicer Christmas gift bags after unwrapping presents at the family get together and using them over and over. Some of those bags would eventually make it back to the original giver years later.

My house has never been typical. We rarely purchase wrapping paper. If they have a special wrap, it is most often recycled paper from something else. Each person gets one gift, and when the kids were small the grandparents also were restricted to one gift per child. The wife and I would get one gift each from the family. Now that the kids are all adults, we do a draw. Each person gets one gift, all gifts are to be home made. There are some skilled people in the family so home made can be pretty slick. Our Christmas focus has been on family, caring and the sharing of food. We do not decorate or have a tree. We used to but the kids eliminated that a long time ago. We have not “bought in” to the commercial Christmas concept.

Christmas Eve pre-present.
Always allowed to open one present Christmas Eve, Mom always chose it. It was always pajamas.
Carried that tradition to my own kids.

And always a terry’s chocolate orange in the toe of the stocking.
Cheers men.

Originally Posted by MikeB52

Christmas Eve pre-present.
Always allowed to open one present Christmas Eve, Mom always chose it. ...Snip[...
Cheers men.

How did she keep Dad from continuing the openings??? Mine couldn't wait till morn!
Thanks!
~Richard

My earliest childhood Christmas memory from the late 60's: Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" and a fat Santa candle on Christmas Eve. Lots of tinsel on the tree (I don't see that much anymore), that fake spray snow in the windows, and waking up to one of those Fisher Price barnyard sets, a little model train, cowboy set with cap pistols, all those old-fashioned toys-good times!

When we got a little older, my younger brother and I developed a new tradition of shooting those cheap fragile glass ornaments off the tree with pellet rifles (that we had gotten for Christmas!). Yes, in the house-Mom was not amused!

As an adult, our favorite tradition has been going way up into the Smoky mountains the day after Thanksgiving (Sandy Mush, NC-where my Papaw was from) to saw down fresh fraser fir Christmas trees with our neighbors and their kids. Then we stop in at Side Street Pizza in Tryon, NC (best pizza anywhere IMO), come home and have beverages around a chiminea fire on the deck. We've been doing this every year for almost 20 years, and our now-grown kids still love it. It's my favorite day of the year every year.

I'm probably one of the most radical guys on this forum, but I'm really old-fashioned when it comes to Christmas. Have a good one, guys!

edit: Oh, and we don't recycle wrapping paper, but do keep the gift bags and boxes to reuse. My other favorite tradition that I still do every year is to play Santa and make a big stocking full of goodies for everyone after they've gone to bed.

Oh, and here's another one I forgot that I've been doing since my boys were little (they're now 20 and 23). I pick up 8 or 10 boxes of $1 a dozen candy canes and decorate the Christmas tree with them. We then steal them off the tree throughout the holidays when we get a sweet tooth. I often take the remaining ones off to distribute to my students on exam day before we get out for Christmas.

When I was young we did the open one gift on Christmas eve thing. Now days we really don't have much in the way of things we do every year besides putting up the tree and lights on the house on Thanksgiving. Or as soon as possible to that when the weather is good.

The wife and I tell each other what to get for each other and then I got to find a couple more things for her. She didn't really have Christmas growing up so I try to make up for the loss.

Bump, for more memories
~Richard