New Year's Resolutions - 2008

I know I will probably regret this list of genealogy/family history resolutions by Week 2 of 2008, but I am hoping they give me some touchstones this year.

The ancient civilizations such as the Babylonians created the concept of the resolution. They decided to celebrate the new year promising to return what they had borrowed. The Romans resolved to ask for forgiveness for past transgressions and offenses.

Being a forward-looking guy who almost never has a regret and won't look back lest he turn into a pillar of salt, my resolutions are more hopes and wishes, for both me and my fellow genea-bloggers.

Scan more photos

I resolve to not only scan more from The Box, but to participate in Scanfest at least twice this year. I also want to assist my father-in-law with scanning photos from his recently deceased sister's house and labeling the photos properly.

Resarch my Irish roots

I resolve to finally take time to seriously pursue the MacEntee, McGinnes/McGinnis, Farren, O'Keefe and Sullivan lines in my family tree.

Resolve my roadblocks

I resolve to not be detered by my research roadblocks, especially for the Henneberg, Finehout, Pressner, DeGroodt and Christiana lines.

Participate in more carnivals

I resolve to give back to those that have given to me and the rest of the genea-blogging community. Participate in carnivals, as much as possible, and contribute.

Write more vs. post more

I resolve to take time to not just post, but to spend more time on crafting family history episodes into better narratives. These are the stories I want to pass down to the rest of my family. Not just describe, but describe with feeling, describe with emotion, and describe with passion.

Better citations and notes

I resolve to get back to my college research days when the Chicago Manual of Style was my best friend. But oh citations have changed in 25 years! Take time to cite right the first time.

Inspire others

I resolve to undertake more projects like the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories, but perhaps not as extensive as the ACCM. Develop projects that help inspire newcomers to pursue their own family history and projects that make these people feel welcome.

Listen

I resolve to listen more, talk less, and think later. Take time to visit the posts of my genea-bloggers friends as well as new blogs - they are great for inspiration, especially when in the middle of writer's block.

Be thankful

I resolve to be thankful to God, Creator, Allah, Buddah and all for me being right here, right now, in this place and in this time.

The rest

Hope for, pray for, and work to make the following true:

- A cure for Alzheimer's Disease as well as a cure for other afflictions such as cancer, depression and Lou Gherig's Disease which have not only touched my family but many others as well.

- An end to wars and the thinking that might makes right and that things can't be talked over. Mom always said if there's a problem, just talk it out.

- A return to common courtesy, good manners and basically treating others as though you were the other. Leave more than you take. Add don't detract. Bless not blast.

- A resolution, a peacemaking with family and friends with whom I've become separated, for whatever reason. Resolve to be in "right relationship" with those people although there was great hurt in the past. This doesn't mean absolution of past wrongs - but a better understanding and getting to the "why" without the blame.

- A mind-change for all the cell-phone yapping, latte sucking, self-indulgent, aggressive-driving, conspicuous-consuming people. Zap them with a bolt of realization, common sense and decency to do the right thing. Or at the very least make their cell phones explode thus spilling their caramel mocha whatevertino all over their expensive rich Corinthian leather car upholstery. Please.

- A world where a school teacher's annual salary is at least what a professional sports player makes in only one game.

- A time to bring our boys and girls home. I swear it's not too late.

I also resolve to stop making resolutions that I can't keep more than two weeks.

This was written for the 39th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy hosted by Jasia at Creative Gene.

My Irish Ancestry - The Proof Is In The . . .

. . . actually the image to the left is the only proof I really have in hand. One would think that this would not be my current roadblock in researching my Irish roots. Unlike Apple over at Apple's Tree who states in Looking for Irish Records that she is not yet ready to research her Irish ancestry, I am itching to do so. She has some great ideas as to where to start research and I will probably follow some of her leads.

I was raised to think that almost all my ancestry and roots were Irish. My great-grandmother, Therese McGinnes Austin, still had some Irish brogue words that crept in when speaking, despite that fact that she was born in New York City in 1894. Assuredly influenced by the linguistics of her mother and father, both born in Ireland, my favorite word was how the said "bread." It came out almost like the word "braid."

I had been told that my great-grandmother's parents came from County Armagh in what is now Northern Ireland. Bridget Farren McGinnes and Matthew McGinnes had lived there and immigrated to the United States in the 1880s. Matthew became a citizen of the United States on October 9, 1888.

On my father's side, I was always told that our original last name was McEntee and that my great-grandfather had added the "a" in Mac when he immigrated from Canada so that he could secure a job in New York where anti-Irish sentiment was prevalent in the 1880s and 1890s.

But I have since found that such a story is full of blarney, as they say. MacEntee is indeed an Irish surname which means "son of scholar" in its Gaelic form "Mac an tSaoi." In fact, one of the great fighters of the Irish Rebellion was Seán MacEntee who was later heavily involved in the politics of the Irish Free State. He held several cabinet positions, served as Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) but was unable to achieve the office of Taoiseach (prime minister). I do not yet know if I am somehow related to him and his daughter Maire MacEntee, the great Irish historian and writer.

I've learned with the MacEntee story, to take as suspect any "stories" that come my way. With my McGinnes and Farren ancestors I will need to also live up to my name Thomas, the Doubter.

So this post is not only a fulfillment of another genealogy carnival, it is also one of my genealogy and family history resolutions for the coming New Year.

This was written for the second edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture hosted by Lisa at Small-leaved Shamrock.

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories

December 2007

Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24

Advent Calendar - December 24, 2007

Christmas Eve

How did you and your family spend Christmas Eve?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

Miriam at AnceStories: The Stories of My Ancestors remembers family gatherings from Alaska to Washington in Christmas Eve. Although St. Nick had already visited on December 6th, she still looked forward to Christmas Day.

Colleen reads "Twas The Night Before Christmas" to us as she presents The Oracle of OMcHodoy: Advent Calendar December 24: Christmas Eve posted at The Oracle of OMcHodoy. She shares this great poem as a tribute to Christmas Eve and the child in all of us.

At Jessica's Genejournal, Jessica presents Celebrating Christmas Eve .... She spends her Christmas Eve at her grandparents having dinner and opening presents much like many other families do.

Janet gives us 'Twas the Night before Christmas posted at Janet the researcher. She remembers various church services on Christmas Eve and then taking drives to see Christmas lights.

Lori presents Christmas Eve posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. She celebrates Christmas Eve with some great movies such as White Christmas and The Bells of St. Mary's.

