What traditions do you have for Christmas that....

**Katybird** · 06-20-2003, 06:14 PM

you would like to pass on to your children? Do you have a special meal that you make, a special prayer that is spoken, a special gift? Would you like to see these traditions continued by your children into the next generation.

We have always celebrated our Christmas on Christmas Eve with the extended family. We ususally go to Robin's house and have big family Christmas. She is the " Hostess with the Mostest" and always has a beautifully decorated home and wonderful meals. These are things that I want my children to look back on with fond memories when they are older, the fun family Christmas' , the family holding hands for the Christmas prayer, Uncle Todd wearing the Santa hat handing out gifts.

**simplemom** · 06-20-2003, 06:26 PM

Oh, Kathy...I want my kids to have good memories for Christmas, too....but I find it's not as simple as that. At my parents' home, it looks like a mad race to give and open the gifts...

Fortunately, we take our time, on Christmas morning, with our children, to say a prayer and reflect on the reason of Christmas...then we give them our gifts one at a time...seeing what each has unwrapped...then we have a nice breakfast with homemade waffles, that dh and I make for them, with a table full of fruits.

Thanks Kathy for this thread.

It makes me remember of these special Christmas mornings...

**Jerseygirl** · 07-09-2003, 09:02 PM

Christmas eve is always at our shore house with my Grandpa-he made me promise him when I was a kid that no matter where I went or what I did that we would always be together on Christmas eve, and we have been. We combine tradition Italian and Polish Catholic celebrations, and have a constantly changing list of extended family and friends who join us and we open gifts and it is the 1 day of the year I look forward to.

**QuilterMom** · 10-01-2004, 07:55 PM

What traditions do you have for Christmas that....
you would like to pass on to your children?

Making a Happy Birthday Jesus cake.

**kimmee** · 10-01-2004, 09:45 PM

we always decorate the tree together and watch Christmas Vacation, We always do a Christams eve carriage or sleigh ride to discuss the changes in colorado and we always get new pajamas on Christmas eve! The kids still leave cookies for santa but they also leave carrot sticks because they think fat jokes are funny.

**pkellyc** · 10-01-2004, 10:30 PM

After church services Christmas eve is at my house it is for my family, we exchange gifts, listen to carols, enjoy dinner and each other. This is quite large. ( there are about 30 of us with a couple of extended family members ) Christmas morning is spent unwrapping gifts and enjoying our small family. Christmas afternoon is spent at my mil's this is quite formal and small about 6 or 7 of us. I have to say I enjoy the rest after my family. lol Christmas supper is spent at my sister's house. There we listen to our neices play carols on the piano, and enjoy just the two family's being together.
As far as traditions we have 15 children between all of us. Every year 1 of those 15 kids has the job of saying grace before Chrismas eve dinner. The child is chosen on Thanksgiving, and the prayer must be original and heart felt. (And believe me they all work hard at it)
Our meal is potluck and served as a buffet on paper plates. My parents are gone now and our family has grown so large. Years ago the china and silver were brought out . But now we just paper plate it and enjoy each other and the birth of Christ.
We are all so close and have many wonderful Christmas memories. We are hoping the tradtions continue with our children.
I know some will move away to start their own family's but, maybe just a few will be together for many Christmas's to come.

**AmyMCGS** · 10-02-2004, 12:14 AM

We always celebrate Christmas Eve at my parents' house, with my mom making a big dinner served on her good china. We used to go to church with them, but, their tiny church is so crowded that we have to get there an hour and a half early just to get a seat-- that sort of spoiled it for us. So, the last few years, DH and I have gone to midnight mass here in town at my church after spending the evening at my parents', which is really special to me because it's the one day a year DH will go to church with me.

I always make my favorite Christmas cookies, Merry Cherry bars (I'll post the recipe closer to the holidays), and then some sort of breakfast casserole for us to enjoy Christmas morning.

I just saw a really neat Advent calendar not too long ago and was telling DH I'd like to get it and start that tradition for DD. It was the typical kind with the little pockets for each day of December, but the thing you pulled out of each day's pocket was a piece to a nativity scene... leading up to, of course, baby Jesus. I thought that was really neat & would like to do that.

**momof42003** · 10-02-2004, 04:48 AM

My kids leave milk and cookies, and carrots (just like I did when I was a kid).

We also read the birth of Jesus from the Bible every year..

On Christmas Day we too made a promise that us kids and our extended families would spend Christmas Day together.. We even have caught a couple of movies in the past. We have never had a Christmas apart, even when my brother and sister were in the Navy and weren't sure because of Desert Storm where they would be. Now that my parents are both gone, I hope this tradition keeps going for a long time to come.

We always have some sort of Christmas gift exchange, if it is just for the small kids or adults too, we just try to exchange some kind of gift.

The biggest thing that I can say will always be tradition is the big, and I mean big (80-90) family party we always have the Saturday before Christmas at my Aunt and Uncles house.

That is what I really want my kids to remember, is to spend time with family at this holiday, and remember why we have it- not for the gifts, but for the birth of Jesus.

**sunshine** · 10-02-2004, 06:27 AM

We always choose kids off the Angel tree and my kids all choose gifts for them.

We always do some sort of Advent project and video tape it for far off relatives. We keep a copy for ourselves and it's so much fun to look back at previous years.