Bronner's Christmas WonderlandFrankenmuth, Michigan
I’m in a bit of a funk right now and sorta running on auto-pilot as far as the holidays are concerned. I’m usually all abuzz by now with preparations for Thanksgiving and our Christmas cards, getting ready to plan for our annual trip East and plans for Christmas and New Year’s Eve, but this year I’m a little overwhelmed with things going on, school, Grandma, missing John and now the trauma with the cats adjusting. Where I usually don’t listen to Christmas Music before Thanksgiving, I have a Christmas CD in the stereo and I’m writing about a very Christmas mug. I just need a kick!
Thanksgiving dinner was served at our house when I was younger, but it moved to Grandma’s house after Papa died in 1994. Mom and I usually had things scheduled right at work so that we both had a day or two before Thanksgiving off and we drove to Grandma’s together, stopping for a few hours at Bronner's. The day after Thanksgiving you can’t move at Bronner’s and it is pretty much that way until Christmas, but just before Thanksgiving, it’s a lot less stressful, with all the new stuff out and ready for the busiest time of the year for the huge all Christmas store and Christmas music playing with it just quiet eno0iguh top hear it complementing he treats for your eyes!
When I say huge, I mean huge, a few football fields worth of huge Christmas displays. We always browsed the tree trimmings and decorations. Mom always added a few new ornaments for the tree and she always decorated every stocking with a new ornament. Several of the ornaments on my tree are collected ornaments from my Christmas stockings. Mom was a shopper. I’m not, but I did always enjoy shopping with Mom at Christmastime. It was like shopping with Santa himself! She found such joy and was so careful with selecting gifts. She was certainly infectious!
The opulently plush garland that decorates my tree now was Mom’s. She had bought commercial grade garland and Bronner’s was absolutely the only place she could find more of it. She started the custom of our named ornaments. We had gotten the Mom and Dad ones for Pop and her and then she found the Dave one and had one special ordered for me since Davonna is not a standard stocked name. We had a named ornament for every member of the Family who was there on Christmas morning. There was another special order when Dave married his first wife. Deanna wasn’t a stock name either! Mom ordered two ornaments when we stopped at Bronner’s on the way to Grandma’s house that first Thanksgiving up north. She had two new grandbabies with unusual names that would need their ornaments special ordered to be sure they arrived in time for Christmas!
The pre-Thanksgiving stop at Bronner’s always included a break for coffee or hot chocolate at the Bronner’s cafeteria, near the international displays. I enjoyed looking at the Polish and Italian displays, my heritage. Something about recognizing my heritage and family traditions made me feel warm inside. It reminded me how special and important the traditions of the Christmas season really are. It’s why I have to have certain Christmas treats, even if no one else eats them! The stop in Frankenmuth was a great mother-daughter day for us and the spiritual fuel I needed to officially kick off the Holiday Season!
This year we’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner at Dad’s and bringing it up to Grandma’s apartment. I’ll be there for part of Wednesday and then I’ll be back with David the next day. It’s going to be different but different is change and this change means we’ll still be able to have Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma’s. It’s good.
As for my holiday current funk, I’m resisting change. I still need somehow to grasp a little bit of my traditions to perk up the spirit in me. Tomorrow Kaline has a vet appointment in the morning. After I get Kaline home from her vet appointment, I’m going to go out the the Italian store. It’s not too early to buy the nougat candies, panetone and Baci that are traditional Christmas sweets from my childhood and maybe a nice capicola sandwich for lunch will wake up that inner child and the holiday spirit she embodies in me! I think I’m ready now!
Thanksgiving dinner was served at our house when I was younger, but it moved to Grandma’s house after Papa died in 1994. Mom and I usually had things scheduled right at work so that we both had a day or two before Thanksgiving off and we drove to Grandma’s together, stopping for a few hours at Bronner's. The day after Thanksgiving you can’t move at Bronner’s and it is pretty much that way until Christmas, but just before Thanksgiving, it’s a lot less stressful, with all the new stuff out and ready for the busiest time of the year for the huge all Christmas store and Christmas music playing with it just quiet eno0iguh top hear it complementing he treats for your eyes!
When I say huge, I mean huge, a few football fields worth of huge Christmas displays. We always browsed the tree trimmings and decorations. Mom always added a few new ornaments for the tree and she always decorated every stocking with a new ornament. Several of the ornaments on my tree are collected ornaments from my Christmas stockings. Mom was a shopper. I’m not, but I did always enjoy shopping with Mom at Christmastime. It was like shopping with Santa himself! She found such joy and was so careful with selecting gifts. She was certainly infectious!
The opulently plush garland that decorates my tree now was Mom’s. She had bought commercial grade garland and Bronner’s was absolutely the only place she could find more of it. She started the custom of our named ornaments. We had gotten the Mom and Dad ones for Pop and her and then she found the Dave one and had one special ordered for me since Davonna is not a standard stocked name. We had a named ornament for every member of the Family who was there on Christmas morning. There was another special order when Dave married his first wife. Deanna wasn’t a stock name either! Mom ordered two ornaments when we stopped at Bronner’s on the way to Grandma’s house that first Thanksgiving up north. She had two new grandbabies with unusual names that would need their ornaments special ordered to be sure they arrived in time for Christmas!
The pre-Thanksgiving stop at Bronner’s always included a break for coffee or hot chocolate at the Bronner’s cafeteria, near the international displays. I enjoyed looking at the Polish and Italian displays, my heritage. Something about recognizing my heritage and family traditions made me feel warm inside. It reminded me how special and important the traditions of the Christmas season really are. It’s why I have to have certain Christmas treats, even if no one else eats them! The stop in Frankenmuth was a great mother-daughter day for us and the spiritual fuel I needed to officially kick off the Holiday Season!
This year we’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner at Dad’s and bringing it up to Grandma’s apartment. I’ll be there for part of Wednesday and then I’ll be back with David the next day. It’s going to be different but different is change and this change means we’ll still be able to have Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma’s. It’s good.
As for my holiday current funk, I’m resisting change. I still need somehow to grasp a little bit of my traditions to perk up the spirit in me. Tomorrow Kaline has a vet appointment in the morning. After I get Kaline home from her vet appointment, I’m going to go out the the Italian store. It’s not too early to buy the nougat candies, panetone and Baci that are traditional Christmas sweets from my childhood and maybe a nice capicola sandwich for lunch will wake up that inner child and the holiday spirit she embodies in me! I think I’m ready now!
1 comment:
Things will perk up, and you will have a lovely holiday. I can just feel it.
I understand your funky feeling though. Sometimes change is difficult to adjust to right away. My changes started quite a while back as each child was grown and left home to make a new life. The grandchildren made a lot of it easier, but they grow up and move on too. Then two years ago this week, my best friend, my hubby passed away, and now the changes are really startling.
The holidays aren't quite the same anymore, but my brother and I do our best to hang on to some of these holiday traditions. So let the funk come in and do it's thing. It's leaving shortly!!
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family from me and mine. Hugs, Edna B.
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