Jan’s Wine & Boos II FULL SERVICE BAR
offering music & wine tastings
offing 10% s c r pu ha
Getting together for a hayride was always a fantastic way to get into the holiday mood. We held these rides during the holidays for years in our Wesley Chapel neighborhood.
re when s or mo 6 bottle
19233 N. Dale Mabry • Lutz
(813) 948-0619
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Merry Christmas from the Staff of Eye Care Professionals
Christmas comes but once a year & with it the rich tradition of caring and giving. Come shop our colorful and exciting selection of eyewear and brighten the face of someone you love.
YEAR-END SALE Up to 50% off Designer frames
Making wonderful holiday memories By Mary Eberhard Accounting
I have many wonderful Christmas memories, but two in particular stand out. The first was when I was in college. My family had moved to Florida from Ohio a few years earlier, and when we went back to visit for the holidays, our family had grown too large for all of us to stay at my grandparents’ house. My parents had this great idea and rented two cabins at Mohican State Park.They drove up early, and since we were only staying there a few days, my mom brought just a handful of small Christmas decorations to make the cabin look a little festive before the rest of the family arrived. They didn’t have room to bring a tree, so my mom jokingly said that if we saw a tree lying in the road to bring it with us. My sister, brother and I were driving up to the cabin, and sure enough, there was a beautiful blue spruce tree on the side of the road. My mom couldn’t believe it. We put the tree up and hung a few ornaments on its branches. It was such a simple tree, but it meant so much to all of us to have it for our Christmas celebration. It was a cold winter that year, and the blanket of fresh snow on the ground outside the cabins was absolutely gorgeous. I will never forget how beautiful it was for our family to be in those cabins in the middle of the woods, as if we had the whole place to ourselves.
The spirit of giving comes full circle
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OUR NEW LOCATION
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December 24, 2014
Our old Location
SR 54 Parking Lot
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There were no stores or restaurants nearby, just our family spending time together creating wonderful memories. My other favorite Christmas memory is from when my daughter was little. My husband had this terrific idea of having a hayride from our house in Wesley Chapel. It was a great way to bring lots of family and friends together the week before Christmas to just have some fun. After we decorated the trailer with garland, the kids had an awesome time breaking the bales apart and spreading hay everywhere. Sometimes it seemed like there was more hay on our driveway than on the trailer, but it was great to see them have so much fun. We wore Santa hats, rang our jingle bells, and sang Christmas carols while we rode the streets of our neighborhood. Each year it got bigger, and we even had to add another trailer so everyone could ride. After the hayride, we had a big cookout, and to make it even more special, Santa arrived and handed out gifts to all the children. It was such a huge success that we had it for several years. It was a fantastic way to spread holiday cheer. It was intended for the children, but I am pretty sure that the adults had just as much fun. I know I did. — Mary Eberhard joined The Laker/Lutz News in 2003. She is the accounting manager and handles invoicing, accounts payable and accounts receivable.
SR 56
Some of my favorite memories of Christmas are the parties that my mom’s company threw every year for children of struggling families. My brothers and my sister and I were always eager for the annual event, which included lunch, a movie with popcorn, and a present from Santa. We would get dressed up for Christmas, and would be excited, never knowing what present we would receive. We lived in Flint, Michigan, the hub of the automobile industry. My mom worked at General Motors and was bringing up four children on her own. She couldn’t afford big Christmas presents, and while we never went hungry, we sure ate a lot of hamburger casserole meals. We loved mom’s company party. We hardly ever got to go to a movie, and if we did, we never got popcorn. Plus, the gifts were always things we enjoyed.
Those holiday parties made a real difference in my life, and to this day, they have inspired me to want to bring cheer to children who otherwise might not receive Christmas presents. For years, my family and I have taken angels from our church’s tree to provide presents for one girl and one boy. It’s been our tradition for my two children to go with me to shop for these presents, because we want to be sure to select the perfect gifts. I also want to teach my children to be aware that there are others who are less fortunate, and the importance of sharing with them. I want the children who receive presents from our family to have the same happy feelings that my mom’s company party gave to me. — Terri Williamson is a senior account manager. She joined The Laker/Lutz News in 2003, and she establishes, maintains and strengthens relationships with local businesses and helps them with their marketing efforts.