Christmas Shopping in Toledo

Back in the 1940's before there were malls, we went to downtown Toledo, Ohio to do our Christmas shopping.

GADS! It was cold and windy. To this day I still remember the wind tunnel that you entered when you left Lamson's and headed for the Spitzer Arcade and LaSalles. There were people rushing here and there all over the streets of downtown Toledo. That was Christmas. And when I think about those days I can still feel that cold wind that blew down the street between Lamson's and LaSalles. You would walk out of Lamson's and the wind would just smack you in the face and whisk you down the street. And then one day the Mall was born. It would never be the same again.

Several malls were built in the area and the Lion Store became the big anchor store. We all shopped there and eventually we all worked there during the holidays. I am not sure how that started but I know it had something to do with a "discount." It was a great place to be at Christmastime. 

We shopped while we worked. We got the discount. If we were lucky and we had a wrapping station in the department, we could be all wrapped and tree-ready by the time we left work. It was a sisterhood. There was a dress code so eventually we all started to dress alike. Other stores in the mall recognized us and gave us another discount. It was fun. It was merry. We all loved going to work every day. And the store had on fantastic Christmas Party for all of the employees. Each year we got a new coffee cup. My collection sits in the kitchen cabinet. On Christmas Eve it ended and we went back to our normal lives.

Then one day the Lion Store closed. Another store took its place but no one went to work there during the holidays. It just wasn't the same. The Lion Store was locally owned; the new store was a national chain. 

I believe if the Lion Store were still alive today, we would all still be working there. Of course we would all be in our 70's and a little bit slower. And they would have to provide chairs for us to sit and rest a bit. We might get a little cranky with each other. But the wonderful spirit of that locally owned store would still be there. 

I think I can speak for everyone of us when I say "We miss you Lion Store."

Christmas Movies

The next post is Christmas movies. All I can say is, I am addicted to sappy Christmas movies. I can't wait for them to begin in the fall and in January I hate to see them leave. I am talking about all the ones on tv. I love watching each and every one of them over and over and over.

Of course you all know by now that Charlie Brown's Christmas influenced my choice of Christmas trees.

But on Christmas Eve when the family arrives there are two movies that have become a tradition in my home. Christmas Vacation and Elf.

Cousin Eddie Sweater. Moose Eggnog cups. The Yuppie Neighbors.

Syrup on Spaghetti. The Best Cup of Coffee. "Call me an elf one more time."

But still there is one little movie from years ago when my kids were younger that I still love to watch. Benji's Very Own Christmas Story. It is sweet and it shows Santa as he is all over the world. You can find it on line and it doesn't cost much. I highly recommend that you spend the few dollars it costs to purchase the movie. 




 

It is Pronounced Santa Claus. Not Santy!!

By now you all know that I had two cousins. Brothers. Who were named after the Christmas drink Tom & Jerry. We were the three youngest in the family and actually they were my 2nd cousins. All the rest of our cousins were considerably older than us. My mom was the youngest of seven children which is the reason for the extreme age difference. 

Over the years Tom, Jerry and I became more like brothers and sister. We all went to high school together. We all hung out together outside of the family parties. And eventually my husband and Jerry became great friends. 


Despite the fact that we were cousins we were always called "aunt and uncles by our children. Over the years the original Rochte family split into new family groups as all families do. Like the branches of a family tree spread in different directions. But for some reason, Tom, Jerry, and I stayed together even though we descended from two different branches.

Now both Tom and Jerry have passed away and I miss them both very much.

However, I do remember one particular Christmas Eve party at my Aunt Maire's house when I wished both of them would have never been born!! And it involved Santa Claus!!

Tom and Jerry had been in trouble with the Aunts ever since they opened their presents. I, as usual, was the perfect little angel -- kissing up to the Aunts every chance I got. I knew how to play the game. 

In those days the Aunts had huge dining room tables. A Florida condo would fit in the space those tables took up. My aunts always had tablecloths on those tables. It was a great place to beat up a cousin without getting caught. 

Somehow on that Christmas Eve the Aunts figured out I was missing in action. And they rescued me. 

This is what happened: 
Tom and Jerry got in a lot of trouble with the Aunts.
The Aunts took their new Christmas toys away and hid them. 
When my cousins wanted to know what happened to their toys, the Aunts told them Santa Claus took them away. 

Unfortunately for me the Aunts didn't say Santa Claus. They said Santy. 
Santy  sounds like Sandy (my name) and that gave my cousins a really good excuse to beat the snot out of me underneath Aunt Maire's dining room table.

Back in those days many people referred to Santa Claus as Santy. A lot of time it sounded like Sanny without the T. I can remember hearing "Sanny Claus. To this day I don't know why. I haven't heard the term in years. I might not even be aware of the pronunciation if it were not for the life-threatening situation that I was in at the time.


 

Our Special Family Christmas Drink Recipe

The 5th prompt on the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories is about Christmas recipes. It is my favorite so far because it allows me to tell one of my favorite stories about my mom's crazy family. It is bittersweet however, because there are only two of us left now who remember this wonderful group of people-- me and one of my older cousins. 

