The stockings were hung by the chimney with care… That line from the classic “The Night Before Christmas” story we all know and love has always resonated with me. Ever since I was little, the stockings hung up all in a row on our stocking hanger was one of my favorite Christmas decorations. We didn’t have a chimney, but my parents had a cute Christmas hanger for the stockings, and we each had a stocking with our name on it. I even watched our family out grow the stocking hanger, that only had four hooks, and as the family grew, tacks were added on the wall next to it to accommodate all the additional stockings.
Aside from the tree, the stockings always felt like the most important decoration.
Perhaps because the stockings are personal, with everyone having the same stocking year after year and with their own name written on it. There was always something special about them. My parents still have my childhood one and hang it up every year.
Now that I am “all grown up” with my own house, the stockings are still on the top of my favorite decorations list. I was excited to have a house that had a chimney and fireplace mantel where I could, indeed, hang the stockings by the chimney with care. I was picky about the type of stockings we would get, though. They couldn’t be just any stockings; there had to be a spot for our names to embroidered, they had to be good quality and reflect our personality. I eventually found the perfect ones for my husband and I, and our dog. Of course, I had to find cute stocking hangers, too. The mantel was complete (for now)!
Moving along in the timeline, once we had kids, the search for the perfect stockings for them started over again. I eventually found them the perfect stockings, and I had everyone’s name embroidered on their own stocking. These are the ones that will be hung up year after year, the ones St. Nick will fill with treats and small toys, and hopefully the ones that my kids will learn to love as much as I do.
In my family growing up, we celebrated St. Nick, who came to fill our stockings each year on the night of Dec. 5.
I always looked forward to this as a kid because it was like a Christmas teaser. It gave me a little something to open while I waited for the big day a couple weeks later. Now as an adult, I use it as a chance to give my kids things they can use through December. For example, St. Nick usually brings a gingerbread house to decorate and Christmas shirts for them to wear.
The stockings are just one part of the Christmas magic, but a part close to my heart. So, I will take the time each year to get stocking stuffers, and plan out the St. Nick visit. Then at the beginning of each season as I open up the Christmas boxes, I will certainly hang the stockings by the chimney with care. With care, that is the part that resonates with me the most. The stockings are not just hung up on the mantle, but they are hung with care, because we care and love the person whose name is on the stocking.
Happy Holidays, everyone!
