What are your family holiday traditions??
Please share your family holiday traditions...I'd love to hear them!
Tags: family, holidays, traditions
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Loretta Lynn on -
we used to get together on christmas eve for dinner and open a few presents with the extended family, and usually got to a christmas service at church. But my mom passed away two years ago to cancer and since then we haven't done this. two years ago my husband, our kids and I went to NC to go skiing, my stepfather wasnt too please with this, although he has a lot of family around here. i dont remember what we did last year...? (is that bad?) but atleast my sister, brother and i try to keep in touch more regularly, even if it is online ;-)
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Permalink Reply by Loretta Lynn on
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the brownies, hot cocoa and Polar Express sounds like a great idea. I'm not sure i've seen the whole movie all the way through yet. I do love to watch The Grinch ;-)
Tammy Munson said:We are a military family so we are hardly ever at our home or with the same side of the family each year. The one thing that is our tradition no matter where we are is to make a big batch of brownies, and hot cocoa and watch the Polar Express every Christmas eve.
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Permalink Reply by Loretta Lynn on
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Thats awesome. I love the video ;-) I've been wanting to go cut down our own tree too. Even here in FL we have tree farms. few and far between though.
My mom told me before she passed away, she was only 57, since I had just remarried in 2005, she passed almost one year to the day of our wedding anniversary, to start our own family traditions and thats what we are trying to do. but some family members didnt understand this.
take care,
L
Megan Calhoun said:We cut the cord last year and decided to make the holidays our own affair. Here's what we've started as far as family traditions. Prepare to be nauseous:
1) The day after Thanksgiving, we head to the Frosty Mountain Tree Farm in Sonoma County. We enjoy the festivities (hayrides, petting zoo, pony rides) and chop down a tree. Hubby lashes tree to roof.
2) We go for a snack at the Twin Hill Apple Ranch. Insane apple pies and great area for the kids to play around in.
3) Hit the road for a little trip down to Occidental, CA. It's a cool, bohemian logging town that does very little logging. We get dinner at an impossibly old Italian supper club that makes guests eat at communal tables. Sounds aweful, I know, but it's awesome. Complete mayhem, but it's warm and inviting and smiles abound.
4) Back to Marin County -- kids snooze all the way home. Video of this part is available here:
5) We bring out the Elf on the Shelf. If you have kids under five, do the Christmas thing, and don't know what this is -- you need to lean in on this one. It's the GREATEST CONTROL MECHANISM KNOWN TO MAN when it comes to toddlers.
Time passes, and it's the weekend before Christmas. Where do we take the kids? You guessed it: straight to Novato, CA to visit some of the most over the top lighting excesses ever witnessed in suburbia. Don't believe me? Stay tuned for the video below.
Christmas eve, we head into the city to grab an early dinner in a very old but very good restaurant in Chinatown. Nothing fancy. Bellies filled, we head to our little church in the city -- which was built in 1884 and is a registered national historic landmark (it's an early example of the arts & crafts movement). The fireplace roars during the small service. I told you it's nauseating!!
Back at the house -- it's time for notes and beer for Santa. Kids off to bed. Typical morning mayhem followed by a late-afternoon feast with other transplanted midwesterners. I can't wait!! Last year's video is here, complete with a Jackson 5 soundtrack:
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Permalink Reply by Karen on -
that is beautiful
Barbara Forbes-Lyons said:We started a new tradition last night (Kol Nidre, the night when Yom Kippur starts). We went around the table and everyone apologized for any hurt caused in the last year and we said one thing that we are going to improve over the next year.
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Permalink Reply by Vanessa on -
Well, I've been married for 4.5 years and have an (almost) one year old so mostly we've just been doing things with our families.
Some traditions we've done with our families are pretty much eating (a lot) - especially around Thanksgiving.
During Christmas we go tree chopping with my side of the family, have a Christmas Eve get together and eat and drink lots of wine...my hubby's side of the family is HUGE on gifts, so the requests for Christmas lists start going out in September! This year I was wise enough to start jotting down things I'd seen and wanted but didn't feel like I could buy them for myself.
I'm looking forward to starting some of our own traditions with our son. Should be a fun one!
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Permalink Reply by Cindy O'Farrell on -
What an excellent tradition Kerry! I remember creating gingerbread houses myself:) Thank you for sharing!
Kerry Beck said:We have so many family traditions. I'll share a few.
A few years ago, we kept a list of all the things we were thankful for...on the refrigerator. It was a great way for all the family to be reminded of what we are thankful for.
At Christmas we always make "gingerbread houses" with graham crackers glued with icing to milk cartons. We go to the candy bar at the local grocery store and come home with 20-30 bowls of candy to use.
We also spend Christmas Eve going to our church service and then come home for a full table of food to sit & enjoy together.
Kerry
Advent Calendar
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Permalink Reply by Cindy O'Farrell on
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Thank you Karen for sharing!
Karen said:okay
Christmas Eve a feast of
herring salad, various German delicacies a huge spread,duck,eel,etc.
Twinkling candles with mobiles...champagne. huge real tree-carrols but a marathon of the Trilogy.
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Permalink Reply by Cindy O'Farrell on
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Yummy...brownies & hot cocoa:) Thank you for sharing Tammy!
Tammy Munson said:We are a military family so we are hardly ever at our home or with the same side of the family each year. The one thing that is our tradition no matter where we are is to make a big batch of brownies, and hot cocoa and watch the Polar Express every Christmas eve.
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Permalink Reply by Cindy O'Farrell on
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Thank you Loretta for sharing your traditions with us!
Loretta Lynn said:we used to get together on christmas eve for dinner and open a few presents with the extended family, and usually got to a christmas service at church. But my mom passed away two years ago to cancer and since then we haven't done this. two years ago my husband, our kids and I went to NC to go skiing, my stepfather wasnt too please with this, although he has a lot of family around here. i dont remember what we did last year...? (is that bad?) but atleast my sister, brother and i try to keep in touch more regularly, even if it is online ;-)
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Permalink Reply by Cindy O'Farrell on
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Starting your own tradition...sounds great. I'm in the same situation being a newlywed and starting my own traditions during the Holidays since my inlaws live in California. Thank you sharing Vanessa:)
Vanessa said:Well, I've been married for 4.5 years and have an (almost) one year old so mostly we've just been doing things with our families.
Some traditions we've done with our families are pretty much eating (a lot) - especially around Thanksgiving.
During Christmas we go tree chopping with my side of the family, have a Christmas Eve get together and eat and drink lots of wine...my hubby's side of the family is HUGE on gifts, so the requests for Christmas lists start going out in September! This year I was wise enough to start jotting down things I'd seen and wanted but didn't feel like I could buy them for myself.
I'm looking forward to starting some of our own traditions with our son. Should be a fun one!
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Permalink Reply by jazzy on -
We have a ornament exchange yearly with the entire family, similar to a white elephant party, but with original or hand painted ornaments.
Thanksgiving and Xmas, we switch between families, one family for each, and then alternating years LOL...I know, I know, crazy schedule.
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Permalink Reply by Barbara Siragusa on -
I grew up in Scotland, and New Year, or Hogmanay as we would call it, had a great family tradition. To bring good luck into the New Year, the first footer ( first person to enter the house after midnight) was to be male, tall, dark haired, and carrying a piece of coal. In his younger days, my Dad fit that bill, so off he would trudge out into the cold a few minutes before New Year, and as the New Year came in, he would enter the house.
I am sad that neither of my brothers carried on that tradition, and as my father passed away several years ago, I guess it has been forgotten.
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