I still have my stocking from when I was a kid and I'm almost 50. We would go to my grandma's on Christmas Eve. It would always be filled with all kinds of goodies. There was a dime store in the town where she lived and she would always go buy all these knickknacks and little toys. As we got older the stockings got less and less and to the point where it was just hanging there empty and she would give us cards with money in them. I miss her. We lost her in 2020 A week before Christmas. A lot of memories flooding back this time of year. I would give it all up just to go back and relive my '80s childhood again.
Yea, verily. I'm 74, and I would give all I have to be a child and have my large and loving family around me again. I, too, miss them. Know you're not alone in your reminisces, and memories.
I didn’t grow up with Chocolate Oranges but I’ve made up for it since then (just asked my wife to pick one up when she goes to the store today 😂) And those Waterfalls were as hard and entertaining and enjoyable as any home video gaming console from back then! Thanks Jon and RetroDaze Gang 🎅🏻🎄👊🏻😎🕹️
very nice my dudes! I always looked forward to the Life Savers Christmas Book, Chocolate Coins, chap stick, lemon or cherry candy canes, slim jims, scratch off lottery tickets, peanut m+ms, and some random Avon product! Since the AVON lady lived next door! lol
Every year we would always get a pair of socks, chapstick, whole bunch of Reese's red and green wrapped miniatures and the plastic candy cane filled with Christmas M&Ms. Every Christmas I give my son's a little water game, chapstick, deodorant, and usually a bottle of body wash or body spray. As a child I hated getting the socks and chapstick. But as an adult I am disappointed if I don't get them
I remember those water toys & mesh stockings! They were a popular staple at our house around Christmas. There was just something soothing and fun about those water games (I wonder if they're still available/sold now?). It would great to see a part two to this video or perhaps about popular Christmas stocking stuffers?
We always got a Terry’s chocolate orange, a puzzle of some kind, some small things and a Life Savers Story Book. Back then you got butterscotch and maybe rum & butter flavours.
Don’t forget other Tomy toys like the windup Rascal Robots and pocket toys that emulated casino games or utilized little metal ball bearings. I do have the ultimate stocking stuffer, a robot identical to the one seen in Gremlins when mom is hunting down the last gremlin.
I remember getting a few of these. I also remember getting 'Mad Money', which was like a checkbook with tear-off crisp new one dollar bills, usually ten or (if really lucky).twenty dollars. I felt like a baller going to an arcade or gas station to play video games when I'd tear off a fresh dollar to exchange for some quarters!
Got all these things over the years. But I'm with you, a couple unopened mesh stockings of generic stuff would be an amazing addition to my Christmas decor.
In my post-WW II childhood, our stockings were filled with an apple, an orange, a "clementine", a small amount of mixed nuts, and a very few Christmas chocolates. It wasn't until the Christmas I was 16 (1966) that Santa stuffed my stocking with makeup, hair care items, nylon stockings, etc.
@RetroDaze I never thought of it that way. I thought of it as my parents finally realizing that, as the oldest daughter, it was time I stepped away from Santa. That Santa would even know enough about my cosmetic and personal desires was -- and is -- a bit creepy to me.
I still use Stockings that me, my btrother and dad put glue on with our names in glue and then poured glitter on the Elmers Glue. This was at the Earliest 1986. Excellent Content!🤘🏻👍🏻🇺🇲
There were a lot memories jogged here. The spinning tree toy was one I completely forgot about getting. So many great recalls. I think my favorite stocking stuffer I would go to first was Slim Jims
Ah, that's a good point. I never did get batteries because my parents used to sneak little treasures into the stockings throughout December and say "the elves came." We never did the traditional stocking full of goodies on Christmas thing as kids.
@@AnthonyJRapinoOh, wow… so that would have been some serious delaying of gratification- or confusion!- if you’d received batteries on one of the days! 😄
For me, it kinda depended on what was around at the time. When I was a kid, I always got those candy-filled storybooks and a hard peppermint candycane/stick. Nowadays (yes, as a adult, I still do stockings, lol) I gonna have those soft peppermint sticks!
The most memorable you already mentioned, the life saver book. However, my absolute most memorable was an AFX slot car. A red 427 A/C Cobra to be specific.
