Stocking stuffers from years past. That beaded shoe coin purse is a treasure.
One of my favorite Christmas traditions is the stocking. My mother tirelessly filled my stocking way past childhood into advanced adulthood until I started to feel a little guilty and reluctantly let her off the hook.
I recall that over time Mom had themes. There were the early years when I’d find on Christmas morning small stuffed animals popping out the top of the stocking and many packs of gum in the toe – Trident only as Mom was a “no sugar” Mom. During the teenage years I loved getting Clinique makeup. Later in college she went practical: face soap, hand lotion, nail polish remover, and always a Revlon red lipstick. (I had a thing for red lipstick – still do!) And then there were the years when Mom was volunteering for a charity thrift store managing the jewelry. My stocking would be stuffed with little boxes containing brooches or earrings, sometimes pristine leather gloves, coin purses – all vintage.
My childhood stocking lives again.
This holiday season as I was pondering once again the stocking tradition I realized hey, why not revive it? In reverse. I’m filling my childhood stocking for Mom.
Trying to be as thoughtful as she was I’m combining practicality with fun. On Christmas Day she will dig in and find:
- a set of two black felt tip pens (she’s been looking for those)
- a rubber band ball (she’s got a thing for colored rubber bands)
- a large pack of Breathsavers (sugar free)
- her go-to L’Oreal lipstick (because she taught me that a girl needs her lipstick!)
- Peeking out from the top is a small bag of Sees dark chocolate vanilla butter cream candy (her absolute favorite)
I hope she enjoys the reversed tradition as much as I do.
How about you? What do you remember from your childhood Christmas stocking?
