Day 521 ~ Keeping Tradition Alive

Plimoth Plantation

When I was little (60s, 70s and even in the 80s) Halloween showed up in stores at the beginning of October each year... there were even neigborhood bar-be-ques (block parties) for Labor and Memorial Day. When Thanksgiving would come around, it was about being with family, very subtle at that... and Christmas/Holiday decor would go up the night of Thanksgiving.

2012... 
Halloween showed up while I was shopping for school supplies at the end of August... Thanksgiving is given a shelf or two ;) if at all! Except for Hobby Lobby where they really give us Thanksgiving! They have a beautiful collection for sale all of October through November.  {and} Christmas ... well with all it's decor and glory, including Christmas movies being shown on television, "Christmas" items showed up on shelves the moment Halloween did!


I guess the point I am trying to make is that the way holidays are being drawn out has been driven by the retailers.  After all do they ask us when we want the sales?  No.  As time has gone by they have stretched the dates more and more.  It is more about numbers than tradition to them.

As far as my childhood holiday traditions I acquired...  Those are my traditions and if they are that important to me, It is up to pass them on... I do not HAVE to follow the retailer's lead.

I am thankful for tradition!

[here's to you finding your... ]

Peace...

I am second..

... for a, l & c.  You are my sunshine(s).  

Images are courtesy of google or Bing images.  Some images maybe labeled property of Carla Barila Karam and of this blog, Took It... Making It... Living It... My Life .  © 2012  U.S Copyright Laws apply.

Day 196 ~ From Our Home To Yours

In tonight's post, I would like to share with you how my family has been spending this Christmas season.  From our home to yours we wish you the best this Christmas and all year long.  For our love ones no longer with us, we will always hold you in our hearts and minds.  

God bless us everyone ...

I think we, Calley and I, pretty much started baking the day after Thanksgiving, and it has been bliss ever since!  Above we were baking our famous Oatmeal/Raisin/Pecan cookies... one word ... N-U-M-M-Y!  Below, our Christmas sugar cookies.. mm..mm..good!

While decorating our family Christmas tree, we stopped for a quick kodak moment, I should actually say, for a Cyber-shot moment..  (wink, wink)  

I am in BIG trouble!  I must say that Calley can be really bossy.  She knows how she likes things... down to where the ornaments should go!  Not a good sign.  Note to self... nip Calley's take charge attitude in the butt immediately (well maybe just a little, I do want her to be a leader-  we'll have to work on this one)!!

WOW!!  My baby is growing up!  (so sad.)  Well, she certainly is fun!  She was so happy to see Santa.  She asked him if she could tell him what she wanted for Jesus' birthday.  That's my girl!   

Calley has certainly made Christmas very special this year.  At five years old, she is very involved and wants to help with everything.  She is always showing us what she can do, and asks if we are proud of her, which of course we are.  She really is an amazing little girl, even if she is hard to keep up with half of the time.  (wink, wink) 

                                                               

              

Calley has had a hand in everything.  She was having such fun that she put the stockings on for shoes, Santa's beard and hat. (above left)  Calley even helped folding the hand towels in her bathroom, and placing them just so.  

When it came to making our Christmas wreath, I really enjoyed her reaction.  We first lined up all of our pieces we needed for the project, teaching her what everything was as we went along.  First, I took the ribbon and wrapped it around the wreath, then added the pines and glued the ornaments on.  Calley was in awe as she watched it come together.  Finally... this was really cute... as I picked up the ribbon, I twisted it, looped it, and twisted it, over and over again.  I repeated the twisting and looping several times... until.... VioLa!  With a couple of little snips on the ends, I had a beautiful bow.  All the while Calley was saying...  "ooo... oh wait... ooo... wait...oooooo mommmy.  WOW!"   

Nothing like a day at the park... I love to watch Calley run all over and get her "energy" out of her system.  This time, I was able to relax and take pictures while my sister did all the chasing.  She could not keep up with Calley!  (lol)  We returned all tuckered out, even me.  (big smile)

When Calley and I cook, we have our little routine.  Calley helps me collect the ingredients for the Creamy Cilantro dip for my 1st Annual Karam Family Christmas Spa Day, we line them up and prep them according to quantity needed.  And... VioLa!  

From here on out we'll be making lots of holiday treats, dishes and etc... we'll share some of the recipes, and some are just special for our family.  I'm sure you understand.  

A Christmas Prayer 

Loving Father, help us to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wise men. 

Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the world.  Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting.  Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clear hearts. 

May the Christmas morning make us happy to be Thy children, and the Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake. Amen!   

