What was a memorable thing Santa brought you as a kid?

[cyberswede]

Mine:
When I was 10, Santa left two goldfish in a bowl. I cleverly named them Blackie and Goldie.
I thought I was so grown up!

In retrospect, I think it was great idea for a frugal gift that still had a lot of appeal for little expense (8 kids in the family, after all).

[MerryBlooms]

1. Christmas '68 I was 5, and my oldest brother was on leave from the army via Germany-

he brought for me a beautifully dressed composition doll. That Christmas stands out in my mind as still one of the best ever because my mom was so happy to see him she cried, and my mom never cried.

[cyberswede]

4. That's a great memory!

(for my 7th birthday, my brother sent me a couple dolls from Hong Kong when he was stationed on a Navy battleship near there).

[MerryBlooms]

5. Nice

[Rambis]

2. Tin Can Alley

[cyberswede]

3. Well, that's cool.

Did you use your Daisy bb gun?

[Rambis]

7. No that would have dented the cans-It was a light gun

[nolabear]

6. Chatty Cathy. She scared the bejeebers out of me.

I should NEVER have watched that Talking Tina episode of Twilight Zone.

[cyberswede]

8. Gah - that was a scary episode!

One of my older sisters had a Chatty Cathy - she later collected a couple more as an adult. I think they're cute.

The dolls that were popular when I was a kid were those growing-hair dolls (Crissy, Velvet, etc). I wanted one so badly!
I did get a Cinnamon doll eventually (Crissy's little sister). My mom made a bunch of clothes for her - I still have it all. Fun!

[Arugula Latte]

34. Dolls ...

Dolls have creeped me the hell out ever since I was a toddler.

[pipi_k]

19. Hah!

One of my younger sisters got the Chatty Cathy...

I got Betsy Wetsy

Oh, and a Ginger Rogers doll. I guess she was the pre-Barbie, back in the late 50s.

[Adsos Letter]

9. Topper Operation X500 missile base

EDIT: Fixed the link.

I must have been about 6 or 7. It was the early 1960's.

A local grocery store used to set up toy displays around Christmas time; they had one of these missile bases set up in the place of honor, and I would run over to stare at it every time my mom took me in there.

A couple days before Christmas we went in there and...it was GONE!!! Nothing but an empty space.

Came out Christmas morning to find it set up under the tree.

I wish I still had it, as it is pretty collectible these days. Unfortunately, it succumbed to an assault by firecrackers, lighter fluid, and pellet rifle when I was about 14 or 15.

[cyberswede]

10. Is this you?

But seriously - that's a great story about the store! It looks like an awesome toy - and to think it gave you joy all over again in your teens!

[Adsos Letter]

12. LOL! Yeah, pretty much, but with a buzz cut. Who here remembers Butch Wax?

[geardaddy]

11. Tog'ls

Do you remember them?

[cyberswede]

13. I'm not familiar with those...

I think they were a bit before my time, but I have 6 older brothers and sisters, and I don't recall any of them ever having those, either. Looks like a cool toy - were they a contemporary of Lego? Or did Legos come later?

[geardaddy]

14. I think Lego is actually older.

Tog'l didn't last long. They were around in the late 60s early 70s. They were cool. They had little bellows you could attach to tubes to make things move.

[panader0]

15. When I was seven I wanted a US Army bugle (must have been those old cavalry movies)

My dad told me to ask Grampa. I still have it, a regulation Us Army bugle, and I still can't play it.
I was already aware of the Santa hoax.

[cyberswede]

16. Did your Grampa play the bugle?

Did he give you his, or a new one? I think it would be hard to play without valves for different notes.

[MissMillie]

17. It was the first year that I got something truly different than my twin

We always got things that were the same, maybe a different color.

But one year I got this box of costume jewelry (nothing very expensive): necklace, earrings and a ring. My sister got a baseball glove.


It was like Santa finally figured out we were different people with different interests.

[cyberswede]

18. That's awesome!

Yay for Santa for finally getting it!

[hibbing]

20. Atari 2600

Wish I had a picture of my face when I opened that baby up. Many many hours of my wasted youth spent playing games on that sucker.

Peace

[cyberswede]

36. It's fun to get stuff with which you can waste time!

We didn't have video games when I was a kid, but I'd play Pong at a freind's occasionally.

I'm terrible at games (except Tetris and Flow); my kids mock me. LOL

[B Calm]

21. Superman under panties!

[cyberswede]

38. Fun!

I don't think they made superhero undies for girls when I was a kid. Day-of-the-week undies were popular (but I never got any).

[In_The_Wind]

22. I really believed Santa brought this:

One year there was a train set with a 4' by 8' platform to run on. The train track had tunnels, curves, inclines, a figure 8 crossover, little houses that lit up. The locomotive smoked as it went click clack, around and around.