My kids still get a clementine or satsuma in their stockings. It's a family tradition, along with chocolate gold coins (and some version of candy coal, because no one's perfect ;) ) The Stocking Stuffer that I really miss is the old style Lifesavers Books that had the full variety of Lifesaver flavor rolls (and lots of them!) Now *if/when* you can find them it's only a couple rolls of the 5 flavor assortment (or worse, the gummies), no mint rolls, and definitely no Butter Rum (the best ones!). My newest traditional stuffer items are ring pops, pop rocks, a Tubey-cane full of whatever candy they like that year, and Kinder wafer Hippos (because everyone deserves to get a Hippopotamus for Christmas!)
Oh wow! You're right... the Lifesavers books don't include the Butter Rum or Mint anymore do they? Lame. Loving your traditional stocking inclusions here. Very cool.
The constants in my family's stockings are an orange, some silver bells (Hershey's kisses), some fireworks, and a funny pez dispenser. Beyond that, they are stuffed with various 'small in size' items and lots of candy. Merry Christmas!
Always got a big orange in my Christmas stocking as a kid but until today i did not know there was an actual link to Christmas lore to do so and i wonder if my parents knew. All i thought about when i was a kid was its nice to get that big juicy orange. never got toys in my stocking same for my siblings , we normally got : Big orange, Big Red delicious apple, a life savers sweet story book and a big bag of M&Ms and a few other candies that varied from year to year. Also never got one of those red mesh stockings my parents always filled our with love ( and treats) themselves. Mind i recall seeing those mesh stocks in a wide range from sizes and even some made especially for girls and for boys.
We still do the orange in the toe of the stocking, and it IS a treat, as it means I get to eat a whole orange myself (otherwise I have to buy the oranges if I want to eat a whole one). Although they don't fit in the stocking, a calendar for the new year and numerous used books are often included next to our stockings.
People at school and work don’t believe it either,the closest thing to candy I’ll eat is fruit snacks,but they have to be a certain type,and butter cookie’s during the holidays,but most of the sugary stuff I eat is healthy stuff like fruit,no candy no chocolates no ice cream,no birthday cake,my birthday cake is actually a big plate of spaghetti and meatballs. Another good thing about not eating sweets is I’m not overweight,actually I’m borderline underweight,always have been.
The spinning tree toy, I imagine, was recalled at some point, maybe 90s? It’s just that spinning toys like that become a hazard when ignorant children put their faces too close to it. I could easily see a kid trying to get a closer look at Santa and literally getting an eye full of a point metal object. It’s very similar to what happened with Sky Dancers. Though I feel like every decade another toy comes out that does the exact thing, and big surprise, gets recalled again.
@@RetroDazea couple days ago, I was in an antique store, and there was this Cabbage Patch doll that was still mint in the box! There was a sign on it claiming it was a rare banned toy. Why would they ban it? My immediate thought was that it somehow must’ve been racially insensitive, even though I couldn’t see why. I looked closer, and it was one of those that snacked on stuff. Was the food inappropriate? I then remembered. Oh, it was banned because of the recall! It was one of those dolls that ate things, and wouldn’t stop. Meaning, if you stuck your finger in there, you weren’t getting it out!! 😱
I checked the Walmart website and they still sell Waterful Water toys .How you find them is Waterful water games not toys and they still have the classic games.
I still have my stocking from when I was a kid and I'm almost 50. We would go to my grandma's on Christmas Eve. It would always be filled with all kinds of goodies. There was a dime store in the town where she lived and she would always go buy all these knickknacks and little toys. As we got older the stockings got less and less and to the point where it was just hanging there empty and she would give us cards with money in them. I miss her. We lost her in 2020 A week before Christmas. A lot of memories flooding back this time of year. I would give it all up just to go back and relive my '80s childhood again.
Thank you for sharing those precious memories. Really hope this year your Christmas is joyful and a celebration of those memories.
Yea, verily. I'm 74, and I would give all I have to be a child and have my large and loving family around me again. I, too, miss them. Know you're not alone in your reminisces, and memories.
I love those little Lifesavers books.
I also loved getting candies like payday, Skittles and anything white chocolate in my Christmas stocking.
Lifesavers book candy is still one of the best things to get in a stocking!
My favorite was the lifesaver book
Still a favorite to this day!
"It's not Terry's. It's mine!" 🤣 Brilliant line. She Sounds like me.
