BUON NATALE! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Today, 24 December 2009, Christmas Eve Day, we have a Christmas Blizzard! It started snowing this morning and it just stopped an hour ago. Axel didn't care to go outside to take care of business, but once done he found some fun running through the snow. We used to have snow like this when I was kid. I miss those snow days. I prepared for the storm by placing the snow shovels and extra firewood on the patio. Oh yes; and knitting by my chair.

I love a son with a sense of humor.

Snow tubing with sisters, nieces and nephews is a blast. We had such a great time. The motley crew.

Christmas is always a special time. Memories of Christmases past come flooding back especially when you come across a box of old tags and decorations. The little angel is an old Hallmark Christmas card. The small Santa tag says "To Mother From Terri".

I've been thinking a lot of my parents this past month. We had our first family Christmas since both of them have been gone. Mother has been gone for two years now. Dinner was good and the kids were fun.

I will always remember my childhood home with Christmas in it. I can see opening the front door and the beautiful tree at the end of the dining room. The Christmas dinners were something so special to us too. I remember having turkey and dressing (just like Thanksgiving) until we started making the Raviolis. We even got to drink wine (Mogan David) to celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.

More thoughts:

Daddy was raised by his step-father because his father left his mother and 5 children and went back to Gubbio when he was about 5 years old. This was in the 1920s. I always heard him talk of Nonno Ceccarelli with respect and I saw it too. I don't know exactly what kind of childhood my father had - but I bet it was tough and lean. So how does this man learn to be the father that he was? The memories I have of him doing what seemed like BIG things for us are now so very special to each one of us.

Carving a BIG Jack-o-Lantern, placing a 60 watt light bulb inside, making it blink, and putting it up on the basketball goal for all to see.

Putting Christmas lights on our house - not everyone did that then. He also took us up to the north side of town to see the rich people's houses with special Christmas decorations.

Taking a piece of coal from Grandma K's coal shed and squeezing it in his hands until a nickle or dime dropped out of his hands for us.

Teaching us how to make Raviolis and Creccia.

Letting me help him sell Christmas trees down at the church parking lot. Those were fun times.

Mother had all us children (9) and she made each holiday special but Christmas was extra special. We each got a present from the other. It might have been gloves or school pencils with our name printed on them but we had presents stacked so high. I never saw her bake Christmas cut out cookies, but they were always there for us.

Mother had the most beautiful Christmas trees I've ever seen. I had a real tree last year and got it looking close to one of hers. We would decorate the tree and the fun time we had doing it was great. But, her secret weapon was herself. She was the only one allowed to put the "silver" on the tree. Some people call them icicles but Mother always called it silver.

I can still hear her voice when she would call me and upon answering the phone saying hello - I would hear " Terri - it's Mother." in a singing voice. I can hear her voice when I am singing in church. O' Come O' Come Emmanuel was one of her favorites and it's one of mine.

Mother was busy in the house all the time. Many times in a grumpy mood - but I would say that it came from lack of sleep. She stayed up late at night - maybe watching Johnny Carson, and up early to get us ready for school.

I remember sleeping in my parents bed once when I had the Chicken Pox. Daddy brought me a big tubular balloon with the marbleized coloring - they usually sold them at the fairs and circus.

One of my most favorite memories is that our parents would put a small real Christmas tree in our bedroom. We had lights on it and small ornaments. They called it a Douglas Fir - but they were not like the Douglas Firs they have today. It was great.

Merry Christmas Mother and Daddy. We miss you and know that you are watching over us.

Ciao!