I was an only child living with my aunt and uncle. They loved to spoil me.


I'm sure you took very good care of those little fish.

[cyberswede]

39. That train sounds cool!

As for the fish, Blackie died after a few weeks, so I got a multicolored goldfish (who I named "Patchy" - man, I was original!)

[NV Whino]

23. Several things not all at the same time

Tinker Toys

An Erector Set

A plastic Coca Cola truck with cases of coke that could be removed. Side doors slid up. Cab doors opened

A toy trumpet

I wasn't your average little girl. My mother and grandmother were so disappointed that I didn't want dolls. To their credit, the got me what I wanted.

[cyberswede]

40. I guess you're not average!

Reading your post, I assumed you were male, until you indicated otherwise.

Good for you parents for recognizing your toy preferences!

[NV Whino]

67. Oh yeah...

Then there were the boxing gloves and punching bag.

All that didn't seem extraordinary at the time, but I look back and realize just how amazing my parents and grandparents were.

[BlueJazz]

24. A microscope. I loved it.

[cyberswede]

41. Did it come with slides?

Or could you look at stuff you found? Sounds like an awesome gift!

[BlueJazz]

44. It came with everything but I preferred to get my own stuff like hair, phonograph needle, grass..

..and anything else that would fit.
Ps: dirt was pretty neat.

[HERVEPA]

25. Nothing. I'm Jewish, and thought the Santa stuff was silly.

[cyberswede]

42. I don't know much about Hannukah, but...

Do you have any fond memories of that from childhood?

[HERVEPA]

58. Well, lighting the candles and singing was nice

What many non-Jews don't realize is that Chanukah is a very minor holiday. The only reason you would have heard of it is because it is usually around Christmastime and many Jewish parents (not mine) felt they had to build it up to compensate for their kids seeing the Christmas stuff all around them.

[cherokeeprogressive]

26. A VROOOM! Tricycle. I was about 3 and could read my name.

The noise it made scared the SHIT out of me. I was the kind of kid that was scared of the vacuum cleaner even. Go figure... I went on to work on jet aircraft in CLOSE proximity to intakes and exhausts.

The tag on the trike said

To: Chris
From: Santa

My cousin Chris was coming over soon with my Aunt and Uncle. I met them at the end of the driveway... "Hey Chris! You should see what Santa brought for you!" I was going to give it to her because of the noise it made.

My family STILL tells that story at get-togethers, and I'm fucking FIFTY-TWO.

[cyberswede]

43. Great story!

I hope you ended up having fun with it.

[cherokeeprogressive]

47. There are many pictures and 8mm movies of me having a blast on it.

I got over the fear of noise in a big way LOL.

My Uncle John, Aunt Betty, and Cousin Chris moved to PA about six months later and I haven't seen her since.

[Corgigal]

27. I was only 3 years old

and my grandparents bought this for me. Scared the hell out of me, still kind of does. Funny, I still wish I had it..ha

[cyberswede]

45. Whoa - that thing is cool!

I've never heard of that toy. Voice command in 1961? Way cool!

Were you even able to work the thing when you were three?

[Corgigal]

68. Hell NO

I grabbed my Momma and cried...but its cool now, isn't it?

[sendero]

28. Heartwarming story follows...

.... I grew up in a, well, economically deprived family. My father worked and was by no means a bum, but bad luck and setbacks kept us poor.

Christmas at our house was generally not a big deal, we just couldn't afford fancy gifts.

When I was 11 I had an accident that required the care of a surgeon. On a followup visit he asked me what I wanted for Christmas. A rattled off every cool thing I had seen on TV I considered it idle chatter and forgot all about it. This was in a late November.

To my surprise (and the surprise of my siblings) he bought just about every one of those toys for us for Christmas. It was an act of kindness and generosity I will never forget.

[cyberswede]

46. That's a great story!

The surgeon sounds like he was a wonderful person!

[Dash87]

29. My first telescope. :P

[cyberswede]

48. Your first?

Have you had a lot of telescopes since then?

Did your first one provide a good view of the stars?

[Dash87]

59. It wasn't very good, but of course I thought it was the best thing ever.

Now they have ones that hook up to your computer, and stuff like that. I used to practically pop my eyeball out trying to look at the moon (the magnification really wasn't good either).

[HappyMe]

30. Best stuff ever for me --

my Skipper doll with some clothes
chemistry set
sled
Tearie Dearie baby doll with some clothes
flannel paisley robe

[cyberswede]

49. Those are all awesome things...

and we give similar things to our kids, even today. They must be classics.

[HappyMe]

62. After a while my mom wasn't happy with the chemistry set.

It was a pretty big one. It had a little drawer with the experiment cars in it, and some index type cards to note the results. I remember writing "blew up" on a few.

