Dick and Jane

I never used this book in school, I'm too young for that, but my older sister did and this was around the house when I was growing up (back then I guess you got to keep your textbooks).

Alligator Brush

My sister had this alligator brush and a matching comb. I think she got it for her birthday one year and I think it came from Avon.

Desiderata

I had this parchment poster on my wall when I was in high school. I don't know where I got it, probably from one of my older sisters.

Silver Chief Book

This is one of the few things I bought on eBay. My brother owned it when he was small, it was one of his favourite books. When he had a son I bought it for him.

The Homecoming

I don't remember reading this book but it was in my brother's closet. I do remember watching The Walton's every Sunday night though.

Toy Phone

I vaguely remember having a toy phone like this, I couldn't have been very old.

Happy Days Puzzle

My brother got this for Christmas one year. You can just pick it out in the photo of him at Christmas. We did the puzzle so often I think we could do it with our eyes closed.

Elf Candle

I vaguely remember this, I think my sister or my aunt owned it.

Christmas Tree Lights

No mini lights back when I was growing up, all of our christmas tree lights were big and fat. I liked them.

George Beverly Shea Christmas Record

Another Christmas record we owned.

Glass Christmas Ornaments

We loved the ornaments we had that looked like these, we looked forward to putting them on the tree each Christmas. We had one with the 3 wisemen on camels and the "Silent Night" ornament with the church. Mom told us she bought them either before she was married or the first year she was married, which would have meant they were from around 1956. I'm surprised they lasted so long with 6 children helping to decorate the tree every year.

Ziggy Candle

I think this was my older sisters.

Little Elf

My brother had an elf like the green one in this picture, we'd always put it on the tree.

Tree Top Angel

This was our Christmas tree topper. She wasn't fancy and didn't light up but we loved her anyway!

Christmas Ornaments

We had plastic ornaments like these on our tree every year.

Dick Nolan's Atlantic Christmas Record

Another Christmas record we owned, Dick Nolan was a Newfoundland singer.

Angel Ornaments

We had 1 or 2 angel ornaments like these but I can't remember what colour. At least I think we had them. If we didn't then my aunt next door did.

Snowmen Ornaments

I like looking through vintage Christmas ornaments on Ebay, there's always something there that we owned. We had snowmen ornaments like the 2 smiling ones in the middle of this picture.

Eaton's Christmas Catalogue

An Eaton's catalogue from 1975, I distinctly remember this cover, I was 9 years old and I probably wanted that dress.

Angels

We had angel ornaments like these, little angel heads on chenille stems. We would stick them on the tree.

Catherine McKinnon, I'll Be Home For Christmas

Another Christmas record we owned, I remember liking this one a lot.

Santa Candles

My aunt had these candles and put them out every year but she never lit them.

Elf Snow Globe

We had an elf snowglobe like this, I have no idea where it came from. But ours was only partly filled with water just like this one.

Santa Boot

This Santa boot would be filled with hard candy and sit on the end table in the living room. It wasn't Christmas without it!

Christmas Record

This was one of the few Christmas records we owned.....Wilf Carter's "Christmas in Canada".

Santa Lights

This hung in our kitchen window every Christmas. The lights blinked off and on.

Angel Pin

My sister got this angel pin the same Christmas that I got the little drummer boy pin.

Little Drummer Boy Pin

I think my aunt gave me this one year for Christmas.

The Littlest Snowman

This was my sister's book. I don't remember all of the story, something about children putting out tubs of ice cream because there was no snow and after it blows around and makes snow drifts they make "snowmen" out of ice cream.

Dog Nutcracker

This nutcracker was heavy, I think it was made from solid iron. We only used it at Christmas time, I guess because that's the only time we had nuts to crack.

Karen

How many people got to read a book with their name as the title? I did, I remember checking this out from the school library when I was in grade 7.

Paint by Number

I would imagine every kid had a paint by number set. My sister had this set and her painting was so neat. Mine always looked like blobs.

Mother Hen Target Game

This was my younger brother's. If you hit the target with the gun (that shot little plungers) the hen would lay an egg. Cute game.

Rainbow Garden

This was my older sister's book. It was about a young girl who's parents were too rich and busy to look after her. They lived in an apartment in the city and they sent her to live with cousins in the country. It was a nice book.

Sears Wish Book

Or as it was referred to in our house, "The Christmas Catalogue". A small card arrived in the mail in the fall and Mom would go to the Sears catalogue outlet store to pick it up. In a few days the covers would be torn and pages would be falling out. We memorized that catalogue! This catalogue is from 1972 and even though I was only 6 years old I distinctly remember that cover and the Mickey Mouse record player that you could stand on.

Yogi Bear Cutouts

These were my younger sister's, cut-outs of Yogi and Cindy bear. I seem to remember that she had more cut-outs than I did.

Microscope

This was my older brother's. It came with a lot of prepared slides of bug's wings and cells, we loved looking at them.

Reader

This was a reader my older brother and sisters used in elementary school. I didn't use it but we had it at home and I loved reading all the stories.

Flower of the Month Glasses

One year for Christmas we all got glasses like these with the flower of our birth month on them. Mine isn't here, I was born in February. Mom kept them in the china cabinet and I think we used them at Christmas and New Year's dinner.

Jean at St. Hilary's

This was one of my favourite books when I was in elementary school. It was my older sister's, I think she won it as a prize in school. It was about a girl who lives in England and goes away to boarding school. I wanted to be just like her.

Yogi Bear Mug

This was my younger brother's, I can remember him using it at a lot of meals. I seem to recall that he was the only one with a special cup.

Viewmaster Set

My sister owned this viewmaster set that came in a cool bucket. The reels were all about Disney which we loved of course.

Waterworks

This was a cool game, it was my sister's. You had to make a pipe system that started with a tap and ended with water flowing out. Along the way your team-mates could place leaky pipes on top of yours which you then had to repair with little brass wrenches or extra cards. You can still buy the game today but the wrenches are just cardboard and the quality doesn't seem as good.

Happy Face Salt & Pepper

This was another of mom's salt and pepper sets. A different saying on each side. And what says the 1970's more than a happy face?

Helen Keller's Teacher

This was my sister's book. I can't remember how many times I read it but I am sure I memorized it. I can still remember the story and all the details, it was a really good book.