The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 8: A Couple of Misfits
Inside: Like many folks, I grew up watching Rudolph. I still manage to catch it every year. Wouldn’t be Christmas without my favorite couple of misfits.
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Confession time: I admit to being an adult who watches Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. And singing along with the songs. It just wouldn’t be Christmas without my favorite couple of misfits.
Growing up watching Rudolph and Hermey, I could identify. I felt like a misfit myself. But I could watch these characters who understood the sting of cruel words and see how they rose above it and ended up helping others–even those who treated them badly. Great story!
In celebration of this classic TV Christmas special, here are some fun facts you probably don’t know about Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer.
Did You Know. . .
- In the original TV version, Rudolph, Hermey, and Yukon Cornelius visit the Island of Misfit Toys and promise them they’ll help when they get back to Christmas town, but then the toys are not mentioned again. After the show first aired, so many children wrote the producers complaining that nothing had been done to help the Misfit Toys that Rankin-Bass produced an additional short scene in which Santa’s sleigh, led by Rudolph, lands on the island to pick up the toys and find them new homes. This became the version we all know and love!
- Yukon Cornelius wasn’t looking for silver or gold when he throws his pick axe into the icy ground, removes it, and licks it. According to the original concept for the show, Yukon was searching for the Peppermint Mine, which he eventually found. The scene was restored in the 1998 home video version and has remained in the story since then.
- In 1964 the puppets made for filming cost $5,000 each.
- Hermey is the only male elf with hair on the top of his head, and the only elf without pointed ears.
- The song “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” existed before the movie. Written in 1939, the song was recorded by Gene Autry in 1947, making it widely popular.
- The faithful sled dogs pulling Yukon Cornelius’s sled include a poodle, a cocker spaniel, a Saint Bernard, a collie, and a dachshund.
- The face of Sam the Snowman was designed to resemble the actor Burle Ives who supplied the voice for the character.
- In 1939, Montgomery Ward department employee, Robert May, created the character Rudolph the Reindeer for an ad campaign.
- The elf costumes for the 2003 hit movie Elf were patterned after the clothes worn by the elves in Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer.
- The song “We Are Santa’s Elves” was cut from the TV special in 1979 (for reasons unknown) only to be added back in ten years later.
- At the close of the movie, Rudolph is shown pulling Santa’s sleigh with a team of six other reindeer instead of eight.
If you didn’t happen to catch those lovable misfits yet this season, make time before the end of year to reacquaint yourself with this wonderful classic.
Children not required.
Do you have a favorite Christmas movie or TV special?
Resources and related posts:
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer DVD
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: Our Hillbilly Christmas Wreath 2019!
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: An Unforgettable Small Town
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Cookies From Christmases Past
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: For Whom the Christmas Bells Toll
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Smoked Turkey Cheese Ball
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: Of Hair Combs and Watch Chains
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Homespun Christmas Ball Ornaments
Posts from a year ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 8: Maple Walnut Fudge
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Christmas Literature
From two years ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 8: Spending Christmas with Charlie
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Cutest. Sleigh. Ever.
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Homespun Christmas Ball Ornaments
Inside: Christmas and crafting go together–kind of like a pine tree and our homespun Christmas ball ornaments. Here’s how to make them.
Homespun Christmas Ball Ornaments
So this year when it came time to decide our Christmas DIY project, Mom and I had something else entirely in mind. We had set out to make a garland with strips of cloth, but it seemed like the parts of the project weren’t falling into place, and we were running into time issues–that last-minute thing again. Fortunately she’d seen some homespun Christmas ball ornaments and thought we should maybe try that. She’d picked up the Styrofoam balls and some fat quarters of festive fabric. Between us we had various yarn, twine, ribbon, and raffia.
The first day we were slow to get started, trying to figure out the best way to work. Mom had put one ball ornament together at home with green plaid material, and so we spent the next several hours deciding between colors, fabric, and design for the rest of them. I cut strips of cloth (8 inch by 1/2 inch), and she patiently glued them around the balls with a homemade solution of watered down clear Elmer’s glue, 1 part water, 1 part glue, that she coated the strips with. Modge Podge would have probably made our lives easier, but sometimes you have to improvise. By the end of the first day, we had five balls fashioned and drying on paper. Note: I grabbed scrap paper that happened to be yellow, and while it didn’t hurt the dark colors, the dye from the paper bled on to the white balls. So don’t use newspaper or colored paper. White scrap paper only.
