Simple Christmas

I want and am aiming to have a Christmas this year like I used to have when I was younger and hopefully with me being at home I will be able to get those things done that are important to me.

As a child I grew up amongst a close knit very warm and loving family on both sides and we saw a lot of both sides of the family.  However most of my customs for Christmas come from my Dad's side of the family as my mum's mum died when I was 17 months old although my mum did follow through with the customs her family maintained when she was growing up.  Christmas to both sides of the family - well is and is always about family and friends. 

My mum's mum (my grandmother) used to do all the baking for Christmas on Christmas Eve.  Mum always followed through with this, and I in my turn did the same. My Mum's Gran also did the same.

Mum also said that they always used to go to my great grandmother's for Christmas for a big Christmas dinner.  There were 12 in my mum's birth family including her parents, there was uncle Tommy (who was not married) and Aunty Ivy who had four children plus the adults (a family of 6), my Great grandmother, my Great grandfather.  Approximately 21 to table and my Great grandmother used to cook for everyone and the whole family spent the day together.  My Great grandmother was a Tobacconist, who also ran a bed and breakfast business from her rented property.  Her husband was a Wheelwright who had his own business based predominantly in Chesterfield. He was a Grayson. He was always home for Christmas though and every child always had a brand new penny in their Christmas stocking (one of their socks) plus fruit, nuts, sweets.  Mum said that they never really did a lot on the present front.  One year however she had been bought a miniature tea service.  She was pleased as punch with this and took it upstairs.  On bringing it down one day she fell down the steep stairs and the miniature tea service was no more (it was proper china) and apparently she was devastated as she had really loved this.  So the food and the company were really what Christmas was about for my mother's family.  Very different to the Christmas's we have today. I think to some extent we get carried away with the excitement.

My Nan (my Dad's mum) was also a hard worker.  At least a week (up to and before that) in the run up to Christmas she would be at full throttle preparing the feast. Despite working full time in a job as well and preparing a lot of the food herself from scratch. My Nan not only had family to the table but also friends who were going to be on their own and not with their own family.  There was always plenty of food to go around as somehow or another she was a bit like Jesus and the three fishes - she managed to make a little go a long way.  The actual dining room that she had was small but somehow or another there always used to be loads of us crammed in like sardines and a jolly time had by all with simple things of good food, good company a lovely warming open fire.  The big table was always occupied by the adults and us children were popped on the kitchen table but in the same room.  Talk about sardines and we were not playing charades.

The decorations

The tree at my mum's used to go up the day before Christmas Eve and it was always a magical sight. Mum always made a fuss of bringing the treasures out of the wooden chest that was kept up in the attic and when younger we were not able to hang the decorations but as we got older we were able to hand them to her. Mum and Dad always made it special and we were always included.  A lot of the baubles were fragile glass and indeed mum had most of the decorations right until the year before she passed when she managed to drop the box and a lot of the treasured decorations were lost.  She was extremely upset about that.  Bringing the decorations out was always a big deal and both of our parents always made Christmas magical for us.  I think that is why I make a big fuss about Christmas  overall as a result and tend to be a little OTT.  

I don't know when my Nan did her decorations but the tree was always up and ready in the best front room by the time we got there.  The one thing I do remember though is that Nan always had chocolate hanging decorations on the tree (the hollow ones to start with and then later on the filled ones).  There was one for each child that came to the house (and I suspect a few extra and a sugar mouse for each child as well.  This is something that I still do to this day is have sweetie ornaments on the tree.  I have also added peppermint candy canes to the tree as well, plus little bags of chocolate coins.  

Nan used a lot of fresh foliage like ivy and holly with glistening red berries on tastefully tucked over the edge of a picture frame and there was always a fresh display of flowers or greenery in the house as well as the obligatory mistletoe.  There was always laughter and music.  We were brought up to respect our elders, with strictness but also a lot of love and fairness.

The Food

We nearly always had Goose at my Nan's for Christmas. It was nearly always the Goose that did sterling guard dog duties in the summer orchards that ended up being chosen; however I was not aware of this until I was quite a bit older.

My grandparents had a smallholding and most of what we had for Christmas was grown by them or nurtured by them or made by them. There was always lots of cooking going on in the run up to Christmas. Nan in later life always made Christmas cakes for everyone as her present.  She worked out that as her income was of a minimum that making something that was useful for each family would cost her less than having to give money or buy a bought present.  However it also kept her occupied and doing things.  I suspect that my workaholic tendencies come from my Nan. Nan always used whisky in the fruit cakes.  She did not decorate them that was left for us but the cakes were always so delicious.  She also used to make Christmas puddings but the fruit cakes were in demand as she was a master at making them. There was always a ham being cooked, loads of pastries, mince pies, sausage rolls, coconut cheesecakes, jam tarts (school boys ear holes) lemon curd tarts, a feasting cheesecake that my Nan used to make which we hated as kids but loved as adults, an Ox tongue would be cooked and all the pickled shallots, onions, eggs chutneys were all brought out for the Christmas spread. She had a long narrow pantry that was stacked one side fully with shelves, had a meat safe in the bottom end (they cured their own pork as they kept their own pigs). The ladies of the household did all of the cooking.  Everything had to be done and dusted by the time of the Queen's speech i.e. dinner would have been eaten, the women sorted the kitchen out and then the men took over and did the washing up whilst the ladies were able to have a rest.

There would always be both log open fires on the go and latterly in one of the rooms the log burner which always keeped the house nice and warm and of course there was the Rayburn in the kitchen.

Crafting

My Nan and my Mum were both needlewomen.  Nan used to knit for us as well as our mum.  Finances were always restricted so they did what they could with what they had which I think really is what Christmas is about family and the making the most of a situation.

I want to get onto the new machines as soon as I can.  I am hoping to do that when OH goes fishing again. Have not been able to achieve that this time round. The more I can do during the week the more I should be able to play.  I have lots of things to play with just need the time to actually get on and do.  However I am also very realistic and I want to make and give everyone a nice present and I need to get cracking as quickly as possible.  A visit is scheduled to my cousin for one weekend soon and she has indicated that as she has two embroidery machines I am going to be doing what she is doing.  So even though I have a different machine it is going to give me some idea of what is actually involved and hopefully then I can get started.  I hope so.  I have plenty of fabric in although may have to get some extra from the market.  Will see how it goes.

So I am aiming for a simpler Christmas this year all round.  Funds are restricted and so I will be making the best of what I have to hand.  I may need to buy more embroidery thread if I end up using a lot but that can be tackled at the time.  I did buy in quite a bit when I bought the machine.  I also have soap and candle making equipment so I am hoping to get something done with that as well to also give as pressies.

I am fortunate that I do have quite a bit of stuff in house ready to use.  Something I have done for years as with the crafting stuff it keeps me occupied and I am not yearning to buy this or that.  You have to roll with the good times and the bad.  We will get there one way or another.

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

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