Diane at CanadaGenealogy, or, 'Jane's Your Aunt' presents Christmas Eve - Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories. Read about her Mum's dinner preparation of ham soup and sandwiches as well as Dad's mad scramble for a last minute Christmas tree.

Lisa presents The night before Christmas in Ireland posted at A light that shines again. She helps us see how her Irish ancestors probably celebrated Christmas Eve long ago.

Stephen presents 'Twas the Night Before Christmas posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog. His memories include preparations for Christmas Day dinner and Santa's arrival as well as going to Midnight Mass.

At Creative Gene, Jasia offers up Christmas Eve, the Best Day of the Year! Memories of preparing food with her mother, her brother's last minute shopping escapades, and many more abound in her post.

Cheryl presents Christmas Memories-Christmas Eve, 1917 posted at Two Sides of the Ocean. The Christmas Eve wedding of her grandparents is described as well as the family that grew up to celebrate many Christmas Eves together.

At Apple's Tree, Apple presents Christmas Eve. Read about various family celebrations and how it can be difficult to travel through "snow country" in upstate New York to make sure everyone is together on Christmas Eve.

Lisa presents A candle in the window on Christmas Eve posted at Small-leaved Shamrock. She recalls the custom of candles left burning in the window on Christmas Eve as a sign of Irish hospitality.

Bill presents Christmas Eves posted at West in New England. He still spends Christmas Eve with his sister's family as he has for the past 20 years.

In Christmas Eve at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, Terry remembers how Christmas Eve was a busy, busy day for his parents who owned and operated a store in Parham, Mississippi.

At Searching For Family Branches, jewelgirl gives us My Christmas Eve 1964. Read about her waiting for Santa and while at church how her mother struggled with a frozen car trunk that almost ruined Christmas.

Randy at Genea-Musings presents Day 1 - Christmas Eve. Past gatherings on Christmas Eve have included church services, sleepovers at the grandparents', spying on Santa and the bicycles he left, and this year's celebrations seem busy with a house full of family and the Chargers vs. Broncos game.

Finally, in That Certain Christmas Eve at Destination: Austin Family, read about that crazy Christmas Eve when my mother went into labor with yours truly.

This concludes the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories.

Thanks to everyone who participated with their posts and a special thanks to Jasia at Creative Gene for her assistance, inspiration and being a sounding board for my nutty ideas. I hope you've had fun and were able to bring some memories of past Christmases alive this year. Have a Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year and keep remembering.

That Certain Christmas Eve

How do I begin a story that took place 45 years ago and involves kitchen cabinets, Wigilia, Midnight Mass, a game of poker, a generator, a maternity ward and a Christmas stocking? The best way, I guess, is to go exactly in that order of all those mysterious events and items.

My mother was always an active woman, from my memories, and from what relatives have told me. Being the sixth of 12 children she was the doer, the fixer, the healer. So it is not surprise to hear that while she was nine months pregnant, she thought nothing of climbing up and down a step-ladder to clean kitchen cabinets. I guess there was nothing more pressing on that day than to tidy up the place a bit, especially in places that no one else could see.

During this first of two pregnancies, Mom had a relatively easy time of it, barring the fact that she always had to go to the bathroom. With a baby pressing against various other body parts, she figured that urge to always "go" was normal for some women, and her doctor had confirmed that. So when her water broke during that cleaning mission, luckily she was in the bathroom. However, she didn't realize that the birthing process had just started. She thought that once again, she had to "go" and just did.

And so off to parties and gatherings my parents went. One tradition was to spend Christmas Eve with my future god-parents Mike and Elsie Washousky celebrating Wigilia but it was called "Holy Supper" by most of us. Uncle Mike grew up in a Polish household in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania where he had met his future wife Elsie Slaby who was of Slovak descent. Our Wigilia was a blend of both the Polish and Slovak Christmas traditions, leaning more towards his wife's family's traditions of the past.

Holy Supper was held that night in the same way it had been since the early 1950s when the settled in Liberty, New York and would still be up until 1990 when Aunt Elsie had passed away. I remember that the day started with Uncle Mike in the kitchen cooking his family's version of the traditional dishes: unleavened bread, pea soup, sauerkraut soup, mushroom soup, bobalki, fish and potatoes, pierogie, cabbage, beets, and finally, stewed prunes.

Once the first star in the sky appeared, it was time to start. A procession would be made into the living room where a table for 12 to 15 people was set, lit only by candles. Straw was under the table to signify the birth of the baby Jesus. We would begin with the oplatki, a special wafer similar to Roman Catholic communion wafers but very large and imprinted with a scene of the Nativity. My aunt ordered them special delivery from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

We would dip the wafer in bowls of honey scattered around the table and Uncle Mike would begin the Remembering. He'd speak of how his parents kept Wigilia each year and work through a remembrance of the entire family past and present. Small glasses of wine were served and we'd laugh, cry and remember.

The soups would come next. My favorite part were the bobalki. These were not the traditional sweet tiny dough "worms" covered with preserves and butter, served like a Christmas pudding. These were tiny "fingers" of dough fried in oil and onions. Placed in a bowl on the table, they were meant to serve as dumplings for the various soups. For most of us, it helped the sauerkraut soup go down easier.

Once dinner was done, the candles were blown out, and the women began the cleanup. All night long, my god-parents would tell me and my brother and in later years their grandchildren to behave otherwise Santa Claus would not come that night. We always asked how he would arrive - and Uncle Mike stated that you could first hear the sound of sleigh bells.

So off to the upstairs bedrooms the children would go to get dressed for bed. Sleepy and struggling to get into their Dr. Denton's, they all had visions of sugarplums and what Santa would bring them, for they were certain they had been good all year long, not just that night. Meanwhile, the parents were downstairs bringing gift upon gift up from the basement where they had been secreted out of the site of prying young eyes.

Once the presents were all arranged around the tree, my aunt would be at the bottom of the stairs and begin shaking a large belt of sleigh bells. One of the men would be outside either on the roof making noise or if it was too dangerous due to snow, throwing large pieces of wood up there to make noise. Women would be downstairs, in a loud voice, saying "Is that Santa? I think I see him! I know I can hear his sleigh bells!" At that moment several small children would begin screaming, arms flailing, feet stomping as they tried to catch a glimpse of the man in red. They all seemed to tumble down the stairs in one large ball of energy only to be disappointed, once again, at not seeing St. Nick. But he had left them gifts which would be feverishly opened while parents stood with their Polaroids and Instamatics and flash cubes remembering when their own family pulled the same stunt at their Wigilias of past.