~ Robert Louis Stevenson

On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, 

...   eight years of lovin' 

...   seven days of singing
...   six months of blogging
...   five rooms plus more

...   four loving dogs

...   three cook books

...   two ceiling fans, 

...   our little girl we call Calley

Blessings to all!!

169 days to go...

PS... I love and miss you boys.  To the moon and stars above and back.  You are my sunshines.

All contents herein are protected under Copyright laws and can not be used, altered or copied.  All accounts herein are written by Carla B Karam and are true accounts of her life.  Some names may be changed to protect the innocent or protect me from the guilty.  (just kidding...wink, wink)

Picture credits... images are property of Carla Barila Karam and of this blog, Taking Back My Life ~ Making It My Own.

Day 26 ~ Taking a Stroll Down "4th of July" Lane

4th of July in El Paso, TX ~ 2011 

I wanted my post today to [obviously] be about the 4th of July and as I started to put my thoughts together... I was bombarded by all the great memories this day has brought me.  

As a child my father always did something fun for the three of us, my sister, brother and I.  Once, and for as much as he found baseball boring (he was an avid hockey fan!), he took us all to a Los Angeles Dodger game.  We had a great time, although I soon realized that I much rather play baseball than watch it myself.  Right afterwards the Dodgers' organization put on the most spectacular fireworks display, which at the time seemed to have lasted forever.

Then of course as any red blooded american, as I grew into a young adult, my festivities for the day changed.  There were bar-be-ques, parties and dances, but what remained consistent each year was that the day would always end with fireworks! 

One of my most memorable 4th of July was being pregnant with my first baby.  We were living in the San Fernando Valley, which is known for being anywhere from twenty to thirty degrees warmer than the Southern California beaches I had been used to.  That 4th was hot beyond HOT and it seemed as if the evening was even warmer.  There I was, four days before giving birth (planned c-section,) roasting like a humongous chicken in the oven, watching the fireworks on tv.  July 4th 1987 was the unveiling of the refurbished Statue of Liberty, accompanied by a spectacular fireworks show.  I had a fan blowing on me on what claimed to be a high setting with a spritzer bottle of water in one hand and a popsicle in the other.  The water spritzer was what made the excruciating heat tolerable and the night rememberable!

First there was my first baby boy~ my blonde one... how I remember how  he would always crawl into my lap... ooo-ing and awe-ing as each fire work popped off.  I can still see the amazement in his face.  I was able to now pass on the joyous festivities onto him, which he welcome with complete wonder and surprise .  I was now experiencing the 4th through his eyes... one word... WOW!

Three and half years later I was blessed with my little burrito (he had dark hair like myself wink, wink) ~ my second beautiful boy!  My life changed a bit (to say the least,) just as each other mom soon finds out when she is blessed with a second child.  (Once he was born, [I am sure many of you have experienced the same] my first baby seemed to grow up over night!) He was my blessed surprise!  He did more for me and my life than he realized then, and now.  The coolest thing about life now was that not only was I sharing a special holiday with both my boys, but now I would witness my eldest boy point things out to his little brother, even teaching him at times what I had taught him.

Shelby loves the 4th

As time went by, there were many years of memories shared by all.  However, it did become a little tougher after my divorce, being that now I was able to spend the holiday with my boys every other year as most divorced parents did.  But that did not stop us from having fun... we just doubled up on the fun on our years together! 

My boys grew and they were now having fun with their friends.  As for me, the holiday became a little more relaxed.  Instead of heading out on the town or over to friend's parties, the holidays seemed more fun and much safer at home.  

Calley - July 4th, 2011

Today, I  have the absolute privilege to share the 4th of July with my daughter.  But somehow this  time around seems a little different.  I do not care what anyone says... Girls are different!!   For years I had two boys in tow and was able to retain my sanity.  However, Calley is the equivalent of having, what seems like ten kids!  The positive side of it all is that she keeps me going and gives me the strength to do so.  Somehow my daughter has given me a gift that I didn't think possible to receive...  she has given me the gift of living!  Thanks to her, I have been re-born, not in the religious sense, but in the "living' sense.  Thank you my sweet little "firework"... I  can not imagine my life without you!

Lift up your eyes and look around; all your children gather and come to you. As surely as I live,” declares the LORD, “you will wear them all as ornaments; you will put them on, like a bride.   Isaiah 49:18

Blessing to all!



339 days to go.


All contents herein are protected under Copyright laws and can not be used, altered or copied. All accounts herein are written by Cali-Gal/Carla B Karam and are true accounts of her life. Some names may be changed to protect the innocent.