Several days passed before we got back with the project. In the days between I had tea dyed one of the white balls by making a strong cup of tea, letting it cool completely, and then taking a paper towel and dabbing the tea on to the dried white ball. Once it was covered to my liking, I set it to dry again. When we reconvened (sounds official when I say that), we attached various ribbon, twine, and yarn on the balls. For the four colored balls, our biggest challenge was how to create a loop for hanging. We ended up using a glue gun to hold ribbon and twine in place, and we covered up the hanging loops by creating bows to glue over top. These are so light that it definitely works.
A Riff on the White Ball Ornaments
We did a few things differently on the white and tea-dyed ornaments. On the white ball I cut a strip of ribbon that has a burlap look to it, but I imagine actual burlap would work just as well. I glued this around the equator and tied a piece of raffia on top of that and fashioned a bow and glued a button on top of that. I used a white flat thumbtack to wrap a piece of raffia around and created a loop for hanging.
On the tea-dyed ball I took a piece of thin twine and just went to town on it, wrapping and gluing it little by little with just clear Elmer’s glue, going this way and that around the ball, ending with a loop–all the same long piece of twine. But it looked like it needed something more. Inspiration struck–thank you, God!–and I wrapped an additional small piece of twine around the bottom of the loop three times, and it just popped!
All in all, I think they turned off pretty well!
How to Make ‘Em
You will need:
- 6 – 2.4 in foam balls
- 8 – 9 strips of fabric per ball (strips 8 in. x 1/2 in.)
- Assorted ribbon, twine, yarn, and raffia
- Button
- Tea for dying (if making the tea-dyed ornament)
- Elmer’s glue
- Hot glue gun and sticks
Directions
- Place fabric strips (coated in 1 part Elmer’s glue, 1 part water mixture) top to bottom around the ball until it’s covered. Allow to dry.
- Fashion ribbon around the balls in various patterns and glue in place with glue gun. (See pictures for inspiration.)
- Attach loop on top and cover with a bow of the same ribbon.
- For tea-dyed ornament, make a strong cup of tea, allow to cool, and then dab on to a dried ball made with white strips. Take a long piece of twine and begin gluing it in place with Elmer’s glue, little by little, because you’ll need to hold it in place with your fingers for a few minutes before continuing. End with a loop, and then add an additional small piece to wrap around the base of the loop.
- For the other white ball, glue a strip of burlap-like ribbon (or burlap!) that’s 1-inch wide, around the equator. Tie a piece of raffia on top of that and fashion a bow and glue a button on top of that. Place a white flat thumbtack on top and wrap a piece of raffia around it, making a knot on top, creating a loop for hanging.
- Have fun making our homespun Christmas ball ornaments!
Resources and related posts:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: Our Hillbilly Christmas Wreath 2019!
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: An Unforgettable Small Town
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Cookies From Christmases Past
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: For Whom the Christmas Bells Toll
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Smoked Turkey Cheese Ball
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: Of Hair Combs and Watch Chains
Posts from a year ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Christmas Literature
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: Simple Wreath Ornaments
From two years ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Cutest. Sleigh. Ever.
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: My Top Ten Christmas Movie Picks
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: Of Hair Combs and Watch Chains
Inside: What do hair combs and watch chains have to do with this classic from American literature? Read on to discover a short but sweet Christmas story.
*This post contains affiliate links. See our disclosure policy.
The Story
The setting is a small and sparsely furnished apartment in New York City just after the turn of the twentieth century. The players, Jim Dillingham Young and his wife Della, their last name appropriate, as they are a young married couple. The story opens as Della is fretting over what to give her husband Jim for Christmas. With only $1.87, and that hard fought through scrimping and saving from the household budget, she doesn’t have the funds to buy a grand gift fitting her husband. Looking in the mirror, she comes up with the solution–selling her hair, which she does, to buy a chain for Jim’s prized possession–a family heirloom pocket watch. But the sacrifice is not without struggle, as she wonders if her husband will still find her pretty without her long, beautiful brown hair.
