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Last year we had only been in our new home for six months when Christmas arrived. We didn’t decorate the house much because we still had boxes in the basement that were not unpacked, but this year we made up for it. We bought a real Christmas tree, and the 20 nativity sets were displayed all around the living room.

One night as I sat staring at the Christmas tree with it’s pretty lights, a flood of Christmas memories came to mind.

When I was growing up, my family and I spent part of Christmas Eve at my Grandma and Grandpa Weber’s farm in Lyle. Grandma and grandpa lived in a big old farmhouse.  On Christmas Eve the house was filled to the brim with about 30 of us.

There were always special treats.  I can still see my grandma standing at the stove making a batch of popcorn balls.

When our parents were visiting in the kitchen, my cousins and I would be in the living room trying to guess what was inside the presents with our names on them.  We all cheered when grandma told us we could open our gifts, but the best part of the evening was yet to come.

Next it was grandma and grandpa’s turn. Grandma always took her time.  First she would admire the beautiful paper that the gift was wrapped in.  Then she would carefully peel the tape off of each end of the package.  She would sometimes shake it and try to guess what was inside.

My grandpa had his own routine for opening gifts. He would quickly open the gift, say thank you and then nonchalantly throw the gift over his shoulder, where it landed behind the couch.  Each time he did this, my cousins and I laughed. We loved seeing grandpa’s sense of humor.

The joy of laughter is what I remember most about Christmas on the farm.