<p>In the spirit of the season (and in the spirit of one of my favorite Xmas movies “A Christmas Movie”, Quote: “You’ll shoot your eye out!”), what was the one xmas gift you’ll never forget and/or will always cherish?</p>
<p>W’s: Age 10, “Masterpiece” (a start to her future business empire plans!)</p>
<p>Mine: Age 8, woke up christmas morning to look in the Dining Room (room next to where the family tree was). Santa (who I now call “Dad”) had set up hundreds of army men, to include tanks, planes, bunkers, and all the works, into the mother of all battle scenes. I didn’t touch it for days, knowing I would only ruin the “military masterpiece”. </p>
<p>Dad, thanks for the hours spent in the details…</p>
<p>I have two: The first one was when I was in High School. My dad was a very practical guy. He worked in retail for years, so wherever he worked that’s where we did our shopping. (all my clothes came from Sears or Montgomery Wards) Anyway, my junior year he’d seen these giant raggedy ann and andy dolls that this woman in his office made … I’m talking huge, like 4 feet tall. He had her make me one of each because he knew I loved Raggedy Ann and Andy. </p>
<p>Second: I started writing, a secret passion of mine that I never told anyone. Anyway, I began writing short stories and wanted to do a novel. My husband gave me a ream of paper for xmas. Okay, there was a laptop, too, I found out later … but that paper meant he was supporting me. I loved him for that. </p>
<p>The book, Man O’ War by Walter Farley, received when I was 11. I loved horses (never able to have my own, unfortunately), and I loved to read, so it was the perfect gift. And I had read all the Black Stallion books by the author.</p>
<p>Binoculars and a bird book, probably the Christmas before that, were another special combination, as I had just become interested in bird watching. I still have both, as well as the horse book. :)</p>
<p>A couple of years ago, at our big Thanksgiving family weekend, we were looking at old family photos. There was a shot of my younger sister in her cowgirl outfit, wearing a pair of cowboy (or cowgirl) boots. “Hey, those are my little red boots!” I got those when I was about three because a character in one of my favorite children’s books had red boots. I had to earn half the money for the purchase (at age three!) doing household chores, and then my dad took me downtown to the big department store to get my boots. </p>
<p>“Boy, I wish I still had those little red boots…” Then, later that weekend, when we exchanged Christmas gifts, I opened my present from my sister. My boots! She had them put away with some old items saved from childhood and quickly wrapped them up for me. They sit on a bench in my living room now and I think of my dad (who passed away seven years ago this month) each time I see them.</p>
<p>Awww, bookiemom! That’s great! It was the year that I got the pink aluminum play kitchen that was the highlight of my growing up years. I think my dad stayed up all night putting them together! I loved the refrigerator, it had all kinds of realistically-painted “food” in the door. And the oven made a cool screeching noise when I opened the door.</p>
<p>It was a birthday, not Christmas, but anyway we’d just arrived a few weeks earlier in Hargeisa, Somalia and I was eight. There was no toy store. My parents went to the stationary store and got me a date stamp, a book that had carbons every other page, and a little briefcase sized suitcase (made in Czechoslovakia) and probably a couple of other items. I still have the suitcase (which caused quite a stir when I had it with me on a trip to the Czech republic in 1979 - I was the only one called off the bus of Goethe Institute students), and the book. The date stamp is long gone. </p>
<p>Same birthday equally memorable was a case of Hershey bars given by a someone who came to my birthday party.</p>
<p>A navy bathrobe that I used in HS and college. What made it special was that my sister and I found 2 robes, one red and one navy. The red one had my name on it. We couldn’t let on that we had found the gifts, but somehow worked in a discussion of colors we liked wearing. When my mom actually gave us the gifts, there were 2 navy robes!
Mom had gotten the hint, exchanged the red robe, and then rewrapped. It was so touching, just one of thousands of her special touches.</p>
<p>From an early age I was crazy about horses. We lived in a small rural town so it not was out of the realm of possibility to own a horse/pony. Many did. I started begging in 3rd grade. Mom was against it. By 6th grade, I had my Dad( a farmboy himself) won over. </p>
<p>Just before Christmas in 1973, my Dad and I went to the next town over and bought a pure white pony named “Lightning” from someone my Dad knew. I think he paid $50 for him. The pony rode home in the back of our pick-up truck.<br>
I was delirious with joy that Christmas. I spent the whole day riding my pony and giving all my friends rides too. My best friend also had an old pony. We kept them in the same old barn and rode our bikes the 2 miles there and back each day after sch. to care for them. I learned much about committment and the responsibility of taking care of something you truly love from that pony. </p>
<p>My Dad died 5 months later of a heart attack. I will never forget him making my biggest childhood dream come true.</p>
<p>I kept the pony until I reached high sch. by which time I was far too long-legged for him and way too busy with high sch. life to spend much time with him. My Mom and I sold him to a family with a little girl of about 12 who was crazy about horses.</p>
<p>I will tell my grandmother and my mom’s most cherished gifts. My grandmother immigrated to the US with nothing, and I mean nothing! She worked in factories and cleaned toilets. She worked hard and never spent a cent on herself. She saved an entire week’s salary to buy her DD (my mother) a high school graduation gift. It was an aquamarine ring. My mother wore it and always appreciated it. My mother regifted that ring to my grandmother one year for a special birthday. My grandmother always wore that ring. When she died my mother got that ring back and she still enjoys it today.</p>