Our family signs a book on Christmas Day. Everyone who is
visiting with us signs the book as well. Then I write a
short summary of the year. I have done this for 30 years.
What a nice tradition -- that will be a lovely family heirloom.
I know that I spent Christmas 1996 with my mother and husband, because until she passed away 2 years ago, I have spent every CHristmas with her since my first birthday, and every Christmas with my husband since we were married 26 years ago.
I did not spend Christmas 1996 with my sister because we haven't celebrated together since the early 80s. I know my aunt was with us Christmas 1991, the year my father died. Perhaps the Karr family had a similar reason to specifically remember Christmas Eve 1996. Once you start to piece together events of a certain year, it's really not all that hard.