The simple things you remember most about Christmas

[crochetmonkey74]

I'm not one to judge - each to their own - but the juggernaut of Christmas 'extras' now seems mad and got me to thinking about my memories of Christmas- none of which were present based.
Things I remember most are : starting to see tangerines in the grocer, all stacked up next to the shelled nuts and with those boxes of dates. The grocers looked all lit up on the walk home from school- and it would make me feel really Christmassy.
My other big one is the feeling of a heavy stocking on the bottom of the bed- it was always filled with tiny things that I can't remember- but always a chocolate Father Christmas sticking out of the top!
We had a set of Christmas tapes from Readers Digest (just found a set on Amazon for way too much but bought it anyway)
also, we used to listen to the St Winifreds School Choir 'Christmas For Everyone' record and light our very cheap cinnamon smelling candle - even now any cheap christmas candle (the ones that smell of burnt plastic cinnamon) makes me feel all Christmassy

What are your simple festive memories?

[Trottersindependenttraders]

Mine are from my 80’s childhood. Paper decorations which fell from the ceiling at least twice a day, Foil stars hanging on the wall, seeing Father Christmas at the grotto in town on Thursday night when it was late night shopping, opening my advent calendar to reveal a Christmassy picture- no chocolate, my bright orange pillowcase stuffed with presents. And it being cold - none of this mild and damp nonsense we now get at Christmas.

[ShowOfHands]

Just the feeling of Christmas coming.

Watching the series which was shown on a Sunday in the run up to Christmas (Narnia, The Borrowers etc).

The weight of a stocking on the bed.

Christmas adverts.

Last day of winter term.

Christmas Radio Times.

Putting up the decorations.

Nuts and clementines in the house.

[ShowOfHands]

Oh yes 80s decorations. Paper honeycomb shapes which snapped closed, foil chains, cardboard figures with pull strings to make them dance, lantern lights, Chinese lanterns, a crap tree and too much tinsel.

Plus a selection box which was a plastic stocking covered in netting.

[ICanDoYeah]

Making paper chains with my mum and listening to Christmas music after school the week before we broke up from school for the holidays.

My mum setting up the 'treats table' in the front room a few days before Christmas, with all the goodies we never usually had (which seem very basic now - dates, whole nuts, cheesy footballs , Matchsticks, After Eights, Quality Street and big bottles of fizzy drink). We weren't allowed to touch it until Christmas Eve afternoon.

Me and my sister playing with our dolls under the Christmas tree, with all the sparkly lights and the lovely smell.

Me and my sister playing underneath the dinner table after Christmas dinner, when all the adults were comatose. It was the only time we had a tablecloth to hide us and we loved scoffing the chocolates under there.

1980s Christmases were the best.

[Justmuddlingalong]

Our elderly neighbour's advent candle being lit in her hall window. That always cranked up the 'won't be long until Christmas' excitement.

[DownTheChimney]

The red cardboard postbox at school. The smell of Tangerines, as we called them (whenever I eat a satsuma now, the smell takes me straight back). Running up the road and waiting at the top of the hill for my Nan to arrive on Christmas Eve. So exciting

[sinceyouask]

Waiting for my dad to get home on Christmas Eve afternoon so we could finally open the tin of Roses.
Christmas tree chocolates and my brother carefully unwrapping them, eating the chocolate then reshaping the wrapper and hanging it back on the tree.
My mum saying every Boxing Day that it had been the best Christmas ever.
Satsumas in purple tissue paper :)

[Justmuddlingalong]

Neapolitan chocolates.

[Justmuddlingalong]

I still get a wee tear in my eye when I see little ones out on Christmas morning, with their new bikes, scooters or prams. 😢 I love their looks of pride and excitement. Lovely.

[ShowOfHands]

My mum sayingeveryBoxing Day that it had been the best Christmas ever

I love your Mum.

[CannotEvenThink]

Tree chocolates

My sister, my dad and me getting the tree from a place in the village and carrying it home. It is a pub now

My aunt's Florentines (I make them now you her recipe)

Christmas eve eating ham, salad and garlic bread on the hearth rug in front of a roaring fire.

[Titsywoo]

The brilliantly tacky 80's xmas decorations

Playing with my cousins on Boxing Day and the buffets lunches at relatives houses (tinned salmon rolls and vol-au-vents - yummy! )

Xmas dinner at the dining room table and pulling crackers

Because my Dad working as management in a posh London hotel we often spent xmas day there and my memories of that were waiting for my Dad to stop working so we could open our presents (hated that), the hotel staff kids xmas party (loved that!) and seeing Father Xmas at Selfridges (also loved that!).

[Titsywoo]

worked in management

[Titsywoo]

Oh I forgot!

Making the xmas cake with my mum - noone ever ate it apart from my grandparents but I loved making it!

Nuts and nutcrackers - always a basket of these out at xmas

[Tidypidy]

Carol singers
Scout post
Boxes of tangerines
The smell of a real Christmas tree
Sprouts!

[Scabbersley]

This is a lovely thread. Sadly all my xmas memories are overshadowed by my mum having enough and cracking on either xmas day or boxing day and screaming at us all

I am making new memories with my dh and kids :-) We all love Christmas.

[wendz86]

Circling the argos catalogue for things I wanted.
I had a friend whose dad used to take us to his work family party which was a disco, games and father Christmas.
School shows.
Making Chistingles.
Highlighting what i wanted to watch in radio times.
Parents having friends over and getting to stay up late and eat nibbles.
Waking up at 3 am on christmas day and playing a beauty and the beast board game until my dad came and told us off.

[Justmuddlingalong]

Christmas parties at my DDad's work, where santa always put in an appearance. Oh, the excitement! Then, when we got older, the trip to a pantomime, again through DDad's work. Going on the coach in the dark was like a big adventure.

[TroubledTribble28]

Dad being slightly drunk on mint Baileys and commandeering the gravy.

[EddieHitler]

First thing that comes to mind is the smell of the Turkey cooking (after being defrosted in a bucket for days on end!) and the utter excitement of it all on Christmas eve when we'd send our letter to Santy up the coal fire. Cutting it a bit fine, looking back.

Our house was tiny so we'd pull the kitchen table into the middle of the lounge, the only day of the year we did that. Random extended family members around the table wearing paper hats. And the smell of new dolls and 'Christmas' toffees.

Nuts/nutcrackers, After Eights, Top Of the Pops, Quality Street all come to mind too.

[LizzieSiddal]

Visiting my grandparents on Christmas day and looking forward to eating their Jellied Fruits, which seemed quite exotic to me

Going to the Xmas Eve church service and looking at the Nativity.

Making paperchains and hanging them up.

Watching Morecome And wise on xmas day TV.

[BexleyRae]

I'm actually crying a little at these memories.
Mine are, the decorations hung from the ceiling, big shiny ones that often fell down.
Nuts in nutshell, in a box my mum covered in Xmas wrapping
Tubes of sweets in my stocking, I always hoped for jelly tots. My mum bought us these right up until she passed away 4 years ago
I'm planning on re-creating all this for DD

[Justmuddlingalong]

The cellophane fortune telling goldfish you used to get in crackers.

[TheWorldIsMyCakePop]

The smell of a real tree

[Johnnycomelately1]

Just the absolute excitement and magic of waking up and seeing your stocking at the end of the bed. It wasn't what was in it that was the thing, but the possibility of a world with magic in it.

The smell of the After Eights box.

Christingle. and carrying my orange really carefully. And hoping I'd be picked to put Jesus in the manger.

The grotto at Hanningtons in Brighton and going down in the elevator (it wasn't real- the pictures moved).