My mother kept this tradition that night with people who were good friends, and considered family. The main topic of conversation was her pregnancy and when the baby was due - which was determined to be right around New Year's Day. Someone said they hoped it was before the New Year so that the baby would also be daddy's little tax deduction as well as mommy's little bundle. My Aunt Elsie, being a registered nurse at the local hospital, made a prediction that the child would be born the next day, on Christmas. "Have some more wine!" everyone said with a laugh.

By this time it was 11:00 pm which meant it was time to head down to church for Midnight Mass. If you wanted to get a good seat and to be able to sing Christmas carols before the service, you had to be there by 11:30 pm. Only stragglers and out-of-town visitors would end up in the last pews or standing in the back or along the aisles.

Mom sat through Mass which ended about 1:30 a.m. And not yet having had a full day, she went back to my godparents' house for another tradition: the annual Christmas poker game. Starting about 2:00 a.m., there would be a large group gathered around the same table where Wiglia had been held only hours earlier. Of course the straw had been removed from under the table and now it was filled with shot glasses, whiskey, chips and cards. A transition from the sacred to the profane.

It was during one hand of cards, that my mother felt that something wasn't right. Her labor had begun - it was sudden and unexpected. My aunt, the nurse, then informed my mother that her water had probably broken earlier in the day when she thought it was time to "go." Now it really was time to "go!"

Aunt Elsie called up the hospital and let them know to start the generator in the maternity ward. Seriously. That's how small a town I had. There were not many births, perhaps one or two every two weeks. So a generator was kept to provide extra power and heat in this small wing off of a small hospital in a very small town in upstate New York.

Mom said it was colder than a well-digger's *ss in that room - at least that was the colorful term she always used. It was 4:00 a.m. by time she and the rest of the broken up poker game had arrived. A different game was underway, and Mom didn't know if they next card she received would be a Jack or a Queen, a boy or a girl.

So at 6:50 a.m. that cold Christmas morning, surrounded by friends who had become family, I was born. My first appearance would be in a large red and white striped Christmas stocking which I would later use growing up as my stocking for Santa to fill.

That day it was filled with a child my mother always wanted, wasn't quite expecting so soon, and would always love.

Although she can no longer tell that same story as she told it to me, as with so many memories, I now do the telling. Thanks Mom.

Advent Calendar - December 23, 2007

Christmas Sweetheart Memories

Do you have a special memory of a first Christmas present from a sweetheart? How did you spend your first Christmas together?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

Randy presents Day 2 - Christmas Sweetheart Memories posted at Genea-Musings. While he really doesn't remember the first Christmas present from his future wife Linda, he does have fond memories of spending Christmas at her parents' house in San Francisco.

At Smoky Mountain Family Historian, learn who Lori's sweetheart was one Christmas as she presents Christmas Sweetheart Memories.

Janet presents Gift of Genealogy posted at Janet the researcher. She proves that great gifts don't always come from sweethearts but from genea-friends both near and far.

Stephen in The Ghost of Christmas Past posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog gives us a illustrative answer to today's question. Sweet and simple.

Apple presents Apple's Tree: Our First Christmas Eve posted at Apple's Tree. She and John spend their 25th Christmas together this year and she recalls that first Christmas together. Congratulations Apple!

At AnceStories: The Stories of My Ancestors. Miriam presents Advent Memories No. 23: Christmas Sweetheart Memories. She recalls the first two Christmases with her future husband, one at his family's house and the second at her parents' home.

At CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt' we have new posts from Diane. In December 23 - Christmas Sweetheart Memories, the song Winter Wonderland evokes memories of a special boy in the school choir. Please take time to read Diane's other posts as she plays catch-up - there is some great stuff there!

Jasia let's us know that, "happiness is not being forgotten at Christmas" in Christmas Sweethearts at Creative Gene. Guys: remember that a quick run to the store for a special gift like a bowling ball just doesn't cut it. But other round stones, the kind with four gold prongs, do.

At Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, Terry has the perfect solution to this problem: with which set of parents does a newly married couple spend Christmas? See Terry's solution at December 23: Christmas Sweetheart Memories.

In Special Christmases for Special Loved Ones, I describe the pitfalls of getting swept up in the Christmas season when it comes to sweethearts. Read more at Destination: Austin Family.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the last topic: Christmas Eve

Special Christmases for Special Loved Ones

I'm a firm believer of not going overboard on the first Christmas you spend with your sweetheart. We all see stories and advertisements with couples getting engaged on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day; images of a tiny box with a ring in a stocking or under the tree. I've always stuck to the "TIS The Season" principle: TIS meaning "Take It Slow." Very often I would find myself swept up in the spirit of Christmas to the point where it would cause emotional and rational blindness. You begin overlooking the other person's shortcomings or issues that could turn out to be major issues later on. So I've learned to not make those types of gestures or gifts around Christmas.

Marriages and commitments are a different matter. I went through my genealogy database this morning and realized that there are many of my family members and ancestors who were married on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. It makes perfect sense especially if the happy couple had traveled to be with family. It seems like a no brainer since there is an "instant reception" built right in with a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day dinner. As long as it didn't detract from the real reason for the season and celebration.

Another common marriage date seems to be New Year's Eve. Not only does it still qualify the happy taxpayers for married status at the end of the year, but again it is already "instant party time."

Advent Calendar - December 22, 2007

Christmas Grab Bag

Author’s choice! Please post from a topic that helps you remember Christmases past!

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

In An Explosion in the Fireplace on Christmas Day in Parham, Terry at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi explains the novelty of a new football and how it reacted to a roaring fire that Christmas morning long ago.

Jasia at Creative Gene tells us in one of the most honest posts, that memories of Christmases past must include the good as well as the bad. In Not All Christmas Memories Are Happy Ones, she courageously describes enduring holidays when too much alcohol is involved.

Apple presents Apple's Tree: My Advent Calendar posted at Apple's Tree. If you haven't noticed, at the end of each post this month, Apple has been using this photo of an Advent calendar - now you can learn the background of this keepsake.

At Janet the researcher, Janet presents Advent Calendars and gives us a neat history lesson on Advent calendars of all types.

Jessica had an original idea for her grab-bag item: play catch-up with all the posts she has missed in the past few days. At Jessica's Genejournal, she gives us Christmas Catch-up ....