@@Bmhh24781 Well, I suppose if you paid for it, technically… 😂
I didn’t grow up with Chocolate Oranges but I’ve made up for it since then (just asked my wife to pick one up when she goes to the store today 😂)
And those Waterfalls were as hard and entertaining and enjoyable as any home video gaming console from back then!
Thanks Jon and RetroDaze Gang
🎅🏻🎄👊🏻😎🕹️
I'd kill (figuratively) for one of those right now. 😀
Right!? You could spend hours toiling away on those water games. Hope you enjoy the chocolate orange your wife returns with! Thank you as always Ted!
very nice my dudes!
I always looked forward to the Life Savers Christmas Book, Chocolate Coins, chap stick, lemon or cherry candy canes, slim jims, scratch off lottery tickets, peanut m+ms, and some random Avon product! Since the AVON lady lived next door! lol
Sounds like a stocking full of awesome.
I was always happy to find oranges, peanuts, or walnuts in my stocking. It gave me something to snack on that night, or the next day. 🙂
Snacking in between playing with your new toys was made a bit easier that way! 😆
Mesh xmas stockings were rockin n my '80s, 4realz! 💯🤟🙄🌃🌉😉😼
They could be pretty cool for sure, if they had the right goodies!
@RetroDaze word up! 🤟
The best stocking stuffer I ever got was the hand-held Donkey Kong game.
Now that would have been a great stocking stuffer!
With 10 siblings anything for Christmas was a rare treat. Having a sober father would have been great!
@@susansackrison3139 We hope that as the years have passed, you’ve been able to make it special the way it should have been for you Susan.
Every year we would always get a pair of socks, chapstick, whole bunch of Reese's red and green wrapped miniatures and the plastic candy cane filled with Christmas M&Ms. Every Christmas I give my son's a little water game, chapstick, deodorant, and usually a bottle of body wash or body spray. As a child I hated getting the socks and chapstick. But as an adult I am disappointed if I don't get them
I would not have been too thrilled either back then, but now… there’s no arguing that those items aren’t useful!
Hah! My grandmother always used to put a can of mandarin oranges in my stocking. 😹And I loved it!
Seems like they aren’t so forgotten for many.
I remember those water toys & mesh stockings! They were a popular staple at our house around Christmas. There was just something soothing and fun about those water games (I wonder if they're still available/sold now?). It would great to see a part two to this video or perhaps about popular Christmas stocking stuffers?
Great suggestion Tyneisha! As always, thank you so much for being a part of these nostalgic journeys with us.
We always got a Terry’s chocolate orange, a puzzle of some kind, some small things and a Life Savers Story Book. Back then you got butterscotch and maybe rum & butter flavours.
Yes! Why did they stop including them!?
I agree. The butterscotch lifesavers were my favorite and was the perfect christmas candy
@@MicaMakes My favourite too!
Aaaaaaah! I knew you’d have the spinning toy tree thingie in here! 😄
Of course!
I had to! 🙂 Of course, I always preferred the pumpkin ones around Halloween.
80s life channel would love this
We enjoy them!
Don’t forget other Tomy toys like the windup Rascal Robots and pocket toys that emulated casino games or utilized little metal ball bearings. I do have the ultimate stocking stuffer, a robot identical to the one seen in Gremlins when mom is hunting down the last gremlin.
Ha! Those wind-up robots? They were at least good for a little bit of entertainment. Or was it electronic?
Gotta love windups and dexterity puzzles! Good ones!
I eat my oranges 🍊 for Christmas 🎄 I remember that toy years ago 👍
Which toy Greg?
@ The Christmas 🎄 tree spinning toy I remember seeing them around as a kid
I remember getting a few of these. I also remember getting 'Mad Money', which was like a checkbook with tear-off crisp new one dollar bills, usually ten or (if really lucky).twenty dollars. I felt like a baller going to an arcade or gas station to play video games when I'd tear off a fresh dollar to exchange for some quarters!
Ha! Too bad it wasn’t legal tender!
No, they were absolutely legit dollar bills! Legal currency. Google it, and you find info.
Got all these things over the years. But I'm with you, a couple unopened mesh stockings of generic stuff would be an amazing addition to my Christmas decor.
Especially one of the jumbo ones!
