Christmas home decor from the 50s and 60s

[wnylib]

84. Holidays seemed to last forever. We had 2 weeks

off of school. The Sunday before Xmas, my father's family gathered at his father's farm. My father had 8 siblings who brought their spouses and children. Grandpa's tree had bubble lights that fascinated and mesmerizrd me.

Grandma had died when I was 2, so everybody brought dishes for a buffet dinner. Ham, turkey, scalloped potatoes, veggie casseroles, salad greens, friut jello molds, nut breads, pies, cookies, and seversl kinds of fudge. Hot foods were heated up on the old, woodburning cookstove and oven by my aunts, with practiced skill.

After eating, the cousins went outdoors to go down the steep road in front of the house on sleds snd 'saucers.' No traffic. It was too isolared. Adults stayed inside, snacking, drinking, gossiping, and playing cards.

We ate leftovers in the evening before going home. Driving down the road after our sleds had packed down the snow was tricky. After a few slides into a ditch, we learned to spread ashes from the cookstove and sawdust from the log bin over the road first.

Several businesses shut down for a week or 2 during the holidays so my father and seversl uncles and cousins had time off. The week between Xmas and New Year was for visiting, which included my mother's 2nd and 3rd cousins from her mother's 9 siblings.

We always had a large box of chocolates, some Xmas cookies, and a dish of mixed nuts for guests. Mixed drinks or beer for adults. There were cases of 7 ounce pop bottles for kids in the basement -- orange, cherry, cream soda, and root beer. I was a generous hostess as a kid because I got a chance to take chocolates, cookies, and pop for myself every time I offered them to my cousins.