The first Wednesday Hodgepodge in December thanks to Joyce From This Side of the Pond.
1. What does it mean to have the ‘holiday spirit’?
I would say to be engaged, aware and a participant in what the holiday offers in small or large ways!
On a scale of 1-10 how is yours this year? (10=off the charts, 1=still looking for it)
I land at about an 8 most years.
2. What’s your favorite character from a (December) holiday-themed movie, book, or TV special? Tell us why.
One of the favorites is ‘A Christmas Carol’. I’ll choose Bob Cratchit as my favorite character. Why? He is a noble character who is loyal to his family and a trustworthy human.
3. Do you like gingerbread? Are gingerbread houses part of your holiday tradition?
I do enjoy gingerbread but it is not part of our holiday tradition and neither are gingerbread houses. Our church is having a gingerbread house making contest for families this year. It will be fun to see what the family units come up with.
4. Much of our vocabulary is determined by where we live or where we grew up. What say you-
sprinkles or jimmies? lightning bugs or fireflies? soda or pop? sneakers, trainers, or tennis shoes? sub, hoagie, grinder, or hero? freeway, highway, or motorway? frosting or icing? sauce or gravy?
Sprinkles, fireflies, soda, tennis shoes, sub, freeway, frosting, gravy
5. Share a favorite holiday memory from your childhood.
Christmas caroling with our youth group is a favorite memory. Our caroling started at an apartment building just a couple doors down from our church in Los Angeles. Our Babushka and several other widows lived in this apartment building so it was a good place to start. We’d all stand on the grass below their upper floor apartments and sing the carols. We left from there with tangerines and other treats from the Babushkas. Loading up in a few cars, we’d head to nursing homes where some of our Russian church members resided. From there we traveled to a few select homes. At all of our stops we sang in Russian and English. Our last stop of the night turned into the party house for the rest of the evening. When we’d make it home late on Christmas Eve, we’d see our mom at her sewing machine finishing our Christmas dresses for church on Christmas morning. We always had a new outfit for Christmas and for Easter, too. We were in church on Christmas whether it landed on a Sunday or not. Tradition was that we’d have a regular joyful Christmas service in the morning and our Christmas Evening service was when our choir would perform a Cantata.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
Speaking of our Babushka’s apartment at 3000 East 8th avenue in Los Angeles, California….
On Christmas morning our family and our cousins and others would make a stop at our Babushka’s apartment for Christmas baked treats before our church service. This would be our Christmas breakfast. Apartment #10 has many cherished memories.
Me and my ‘Little Babushka’ on Greg and my wedding day, December 6th, 1974. We are currently in Coeur d’Alene Idaho enjoying an overnight stay to celebrate our 51st Anniversary. I’ll be slow in getting around to visit.
Happy Birthday, dear Laura, on your actual day! We love you, we love you, we love you!
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 
What great memories you have with Babushka and other family members. I can see how that apartment holds many good memories. Great pictures! The gingerbread contest sounds fun. Safe travels back from Idaho!
…I know that I’ve said this before Ellen your family kept Kodak in business!
What sweet memories of time spent with your Babushka. I feel like caroling is a bit of a lost art, but it was such a fun thing to do as a kid. Our church is going to try it this year in a housing complex that they serve a meal in occasionally. I’m helping with the meal so if there’s caroling I’ll join in. I am not a singer so we’ll need a lot of voices : ) Enjoy your getaway and happy anniversary!
Love the old Christmas family photos! Take care, have a great day!
I always loved caroling. This year for the time in many years, we will be caroling at a local nursing home.
And I just had to look up that address to see how close it is to where Prof and I lived. Willow
Happy Anniversary! I love Xmas Caroling!! In fact, we are doing some on Sunday afternoon which I will be writing about on my blog next week…probably for the FFF. It’s going to be a reverse Christmas caroling event.
LOVE the photos from the past! Great memories.
I hope you have a wonderful week ahead.
What wonderful memories!
Happy Anniversary!!!
I always enjoy my stops in at your blog. I love, love the memories of the caroling and sharing your family with us. I love the old photos of the memories coming out of apartment #10.
Happy Anniversary!!!
Carla
Ellen, may I just say that you and Greg have done an excellent job in carrying on the wonderful family special times together that you have fond memories of from when you were younger. I know it is all through God’s grace, but He had to have willing servants and that He has had in you and Greg.
Happy 51st Anniversary to the two of you.
I loved your memories!! And that sweet wedding photo! I have a cherished photo of me and my grandmother taken at my wedding. I am going to pull it out just now! I love the idea of caroling under the apartment windows!! Happiest anniversary wishes to you!! Blessings as you celebrate such a long life together – 51 years! That is a gift!
I sure enjoyed your story of your babushka and all of the family photos. So nice to see the memories of blogging friends. Most all our answers are the same on the words we say. Happy Anniversary….
A lot of people have said “8” and I hope to be there soon. That is true about Bob Cratchit. Enjoy the Gingerbread houses at church. Should be fun. Yes, Christmas caroling can be fun too. I remember doing that. What a lovely answer for #5. I love the photos you shared. Great post!!
Your description of youth group caroling is heartwarming! Do you think Christmas caroling is fading out as a tradition? Or maybe it’s just that groups don’t carol around the neighborhoods the way they used to… I have loved doing it over the years, but at least in the town where I’ve been for 35 years now, our church group found it rare that anyone would open their door to us. So we switched to nursing homes where we had a captive and appreciative audience ❤
Happy, Happy Anniversary! I appreciate the lovely stories behind the vintage photographs!