In my post-WW II childhood, our stockings were filled with an apple, an orange, a "clementine", a small amount of mixed nuts, and a very few Christmas chocolates. It wasn't until the Christmas I was 16 (1966) that Santa stuffed my stocking with makeup, hair care items, nylon stockings, etc.
Santa had FINALLY admitted to your becoming a woman and leaving childhood that year!
@RetroDaze I never thought of it that way. I thought of it as my parents finally realizing that, as the oldest daughter, it was time I stepped away from Santa. That Santa would even know enough about my cosmetic and personal desires was -- and is -- a bit creepy to me.
I love chocolate oranges and assorted hard Christmas candy.❤️🎄🧑🎄🎀
Those Christmas hard candies were actually not too bad.
I still use Stockings that me, my btrother and dad put glue on with our names in glue and then poured glitter on the Elmers Glue. This was at the Earliest 1986. Excellent Content!🤘🏻👍🏻🇺🇲
Thank you as always ZMan! Thats awesome that you still have those stockings. That was a very common thing… the glitter names.
There were a lot memories jogged here. The spinning tree toy was one I completely forgot about getting. So many great recalls. I think my favorite stocking stuffer I would go to first was Slim Jims
Snap into a Slim Jim! Glad we could rattle your memory a bit here. We appreciate you watching!
But the batteries in the stocking were like foreshadowing, they were exciting! They meant something cool that needed them was waiting to be unwrapped!
You knew something was coming with the potential for awesomeness.
Ah, that's a good point. I never did get batteries because my parents used to sneak little treasures into the stockings throughout December and say "the elves came." We never did the traditional stocking full of goodies on Christmas thing as kids.
@@AnthonyJRapinoOh, wow… so that would have been some serious delaying of gratification- or confusion!- if you’d received batteries on one of the days! 😄
I learned some stocking origin stories & enjoyed some smiles recognizing stuffers from the last 60+ years. 🎄Thanks RetroDaze & Merry Christmas. 🎁
Merry Christmas to you as well Jon’s mom!
My mom still sends me a chocolate orange in a stocking every Christmas 👍
Really!? That’s awesome. 🍊
For me, it kinda depended on what was around at the time. When I was a kid, I always got those candy-filled storybooks and a hard peppermint candycane/stick. Nowadays (yes, as a adult, I still do stockings, lol) I gonna have those soft peppermint sticks!
You are never too old to enjoy the simple pleasures of a Christmas stocking!
@RetroDaze Yes! I love your thinking, lol
Probably my favorite was a real swiss army knife.
Woah! That would have been very cool.
@ ya, used it a lot, still have it.
The most memorable you already mentioned, the life saver book. However, my absolute most memorable was an AFX slot car. A red 427 A/C Cobra to be specific.
Did it mean you were about to open an entire slot car track?
@RetroDaze oh no, just a single car, but still remember it vividly. I did have a track already :)
My kids still get a clementine or satsuma in their stockings. It's a family tradition, along with chocolate gold coins (and some version of candy coal, because no one's perfect ;) ) The Stocking Stuffer that I really miss is the old style Lifesavers Books that had the full variety of Lifesaver flavor rolls (and lots of them!) Now *if/when* you can find them it's only a couple rolls of the 5 flavor assortment (or worse, the gummies), no mint rolls, and definitely no Butter Rum (the best ones!). My newest traditional stuffer items are ring pops, pop rocks, a Tubey-cane full of whatever candy they like that year, and Kinder wafer Hippos (because everyone deserves to get a Hippopotamus for Christmas!)
Oh wow! You're right... the Lifesavers books don't include the Butter Rum or Mint anymore do they? Lame. Loving your traditional stocking inclusions here. Very cool.
I miss Christmas in the 80's. I hope you have a Merry Christmas.
We do as well Mark! So very much. We wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
The constants in my family's stockings are an orange, some silver bells (Hershey's kisses), some fireworks, and a funny pez dispenser. Beyond that, they are stuffed with various 'small in size' items and lots of candy. Merry Christmas!
What an awesome list of stuffers to get each year! Love the fireworks idea.
