Originally Posted by Bibliogirl

One of the several Christmas traditions we have is putting out Santa boots after everyone has gone to bed on Christmas Eve. This started one year I was awaiting the birth of our 4th child (she was born Christmas Eve) before we could travel to Turkey to join DH who was stationed there. All of our belongings had already been shipped over, so when Christmas decorating time came we had to make everything--ornaments for the tree, garlands, table decorations, etc. We did not have a fireplace in the apartment we were renting during our wait--no place to hang stockings. So we made Christmas boots out of round oatmeal boxes; we wraped the boxes in red felt and covered cotton for the toe in the felt to make a boot. We trimmed the top with cotton balls glued around the rim and added lace for the girls' boots, and rickrack for the boy's, then cut each one's first name initial from black felt and glued it on the front. That was 45 years ago. As 2 more babies came along we made more boots; then as the children grew and married we added boots for DIL or SIL, then grandchildren and great grandchildren. The kids would come home from college with boyfriends and we would make boot for them. I sometimes wished I could use velcro on the initials as they changed boyfriends and husbands. We have the biggest boot collection ever, I am sure. Every Christmas seaspon I spend most time finding or making something to put in all those boots for whomever is coming home for Christmas. For the last 10 years I have suggested we do away with the boots, and the howl that comes would frighten Frankenstein. Every year I look over the boots and make repairs on some of the oldest ones that look pretty raggedy after 45 years, and make a new one for the new little ones that seem to keep coming! Secretly, I love it!