Being the youngest of six siblings, I was always the last believer in the family.
As my brothers and sisters aged out of the standard childhood traditions, I was the last believer in Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, and the Easter bunny.
As kids, my siblings and I used to bake cookies and leave them out for Santa. We’d get up in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve, eager to see all the presents Santa dropped off under the tree, before sprinting back to our rooms at the call of our mother yelling, “Go back to bed.”
Then one-by-one each sibling stopped leaving cookies and stopped getting up in the middle of Christmas Eve night, until I was the only believer left standing.
One-by-one each sibling stopped looking for money under their pillows from the tooth fairy, and sadly each sibling stopped coloring Easter eggs and left me as the lone egg-colorer at the table with my mother. Being the youngest sometimes sucked.
Nevertheless, one of the traditions I shared with my brothers and sisters was the yearly cartoon classics. We’d all gather around the one and only TV in our house to watch Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, Charlie Brown, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
We’d schedule our world around watching these shows because you only get one shot to see them. If you missed it you were screwed. Back then they only came on one time a year with no reruns, no daily showings, and no viewer marathons.
These holiday classics are on television right now for the Christmas season, and every year, unwisely, I try to force persuade my kids to watch them with me. Of course they scoff at the idea and run out of the room, and I’d run out after them spouting my “When I was a kid,” speech.
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But my kids couldn’t care less about the classics, because the cartoon options they prefer nowadays are far more superior in graphics and animation than the snoozers of yesteryear.
And of course they truly are snoozers, now seeing them through my adult eyes. Yet that doesn’t outweigh the deep memories they hold for me.
Unfortunately, it’s now an ongoing joke for my kids (ages 10 and 14) where they smirk, tilt their sarcastic heads to one side and say, “Mom, Red Nose Rudolph is on.” Not funny, and just plain wrong on so many levels. Kids can be so cruel. 🙂
*Thanks to Lynn Chandler Willis whose blog post inspired me to write this.
Demetria,
Thank you for a walk down memory lane. As wonderful as new technology is, sometimes I long for the simplicity of yesteryear. Three television channels…hmm…that would probably kill me now.
I always catch the classics. It’s tradition. “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” was on the other night. Loved it. Taped it. Well, on the dvr.
Maybe I am spoiled on the new technology. :o)
ML, you’re too fast. I was still editing this post and hoping no one read it until I fixed the errors. But of course, here you are being too swift for me (following the Swift namesake).
Anyhoo, I know what you mean about longing for the simplicity of yesteryear. Even though it would definitely conflict with our spoiled technological approach. Thanks for walking down memory lane with me.
Knowing the specials were on and gathering around our, yes, one TV to watch those specials was SO exciting! It was even more fun after we finally got our first color TV. Whoa!
Reminds me of watching Disney on Sunday nights– and if by chance– oh my– they should a full-length animated movie like Jungle Book or Snow White– OMG!! Big doins’.
Fortunately, my 22-year-old son and 17-year-old daughter still like to watch the Christmas classics (DVD is nice– no commercials!) and we still only watch them once a year so it feels special. They still ice sugar cookies with me and will dye eggs. If they ever move away, they better plan to have kids who will do that with Grandma!
Julie, my kids never took to the old classics, so I gave up on trying to get them on board.
Also you’re lucky your kids at those ages will still make cookies and dye eggs. Teach me your blackmailing tricks so my kids will do the same at that age. 😉
I loved watching Charlie Brown, Frosty the Snowman, and all those other holiday classics. You’re right, things were very different then. If we missed one of those shows we were devastated because we’d have to wait an entire year to see them again. That alone made it so much more special.
My face still lights up when I see that one of those old shows is coming on. Guess that will never change.
Oh and Roxanne– I still get that warm, fuzzy feeling when I hear the Charlie Brown piano music and picture the kids on stage dancing!
Christmas is my favorite time of the year. It is just a feeling I can’t describe. I know I am about to tell my age. But Garfield Goose and Friends is my favorite show at Christmas time. One of my all time favorite episodes they would show on that show was “Suzy Snowflake” My sister and I still sing that song. Also, Frosty the Snowman just seems so much better on the Garfield Goose Show. Every Christmas it still comes on and I make my kids watch it. Yeah, they think it was a very generic show, but I tell them that was when life was simple.
OMG, Sharon, I so remember Suzy Snowflake! I forgot all about the Christmas shows they played on Garfield Goose. When I was in elementary school I used to watch the Ray Raynor show and Garfield Goose every morning before I went to school.
Those shows were my morning rituals, and on days when I was sick and stayed home from school I’d watch Bozo Circus, too. Bozo Circus always came on when I had to leave for school and couldn’t stick around to watch it.
Roxanne, I remember being devastated one year as a kid when I missed those shows. My mom made us go to some evening church function like choir rehearsal or a religious Christmas play and I remember sitting in church pissed off because I was missing Frosty the Snowman. I also used to cry during that scene when Frosty melted and all the kids were sad.