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My family always made a special drink for Christmas Eve back in the days when the whole family still got together. It was called a Tom and Jerry. It is a combination of raw eggs, sugar, butter, cloves, and nutmeg plus rum, brandy, or whiskey. It is sort of like hot chocolate for adults without the chocolate! It is not Eggnog. Never was; never will be. It is served hot! It is smoother and you can drink a lot more of it and my family did. 

The Tom and Jerry originated in the mid 1850's and was not named after the cartoon cat and mouse. It was a very popular drink well into the 1950's. I think it must have been replaced by Eggnog for some reason. Possibly it was too labor intensive and it does contain raw eggs. I still have a few of my mom's set of Tom & Jerry cups. Yes, you drank it from special cups with the name "Tom & Jerry" in gold on the front. 

My mom and her sisters always took turns having Christmas Eve. I was just a little girl with two cousins who were close to my age. The family was made up of my parents, three sets of aunts and uncles. four sets of married cousins, plus us three little kids. We had a ball. It was always a lot of fun -- probably due to the Tom & Jerry's. 

I was the oldest of the young cousins and for a few years it was just me and one other cousin who was four months younger than me. Then one Christmas Eve a miracle happened. My cousin's mom went into labor. Of course, all the adults had been drinking Tom & Jerry's so they had to go through the whole group until they found someone who was sober enough to drive the expectant couple to the hospital. They picked my uncle who was a policeman!

As the three of them were leaving for the hospital someone yelled, "Hey, if it's a boy name him Jerry." That made perfect sense. You see my other cousin's name was Tom and it had suddenly dawned on my family that if they named his new brother Jerry we would always have Tom & Jerry's for Christmas.

It was a boy, born on Christmas Eve and they did name him Jerry!! 

Even after we no longer made the drink for Christmas Eve and the special cups were packed away in the attic, we could still celebrate with Tom and Jerry  every Christmas.

Christmas Lights - When One Goes Out, They All Go Out!

Nothing says Christmas like a bunch of tiny bright lights. But when one goes out they all go out and that seems to be what has happened in my "neck of the woods" this year. Last year the majority of the houses on the cul-de-sac next to my house were beautifully decorated. And a good of portion of the houses on the country road where I live sparkled with decorations of all sorts and kinds. This year all is dark except for my house where everything that doesn't move gets lit up! 

Every year for the ten years I have lived here my granddaughter has helped me put up the Christmas lights. It has achieved official tradition status over the years. I have six huge Christmas trees that my husband put along the driveway when we moved here. They were intended for privacy but look great with lights of red, green, blue, multicolor and clear. Every year they get taller and we add more lights. 

But the rest of the street and the road are dark. I can't figure out what went wrong. We have a great electric company and the rates are very low so it can't be that. Gas prices are way down so it doesn't cost that much to fill up the car. Kroger is almost out of lights on its shelves so they must have gone somewhere. Not here though. If you go across the line into the county next door almost every house is decorated. But as soon as you cross the county line back to where I live, the lights go out. 

Food prices here have skyrocketed and Kroger dropped its double coupon policy. That could be it. Maybe it is a choice between the Christmas feast or Christmas lights. How sad. Let's hope it's not due to a lack of Christmas Spirit too. 

Or possibly somewhere a couple miles down the road, one light went out and they all went out. 

Grandma and the Reindeer

My mother hated the song "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer". She actually called a radio station and ripped them to pieces for playing the song.It was the most embarrassing moment for me and my family -- EVER!

It was like. "Mom it is a joke." 

"It's a  song."

"Don't take it personally."

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Guess who takes it personally now!

First of all, I don't have blue hair. Actually it is a rather beautiful shade of grey. 

Should we open up her gifts or send them back? That is very offensive. At the time I thought it was funny. Not so much any more. I get what upset my mom. I have to admit that now I change the station when I hear this song. But, also, I rarely hear it any more. Thank goodness. Perhaps too many grandmothers complained!

So here is my list of my favorite Christmas songs.

#1. I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas, Gayle Peevey

#2. Wonderful Christmastime, Paul McCartney

#3. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Barenaked Ladies

#4. White Christmas, The Drifters

#5. My Grown Up Christmas List, Kelly Clarkson 

And anything Peter Paul and Mary!

 

The Christmas Card Wreath

If the ghost of Christmas Past were to visit me in the middle of the night, she would take me back to the days of the Christmas card. And yes, it would be a she because it has always been the wife's job to send out the annual Christmas card. Or worse, the dreaded Christmas letter. 

I no longer send out cards because I finally realized the only reason people were sending me cards was because I had sent them a card, and they were only returning the favor. So it didn't really mean anything.

But I have a metal wreath frame that holds cards and eventually turns into a huge Christmas wreath. I have a dresser drawer filled with old  cards from Christmas Past and I use those old Christmas cards to create a wreath of memories from days gone by. The best part is getting the cards out and reading the names of friends and family who are no longer with us. And yes, I do include those crazy Christmas letters.

To be honest with you, I miss making out that Christmas card list. Updating all the addresses. Spending hours sitting at the dining room table addressing envelopes. Sealing envelopes. Applying stamps. Going to the post office.

I would love to do it all again but it has lost its meaning. I would love to send a Christmas  card to someone but I don't want them to feel obligated to return the favor.