Bill presents I Was The Grinch's Henchman posted at West in New England. Read about his experiences working for a large toy store during the Christmas season and the importance of karma.

Lori gives us Christmas Books posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. Her post includes a list of Christmas-themed books from diffferent genres including cookbooks and murder mysteries.

Stephen tells us how much a true White Christmas can mean as presents Christmas Snow posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog. Read about that magical Christmas of 1966 in Albany, New York.

Another book is offered up as Lisa presents 100 Years in America: Childhood memories of a Croatian winter's night posted at 100 Years in America. She describes the writings of Marija Bango and paints a vivid portrait of wintertime in a small Croatian village.

At Searching For Family Branches, jewelgirl brings us a blast from the Christmas past. In Let's All Sing With The Chipmunks she details one of her favorite albums and has a great photo of the slipcase.

Lisa presents December 26: Not a good day to be a wren posted at Small-leaved Shamrock. Learn about an interesting Irish tradition that takes place on December 26th - The Feast of St. Stephen.

At CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt' we have Christmas Time Fun. Diane offers us a glimpse of what "Christmas fun" constituted back in turn-of-the-century Manitoba.

Randy at Genea-Musings in The Christmas Letter tells us that an often dreaded holiday newsletter is really not so dreadful.

I've posted My Christmas List here at Destination: Austin Family for all to see. Do I still believe in Santa? You betcha.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas Sweetheart Memories

My Christmas List

I remember as a child, that starting in early November my brother and I would get started on making out our Christmas lists. This, of course, was before we knew the truth about Santa Claus. But even after that time, we continued the tradition of putting our wants and wishes down on paper. And Mom tried very hard to get most if not all items on that list.

Now I am vexed when it comes to the concept of these types of "lists." It seems the concept of letting others know what you want has found its way into wedding preparations and even children's birthday parties (I kid you not - there are now registries for kids on Toys R Us and other sites). While the original concept of a "registry" was used only in the world of weddings so that the happy couple would not receive 15 toasters and no china, current use of the concept seems to turn an invitation into an invoice. Basically the invite says: come to my party and you better bring something.

So I stopped composing lists. As a I grew older and lived 3,000 miles away from Mom, she knew that either a gift certificate or cash would work best. But she always had a little something that she picked out herself - and it represented what she knew about me. I think that is the best part about gift-giving: it forces us to really think about what we know about the recipient and why they are important to us.

So, will I get from Santa what I want this year? I already did and I received something I knew I wanted, but didn't know was actually available.

The gift? Being able to exchange ideas, holiday customs, and comments with a new-found group of people interested in the same aspects of genealogy and family history as me.

Thanks Santa. And I still believe.

Advent Calendar - December 21, 2007

Christmas Music

What songs did your family listen to during Christmas? Did you ever go caroling? Did you have a favorite song?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

In Christmas Music at AnceStories: The Stories of My Ancestors, Miriam finds it difficult to pick a favorite Christmas carol although she is partial to White Christmas.

Diane at CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt' presents Christmas Music. She no longer lives in a snowy part of Canada (yes - they do exist!) but her favorite carols paint a snowy image of Christmas.

Jasia at Creative Gene in Christmas Music Through the Years offers us a wide range of Christmas music inspired memories. There's Polish koledy, her daughter's violin concerts, her best friend's perfect voice, and Silver Bells over loudspeakers in Dearborn.

Over at A light that shines again, Lisa brings us On French Hens, a Partridge and God Himself. She offers an interesting break-down of the gifts in The Twelve Days of Christmas and their symbolism.

In Day 4 - Christmas Music at Genea-Musings, Randy recalls singing Christmas carols on Christmas Eve as his grandmother tucked him into bed. Now his tastes lean more towards song parodies - with links to some great video clips of different versions of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

At Searching for Family Branches, jewelgirl remembers her mother teaching her the German words to Stille Nacht. There's much more in her post The Sweet Sounds of Christmas including a special version of O Christmas Tree.

Chery presents Musical Musings from Christmases Past posted at Nordic Blue. In poetic form she honors various memorable Christmas songs - I'm trying to figure out which tune it should be sung to!

In Christmas Music at The Oracle of OMcHodoy, Colleen recalls her favorite Christmas carols. But The Little Drummer Boy had a special magic to it, even in July.

Lisa presents Sing of Christmas! posted at Small-leaved Shamrock. She lists The Wexford Carol which possibly dates to the 12th century and is one of my favorite Christmas songs.

Lori presents Christmas Music posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. She lists her favorite Christmas songs, both religious and secular, and there are some great and unusual albums listed! (See, I still say albums, not CDs!)

At kinexxions, Becky gives us Christmas Music where she has fond memories of her family singing Christmas carols - in tune or not.

Apple presents Apple's Tree: My Christmas Music List posted at Apple's Tree. All her favorites are listed, complete with links to music videos for each.

In Can't forget Killarney... posted at Small-leaved Shamrock, Lisa remembers Bobby Vinton's version of this beloved Christmas song.

Do you remember Andy Williams and Mitch Miller Christmas albums? Bill does as he presents West in New England: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year posted at West in New England.

Some of the "novelty" Christmas songs that many of us grew up with are posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog in A Child's Favorite Christmas Songs. Steve lists All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth and The Chipmunk Song as favorites.

Janet presents C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S, C is for . . . posted at Janet the researcher. She went down to the basement and dug out some neat 78 rpm records including titles I've never heard of like The Village of Christmas Pie. Sounds like my kind of place.

In December 21 - Christmas Music, Terry at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi has vivid memories of many different types of Christmas music. He also recalls his mother calling White Christmas "that new Christmas song."

Lisa asks: Can you pronounce: "Svim na Zemlji mir veselje"? as she presents Heavenly music and "little stars" posted at 100 Years in America. No worries - just try "Peace and Joy to all" and enjoy the beautiful rendition of this classic Croatian Christmas favorite.

Finally, a Christmas album that I absolutely despised has become an old comforting friend again in Please Don't Play That Christmas Album Again! at Destination: Austin Family.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas Grab Bag (basically come up with your own topic!)

Please Don't Play That Christmas Album Again!

As I grew up, it seemed there was only one Christmas album available not only in our home but in the world. My mother would play it incessantly - to the point of frustrating and angering me and my brother.

