Socks for Christmas? Yes Please!

If you’ve been following the blog at all, you may have come to the conclusion that we’re not an average American family. If you need one further proof, here it is: do you know anyone who gets excited about receiving socks for Christmas? Guilty. For us, the best stocking stuffers are stockings.

Michelle's latest finished knitting product.

Michelle’s latest finished knitting product.

Like a large segment of American society, we love the movie, A Christmas Story (paid link). Among many funny moments, we particularly like the Christmas morning scene, when Ralph and Randy open packages containing socks. With an exchange of significant glances, they wordlessly toss the socks high over their shoulders, dismissing them. Aly used to shout at the screen, “I’ll take them!”

We realized how much we appreciated socks as a gift a few Christmases ago, when, among other gifts, both sets of parents sent us all high tech socks. We had many good gifts that year, but none were discovered on Christmas morning with more enthusiasm than the socks.

Proper footwear is extremely important in our lifestyle. Socks are essential for warmth and comfort around the cabin and on the trails. For us, cotton socks are rarely useful; we need good wicking qualities, generous cushioning, high ankle height, and above all, durability. These qualities don’t come cheaply, which makes socks even more precious to us.

Michelle mitigates the cost significantly by knitting wool socks. She only recently started this, so it’s a slow process, but she’s steadily adding to our supply, at a slightly faster rate than we’re wearing them out. Perhaps more importantly, she’s learned to darn socks, extending the life of both our homemade and commercially produced footwear.

Were you to spend Christmas morning in our home, you might find it boring by most standards. Ours is not a microcosm of American consumerism, with all the latest and greatest gadgets and enhancements displayed. With us, it’s mostly food, homemade gifts, and, especially, socks.

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