Last Christmas there was a little smudge on my festive holiday mood. Due to lack of inspiration, time and supplies I didn’t get around to making Catherine a Christmas stocking. Fortunately she had no idea, but I felt awful about it. I love my stocking and our family’s stockings were my favorite decorations to hang when I was small.
This year I was struck with inspiration, had the supplies and eked out some time to sew. Having a homemade Christmas stocking is very important to me. My Mom made mine (and Corey’s and my Dad’s) and every year I look at it and think of the time she spent making it and love knowing that it was made especially for me. I wanted to pass that same feeling along to my own little family. I sewed up Peter’s stocking for the first Christmas we spent together (2001) and now Catherine’s joins the group.
As a kid my stocking always had a box of Cracker Jax in it on Christmas morning. We don’t have a tradition like that yet- what do YOU get in your stockings?
I always got an ornament in my stocking. The childhood ornaments from my stocking are the basis of what I put on my tree now that supposedly I’m a grown-up. (That has yet to be determined!)
We always got a box of cherry cordials.
Last year, for our first Christmas together, Art and I were saving for our condo, so we decided to skip presents, and went for my favorite – stockings. It was funny to see our different interpretations. Art grew up with stockings being full of fun little useful things (tapes/CDs, deodorant, etc.), and I grew up with them containing candy and “gag” gifts.
Some of the usual suspects in our stockings:
Buying stocking stuffers for me usually meant taking a trip to the Kenyon College bookstore and perusing the aisles for any small things that would fit. 🙂
Nice family tradition with the stockings, Becky. Remember the Wood tradition of everybody bringing a little treat for the stocking; all the grown ups, that is. Don’t tell, it’s a surprise!
See you soon. We have lots of snow right now.
Being brought up in the Anthracite Coal country as a girl we always had, you guessed it… COAL – good or bad!
We always got a Christmas orange (a mandarin) in the foot of our stockings… and then usually some sort of chocolate product, toothbrush, toothpaste, and assorted other things that fit in and primarily were “useful” items (shampoo, etc) or a Christmasy thing like a small stuffed bear with a Christmas-themed sweater on.
My family’s stockings were all handknit in the same style by my aunt’s mother-in-law… she had no grandchildren of her own but made many many many beautiful stockings over the years.
We have handmade stockings (by mom) in my family too. They all match!
My dad’s contribution to our stockings (just the 4 kids, not mom) was a piece of “wierd” fruit — a star fruit, persimmon, Ugli fruit, etc. Something we’re not sure what it is or how to eat. (It’s different every year) He gets such a kick out of that.
And our tradition after we finish opening our stockings on Christmas is to wear them on one foot for the rest of the morning.
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Always, always, always a toothbrush. I remember one year mom forgot to put one in and I was disappointed! 🙂 Other usual things included travel-sized anything – Q-tips, toothpaste, shampoo, lotion. Also tic-tacs, chocolate something, chapstick, sometimes a PEZ dispenser, movie ticket coupons and the like.
Now that I’m in on the deal myself, I find that I gravitate towards the same things. But I know some people who have traditionally gotten really big things in stockings, like jewelery (usually in the toe)!
These are some great traditions! Thanks for sharing everyone!