The Season for Memories

The holidays are a time of celebration, traditions, and making special memories with family and friends. In honor of the season, the Upright team has some Christmas memories we would like to share with you. A few of these Christmas memories sound like they could be made into great holiday movies. Or perhaps, it’s the other way around?

Our wish for all of you is the happiest of holidays and a season of making fun-filled memories!

My 9 year old son opened the mailbox today to find a letter, postmarked from “North Pole Alaska”, with a special note from Santa Claus that said he was very pleased with the good reports he’s been getting and that he’s on the top of his good list! My son said, “Did you do this?” I didn’t, and I have no idea who did. But my son is now convinced more than ever that “Santa IS real!!!” The best part… we had just returned from donating money to the “Freestore Foodbank” in Cincinnati, which was Jacob’s idea to help feed our community for Christmas. Yep. He’s on Santa’s good list.
Allison Kulage, SEO Director

Every Christmas, my Italian grandmother made the family-recipe spaghetti sauce from scratch. It was everyone’s favorite, to the point that we looked forward to it all year. One Christmas (however), my “low-carbing” parents decided that whole wheat pasta would stand in place of “regular,” for us kids too. My sister and I refused to give my parents their Christmas gifts until we could eat regular pasta again…so of course they gave in immediately. I just had one bite, but (still) argue that whole wheat pasta tastes like reindeer droppings.
Eric Frye, Business Development and Local Search Specialist

I had always wanted a Red Rider BB Gun for Christmas but everyone, and I mean everyone, kept telling me that I would shoot my eye out. As if that wasn’t bad enough, there were these bullies that were picking on me and my brother and my grandmother sent me pink rabbit pajamas. After that … no wait, did this really happen to me? I’m not sure now!
Greg Barlow, Vice President

My most favorite memory was when I was in the 8th grade at Saint Gertrude School. Each year our school performed a Christmas Pageant where children from all grades took part, whether it was singing “We Three Kings” or handing out programs. When you were in the 8th grade, however, you got to be in a lead role, such as playing the part of Mary, Jesus’s mother, or one of the wise men. A small group of girls, including me, were selected to dance down the isle of the church to the song “O Holy Night”. I looked forward to dancing in the pageant since the first grade and my dream had finally come true. My parents and brother were there to share in the fun and take pictures. I don’t think I’ll ever find myself dancing in a white tutu in church ever again, so it’s a memory I will always cherish!
Colleen Frye, Link Building Specialist

Every year, my daughter and I share two traditions: making Christmas treats and watching old Christmas movies. Our classic film favorites include: White Christmas, The Little Shop around the Corner, Holiday Affair, Holiday Inn, Miracle on 34th Street, and It’s a Wonderful Life. I love the way this has led my teen to an appreciation for old movies, as well as for cooking and baking. This year, she asked me to be sure to write down our cookie and candy recipes so that some day she can celebrate Christmas with her kids in the same way.
Erin Meyer, Content Developer

The thing I remember most about Christmases past is the complexity involved in assembling presents when our kids were young. Our tradition would be to put the kids to bed on Christmas Eve and around 10 pm start to put together some of the most complicated toys on earth. I am the least mechanical person you’ve ever met, and the one gift I remember most was a 10,000 piece doll house for our daughter that took me until 3am to finish. But I have to say that seeing the kid’s faces on Christmas Day definitely motivated me to repeat the process again the next year!
Greg Frye, President