The album was A Christmas Sound Spectacular by John Klein and was released in 1959. Klein had done much of the arranging for the Your Hit Parade shows and this album, when released, was (and still is) one of a kind. Mom would bring out the album, with its tattered cover and some scratches, place it on the Victrola and we'd begin decorating the Christmas tree. And since it was a four hour ordeal (due to the rule of placing each strand of tinsel individually on the tree), we heard the album at least six times.

When I cleaned out Mom's house this past year, I could not find the album for the life of me, and as much as I detested it, I really wanted to hear it one more time. So I resolved to find a digital version if possible. When I did find it (see below), boy did it bring back memories. And I called Mom, and despite her advanced Alzheimer's, she can recall every little detail if it is at least pre-1995. So she said "Oh, you have 'the album' on. You must be decorating the tree. I'll have to stop by to see it."

So I play my favorite track Medley: I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day/Carol Of The Bells and now wonder why I hated these songs so much. I knew if back then Mom had said "You just wait - you'll be older and you'll miss these songs," now she could rightfully say, "See? What did I tell you?"

You can download a preview of A Christmas Sound Spectacular at a neat Christmas music blug called Bongobells. But since the album was reissued in CD format in 2002 and is no longer "out of print," you really should order a copy of this great album for a modest $8.00 at Schulmerich Bells. In fact, John Klein performed all the songs on the 1,143 bell carillon of Schulmerich bells where they are based in Sellersville, Pennsylvania.

Advent Calendar - December 20, 2007

Christmas and Deceased Relatives

Did your family visit the cemetery at Christmas? How did your family honor deceased family members at Christmas?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

At AnceStories: The Stories of My Ancestors, Miriam gives us Christmas and Deceased Relatives. While she doesn't visit family gravesites during the winter, she makes sure she thinks of grandparents and cousins and the memories of time spent together.

Becky presents Fond Memories... posted at kinexxions. She describes several family members who have passed on, their stories and memories, and how they worked to keep the family together.

In Cemetery Visits at Christmas at Creative Gene, Jasia has vivid memories of visiting family gravesites just before Christmas. She also describes various holiday tributes such as grave blankets and wreaths.

Read about a special Christmas gift from her departed Grandpa Berry as Apple presents Christmas and Deceased Relatives posted at Apple's Tree.

Although there was no family tradition of visiting graves during the holiday, in Aunt Maggie's visits Janet fondly recalls her aunt from up north. Read more about her aunt and the wealth of family information she left behind at Janet the researcher.

Stephen presents Visiting Mom's Grave posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog. He remembers visiting the cemetery that first time to see his mother's grave and the touching epitaph selected by his sister.

In Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, Terry gives us I Hear the Bells on Christmas Day. He describes a favorite poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and how it sums up complex feelings of melancholy, nostalgia as well as hope around Christmas.

In Christmas and Deceased Realatives by Randy at Genea-Musings, he remembers visiting his grandparents' graves with his mother around Christmas. And when he says the prayer at Christmas Day dinner, he always mentions those that have gone on before.

At Destination: Austin Family, I rebroadcast a post entitled Death Doesn't Take a Holiday (originally posted right after Thanksgiving 2007). I describe how death in a way makes holidays and their memories all the more dear.

Diane offers us Christmas and Deceased Relatives at CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt'. While her family didn't have a formal practice of visiting the cemetery around Christmas, with all her memories of her relatives, it sounds like she may very well revive the practice of holiday visits.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas Music

Photo: This photo is used by permission from Wreaths Across America - a non-profit group that makes sure that veterans' graves are decorated for Christmas. Please give their website a visit.

Death Doesn't Take A Holiday

[Author's note: This post was originally done on November 29, 2007 but has been repackaged for the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Day 20 - Christmas and Deceased Relatives.]

Funny how you sit down to write about one topic and then it is taken over by another that is more important. This one started out about wills and estate planning, then and now. I'll save that topic for a later date. Today I had to "stop for Death" as Emily Dickinson once wrote. He was too important to ignore.

I am sitting here ready to post after a rough day but one that has really emphasized to me the "cycle of life." While I'm all hopped up and ready for the holidays, Christmas trees, baking, seeing friends and family, at the same time I am dealing with loss and death on many different levels. Death doesn't take a holiday. But if it does, some years it seems like my family is its prime vacation spot.

Yesterday, while I was in the middle of writing out my estate planning details, I received news that one of my partner's aunts was declining quickly. She had been quite ill for months and at a stage where hospice care was brought in to care for her last days at home. And then the call came about 5:30 pm that she had passed on. Her sister had just passed away during this year's Easter holiday.

This post is not about death but more about remembrance and ways we can embrace and cherish those memories. This post is really more about pausing and recognizing the cycles of life and how they seem most evident when a death occurs around a holiday such as Easter or Christmas.

Death amid a time of joy tells me that death is just a part of nature, it is part of what should be expected but is not always anticipated, it gives meaning to holidays and to life. If we had no sorrow, no loss, no death, we'd have no touchstones with which to measure our joy. Joy would be a constant, a flat line with no spikes and simply rendered a non-emotion.

But why do our losses seem more obvious when we should be filled with the holiday spirit? I know that last week's holiday was rough for those of us with recent losses and not so recent losses. Holidays emphasize togetherness and family for many of us, and the absence of a loved one during this time seems more intense, and the separation more vivid and painful.

I caught myself on Thanksgiving Day wanting to call Mom and ask if she watched the Macy's parade while she was stuffing the turkey. This was our ritual, our nod to continuity from year to year, something she and I shared. With phone in hand, I started to dial and then I remembered: she wasn't home stuffing a turkey or over at one of her sister's houses. She was in the nursing home this year. Maybe she was watching the parade, but the Alzheimer's would make sure she couldn't remember it even 15 seconds later.

So, I paused and put down the phone. I put my hands back in the bowl of stuffing. And I remembered for her. I remembered holidays, turkeys, and parades. I remembered learning how to make this exact dish that I am literally up to my elbows in. And I cried. And then I laughed because how can you wipe a tear when your hands are practically breaded and battered?

Sure, a cycle ended when I couldn't experience that holiday tradition this year. But cycles that seem to halt their movement - frozen in time - allow new cycles to begin. I now make stuffing with my own family in Chicago. I now call Mom on holidays and try to help her remember.

There will be many tears shed by me this holiday season. And that's not a bad thing, really. The tears tell me that a memory had meaning, that loss is real, that a loved one was important, that death hurts, that a ritual was worth repeating even to the point of aggravation, that there will be new tradtions in the years to come, and that more loved ones will all too soon be missing at the table.

