Your fave holiday memories

Last minute tree trimming
Five kids, two adults, one spaniel and one hamster in a three-bedroom apartment -- being a navy family we grew used to close quarters and our parents' frugal ways. But at Christmastime they always made us feel like we were the luckiest kids in the world. I remember my father's tradition (at least he swore it was one) of buying the tree on Christmas Eve, usually close to closing time at the lots. The best part was seeing the look on Mum's face when he dragged in what can be generously termed as the bottom of the barrel. But we all knew that with some expert pruning and rearrangement of branches the end result was a perfectly symmetrical showpiece.
– Robyn Quinn, Halifax

An early visit from Santa
It was Christmas Eve and I was about seven years old. I was helping to set the dining room table for the next day's feast. I made sure the best china was laid, the cutlery glistened and the crystal salt and pepper shakers were filled. On the wall opposite the dining room window my mother had hung a cutout of Santa and his team of reindeer. It was hung on an angle with the reindeer pulling Santa and his sleigh upward as if to a rooftop.

This is where the magic began for me. As I passed by the dining room window, the reflection of the cutout made it seem like Santa had arrived early and was directly outside our house! I had been told that Santa would not come until I was tucked away sound asleep. Let me tell you I never moved so fast as I did that Christmas Eve! I knew that if I was not in bed pronto that Santa would not stop at our house.
– Johanna Beattie, Hudson, Que.

A soot-covered letter from Santa
My father, Jack, is one of the most Christmas-spirited people I have ever met. He always managed to make Christmas special for my sisters, Brianna and Bridget, and me. I remember Santa visiting our house, checking to make sure we were getting ready for bed on Christmas Eve. I didn't realize until years later that it was actually my father dressed up in a Santa suit running through waist-deep snow in our backyard. Another time I found a letter from Santa in our old fashioned fireplace in the basement. As I mulled over the soot-covered discovery, my father and I came to the conclusion that the only way it could have gotten there was that it had been delivered down the chimney by one of Santa's elves!
– Mariah Yard, Timmins, Ont.

The magic reindeer food works
One year my son Andrew received a bag of magic reindeer food from his teacher. On Christmas Eve we sprinkled this outside for the reindeer. We woke up to a fresh layer of glistening snow outside. While we were admiring the beautiful blanket of snow, our boys, Nicholas and Andrew, cried out, "Look, I see Santa's sleigh tracks and the reindeer's footprints!" I took a closer look and on our front lawn (right at the place where we had sprinkled the magic reindeer food) there were sleigh tracks and reindeer prints.

I later learned that our neighbours across the street put on their skis and took their dog, Maggie, for a midnight walk on our lawn to make it look like Santa had landed there.
– Cathrine Baldazzi, Oakville, Ont.