Julie, I loved that piano scene and that theme music from Charlie Brown. Every time I hear it, I smile.
Does anyone remember a movie called “The Littlest Angel,” starring Johnnie Whitaker (the kid from the TV show Family Affair)? I only saw it one time and that would have been around 1970. Never saw it again or even knew of anyone who saw it. I don’t THINK I dreamed it LOL!
Lynn, I’ve never heard of that movie but I do remember the kid from Family Affair. Are you sure you didn’t dream it? Let’s hope you’re not psycho-koo-koo. 🙂
Boy did you take us back!! Those were truly simpler times. D, I too used to love watching those 3 Christmas classics you mentioned. However, can’t watch em anymore. Rudy and Grincho are so played. Not to mention Grincho is rather wicked-looking.
I like to catch the Shrek holiday specials these days. Those characters are such a crack up!!
Remember how “you’d” sneak & partially unwrap your gifts to see what ya had coming?? Ahhhh…good times!!
I miss our Christmas shopping time. Remember how the 3 of us would be mall’n for the entire day?? I don’t like the mall anymore, but surely do miss the company.
Thanks for that welcomed stroll down memory lane.
Ummm…don’t laugh but I own Rudolph, both Frosty movies and Santa Claus is Coming To Town on VHS and I still watch them every year when they all come on TV. I even watched Rudolph both times it came on this season. LOL! My husband and I recently came across the DVD set with all four movies in a store and contemplated buying it…for me…not my kids who are 10 and 7! So don’t feel bad at all because I love those movies even though they aren’t as graphically inclined as today’s cartoons. They still air them every Christmas season; so somebody likes them enough to keep them coming back. 🙂
Okay, Melissa, that’s too funny. But I’m not laughing at the fact you own those movies, I’m laughing (cracking up) at the fact you said on “VHS”! That’s the equivalent of saying an 8-track player. And depending on how old you are, you may not know what is an 8-track player.
But shame on me for laughing because I still have a VHS VCR tucked away in my closet. I keep it because I’ve never converted my wedding videos from VHS yet. And until they get converted, I’ll need something to play them on. My husband and I think its funny our wedding videos from 16 years ago are still on VHS.
Also, you’re right, somebody must like those classic cartoons because they keep showing them every season. You should totally buy the DVD set. 🙂
Starla, at first I was like, “who in the world is Rudy and Grincho?” Then I had to switch my brain to speak your koo-koo bird language and finally understood. You are truly nuts, my sister.
Yes, we also tried to cheat and partially unwrap gifts in the wee hours of Christmas Eve night. But it was hard to see in the dark so we got smart and started using flash lights. Momma would always catch us, though.
I, too, miss mall’n it from morning to night Christmas shopping with you guys. Those were some extensive female bonding times where we’d do 3 or 4 malls in one day. Now I get exhausted just hanging out at Walmart.
Julie: Not only do I love when Schroeder plays the piano, I do a mean Snoopy dance whenever I’m really excited about something. It stopped being cute about 35 years ago, but it still makes me happy. 😉
Melissa: I thought I was the last person in the USA who still holds on tightly to her VHS tapes. It’s Beauty and the Beast and Babe I can’t part with. 🙂
I LOVE all those movies Demetria. And we own all of them on video (As in VHS), but yes, you are right, my kids never took to them like I did. They never sing the heat miser song with me. Sigh…
Thanks for the memories!
Charlene, it’s so funny how so many people in these comments still have their VHS copies. Plus, I loved the Heat Miser and know that song by heart. Thanks for stopping by.
Roxanne, seeing you do the Snoopy Dance would be an awesomely hilarious Christmas gift.
Demetria,
I caught your site and your comments on A Thought Grows. Any friend of Julie’s is a friend of mine.
Every year, I show my junior high students Rudolph and The Grinch (the original, not the live action aberration). Although they would prefer to see Jim Carey, they still love those shows. Today, a student actually knew the name of Boris Karloff. I was impressed.
I have a confession about Santa Claus is Coming to Town. I fell in love with Jessica!
Thanks for the fuzzy good feelings.
Joseph, welcome and thanks for stopping by. I always love seeing new faces in blog comments so I appreciate your visit. It’s good to hear you show your students the classic Christmas cartoons and they actually like watching them. Maybe you can work your magic and get my kids to like them.
Didn’t Boris Karloff do the original voiceover as the Grinch, aside from his well-known role as Frankenstein in the old black and white movies?
hahaha – I LOVE this post. And I can relate!
Every one of the shows you mentioned I watched as a kid. Those shows ARE Christmas to me. I even got them on DVD so I wouldn’t miss them. 🙂
Melissa M., I agree, those shows ARE Christmas to me, too. Those shows give so many people a warm, cozy trip down memory lane.
Demetria, I am definitely familiar with 8-track tapes. LOL! And I still have my wedding vids on VHS too!
Melissa, great to know I’m in good company regarding the wedding vids. Love that you know about 8-track tapes, too.