Always got a big orange in my Christmas stocking as a kid but until today i did not know there was an actual link to Christmas lore to do so and i wonder if my parents knew. All i thought about when i was a kid was its nice to get that big juicy orange. never got toys in my stocking same for my siblings , we normally got : Big orange, Big Red delicious apple, a life savers sweet story book and a big bag of M&Ms and a few other candies that varied from year to year. Also never got one of those red mesh stockings my parents always filled our with love ( and treats) themselves. Mind i recall seeing those mesh stocks in a wide range from sizes and even some made especially for girls and for boys.
We were really only after the treats in those stockings anyway! Any extra little toys or games were just icing on the cake.
We still do the orange in the toe of the stocking, and it IS a treat, as it means I get to eat a whole orange myself (otherwise I have to buy the oranges if I want to eat a whole one). Although they don't fit in the stocking, a calendar for the new year and numerous used books are often included next to our stockings.
Those are excellent ideas particularly for adult stocking stuffers!
I’m 61, I still by myself a couple chocolate oranges ever Christmas
May as well use the season as a way to indulge in a little nostalgic treat, right?
@@RetroDazeabsolutely
I am 62 and never had one. Is there any actual orange in it?
@ it’s a chocolate ball that’s has a slight orange taste. It separates like orange slices
Santa always left me little dinosaurs,Pokémon,or cheese crackers,as I wouldn’t eat candy.
Really!? That had to be a point of pride for the parents! Our kid doesn’t care for candy. Almost unheard of!
People at school and work don’t believe it either,the closest thing to candy I’ll eat is fruit snacks,but they have to be a certain type,and butter cookie’s during the holidays,but most of the sugary stuff I eat is healthy stuff like fruit,no candy no chocolates no ice cream,no birthday cake,my birthday cake is actually a big plate of spaghetti and meatballs. Another good thing about not eating sweets is I’m not overweight,actually I’m borderline underweight,always have been.
I think of del Griffith "those moments don't come back"
Love his character in that movie. A real classic.
I remember those water toy games😊
There were so many of them!
I never minded getting oranges and tangerines in my stocking
At least they were a nice change from sugary candies.
The spinning tree toy, I imagine, was recalled at some point, maybe 90s? It’s just that spinning toys like that become a hazard when ignorant children put their faces too close to it. I could easily see a kid trying to get a closer look at Santa and literally getting an eye full of a point metal object. It’s very similar to what happened with Sky Dancers. Though I feel like every decade another toy comes out that does the exact thing, and big surprise, gets recalled again.
Agreed. We all seem to have at least one from our childhood that disappeared from the shelves after a few incidents.
@@RetroDazea couple days ago, I was in an antique store, and there was this Cabbage Patch doll that was still mint in the box! There was a sign on it claiming it was a rare banned toy. Why would they ban it? My immediate thought was that it somehow must’ve been racially insensitive, even though I couldn’t see why. I looked closer, and it was one of those that snacked on stuff. Was the food inappropriate?
I then remembered. Oh, it was banned because of the recall! It was one of those dolls that ate things, and wouldn’t stop. Meaning, if you stuck your finger in there, you weren’t getting it out!! 😱
I like to call the spinners “finger slicing doohikies” 😂
@@katgillang A very spot-on nickname! 😆
PEZ Dispensers.
Not forgotten, but definitely a great stocking stuffer!
I enjoyed your video.
Thank you Mark! We appreciate you watching.
I checked the Walmart website and they still sell Waterful Water toys .How you find them is Waterful water games not toys and they still have the classic games.
@@LovingShadow-e3k Nice! They could still be a great stocking stuffer today.
An orange, a big apple and a can of black olives. I kid you not. I continued the tradition.
Whaaaat!? Can of black olives? Need to know the origin story of this.
Olives??? Never have heard of this! What's the history of this? Or is it just a tradition of your family?
Of course you gotta have batteries in your stockings if your present under the tree requires it
It was a lame yet necessary stocking stuffer.
I always got large Bob’s Peppermint sticks
Woah! Nice. Bet you looked forward to it every Christmas!
@ not in the evening,after I spent day the day eating it🤢
I got all of these things, but maybe not the mesh stocking. Or maybe I did get them and the contents were just so boring that I forgot all about it.
That would probably be the reaction of most of us. 😆
@@RetroDaze you can still get prestuffed mesh stockings, I found one that was 8ft tall!!
@@unklejohn8575Nice!
Sad how any gift wouldn’t be appreciated. Rich kids 😢 shame on you
They should all be appreciated, no doubt.