Mom with Frank Jr, Sandy and I- 1964
Granny was helping with dinner preparations
This was Christmas 1964 and we were settled in Westwego, Louisiana. I remember the aluminum Christmas tree. I used to enjoy watching the multi-colored wheel rotate and illuminate all the glass colored bulbs at night.
I remember that us kids would spend Christmas day engrossed in our new toys while Mom and Dad spent time in the kitchen preparing a sumptuous meal. We all gathered around the table and had the finest meal of the year... together. In these early years, Granny was with us. She usually prepared the cornbread dressing and chicken and dumplings (yummy!). Granny was one of the best cooks in the South! In later years, Mom took over on cooking most of the Christmas dinner. She was a fine cook as well, an art she learned from her mother.
This was a time before the "electronic era"- when, as children, we were happy to receive toy cars, stuffed animals, baby dolls and strollers. It was a time when we were truly excited to see Christmas morning arrive because we could barely wait to open our gifts! We only received gifts twice each year- our birthday and Christmas. We were usually limited to a single, simple gift on our birthday, but at Christmas we usually received several items on our "wish list".
I have many treasured memories of the Christmas holidays from childhood, thanks to the hard work and efforts of my parents. The gifts were just a small part of the joyous holiday season- more importantly, the best memories are those moments we spent with family.
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