We have finally made it! You are already halfway through this crazy school year! Perhaps even more importantly we are getting ready to say goodbye to 2020! You have done such an amazing job this year and we appreciate you so much. Now tune out and enjoy those around you, and virtually enjoy others. You have earned a vacation where you do not check email and you do not grade papers. Just relax and appreciate the simple things that make our lives great. My wish for you is that you are able to turn off all your stress and have fun and laugh a lot!
 |
| Ms. Jessica making a pattern with one of her cuties. Candy Canes! |
 |
| Thank you so much to Mr. Chaplin and 4th grade for organizing the canned food drive! #kindnessmatters |
 |
| You've inspired Ms. Ahrens little boy! He loves GHE! #futurefalcon |
 |
| SANTA! |
 |
| Generous Ms. McMahon shares some of her Root beer float with the floor! |
 |
| Had so much fun dodging virtual snowballs with K in the gym! |
Now please do me 2 favors...
1. Comment by sharing your favorite holiday memories! I love to hear people's special memories around this time.
I remember when I was little Santa would make sure my brother and sister and I knew he had come to our house. There were boot prints with soot from the fireplace to the tree and back. He always ate the cookies I left, and one time I wrote Santa a poem, and the next morning it was singed a little on the side
XOXOXOXOXOX
Happy Holidays!
When I was younger my family always opened one present at a time. It was nice to stretch out the enjoyment of opening gifts, but at the same time it felt like an eternity until my next turn came around!! 😄
ReplyDeleteWe have always spent Christmas eve at my grandmas. Now that all the grandkids are older with spouses we search for the pickle in the tree. This is a very competitive game and it's a fun Christmas tradition we have created as adults.
ReplyDeleteI remember going by train into the NY city to see the big tree and Macy's windows, singing in the choir and smelling incense in church.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI remember my mom made us rice pudding every year and would hide an almond. I did not like eating it, but you had to eat the whole bowl since there was an almond hidden in the pudding. If you got the almond you won a prize. One lucky year, I got the almond and still have the ornament hanging on my tree from when I won!
ReplyDeleteOne Christmas when my oldest was 7, she asked for a sleigh bell from Santa's sleigh. Knowing that she was testing the magic....I was in a panic to make things happen. They had just watched Polar Express and the bell was the perfect thing for her to ask for, I guess. So, I ran up to my attic and found the perfect sleigh bell from my mother's Christmas box that was in storage. I had my friend write her a special note from "Santa" and left it on the table for the morning. The bell was exactly like the one in the movie. She was so surprised and excited to see that the next morning. To this day, it was her favorite Christmas! She's 25 now!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up, we spent many Christmas holidays with my family in Germany. Those were the best because, we would wake up to the smell of baking bread and hear my Omi (grandmother) singing in the kitchen. Christmas was almost always white in the foothills of Germany, where my uncle and Opa (grandfather) would take me riding with him on his beautiful draft horses through the town streets. The locals would come out to greet us and give us all sorts of goodies and cheer. I think of it every time I see a commercial with those Clydesdales pulling that cart full of beverages through the snow.
ReplyDeleteDementia is a horrible disease but sometimes, you just have to laugh at some of the things that happen in order to keep you sane! Last year, we all got a kick out of the fact that mom would open a gift and oooh and aaah over it, and then 10 minutes later, see the gift in her pile of presents and say, "who is THAT for?" and ooh and aah over it again. This went on all afternoon! The gift that kept on giving! We all had a wonderful family Christmas that day with lots of laughs!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a little girl, we would make our way through the snow every Christmas Eve to go to Midnight Mass and afterwards go back to my Gram's house to enjoy a delicious meal of lentil soup, pasta, bracciole, olive salad, and homemade Italian bread. Of course, there would be cannolis and Christmas cookies for dessert. By the time we got home, it would be 3:30 AM, but my sister and I would still wake up my parents by 6AM to open presents! Oh, the memories!! :)
ReplyDeleteIt has been wonderful creating our own family traditions now with our little one. We have been baking cookies, creating gingerbread houses (and hoping they stay standing!), and traveling to see the lights. When I was little, and getting ready for bed Christmas Eve, Santa would always let us know he was close...we would always here the ringing of the bells from his sleigh, right outside our window! I am looking forward to tucking Loralynn in this Christmas Eve, and listening to see if we hear the bells as Santa gets ready to come by! ;)
ReplyDeleteAs kids my family always opened the stockings first without looking at the tree, it’s in another room. Then my mom would run around to the tree area with a camera and count for us to turn around. Santa never wrapped presents 😊 The year I got my dollhouse was simply magical!!
ReplyDeleteThis is Ms.Courtney 😊 Google used my private email
DeleteTwo things:
ReplyDelete1) My parents always remind me of when wo my family would always drive around to look at Christmas lights, which I LOVED and would always exclaim, "Tismus wights! Tismus wights!" I was a toddler then, but I still enjoy driving home through my neighborhood and seeing all the Christmas lights during such a dark time of the year. It really does help brighten the day.
2) This time of year is bittersweet since it was always a special time with my grandparents and they have all passed on now. I like to remember them through small things like certain Christmas carols, special ornaments on my tree, special foods, and fond memories of them during the holidays in past years. For example, my Pop-pop would always wear his red Christmas vest and he was the most meticulous present opener, using a knife, and would manage to open his gifts with the paper still in tact afterward!
We would always gather with either family or friends for Christmas Eve. The highlight of the night was seeing Rudolph’s nose in our backyard. That meant it was time to go home and go to bed. We have continue this tradition with our kids and now our nieces and nephews and their kids. One of our neighbors or one of the people at the party will go outside with a flashlight and the red napkin in the backyard. The kids are so excited (and maybe a little terrified) and hurry to get to bed. It’s a great way to end the party or get the kids to bed. We have so many fun memories of this. Merry Christmas! 🎄
ReplyDelete