When I was reading these books as a child, the Christmas in the Surveyor’s House was my favorite. It seemed like they were warm, happy, well-fed and there were actually presents! Not Christmas horses or tin cups (how can a cup be a present?!?), but real live wrapped presents.
As an adult, the two that stick with me most are the ones from Little House on the Prairie and These Happy Golden Years. The latter because of the sheer romance of it — Almanzo coming all the way back from Minnesota to spend Christmas with Laura. I’ve done the car ride from Walnut Grove to De Smet. Imagine it in a sleigh, in the snow, dark and cold just to be with the one you love. Sigh.
Little House on the Prairie — as a mother, the scene that sticks with me is the girls in bed, Ma and Pa thinking Mr. Edwards and the presents aren’t going to make it, Ma hanging stockings anyway and staying up late to make something with the white sugar. Sometimes real-life-Ma can come across as a kill joy, but that scene shows the deep devotion she had for her girls.
By Becky Harris