With the first week of November done and dusted we are getting ever closer to that time.
Christmas.
Personally, I love it. It’s a little glimmer of joy in the midst of dark, cold days and even darker, colder nights and just about the only thing which makes winter even remotely bearable.
When I was young we always celebrated Christmas on the evening of Christmas Eve, when several members of the extended family would visit and presents would be opened after a feast of different Greek and Turkish dishes plus a roast thrown in too. Christmas Day would then be relatively quiet.
This worked out well as I got older and had my own family. We could continue with our old Christmas Eve tradition and then have our own celebration on Christmas Day together at home.
Now that we no longer do the Christmas Eve thing I feel we need something else to be able to look back upon. I’m just not creative enough to think of anything.
I know that some people send out annual newsletters to friends and family, something I always love the thought of doing yet never have got around to myself.
A few years back we did send out personalised Christmas cards where the children (however many there were in that particular year) would dress up in Santa hats in September and we’d take the photo in time to set up personalised cards to send out. That probably came close to something different – a sort of tradition which went on for all of two years and something I had completely forgotten about until I was browsing Hallmark UK.
I love the tackiness of decorations and love, love, love houses that have gone overboard with theirs. I swear I’d be over the moon if someone came and created a complete grotto on the front garden. The neighbours must be hugely relieved that I am a) too lazy and b) too unimaginative to actually do it myself.
My lack of imagination shows as you can tell, as I’ve yet to come up with a single tradition we can adopt as a family so I’m throwing it out to you, dear readers (yes, that’s both of you). I would love to create a new tradition for our family that can be passed down but I don’t know where to begin!
What traditions do you have? I’d love to hear all about them. Go ahead and inspire me!
(Post in association with Hallmark UK)
We always go to christingle, and mindnight mass. its so lovely and reminds us of the true reason for christmas.
We love getting al the presents ready and have a glass of mulled wine when wrapping them and putting them under the tree ready for the children in the morning.
* always buy the kids slipper and pyjamas for christmas
* always have a doze when watching the queens speach!! lol
* always light the childrens baptismal candles at christmas dinner.
* always burn something in the oven ( not really a tradition but it always happens).
Boxing day (do you have that in the UK? I don’t think America does, it’s the day after christmas) is the day for my husbands family, as they have other guests that day too that my husband likes to see. We have a rule on christmas day, we don’t leave the house. I always hated the idea of getting all the new toys and presents and then putting them away and being stuck in the car or bored at a mostly grown up party all day. So we have an open door policy, anyone who wants to come to our house for christmas lunch is welcome. Things may change when my sister has children, but right now we’re the only ones with kids, so most of my family is happy to just come to us. We usually have dad, his girlfriend and her kids (they’re older and, unfortunately, don’t care much as long as they have their ipads etc), grandma and grandad, sister and her fiance.
As for traditions, christmas eve is baking day! Always spent the day baking. Christmas night I always remember watching the carols on TV, but they’ve gotten pretty poor in recent years, so now we brave the crowds and go christmas lighting, using the winning houses and streets from the big christmas light contest held each year (actually the crowds aren’t too bad if you don’t go to the first place winners houses on christmas eve, we usually do them during a few nights over the course of december).
Advent calenders were a big part of christmas for me as a kid, though mine aren’t old enough for them yet, next year maybe. We tried to make them about the true meaning of christmas, with themed gifts teaching the christmas story etc.
Oh, and putting up the tree! Being in Australia, and the middle of summer, we don’t have live trees for christmas. Apparently some people down south do, but that plasticy tree smell is a key part of christmas for me lol. We ALWAYS put it up on the 1st of december.
I’m sure more traditions will form as our kids get bigger.
I’m really excited this year because we are planning on spending our first Christmas at home with just the 7 of us (and hopefully Grumpy [grandad]) Usually we all go to mum and dad’s house for a massive family Christmas with all my brothers and sister and their families. We’ve been married for 14 years and we’ve never had Christmas at home!!!
I’m planning on setting up some new family traditions. I’m going to put together a family Christmas hamper for Christmas eve which will contain, new pjs for everyone, treats and hot chocolate, a Christmas DVD. The plan is we will snuggle in our pj’s under blankets and watch a Christmas movie with lots of treats and hot chocolate on Christmas Eve. I’m really looking forward to this family time.
On Boxing Day, we always go to the pantomime with Nanny and Grandad, all my siblings and their kids. We have so much fun. It is one of the highlights of the year.
Our church has a carols by candlelight service a few days before Christmas, which is always really wonderful.
I wonder what other traditions we might start this year…. I’m really excited and looking forward to it.
1 Saturday in December they wake up to a naughty Christmas character last year was a reindeer. Santa writes a letter saying this a naughty …. and you need to teach him how to be good and when they wake up in the morning he will have done something naughty like put knickers on the Christmas tree or made snow angels in flour. It’s an American tradition known as elf on the shelf if you pinterest it there are loads of ideas.
This year rather than reinforcing the nativity this year we are giving them their own Christmas tree in the playroom they can decorate and in the main room we will use the scriptures to come up with names of Christ and hang them on the tree. They aren’t allowed their advent chocolate till we do something referring to the true meaning of Christmas.
On Christmas eve we always go to a carol service and then when they get back they will have new pj’s and set the food out for Santa and they will draw a picture or write a letter to say thankyou which we put with his snacks. I’m getting so excited thinking about it and now put the christmas album on.