That piece of a life is gone, and it isn't ever coming back. Choose to chase after it, blindly follow its path, and forget the life and rituals going on right now around you. Or choose to embrace its memory, wrap it around you like a colorful and warm Mom-made afghan, and make it live by telling it to others in your family.

This is what we do. We are family historians. We engage in The Telling. In a way, we bring life to the dead and memories to the living.

Photo: grave of my great-grandparents, John Ralph Austin and Therese McGinnes Austin. Grahamsville Rural Cemetery, Grahamsville, New York. My great-grandfather died two days after Easter, 1988.

Advent Calendar - December 19, 2007

Christmas Shopping

How did your family handle Christmas Shopping? Did anyone finish early or did anyone start on Christmas Eve?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

In The Great Christmas Shopping Mystery submitted by Stephen at Steve's Genealogy Blog, a shopping mystery is solved. He always wondered how his parents bought all those presents from Santa, and now he has the answer.

Randy has his shopping bags full as he presents Day 6 - Christmas Shopping posted at Genea-Musings. While he has bought some odd gifts in the past (like the practical mailbox), his biggest challenge is finding something to make his wife's eyes light up on Christmas morning.

Becky remembers one particularly bad "Black Friday" as she presents Christmas Shopping posted at kinexxions. Never again, she says.

Janet's mother exchanged so many gifts by mail that she overloaded the Canada Post. Read more as she presents Christmas - How many shopping days left? posted at Janet the researcher.

At CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt' Diane presents Christmas Shopping. Read another case of Christmas lists composed in shorthand and presents hidden in the attic.

Lori is in a shopping whirlwind as she presents Christmas Shopping posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. She mentions one of my favorite stores, Le Gourmet Chef, as well as many old department and specialty stores from Tupelo to Cincinnati.

At Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, Terry Thornton presents Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories: Day 19. He tries to recall a special trip to Sears in Memphis with its elevator in 1941 or 1942 and tells us how holiday shopping was done by Hill Country residents.

Apple and her husband have the right idea: they shop for each other starting the day after Christmas. Read more as she presents Christmas Shopping posted at Apple's Tree.

Jasia at Creative Gene blames her brother's late Christmas Eve shopping for overdone turkey each year. Go to Last Minute Christmas Shopping to see the details and the groovy leather jackets!

Chery has a beautifully written memory of trips to Montgomery Ward in Richmond, California during the holiday season. She gives us Wish Books and Hardwood Floors posted at Nordic Blue.

I have "mad skills" when it comes to on-line shopping for the holidays. Stop by Shop 'Til You Drop Offline at Destination: Austin Family.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas and Deceased Relatives

Shop 'Til You Drop Offline

I always know when it is time to start holiday shopping: when I see the ads for Chia Pets and the Clapper.

I have great memories of early Christmas shopping trips to Middletown, New York which was a 45 minute drive from my home town of Liberty. This was where the closest Sears, JC Penney and Montgomery Ward stores were located. We had a Sears catalog "showroom" in Liberty where you could place an order then go down and pick it up, but that wouldn't do for Christmas shopping. Besides a Woolworth's (which is now a Family Dollar store), the only place left was the S&H Green Stamp store. Mom would usually try and cash in her books of stamps for items to give as gifts - after her two boys had lost their sense of taste licking all those stamps.

Growing up, we exchanged gifts only with my great-grandparents and my godparents and their family who lived across the street. My godparents held the Wigila each Christmas Eve and we had a huge gift exchange with them (8 adults and 6 kids). So off to Middletown to buy toys, books, and clothing.

Mom always had her shopping done about a week before Christmas except for a few little items. Unlike her two sisters, Pudgie and Ginny (no one used their real name in my family). Around 6:00 pm on Christmas Eve they would put down their coffee cups, put out their cigarettes and one of them would say to the other, "Well, how about we go down to K-Mart and get this crap over with?" That meant a trip to Kingston about 40 miles away.

My aunts were lucky in that K-Mart was the only place open until midnight. So, they would spend the next fives hours buying presents for about 10 people. Funny they always managed to get what they needed - or at least made it seem like the choice was appropriate to the person. No weird or bizarre gifts. If it were me, I'd be grabbing stuff in the checkout line saying "Here, Tic-Tacs for your mother, Zippo lighters to trim your father's nose hair and eyebrows, etc."

As you can tell, I abhor shopping. I purposely do not participate in Black Friday - in fact I participate in Buy Nothing Day on the Friday after Thanksgiving. But I am a big online shopper - God bless the Internet. I was one of the first Ebay members when they started as well as one of the first online shoppers. If it can't be done online, then at the very least the person is getting a gift card. My relatives are amazed - in fact one uncle keeps saying, "I gotta get me some of that Internet."

So I buy toys for my niece and nephew in Virginia Beach, Virginia; gift cards for my niece and nephew here in Chicago; a neat original present from Ancestry for the in-laws; I order new clothes for Mom which are sent to her brother to be labeled before they are delivered to the nursing home.

I've already put my list out to Santa and I was just told one of my presents (can't tell if it is Christmas or birthday): air tickets to Reno, Nevada in January 2008 to see Etta James. I can't wait!

Photo: Marshall Field on State Street, Chicago, Christmas 2005.

Advent Calendar - December 18, 2007

Christmas Stockings

Did you have one? Where did you hang it? What did you get in it?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

Christmas Stockings appear on the mantle over at CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt'. Diane still has the Christmas stocking of her childhood and remembers what it would contain on Christmas morning.

Lori describes her stocking that her aunt made for her in Christmas Stockings posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. Learn what Lori would often find in the stocking on Christmas morning.

At Genea-Musings we see Randy rummaging through his gifts in the Christmas Stockings. He talks of receiving lots of candy (including See's - yum!) but still is able to maintain his hourglass figure. Randy, it's later than you think.

Janet also had a "fake fireplace" growing up and that as where the stocking were hung with care. In Hanging the stockings in anticipation of Santa's visit posted at Janet the researcher, she describes finding an orange in the toe of the stocking and toys.

In December 18 - Christmas Stockings by Terry over at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, his family's stocking were put up on the fireplace mantle in the living room. That all changed after his parents remodeled the house and removed the fireplace!

