A Fun Mom-Monday Memory

I gave a long dialogue about my Mom here. She is fun. Today I remember another story.

It was Christmas. Mom put cans of colored hair spray in our stockings, blue, silver, pink and green. It was the latest craze, streaks of color in your hair, everything cycles you know.

We finished our Christmas morning present opening and decided to experiment with the colored hair spray. No one can remember who started it, but...

A chase ensued around the house and we each had our own can of colored hair spray. In the end, my crazy sister, Inez, and I took down our Mom and held her down while we sprayed the bottom of her feet blue.

When she got up and started the chase again, she tripped and broke her toe. We rushed her to the emergency room and when she put her foot up on the table there it was in all its shiny blue glory.

As I recall, the doctor just looked at it and shook his head. He knew us well.

Happy Mother's Month Mom!

Christmas 2009 at our house

1. Christmas deocrations--Only a Nativity scene


2. Cookies baked, candy made--None


3. Parties attended--Two


4. Christmas songs listened to--Lots


5. Papa's Grow Sticks made--Ten


6. Christmas cards sent--None


7. Christmas gifts sent--None and won't be until after Christmas


8. Hours spent at work--160 in 2 weeks


9. Papers graded--90 in 2 weeks


10. Cold medicine taken--8 Tylenal cold tablets this week.


11. Chicken soup consummed--5 cups


12. Christmas movies watch--Ha, when would I possibly find time to do that.

There is always next year

SPT-Advanced Christmas Preparations

Please don't hate me. When I get my Christmas cards finished the Thursday after Thanksgiving at our Card-a-poluza activity at the Church, I'm done.

You see, we have ten grandchildren and they have twenty-two grandparents. We decided that rather than get caught up in the Christmas hub-bub and have the children not really even know who sent them what, we would give presents all year long. So, beginning in January and continuing through November, our children and grandchildren get presents from us wrapped in Christmas paper. The first year it was really hard to break the habit of sending something at Christmas time, but the second year it was a breeze, this year, I don't even feel worried that the little grandchildren won't understand. A child who receives a game for their Wii in June is far more appreciative than a child who receives it at Christmas in "competition" with a bazillion other gifts.

So, you see, I am finished. Tarzan and I usually make a large batch of something fun to give people who come to our house. One year it was prickly pear jam, one year it was bottled banana nut bread, this year, someone told me they had a margarita jam recipe, I'm trying to get that, but if we don't get it, it doesn't matter, we can just give out a card to anyone who comes by.

This tradition allows us to focus on the true purpose of Christmas and renew our intention to do kind deeds throughout the year.

Christmas 1961

Today, April 20, 2007, we had a bomb scare at the Arizona State Capital where I work. We all went outside to wait and there was a young man there who was visiting the Capital. He had blue hair, parted down the middle with a goatee that was braided with blue beads to match the color of his hair. It reminded me of another Christmas memory.

I think it was 1961. We were living in the "Ellsworth house" in St. Johns, Arizona. My Mom gave my sister, Inez, and I several cans of colored hair spray as Christmas presents. She bought us one of every color, green, blue, pink and silver.

After opening them Christmas morning and trying them on our hair, which was fabulous dawling, Inez and I decided to spray some on Mom. She resisted so a chase ensued. Inez and I got her down on the floor and sprayed the bottom of both of her feet blue. She then got up and began chasing us to spray both of us when one of us stepped backward and stepped right on her foot and broke her little toe.

It immediately swoll to three times its size and turned black and blue. We put her in the car and rushed her to the emergency room. When she put her feet up on the gurney there they were, both feet bright blue on the bottom.

We all still laugh about the look on the dotor's face when he saw it.

Christmas 1956

That year we spent Christmas in Illinois with Uncle Howard and Auntie Patty and their children, Bruce, Cindy, Karen and Craig. As you can imagine, this was a devastating time for us. Mom was, understandably, depressed and trying to deal with the heartache that accompanies such events.

I don’t recall anything that happened leading up to Christmas morning, but I will never forget that day. The girls were all sleeping in one room and the boys in another. The girls woke up early and whispered out into the hall to see if the boys were awake. When we realized everyone was awake we schemed to wake up Uncle Howard and Auntie Patty. It must have been very early. They told us to go back to sleep. When our giggles were more than could be contained, they called us into their bedroom where we all knelt down for family prayer. This singular event was so awesome. Uncle Howard humbly reminded us--all that we possessed was a gift from our Heavenly Father--and expressing our gratitude before opening our presents was mandatory. Only then were we allowed to go downstairs where the tree was. I was ten years old and am not sure what I expected, but never did I expect what actually happened.

Sitting on the couch right where we could see it when we went downstairs was a bride doll that walked. One for each of us and a princess dress for each of us that my Mom had made. Mine was gold brocade with black netting ruffled on the straps.

Uncle Howard and Auntie Patty had made sure that we did not feel left out. We got just as much Christmas as their children received and more than anything, we were loved and we knew it. That probably did more to save my delicate psyche than anything else. My good mother made sure I knew that they had done this and I can never thank them enough for their kindness and love.