What Are Your Fondest Moments Of Christmas Morning ?

And while you type please enjoy the music !





Silver Bells





City sidewalks, busy sidewalks


Dressed in holiday style


In the air


There's a feeling


of Christmas





Children laughing


People passing


Meeting smile after smile


And on every street corner


you'll hear





Silver bells, silver bells


It's Christmas time in the city


Ring-a-ling, hear them ring


Soon it will be Christmas day





Strings of street lights


Even stop lights


Blink a bright red and green


As the shoppers rush


Home with their treasures





Hear the snow crunch


See the kids bunch


This is Santa's big scene


And above all this bustle


you'll hear





Silver bells, silver bells


It's Christmas time in the city


Ring-a-ling, hear them ring


Soon it will be Christmas day

What Are Your Fondest Moments Of Christmas Morning ?
Although I have many fond memories of different Christmas mornings including the Christmas morning that I gave birth to my second daughter in 1981, My fondest memory is from when I had cancer believe it or not.





It was the holiday season of 1987. I had been in the hospital since October and I had 5 surgeries in a very short time. Christmas was approaching fast and I was still in the hospital. My husband, was trying to raise our 3 very young daughters and take care of me.





When it became apparent that I would not make it home for the Christmas holidays, I became very depressed that not only would I not be home but that I could not shop for my daughters who were the ages of 9, 6 and 3. My husband had the added chore of all the Christmas shopping plus our oldest daughter was born on December 12 and the soon to be 6 year old was born on Christmas morning.





There was no way my husband could handle the holidays and two birthdays and money was tight because while I was battling cancer, he was trying to work and keep the kids in daycare when they weren't in school. I had no income because of my long illness.





Christmas eve night, after my husband had left with our three daughters, I became so upset that the nurse had to call the doctor and he told her to give me a shot to help me sleep. It worked, I slept like a log even though I was upset at not being able to see my children unwrap their presents. They weren't getting many because of the money situation but I would not be able to see them open the few that they would recieve.





When I woke up the next morning, Christmas morning, I didn't know where I was. There was a Christmas tree in my room complete with all the decorations, lights strung up around the window and more Christmas presents for my daughters then you could imagine. Every nurse and many doctors and other hospital staff, picked up an extra present or two for my girls when ever they went shopping for their loved ones. My room was filled with wrapped presents and unwrapped gifts for the girls.





To this day, when I think about that morning, I shed a few tears. Although, I have been the recipient of kindness many times in my life, that morning stands out to me. A lot of the people that gave to me and my family, never told us who they were and I had never even met them. I found out much later that it was headed up by one of the nurses who took care of me every day on the surgical floor, and the operating room staff who had been involved with all 5 of my operations in the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.





I will never forget the staff and their love for my family. That was the best act of giving and kindness I have ever seen and I thank you Earnest for bringing it up again as we head into this Holday season.
Reply:When I was 11 and my sister was 9 we woke up at 3 am Christmas morning.. In our excitement we ran into the dimly lit livingroom only to realize our parents had moved the tree 4-5 feet out into the room in order to place presents behind it...





A Christmas tree is remarkably like a chinese finger trap.. The harder we tried to untangle ourselves the more entangled we became.. Ornaments were dropping, bells were jingling, at one point a twinkle light bulb was in my nose... My sister was saying "Are you out?" over and over as if I had, had more luck than she had in that department..





Our father rolling on the floor laughing and yelling "Get the camera" wasn't helpful either.. LOL
Reply:The humidity, it's summer where I am on Christmas day.
Reply:Hmmm . . . a few really stick out in my mind. One in the late 60s when the tree looked particularly nice and I was listening to some new records we had received.





Another Christmas when things weren't going so well in the family and Mom worked extra hard to make everything special.





And the year I discovered all the gifts in November and played with them in secret for a month where they were hidden!





Really, just spending a lot of time with the family, and relaxing. Christmas movies (on network TV - this was before the cable or video age!) that everyone watched - there were only a half-dozen channels so everyone in school was talking about the big show of the week. A moment of time passing slowly (one hoped) kind of like a summer's day as a child. Going to church and caroling. Singing Christmas and Hanukkah songs in school.





I might not have been the most religious child, but i still attend the same church and the annual rituals and decorations there mean more to me now. I watch the films I watched with my Dad when he was alive, and remember.





And eat!





:)
Reply:I would have to say the Christmas when I was 14. We had just gotten a new puppy (half Lab). When we first got him (the day after Thanksgiving) we realized that due to being half Lab, he CHEWED EVERYTHING!





We all sat up on Christmas Eve, thinking about how we would protect the tree and the presents.





Around 3:30 in the morning, once 5 of the 6 of us fell asleep from exhaustion....my big brother had an idea!





We all awoke to "Christmas behind Bars".





He had taken an expandable child gate (you know, the kind you can't use anymore, like an accordion) and stretched it around the tree and presents in the corner and stuck the following sign on it....





"Christmas behind Bars......Film at 11!"
Reply:Spending time with my new born son on his first Christmas.





It was a record setting cold that day, 26 below, so the three of us just stayed home together.





Pastor Art





PS: That was 26 below actual degrees, the wind chill was much colder than that.
Reply:ha ha your silly, i loved sleeping underneath the tree, the smell of cookies from the night before, the snow covered yard that could be seen through the window in our family room while we passed out gifts. singing happy birthday to Jesus. everyone smiling, grandma playing the piano and my drunk aunt singing off key to Christmas songs..my dad asking why a type of fish was a setting on the keyboard. (bass)ha ha. Christmas is always amazing!
Reply:Looking at the lights on the trees. My girls when they were small wearing their Bert and Ernie slippers. And listening to Bing Crosby sing White Christmas.
Reply:The birth of Christ and the gift to all of us to have a path to God.
Reply:Just taking it easy with my sweetie. This will be the first Christmas that it's just the two of us, with no guests or family. We're looking forward to a quiet day of just appreciating each other!





There will be a tree, and a couple of presents, and a special meal, but no hassle, silliness, or drunkenness. Just quiet joy and love.
Reply:The first glimpse of the tree with all the presents, the smell of food cooking..All the family there. It was the best!