Merry Christmas! Now that the countdown has ended and we're celebrating Christmas 2016, let's take one last glance back in time to Christmas in the 90's with Cassie McGuire.
What did a typical Christmas look like for you in the 90's?
Cassie: "Christmas in the 90's was similar to how my family celebrates Christmas now. There was a tree and gifts, lots of food, and family celebrations. My sister and I usually received gifts of things that we needed (clothes and shoes) and [some] things that we wanted. Santa was a big part of the conversation around Christmas. It was very important to me that I understand exactly how Santa would get inside our home, which had no chimney, to leave gifts. My dad, in particular, really talked up Santa. We not only left cookies for Santa, but we also threw carrots out one year so the reindeer would have food too."
What gifts stand out in your memory?
Cassie: "The most memorable gifts that I received during my childhood were my own TV for my bedroom and a giant jar of pickles. The [TV] was something I had longed for. The jar of pickles was something I had asked for one year. Everyone would always eat the pickles up too fast, so one year I asked for a jar of the really big pickles. I didn’t really think my parents would buy me pickles for Christmas, but they did. It was probably the most unusual thing I ever asked for as a gift."
What did you call the man in the red suit who brought presents, and did you believe in him?
Cassie: "Santa, and yes! If you didn’t believe, you didn’t receive."
What did you have for Christmas breakfast?
Cassie: "Our family didn’t eat Christmas breakfast. We had a big family meal for lunch at my Mawmaw’s for lunch so we just got up, opened our gifts, and we were good and hungry when lunch came. Mom was so busy cooking for lunch.There was just no time for making a separate breakfast. I never minded that, and I was really surprised later when I married and realized that everyone else still ate three meals on big holidays."
Did you wear anything special at Christmas?
Cassie: "We just always wore comfortable clothes. It was pretty normal to end up in the yard with a football at some point, so we didn’t wear our Sunday best on Christmas."
What special family traditions do you remember?
Cassie: "Every year my parents would get a big a box of apples and oranges at Christmas. It was a really special thing to have so much fruit in our house. We also usually had a bowl of nuts on the table throughout the Christmas season. They were always in the shell, and we’d sit around and crack them and eat them. We’d also always put up the Christmas tree and a few small decorations each year. Our stocking always had a jumbo sized candy cane, an orange, an apple, and a few nuts in it. Always. We also shot fireworks on Christmas Eve at one of our big family meals, and we always played the 'Dirty Santa' game where you try to steal cheap gifts from each other."
What was the meaning of Christmas in your family during the 90's?
Cassie: "It was mostly about family time. Gifts were part of the equation, but the main part of Christmas when I was a kid was just getting to see all the cousins and family from out of town. It was a special time to see everyone, eat, and laugh."
What Christmas songs do you remember from the 90's?
Cassie: "[I remember] 'All I Want for Christmas is You' [by] Mariah Carey. This was the big one!"
