As soon as we were done with Thanksgiving dinner, the hunt for paper and pencils began. It was the most exciting time of the year, the writing of our Christmas lists. The time to remind Santa I made all A’s, got the highest average in my class and was nice to my little sister at least for the past month.
Some of us only wanted our two front teeth, while others had lists two sheets of paper long. Even though every gift I got from Santa (aka my mama) was super dope, there are a few things I never saw underneath the tree. Take a sleigh ride with me to visit the gifts of Christmas past!
What didn’t make it under the tree:
American Girl Samantha: I read every Samantha book, and could not wait to read them to my new doll. But nah. Never happened. I even picked out our matching outfits we were going to wear to the tea parties. American Girl dolls weren’t cheap, so I’m thinking my little Samantha and her accessories were more expensive that some kids’ total Christmas list.
Cocker Spaniel: She was going to be black and white, and I was going to name her Raindrop. Ya know, because I was a kid hippie. Unfortunately, my mama had this thing where she got too attached to her dogs, and her entire world would crumble if they died. Translation: we never got a dog.
Burgundy velvet jumper with a matching hat: Remember getting the JC Penney catalog and flipping through every single page to write a Christmas list? I know my sister and I weren’t the only ones. You couldn’t tell me I wouldn’t be skipping in the front yard with my new velvet get up. To be honest not getting that jumper was probably in my best interest.
My favorite gifts that made it under the tree:
Jennie Gymnast: Jennie flipped it and reversed it all day long on Christmas. There was also a Super Jennie–she came with the gym bars!
Polaroid Camera: I think I was 9 when I got my first camera. It was a blue Fisher Price one. Obviously my photography skills were pretty dope, so a few years later I got a Polaroid!
Barbie Roller Skates: With the knee pads and helmet of course. I skated outdoors and indoors, because not only were the skates fun–they were super cute! Well, they were cute at the time. My desire to wear pink and purple vanished after elementary school.
Furby: If you don’t remember Furby, you’re too young for me yo. It was like having a gremlin that didn’t snap when wet or hungry! They were the hottest toys in the late 90s. Although I currently don’t participate in the Black Friday shenanigans, I’m pretty sure my mama had to swing on a few folks to get one of these. FYI, I also added a Furby Baby to my collection.