Blog Cruise: Holiday Traditions
Well we have different traditions for the various holidays. One food tradition we have is that Easter we always need to have ham and deviled eggs for the meal that day. We also still hide an Easter basket for both girls and they find it that morning before we go to church. Our Thanksgiving includes a traditional turkey meal and even though I am the only one in our house who likes stuffing, I have to make it just for me. I just have not been able to convince anyone that stuffing has everything in it that they really do like. I don’t even add things like oysters or giblets to my stuffing or any other food that would turn them off to it. Christmas is another holiday we like to serve ham. I imagine it is mostly because it is just too close to Thanksgiving to have another turkey for our main meal. Sometime before Christmas, the girls go to their Grandparents house in order to make and decorate Christmas cookies. We also make batches of different cookies at our home too. Christmas is not the same without a large batch of Toll-house chocolate chip cookies. I try to make one other type of cookie and every so many years we make a traditional ginger bread house to decorate our table. One year we made a chocolate house instead. Our tree is normally up til after New Years. We try to get it up right after Thanksgiving but that does not always happen. We also let the girls each pick out a new Christmas ornament from the Hallmark store. As you can imagine our tree is quite full when we finish decorating it. Christmas Eve, the girls are allowed to open one gift before bedtime. We also try to put some oats outside for the reindeer and a plate of cookies and a glass of milk for Santa. This year we decided to start something new for Christmas Eve.
Christmas Eve we plan on all getting in our PJs and sitting together to watch the Polar Express while we drink hot chocolate and eat cookies. I am thinking some whipped cream to top off the cocoa sounds like a good plan. Christmas morning the girls have to wait til we get up before they are allowed to go see the tree and their presents. We normally set up the video camera and tape them coming down the hallway so we can get their expression when they see the Christmas lights blinking on and off and their gifts spread out around underneath the tree.
New Years Eve we let the girls stay up late if they want to and can. Normally we try to watch a movie together, play games and eat junk food as well as other food til midnight when we celebrate the coming year with a glass of sparking cider.
I suppose we do not do too many traditions or at least nothing really special like I have heard other folks do but they are still special to us as a family. I hope that each of you are able to enjoy each holiday you celebrate with your families and that you too can share special traditions with each of you own throughout the year.
I challenge you to comment on what special traditions you have for at least one of the holidays. Also check out what others have to say about their own holiday traditions by selecting the Cruise logo below.
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It sounds like you have some fun traditions. Isn’t it interesting how many traditions revolve around food? I’m very much looking forward to all of the yummy holiday food.
Have a nice weekend!
[...] Barbara at Alive in Spirit writes about her Holiday Traditions. [...]
Oh, I just love all the food traditions!!
I forgot to comment on our New Year’s Eve traditions on my post. Bummer! We have church services New Year’s Eve. Some folks stay there and “party” together playing games, food, and fellowship. We use to go but decided years ago to come home and do the same thing. It seemed like I got stuck (not the best word) watching all the kids and in doing so, sometimes my kids were neglected while trying to sooth other kids. Yes we were altogether, but only in the sense we were in the same room. So now, after services we come home, we have all kinds of finger foods, and we play games. Each person gets to pick a game and we play one round, starting with the youngest member of the family (yes, that means we all play candyland sometimes) because they may not make it til the older games are played. Then about 15 til midnight, we turn on the TV and watch the countdown til the ball drops and we toast in the new year, typically with egg nog.
Christmas…..our kids have to wait for us before going to the tree as well. You’d think they’d be up and ready when we come down but we typically have to wake everyone up and my wonderful husband loves to be the one to do it. I guess that’s part of our tradition too. He’s such a kid at heart lol
We usually have ham at Easter (though sometimes a leg of lamb roast)and some years we have ham at Christmas and some years we have a rib roast. We like turkey on Thanksgiving but not necessarily at Christmas. It isn’t really about how elaborate our traditions are, it’s more about the memories we are creating with our children. I love that your girls get to decorate cookies at Christmastime.