There was a hobby store in the neighborhood. That place was heaven! They had all kinds of models, model train stuff, crafty items, science stuff...
My dad would take me there and we would come home with more stuff for the chmistry set.

[LWolf]

31. The Christmas when I was 10,

I got a saddle blanket, a bucket full of brand-new grooming supplies, and a new halter.

I'd been making payments on a horse for the last year; babysitting money, allowance, yard work money, manure-shoveling money, grooming and exercising money...with the understanding that I had to come up with half of the money myself. I made a payment every single week. Sometimes for $3.75, sometimes for more, depending on how many jobs I found to do that week.

That Christmas, I was almost there. I knew it was coming, and when I found those items under the tree, I knew that the dream was going to be real.

It was; I made my last payment on February 10th, just 6 or 7 weeks later. I put that halter on the horse, put my arms around her, and cried for a good 20 minutes.

It wasn't "Santa." I'd long since left Santa behind. But it was probably the most memorable.

[cyberswede]

50. That's fantastic!

Do you still have horses?

(And "Santa" includes any and all manifestations of the season, as far as I'm concerned).

[LWolf]

57. Still do.

Even though I still can't really afford them. They eat before I do, and boy, do they eat.

[Art_from_Ark]

32. I guess it was this

[cyberswede]

35. Those are cool...

I've never seen them before - they kinda look like they're made of rock.

[Art_from_Ark]

52. They did look like they were made of rock

but they were actually made of really cheap styrofoam. But they were fun while they lasted

[cyberswede]

54. I thought they were plastic...

I bet they floated! Did you ever play with them in the tub?

[Art_from_Ark]

55. I don't think I ever played with them in the tub

I preferred to play with my boats instead. And little plastic hair-dye bottles that my mom's hairdresser would give me.

On edit: The box did say "plastic" but they were actually styrofoam, and the nibs on the blocks would easily come off

[Rowdyboy]

33. I got copies of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn the year I was 9....

Thought I'd died and gone to heaven! I truly loved both books.

[cyberswede]

51. True classics!

Unfortunately for me, I can't escape thinking of Johnny Whitaker when I think of Tom Sawyer.

[Rowdyboy]

66. Thank God I read the books long before I ever saw that movie!

I feel your pain!

[HappyMe]

60. I used to get Nancy Drew books.

[Rowdyboy]

65. I loved Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys and Trixie Belden and the Bobwhites of the Glenn....

Read and reread all of them as a kid.

[applegrove]

37. My brother used to regift as a kid. I once got a used spirograft set from him complete

with a few pencils that had been sharpened to within an inch of their lives. The real gift was the story that I have told over and over again to tease him.

[cyberswede]

53. That's a fun story!

Is he older than you?

(And Spirograph was a kick-ass toy back then).

[applegrove]

56. Yes. He was about 11 and I was 8. I don't think I used the set once. But the story is great.

[HappyMe]

61. I loved my spirograph set.

Mine was new so I had the colored pens that came with it.

[Boxerfan]

63. Ok-Here's my Christams toy story...

I'd say the most anticipated gift was a Wheelie popping slot car based on the "Little Red Wagon". That was the coolest by far.

My best useful present was a small but well stocked tool set-Metric!-for working on motorcycles-I still have some pieces left in my rollaway.

But the most memorable was a GI Joe doll I did not want. I have/had a problem with getting jingles stuck in my head. The Gi Joe dolls were being marketed 1st year
" Gi Joe-GI Joe-Fighting man from head to toe" etc.. I sang the jingle & my mother assumed I wanted one. I most certainly did not & would have told whoever asked. But there it was & I had to pretend I liked . To top it off my Mom had just purchased the accessories-a frog diver suit & something else. They were neatly packed over clear plastic mannequins. There was no doll so she had to go out to buy a doll for the present I already had-that I didn't want.

Never played with any of it & it would be highly collectable today.

[NewJeffCT]

64. The Mattel Intellivision

back in the day when it was the video game to get (1979 maybe, or 1980? So, I was just turned 13 and my brother almost 10 if it was Christmas of '79). It was memorable because my parents kept insisting it was too expensive a gift and that we should set our sights lower. However, one day, I was putting some laundry away in my parent's room and I found the receipt that clearly had Mattel Intellivision on it, and whatever the cost associated with it.

So, I told my brother about it and we both managed to keep our discovery secret until after Christmas.

But, we got a ton of use out of that video game over the next several years - baseball, biplanes, and other games.

[sinkingfeeling]

69. My Smokey, the Bear. Looked like this. I still have him, minus the hat and

shovel. His face, made of rubber, is looking a tad mildew!