Many bloggers are taking time off this week and next to enjoy time with their families and friends for Christmas and New Year’s. Since I’m not traveling and don’t have any elaborate holiday plans, I will continue with my regular posting schedule. I was going to share a “photography interlude” (see previous versions here) today, but I decided to veer off a bit and go with a holiday theme.
A Christmas Retrospective
In today’s post, I share some of my Christmas photos from years past, from my wee years through to my 40’s. As I mentioned in my last post, I used to be a big fan of holiday theme wear, as you will see in many of the images below. These days, I no longer have any Christmas sweaters, but I used to wear holiday garb every single day from Thanksgiving through New Year’s, along with lots of Christmas jewelry, Santa hats, and the like. I was definitely what you might call very “spirited.”
Part of my style evolution has involved moving away from the cutesy and whimsical and embodying a more sophisticated, classic, and minimalist style. My idea of holiday dressing now may include wearing red or green or perhaps a bit of sparkle and shine, but overt shows of Christmas spirit no longer grace my body. But the photographic evidence remains and in the holiday spirit, I share it with you today. I include brief descriptions under each photo, but many of them are pretty self-explanatory and may make you laugh or smile.
My First Christmas – 1966. Boston, Massachusetts.
Age 2 – Pattern mixing like a star and feeling a bit wary of Santa.
Age 4? – Apparently, this was my favorite position back then (couldn’t do it now!).
Loving my new bicycle, age 5 (with a “bowl” haircut).
Age 7, with my brother Scott and a very youthful Santa Claus.
During my holiday theme wear period, 1995.
Full-on Christmas spirit in my clothes and surrounding me, 1996
Close-up with a Christmas candle, 2003 (and a glimpse of my theme earrings).
Big smiles with my half-sister Kerry in the early 2000’s.
Wearing full Christmas garb in Solvang, 2003.
By the big tree at the Hotel del Coronado, 2006 (with more subdued holiday style).
Best Wishes and Thank You!
For those who celebrate, I wish you a very Merry Christmas! And to everyone, I thank you for reading my blog and supporting me over the months and years. We’re coming up on the three year mark of the blog and I’m grateful to all of my readers for being there with me, whether it’s been since the beginning or for just a few weeks or months. There have been lots of ups and downs along the way, but that’s what recovery is like. However, with a lot of perseverance – and a little luck – we can make it through to the other side to more conscious shopping, a manageable wardrobe, and a personal style that makes us smile and suits our lives.
Have a wonderful weekend! I’ll be back next week with my last “grab bag” of useful links of 2015 and a “story of recovery” from a reader who has been around since almost the very beginning of the blog.
Recovering Shopaholic 
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas, Debbie! Loved all your old photos. And up until I had my hip replaced last April, I used to sit just like you did at age 4. Certainly can’t do it now and wouldn’t even try. You made me smile today. Hope you and Mike are having a wonderful holiday.
Happy I could make you smile, Kim! I hope you are fully recovered from your hip replacement. I am not going to try to sit like that anymore, either, but it’s fun to see the old photos.
Merry Christmas to you, Debbie! Aren’t childhood photos fun? I used to sit like that (the age 4 pic) too – what do you even call that position???
My holiday wish for you is that you find for yourself all the strength and inspiration you give others every day through your blog. Have a wonderful holiday and a peaceful new year.
I really appreciate your kind wishes, Katrina! Much appreciated…. I don’t know what that position is called, but I do know that I can’t do it anymore 😉 I wish you a peaceful and happy 2016, too!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, Debbie. My mom and youngest sister also sit like you. They say it is very comfortable for them. They do not sit in the yoga sitting position. Solvang? I would have believed you if you said somewhere in Denmark.
Best New Year wishes to you , too, Grace! I don’t sit like that anymore – I don’t think I can… Yes, Solvang is like a mini-Scandinavia. I hope to make it to Denmark one day, as well as many other parts of the world.
Have a wonderful 2016, dear Debbie
I wish you the same, Nutrivore!
Lovely photos. Lovely memories. The thought of you (classic, tasteful Debbie) wearing Christmas-themed garb every day from Thanksgiving until Christmas made me laugh out loud. Happy New Year!
Happy to make you laugh out loud, TAGgirl! Yes, I have made a pretty abrupt about face in terms of Christmas garb. I don’t even have ONE holiday-themed garment in my closet now, but I thought it would be fun to “out” myself a bit in the spirit of Christmas 😉 Happy New Year to you, too!
Debbie,
Merry Christmas!
Before we finish this year, did you ever get a blood test? If so, another diagnostic tool which is more suited for autoimmune type disorders is a lumbar puncture. (One of my daughters had leukaemia and the other lupus so I really believe in getting a good diagnosis. Both are fine now.)
Maybe your health issues have been resolved?
Just asking as I wish you all the best for your health.
Best,
Michaela
I hope you had a great Christmas, Michaela! Sorry to take so long to respond to your questions. I got a bit behind on blog comments and especially email (will take a while to catch up on that !). Yes, I have gotten quite a few blood tests, but really has been found yet to explain my physical distress. I am anemic and slightly hypothyroid, but most tests have been negative thus far. My lupus and rheumatoid arthritis tests were negative. I have yet to get a lumbar puncture, but I will mention that if it isn’t suggested by a doctor. I’m so glad that both of your daughters are fine now! Hopefully I will be soon as well. Thank you for your concern and good wishes.
I enjoyed those. Old pictures are fun to look back on.
Glad you enjoyed them, Tonya! Yes, it’s great fun to look at old pictures. Sometimes it seems like just yesterday that things happened, when in fact it was MANY years ago!
Since we are of the same vintage, I have lots of similar pictures. Mom and I used to do the Christmas sweater thing too. Looking forward to a walk on the beach! It is -10 here today.
Yes, we are almost exactly 4 months apart, Tara. I will look to you to see how things go with hitting the “big milestone” this year… Wow, it was REALLY cold for you a few days ago! I hope it has warmed up a bit. You will likely feel positively toasty here, but I still think it’s cold this time of year. Wimpy Southern Californian is what I am 😉