Jasia at Creative Gene has an interesting post titled I Had a Boot. While she didn't have a Christmas stocking as a child, she did have a boot placed under the tree for Santa to fill. Also learn about a special stocking she received from family in Poland.

Apple presents Apple's Tree: A Very Special Christmas Stocking posted at Apple's Tree. I don't know where to begin describing this fantastic and very personal post - go read what that Christmas stocking held.

Cheryl describes stockings past and present in Christmas Memories - Christmas Stockings posted at Two Sides of the Ocean. She has a great collection of stockings including one for her dog!

Colleen still has a fascination with stockings. Read The Oracle of OMcHodoy: Advent Calendar December 17: Stockings posted at The Oracle of OMcHodoy to see some great photos of her current collection.

At West in New England Bill gives us Stocking Stuff-ers. He admits that while some years the stocking would contain items like a wrist watch, he once received a lump of coal.

A quandry of where to hang Christmas stockings appears at Steve's Genealogy Blog. Stephen presents us with Santa in the Furnace and Stockings on the Radiator and describes those stockings personalized with his and his sister's name in glitter.

Finally, in Christmas Stockings at Destination: Austin Family, I am hoping Santa fills my stocking with some items for my bar - cocktail shaker, strainer, etc.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas Shopping

Christmas Stockings

I remember pretty vividly the stockings that my brother and I would hang for Santa to fill on Christmas Eve. They were made of a felt material printed with red and white stripes. Since we had no fireplace in the apartment where we lived, they were hung on the back of the front door, in the living room.

On Christmas morning we'd find items like Matchbox cars, card games like Uno, and nuts - mine were always a jar of macadamia nuts since Mom knew I loved them.

When we moved to our first home, I was 13 years old and not too old to hang my stocking. So it was placed on the wall near the wood stove in the corner of the living room. And it still contained macadamia nuts!

Presently the stockings are hung on the bar in the entry way - they are red silk with gold embroidered stars (I have a thing for red and gold). See, I still have a stocking but I am hoping that Santa fills it with more adult items like mixers, cocktail shakers or other fun stuff.

Christmas Cookiepalooza!

Well, I can now reveal the reason I was under the weather this morning: it was Christmas Cookiepalooza at my house yesterday. From 10:00 am until 8:00 pm was a day filled with rolling and cutting gingerbread, welsh cookies, sugar cookies and butter cookies; slicing logs of lime meltaways; rolling peanut blossom and thumprint cookie dough into 1" round balls; and then baking them all.

35 Peanut Blossoms
40 Thumbprint Cookies
150 Welsh Cookies
200 Lime Meltaways
37 Butter Cookies - Stars and Moons
29 large (6" across) Sugar Cookies - Snowflakes
57 large (6" long) Gingerbread Cookies - Christmas Trees

Take a look at the finish products below. Now all I need to do is wait for them to dry overnight and bag them up!

Advent Calendar - December 17, 2007

Christmas Church Services

Did your family attend religious services during the Christmas season? What were the customs and traditions involved?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

Stephen brings us Midnight Mass and Incense posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog. He discusses his role as an altar boy and the steps involved in preparing the thurible.

At Creative Gene we see In Church at Christmas and Jasia's detailed description of her home church, Sweetest Heart of Mary in Detroit. Go see the amazing photos and learn about the Midnight Mass held there each year.

Lori presents Christmas Church Services posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. She remembers various traditions including an Advent wreath and a Chrismon tree.

In Christmas Church Services at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, Terry tells us how he has attended various churches during the holidays. He describes pageants and musical programs as well as Christmas Midnight Communion.

Lisa at A light that shines again gives us a lovely Irish poem in "Mass Going Feet" and "A Frosty Dawn." It describes the wonder surrounding the trip a family takes to Mass on Christmas morn.

At Genea-Musings Randy presents Day 8 - Christmas Church Services. As a member of his church in Chula Vista, California he describes various traditions such as the post-service procession to the cross and singing Silent Night on Christmas Eve.

Becky presents Christmas Church Services posted at kinexxions. While she doesn't remember many Christmas related church services growing up, she now keeps Christmas in a personal way.

In Christmas Church Services posted at Janet the researcher, we hear of a popular Carol Service. Janet tells us how the service was conducted and also remembers other music-filled services from years past.

Diane at CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt' presents Christmas Church Services. Her early memories don't include attending Christmas Eve services but she started attending later in her adult years.

At Small-leaved Shamrock, Lisa has a fascinating post entitled St. Clair, PA and a Merry Christmas to all! She describes how churches in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania celebrated Christmas in the late 19th century.

Apple presents Christmas at Church posted at Apple's Tree. Apple also celebrates Christmas in a private way these days but her memories of church services past includes singing with her brother in the choir.

I recall many an exhausting Christmas Eve helping out at three different services. Hear all the details in Church, Church and More Church at Destination: Austin Family.

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas Stockings

Photo: Blankeneser Kirche am Markt, Hamburg, Germany. Source: Tinker*Tailor, Flickr

Church, Church and More Church

I grew up attending the church where my parents were married - St. Peter's Catholic Church in Liberty, New York. I have early memories of attending Midnight Mass but not Christmas Day services - only Christmas Eve was considered a Holy Day of Obligation.

I loved all the pageantry involved: the singing of Christmas carols before the procession began, the decorations, the telling of the Nativity story from the Gospel of Luke, and the smell of incense.

After I left for college and moved to San Francisco, I really didn't attend church again until 1991. For the next 10 years I would participate in a variety of different services at a variety of churches. All of these were of Protestant faiths which, while not a problem for my mother, would have had my ancestors spinning in their graves and saying novenas on my behalf.

Most of my participation at these churches was behind the scenes - friends called me "The Church Lady" because not only did I know all the practices and little details of holding a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day service, but I was able to organize the entire production.

Typically we would have three services on Christmas Eve: a children's service at 4:00 pm on Christmas Eve with a pageant. Then a 7:00 pm service for those who could not attend (i.e., stay up for) the 12:00 am service. For years it meant being at church from 3:00 pm until after 1:00 am the next morning - and made for an exhausting Christmas Eve since there was also a 10:00 am service on Christmas Day.

Advent Calendar - December 16, 2007

Christmas at School

What did you do to celebrate Christmas at school? Were you ever in a Christmas Pageant?

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

In the front row of desks is a newcomer, Cheryl, who presents Christmas Memories-Christmas At My Elementary School posted at Two Sides of the Ocean. A cousin of TK (who still has us reeling with her infamous union suit photo), she describes her school's Christmas program held each Christmas Eve in East Detroit, Michigan.

