To write about something I remembered about Christmas, as a child, is rather hard, because I have so few memories. Surely, nothing worth sharing. And, as a teen, I do remember some things, but those events aren't worth sharing either. I only have three memories as a child. First, on Christmas Eve we opened gifts from our relatives, they all lived so far away, and therefore all gifts were mailed. I don't remember Christmas Day; it probably was like any other day. Second, we did have a tree, but I don't recall ever decorating it. Third, my sisters were six and four years younger than me and always received more gifts because of Santa. One Easter, my mother called me into the living room where she was writing a letter, and told me there was no Easter Bunny. To which, I replied, "Does that mean there is no Santa Clause?" Her reply was, "yes" and that was that. 
(Note: The above flowers are the Santa Clause Shasta Rose.)
As an adult, I made the best of Christmas in my own way. I took a number of day trips with girlfriends or boyfriends to New York City for shopping, usually for myself. I loved Saks Fifth Avenue store (photo on left), and Macy's.
My first year in Virginia was in 1974, and I went to Washington, DC to see the National Christmas tree for the first of many times. This photo was from that trip. A very nice Christmas memory.
Because I worked so close to this location both at the DAR and Veteran's Administration, I also saw several of the First Ladies place the top decoration on the tree. They were lifted up in a cherry picker.
My ticket stub from 1982.
For many years, I went to the Christmas Tree lighting, and was always able to get a ticket. Fortunately, I worked a block or two away, so it wasn't a problem getting there after work. One year, after the ceremony, I was walking towards the White House, on the way to get the Metro. And, in front of me was Amy Carter, 6" away. Before March 1981 (when President Reagan was shot), it was pretty easy to get into any government facility, including the White House, without a pass. So, for several years, I would walk over there during my lunch break, and stroll through the President's house during the Christmas season. It was so beautiful, and I never any lines to deal with, no long security checks, the guards did just a quick peek into my handbag.
Once I married, my husband and I had very nice Christmases and one year we took one of our many trips to Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia just before Christmas. It was special because we spent two nights there during the Christmas season, sharing Williamsburg traditions from the 1770s. I wish I had pictures, but don't. Maybe you could enjoy their site Williamsburg at Christmas However, I did take the below photos during the day. The entire town was decked out in decorations. See the Colonial Williamsburg webcams at Colonial Williamsburg webcams.
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