tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post2361375923099695959..comments2023-07-08T06:45:37.946-06:00Comments on Penrose Mornings: Blood Family Blog: Who Remembers Cherry Chocolates?Dwighthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06174492647465668322noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post-48498120160919894952009-12-28T13:48:02.511-07:002009-12-28T13:48:02.511-07:00I still love chocolate cherries. If I am going to...I still love chocolate cherries. If I am going to cheat and eat some chocolate, let it be this way!Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288597968563641842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post-58718234151413838232009-12-28T13:43:31.786-07:002009-12-28T13:43:31.786-07:00Hi Shannon Marie! Good to have you aboard! It is...Hi Shannon Marie! Good to have you aboard! It is so easy to see how traditions, etc. get passed on to the next generation.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288597968563641842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post-57786518144574427652009-12-28T09:03:37.234-07:002009-12-28T09:03:37.234-07:00A-ha! Hillarie and I (Mark was yet too little) now...A-ha! Hillarie and I (Mark was yet too little) now know where the hole-in-the-stocking-resulting-in- a-pile-of-coal-below idea comes from. Dad did just that one Christmas when we were wee things. We've teased him about it ever since for greediness. We hadn't realized the roots of this habit were to right a wrong of such proportion.Shannon Bloodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00296621244454286830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post-13749438936219389742009-12-27T10:22:57.236-07:002009-12-27T10:22:57.236-07:00This brings up a myriad of thoughts and recollecti...This brings up a myriad of thoughts and recollections. By the way, some years chocolate drops were included in the stockings, and there were favorite flavors. And, Louise would always hoard her stocking contents longer than anyone else, and then would eat in front of the rest of us, as we watched in total envy.<br /> And in Penrose, sometimes, there would be extra candy and nuts on the kitchen table - as Dad would come in from milking, he would comment that Santa must have had more than he needed for others. I don't know when the knowledge that Santa was more about the Spirit of Christmas than a real person, but it never mattered - I wrote letters to him until I left home for good. Once, in Washington, out in the garage-shop, as Dad and I were working on the big picture, we were shuffling through some boxes of veneer pieces, and came across a pattern with Mother's writing on it. Dad got a little teary, and commented on how much he missed her. Somehow, from that, we got on the subject of Christmas and Santa Claus. He disclosed that Mother was the force behind the Santa fun, although he participated. I told him that one Christmas in Penrose, I stayed awake, watched the light go off in the shop, and heard Mother come in and go to bed. I peeked out our bedroom door, and there was nothing under the tree except what we had put there before going to bed (our annual "gift exchange"). Louise and Judy were asleep in our bedroom, and I suppose Dwight and Steve and Ann were, too. I tried so hard to stay awake, but finally drifted off. Lo, and behold, in the morning, there were the full stockings, and more gifts under the tree. Made a total believer out of me!Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14728351230605312730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post-12493462506557280902009-12-27T03:56:58.199-07:002009-12-27T03:56:58.199-07:00It is truly a great Christmas rememberance. At le...It is truly a great Christmas rememberance. At least we were not labled, "villans."Steve Bloodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14461084071883064196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114307744147144762.post-5810998939239755092009-12-26T21:51:59.354-07:002009-12-26T21:51:59.354-07:00You were doing great until the last line.
But you...You were doing great until the last line. <br />But you are right about the feeling of awe that always surrounded Christmas, even for me, who never knew the hardship of having Dad gone, as you three older siblings did. All of my memories include Dad being home all the time. I am thankful Mom and Dad were able to find a way to solve that challenge.<br />Christmas in Penrose was magical. That magic happened each year, even when our numbers kept decreasing. The love of family, the safety of our little haven, the clear night sky so full of stars we had to look hard for the brightest star on Christmas Eve when we took our nightly journey before going to bed - they are all part of the magic that helps keep me warm on cold winter days.<br /><br />Thank you Dwight, for writing your thoughts so perfectly. It is nice to have you back.Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06652616779595499610noreply@blogger.com