Holiday Memory Lane

On the Fifth day of Blogmas, your blogger brings to thee…..

5 Golden Memories

The holidays lend themselves to many memory making opportunities. Today, I’m sharing 5 golden nuggets from my trip down Holiday Memory Lane.

Candy Cane Lane

Speaking of memory lane, I can’t help think about Candy Cane Lane in Vacaville, California. I’d heard about this street in conversation but never ventured over until I had my daughter. Now it’s one of our favorite things to do during the holidays. She loves the lights. I can’t wait to take the kids there this year. Maxim was only an infant last year but he loves the holiday lights as much as his big sister.

Santa Claus at Jelly Belly

Visiting Santa at the Jelly Belly Factory is a must for our family. This is a more recent memory since having kids but it’s my favorite. They do such a wonderful job of decorating the room and making it fee like a visit at Santa’s home, complete with Mrs. Claus. Santa also takes his time talking to the kids about what they want from Santa. This year, Malia is much more talkative and probably won’t cry her eyes out. Ah, and it’s FREE to see Santa, you can use your own camera and the cost to purchase prints is great – not at all like the malls.

Matching PJ’s —- thanks Mooom!

Seeing my kids in matching PJ’s. I just know I’m going to love seeing those photos when I’m old & gray. I hope they can smile at the memory too. Malia is a little more particular (and vocal) so I hope she doesn’t mind the gender neutral choices I have for this year.

Midnight Mass

It’s been a long time since I’ve attended midnight mass. Over time, Christmas Eve was our big family dinner and celebration. We rarely venture out at midnight these days. But I have very fond memories of getting dressed up in our Christmas best and attending mass. It’s one of the many reasons why O Holy Night brings a feeling a nostalgia and fills my soul up with the spirit of the holidays. The sound of that song brings me back to midnight mass.

Pasko Na Naman (It’s Christmas Again)

Tagalog Christmas songs. I used to wake up on Christmas morning to my dad blasting his favorite albums from the Philippines. They were so lively and upbeat. It’s one of my favorite memories because it’s so unique for our family. I loved running to the living room in my pajamas, seeing my mom and dad dance to the words. I love the thought of them doing the same thing in their family home in the Philippines — perhaps singing those same songs with my grandparents.

I don’t know where those records are now, but if I ever find them, they’re MINE. 🙂 Maligayang Pasko!

Be sure to visit The Coastie Couple and The Petite Mrs who are hosting this season’s 12 Days of Blogmas Event.