The Spirit of Christmas: Stocking Stuffers

A look back at some favorite stocking stuffers as a kid
On
December 11, 2017
Every kid looks forward to Christmas morning when they see what kinds of gifts Santa left under the Christmas tree. One thing that children always overlook or don't care about is the stockings. What is in these stockings vary from family to family. Some families put candy and small less expensive gifts in them, others put fruit and nuts in them and some put a more expensive gift in them, such as a necklace or watch. My family always put small less expensive gifts, which are known to most as "stocking stuffers." Today places such as Walmart or Target have dozens of options for stocking stuffers. Here's some of my most memorable ones as a kid.


1. Lifesavers Storybook

These Lifesavers Storybooks were always a stocking stuffer when I was a kid and well into my early adult years. My mom always talks about how she got them in her stocking every year as a kid and wanted to do it for my brother and I. The packaging looked like a book and it opened up like a storybook. Inside, there were 12 rolls, but today they reduced them to 6 rolls. They had different flavors of Lifesavers such as assorted, cherry, mint, etc. The assorted were probably my favorite just because there were a variety of flavors in there.

Today, they still have them in the store, but they don't just offer the hard candies anymore. They also sell the gummies and other candies have storybook options too, such as Skittles, Starburst, Fun Dip, etc. Nothing will ever beat the nostalgic original hard candies and finding those in my stocking Christmas morning.




2. Hershey Kisses

I know Hershey Kisses aren't the most extravagant items to receive as a stocking stuffer, but they are one of my favorites that I always got in my stocking. Nothing beats the red, green and silver foiled milk chocolates. They are a classic and they were extra fillers inside my homemade stocking. I still enjoy getting them in my stocking, as well as some caramel or cherry filled ones.




3. Legos

As a kid, my mom and dad always got my brother and I one or two small Lego sets, wrapped them and stuck them in our stocking. When I was growing up the Lego Soccer sets were popular, so I remember getting some of the shoot and score players in my stocking as well as various little vehicles, such as a car or truck.



4. Beanie Babies

Beanie Babies were the thing when I was growing up. Everyone collected them and believed that they'd be worth so much money that parents could pay their child's college tuition. Boy were they very wrong. Even though they aren't worth much today, I always liked getting a couple new beanie babies in my stocking every Christmas. I remember getting a lion, a santa, and a snowman just to name a few. Kids today will never understand the excitement I got when I looked in my stocking and saw a brand new Beanie Baby. I'm not going to lie when I say I still have my beanie baby collection in a huge plastic tote in my garage. Hey, who knows, maybe when I'm an old lady they'll finally be worth some money so I can retire...




5. Toothbrush

This has gotta be one of the worst stocking stuffers a kid could receive. As a kid, I didn't want to waste my time brushing a bunch of teeth that were going to fall out anyway. That toothbrush was going to take up all sorts of room in my stocking for more candy. As I look back, I was grateful my parents got me a toothbrush to put in my stocking because it promotes good oral hygiene and they made sure to put in something that we would use all the time. I can't forget to add that my mom always got each member of the family a different color so we wouldn't get confused. Still to this day, my parents will put in a fresh new toothbrush in my stocking.




6. Miniature Candies

I know I've already included Hershey Kisses, which could fall under the miniature candies, but those are so iconic that I thought it deserved its own spot. Other miniature candies I used to get as a stocking stuffer were, Reese's, Rolos, Kit Kats, Butterfinger bells, Crunch bells and Twix. I was never a big fan of the Butterfinger bells as a kid, but I could eat a bag of Reese's miniature cups by myself if I was given the chance. My mom always had a variety for us because my dad is allergic to peanuts so my brother and I wouldn't have to worry about my dad stealing our peanut butter cups or Butterfingers.




So there's a few of my favorite stocking stuffers that I would get as a kid. I always love to hear what types of things everyone got in their stockings, since so many families have different traditions.
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