Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Fruitcake - Friend or Foe?

Fruitcake--Friend or Foe

Did you like fruitcake? Did your family receive fruitcakes? Have you ever re-gifted fruitcake? Have you ever devised creative uses for fruitcake?

 Image courtesy of Wikipedia used under the creative commons license.



I have always enjoyed Fruitcake, probably because it was always served with cream cheese and a cup of hot tea by my Irish relatives.  It only appears during the holidays and in my house anyway was considered a treat.  One year my brother-in-law was employed by the Rainbow Baking Co. in Colorado, so my mother ordered about 8 fruitcakes for gifting family members.

When I was newly married and not working, I made gifts for family.  A few times I made fruitcake for family members.  We always liked it but you had to start in about October.  Later I switched to Cinnamon Swirl Raisin bread.  


My children were not fans of fruitcake and had one fruitcake that they sent back and forth for about 10 years.  It finally died in Florida.

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Christmas Cookies

I don't remember Christmas cookies as part of my childhood, unless you count the Maurice Lenell assortment in the 5lb tin.  They really were a treat.

As a young mother I attended "Cookie Parties" and learned to make lots of cookies.  Rum Balls is a favorite in my family and my mother-in-law expected a supply every year.  Other cookies I made for the holidays were spritz, candy cane, and the obligatory sugar cookies cut in holiday shapes and frosted. 

The real cookie treat came in the mail.  It was a package mailed by my father-in-law's mother and contained her homemade kolachkys with prune and apricot filling.  These were cookie squares with filling in the center and opposite corners brought to the center.  After baking they were dusted with powdered sugar.  She also made another cookie with either poppy seed or nutmeat filling.  I don't know anyone else who can make these cookies.  I think they are Hungarian in origin.

And we also had the Marurice Lenell Cookies in Currier and Ives Tins sold by the Telephone Pioneers every year!

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Santa Claus

 As children, when Christmas approached, we began trying to see if we could see Santa's elves peeking in the windows.  We never caught them no matter how hard we tried.  As the oldest of nine children, I "believed" in Santa for a long, long time.

When I got older (about 12 or 13), I was promoted to Santa's helper.  We didn't get new dolls every year, but the dolls we already had were given makeovers.  Doll hair was styled with sugar water and curlers, and all dolls received new clothes.  This process consumed several evenings after the littles went to bed.

My husband's family also believed in Santa, so the tradition continued in our family.  When our son was about 6 he began to question the reality of Santa.  He was allowed to call and ask Grandma, who cheerfully said "Yes, there is a Santa".  With the help of our neighbors, we arranged for Christmas to happen while we were at Midnight Mass.  As we walked home from church, we kept watching for Santa's sleigh.  Imagine, if you can, the looks on our childrens faces when they saw Christmas had happened!  Hot Wheel track assembled and running from the tree to the dining room, doll bunk beds with pillows and blankets, filled stockings and all.

Today, my grandchildren still believe in Santa and I'm glad.  Somehow some of the magic disappears when Santa does too.

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Christmas Cards

Sometime after Thanksgiving every year, Mom would begin addressing the cards to be sent from our family.  I'm not sure when they were actually mailed.  They were always signed and adressed by hand.  This was before the era of the "Christmas Letter".

During the Christmas Season we often got 2 mail deliveries a day!  As children we would eagerly race to collect the mail and bring it in to be sorted.  We knew that if it was addressed to our parents, they would open it.  If the envelope had the additional words "and Family" it was ok for the kids to open.

After being duly opened and admired, the cards were put into a special tray to be admired over and over.  I don't remember seeing that tray at any other time of year.  It was a burgundy fan shaped tray with a gold fruit motif across the top.  I think it was made of aluminium.  After the holidays the cards were used for art and craft projects.

After I married, my husband and I continued the card tradition and displayed our cards on ribbon attached to a wall or door.  I think we did do a Christmas letter after we moved to Florida so we could let family and friends know what was happening in our lives and the lives of our children.

Advent Calendar - December 1, 2010 The Christmas Tree

Hansens circa 1958

The Christmas Tree!  O Tannenbaum! 

 Growing up in the mid-west in the 1950's we had a live tree.  Dad always put the lights and ornaments on , after carefully checking each bulb.  In those days if one bulb went out, the whole string went out.  We, the kids, got to put on the tinsel.  It was the individual strands of tinsel that were to be hung separately.  I will admit that throwing the tinsel by the handful was much quicker.  Yes, we had a star on top of the tree!