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| Santa and CJ (5 years old) - December 1960 |
A Friday Five post from 23. December 2011
Five Christmas traditions we did, usually on the same day, when I was a kid.
1. My mother would make us dress in our Sunday best for a trip to Boston. If Dad was taking us, he'd drive to Woodland Station, park the Dodge or the green Studebaker wagon, and we'd take the streetcar to Park St. If Ma was taking us by herself, we'd take the bus from the end of our street to Park Sq. Ma would hurry us through the Combat Zone (red light district) on lower Washington St. to the store
2. From Park St. we'd walk a block over to Washington St. where Ma would do Christmas shopping at Jordan Marsh and Company. (In 1996 Jordan's was bought out by Macy's)
3. When her shopping was done, she'd take us upstairs in the store to The Enchanted Village. While waiting in line to see the Big Man, we'd be entertained by a huge Christmas display of mechanical dolls, lights, and electric trains.
4. After, we'd get to have lunch at Kresge's lunch counter, a baloney and onion sandwich though I had mine with yellow mustard and no onions.
5. Before going home, we'd get to walk around Boston Common looking at the Christmas lights and the skaters on the Frog Pond.
Did you do anything like this when you were a kid?
I'm sure there probably was CJ but not that i remember..What a wonderful memory for you to have... When my daughter was little little we lived in Germany. We always walked downtown on the marketplatz and she got see all the lights and decorations and visit with the German Santa then the American Santa on base.. Later years back in the states our town puts on a huge light display. Many people drive through it but we always walked through it.. its along the river that runs through town.. One year we had a hayride through it.. Thanks for the memories CJ. Merry Christmas!!! Hugs! deb
ReplyDeleteThe light display sounds like fun and I bet it's beautiful
DeleteAwww, such fond memories, and the visit to Santa was an annual event for us, too. Those Santa photos are a treasure.
ReplyDeleteHappy memories
DeleteNice story and photo of little CJ! We never did that as kids. Have a great day! Valerie
ReplyDeleteDifferent traditions
DeleteSuper cute cute.
ReplyDelete😊
DeleteI guess we did but I'm too old to remember! LOL
ReplyDelete😸
DeleteI thought I left a comment earlier but then my computer kept saying publishing, not published, so I figured I better check back. I'd been to Jordan Marsh in a Boston a few times but more at the old Worcester Center. When I was little we used to go to Denholms down on Main Street. That store is long gone. And I was always afraid of visiting Santa. I love reading your story. Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and a great visit with the eldest. Merry Christmas.
ReplyDeletePrissy used to talk about Denholms. You have a wonderful Christmas, too, with your daughter and her fiancé
DeleteFirst to say: cute pic!! Awwww, Happy, Merry Christmas to you!
ReplyDeleteDarn fondue and loads of - controlled! - fire we had.
And the bell.
I had to read poems once.
And I got clothes from Santa - the German one is a practical guy! A boring, one, too! Once got a doll-house. "Santa" never saw I don´t play with dolls...
Sometimes we had family over.
And the (real) tree shared it´s needles way into January :-)
It was a given that Santa always gave you undergarments and socks, too.
DeleteI never sat on Santa's lap or even saw one in a department store because we didn't have any in my small town. I remember when I was maybe 4 or 5, my grandmother and I were walking and Salvation Army Santas were on several downtown corners. I asked why so many Santas. My grandmother told me that even Santa needed helpers. I think that was the day I stopped believing in him! LOVE the photo of you as a child.
ReplyDeleteI learned early, too, but only because I have a Brother 6 years older than me.
DeleteMy mom worked for Boscov's until she retired and every year she would take my brother and I there to see Santa - they took a picture for the parents to buy (not expesnive back then, of course).
ReplyDeleteMy mom told me that when she was a kid, Pomeroy's Department Store was located in downtown Reading, PA where my Great Aunt who raised her and her sister would take them shopping around town. My mom has a beautiful pic that was taken of them by a sidewalk photographer walking down Penn Street. I would love to share it sometime on my blog if my mom can find it.
LOVE the pic of you sitting on Santa's lap! Soo cute!
That pic of your mom would be such a treasure. I hope she can find it.
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