Jim enters the scene, coming home from work, and his expression is one of bewilderment. (SPOILER ALERT) He asks her what happened to her hair. Afraid he no longer finds her attractive, she tells him her tresses will grow back quickly, that she sold her hair for him.
Jim then reassures her that he loves her no matter what the state of her hair, and he tosses a package–a gift for her–on the table. She opens it to reveal tortoise-shell combs–the very combs she had so long pined for in a shop window. She loves them and reminds him her hair will grow back fast. She then presents him with his gift. He opens it to see a fancy watch chain, and she urges him to show his watch so that she can see how well it matches. He then confesses to her that he sold his watch to buy her the combs.
The Author
“The Gift of the Magi” is a sentimental Christmas story, written in the style of the day by William Sydney Porter, better known as O’Henry. A classic O’Henry tale with a twist, it is said he penned the story in Pete’s Tavern on Irving Place in New York City. It first appeared in The New York Sunday World under the title “Gifts of the Magi” on December 10, 1905. Later it was published in book form in the anthology The Four Million in April of the following year.
“The Gift of the Magi” has been adapted for movies and television. My first exposure to the story was the television movie “The Gift of Love,” which takes the basic story line and changes some of the details–wealthy heiress (Marie Osmond) falls in love with a Swiss immigrant (Timothy Bottoms) against the wishes of her relatives who have arranged for her to marry a dull man (James Woods).
First released in 1978, I swooned over Timothy Bottoms in the role of Rudy. It’s a good movie, and it’s available on prime.
Check out both O’Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi” and The Gift of Love. You won’t be disappointed!
Have a favorite Christmas story? Tell us about it in the comments.
Resources and related posts:
The Gift of the Magi by O’Henry, Illustrated by P.J. Lynch
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: Our Hillbilly Christmas Wreath 2019!
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: An Unforgettable Small Town
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Cookies From Christmases Past
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: For Whom the Christmas Bells Toll
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Smoked Turkey Cheese Ball
Posts from a year ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: Simple Wreath Ornaments
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions
From two years ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: My Top Ten Christmas Movie Picks
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Smoked Turkey Cheese Ball
Inside: Quick! You need an easy appetizer to bring to the office party. Make our Smoked Turkey Cheese Ball. I promise it’ll be better than Sally’s taco dip, and they’ll be asking you for the recipe!
On the fifth post of Christmas, Rural Girl made for you–five cheese balls! Sing along, everybody. . . Actually, I made fifteen, but, hey, who’s counting?
Fifteen, you say?
About that Smoked Turkey Cheese Ball
Well, yes, I decided to do something a little different. You see, I’ve been making this recipe for close to 25 years now. It all started with Mike receiving a smoked turkey for Christmas, which, if I’m being honest, was just okay. But what came with this particular turkey was a recipe for a cheese ball—a “very good cheese ball” the company called it. And they were right.
I made some minor adjustments, but the recipe remains fairly close to the original. So let’s get to it!
- 1 cup of finely chopped smoked turkey (I use smoked turkey lunch meat.)
- 1-8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened
- 3 tablespoons of Miracle Whip
- 3 tablespoons of minced onions
- ½ cup of chopped pecans
- 2 tablespoons of dried parsley
- Mix the chopped pecans and parsley together in a bowl and set aside.
- Mix the first four ingredients well and shape into approximately two-inch balls. (If the mixture is too soft, you might need to briefly chill to make the balls easier to shape.)
- Roll the balls in the pecans and parsley.
- Add a toothpick or mini pretzel stick and chill until serving.
- Enjoy!
Notes: This year is the first time I’ve made mini balls. Blame Pinterest. I saw the idea there and decided it would be much easier to take a small ball rather than fumble with a knife and slice off a sliver from the larger ball while people line up behind you at the buffet.
So go ahead. Make this cheese ball for that last-minute party. Or maybe just for snacking. For yourself.
You’re welcome.
Have a favorite appetizer you make around Christmas time? Tell us about it in the comments.
Resources and related posts:
A Rural Girl’s Favorite Things Christmas Gift Guide 2019
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: Our Hillbilly Christmas Wreath 2019!
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: An Unforgettable Small Town
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Cookies From Christmases Past
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: For Whom the Christmas Bells Toll
Posts from a year ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Symbols and Traditions
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: In Pursuit of Perfect Pines
Posts from two years ago:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: A Truly Southern Christmas