Meanwhile, Terry at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi has a post filled with school memories in December 16 - Christmas at School. Covering the gamut of an early printing process to buying presents for teachers, he brings us memories of the holiday season while attending school.

Christmas At School presented at CanadaGenealogy, or 'Jane's Your Aunt' has Diane drawing a blank when it comes to Christmas activities at school. But she imagines what efforts it took her teachers to organize Christmas carol singing.

Why do I get the impression that Randy at Genea-Musings was a handful in school? Do not be fooled by his shyness as he presents Day 9 - Christmas at School!

Janet presents School - Christmas concerts posted at Janet the researcher. She remembers Christmas concerts while attending school as well as activities when she taught school.

Miriam has a very interesting post entitled Advent Memories No. 16: Christmas at School posted at AnceStories: The Stories of My Ancestors. Hear about her various starring roles in school holiday plays while growing up in Alaska.

At Creative Gene, Jasia in Christmas at My Elementary School remembers back to a time of Christmas celebrations at school. Her memories include parties, recitals and singing some of her favorite songs.

Lori offers us a perspective as both a student and a teacher as she presents Christmas at School posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. She also remembers playing in the school band as well as performing in the church pageant.

Chery has a story of a broken bell as she presents A Christmastime Lesson Learned posted at Nordic Blue. Hear how she learned a lesson the year she traded a gift from Santa.

At Apple's Tree, Apple keeps her post short and simple in Christmas at School. We know that up in Snowville she is digging out like the rest of us Northerners!

In The Shepherd-Chief by Stephen at Steve's Genealogy Blog, hear how a case of Chicken Pox derailed his chance in the spotlight at the school pageant one year.

Lastly, in Christmas Cut-Up at Destination: Austin Family, hear of my antics in Catholic school and how I constantly embarassed by mother to no end.

I just noticed as I put this "rollup" together, how many of us genea-bloggers are or were school teachers!

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas Church Services

A Christmas Cut-Up

My memories of Christmas at school begin at St. Peter's Catholic School in Liberty, New York which I attended during Grades 1, 2 and 3. The focus, of course, was on the story of the Nativity and not on the more secular features of Christmas such as decorations and Santa. I remember there were no Christmas trees in classrooms - there may have been one in the main lobby of the school. I do know there were no Christmas trees in the church itself.

I started school at a very young age - I think 4 1/2 years old in kindergarten which was at the public school. I was a handful for my mother, both from an intelligence standpoint as well as physically. I'm sure it was a challenge to keep me in line, as I would hear stories that my mother laughed at in later years.

One example: it was tradition to have the nuns who taught school come over to a student's home for dinner at least once during the school year. Usually it would be the two or three nuns who taught your child. Our visit fell during the Christmas season which was quite a bit of fun. Until my mother's inquisitive son opened his mouth during dinner - and not to shovel in food.

I remember asking one of the nuns why she didn't have children and if she had been spayed like our dog Blondie. Well my mother said later, "I thought I should just die right there." Of course, this was the late 1960s and the nuns who taught me were part of a very hip, post-Vatican II group. I think they laughed for minutes on end at my remark.

While I performed in many Christmas concerts, and also as one of the VonTrapp childen in our version of The Sound of Music one year, I was more known for my versions of popular songs. This included Jingle Bells. Now if you are of a certain age (and I won't say what that age is), you will know what the image above means and how it relates to Jingle Bells.

Advent Calendar - December 15, 2007

Christmas Grab Bag

Author’s choice! Please post from a topic that helps you remember Christmases past!

Here is a brief summary of contributions from fellow bloggers and links to their individual posts:

Lisa gives us a Croatian tradition of growing wheat in your home beginning on December 13th - the Feast of Saint Lucia. Read more as she presents A pot of pšenica for Sveta Lucia posted at 100 Years in America.

A great gift idea from Randy is presented at at Genea-Musings. In Day 10 - The Family Journal he describes a Family Journal, its contents and production process which he gives to family members each year for Christmas.

Hold as T.K. presents The proof is in the putting on posted at Before My Time. You must go and check out the state of her union suit.

Becky describes an annual Christmas tradition as she presents Christmas is Here! posted at kinexxions. Her family gets together for a Christmas dinner the weekend before the weekend before Christmas - snow or no snow!

Lisa talks of an Irish custom as she presents Get in the Christmas spirit - do your housecleaning! posted at A light that shines again. She describes the origins of this practice and what it entails.

Over at Creative Gene, Jasia kills two birds with one post. In Kolędy she describes her favorite Polish Christmas carol as she also participates in footnote Maven's meme about Christmas Carols.

No fireplace for Santa to make his grand entrance? No problem at Apple's house as she tells us in Our Fireplace posted at Apple's Tree. Read about this Christmas decoration that she hopes is still up in her Mom's attic.

An annual Christmas church bazaar is offered up as Janet presents Christmas Bazaars posted at Janet the researcher. There are some great photos in her post and details about the preparations for this event.

Lori presents Living Christmas Tree posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. Her description of how the tree is assembled is fascinating - let's hope she finds photos from last year's event!

Memories of an East Cork Christmas are presented in "A fairyland of gold and glitter to feast the eyes of a country child" posted at A light that shines again. Lisa brings us another post of Irish customs during the holiday season.

Diane's grab bag topic is Christmas Photographs - Lost Memories over at CanadaGenealogy, or, 'Jane's Your Aunt.' She raises one of her pet peeves: photos with cute messages but no names or other clues for the genealogy researcher.

Stephen presents A Polka Christmas posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog. Along with the old Victrola and 78 rpm records, we hear of his earliest Christmas memories.

Yesterday Terry at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi gave us fruitcake. Today it is Crow Street Eggnog in another wonderful post.

A memory of gingerbread houses is given to us by Jessica as she presents Gingerbread Houses ... posted at Jessica's Genejournal.

We receive a Gaelic leasson over at Small-leaved Shamrock and learn how to say Nollaig Shona dhíbh!. Lisa is also kind enough to walk us through the pronunciation!

And I am pulling up the rear with A Wee Christmas Nip here at Destination: Austin Family. To me, Christmas was always Grandma, scotch and The Twelve Daze of Christmas. And no, she never "got run over by a reindeer."

Check back tomorrow for more submissions on the next topic: Christmas at School