[kaurand554]

Our lives have changed over the last 2 years.... and looking for a new Christmas Eve tradition....

My kids are 10 & 19...

What do you do to make it special??

Thanks for any advice...

=k=

 

[Lori Biever-Launder]

When our DSs and our nephews were small, my MIL decided to make an easy Christmas eve dinner to enjoy after opening presents. We settles on deli meats for sandwiches and potato salad and baked beans. It continues to this day. The kids get VERY upset if we even SUGGEST that we have something different and they vary in ages from 13 to 18! It's not like we're telling them Rudolph is going to be the main course, it's like we're committing heresy! ROFL:thud:

I hope this helps a bit.

 

[Laurie in Bradenton]

For us its our family night. We all gather together at a local resturant and eat together. For us it means a place that can seat 25 to 30 folks. All are welcome not just real family members. Over the years we've had dozens of single and alone people join us. Everyone is in their best clothes men in ties and coats ladies in dresses. Many family group pictures are taken at this time.
After the meal we return to my parents home of 40 years. Before that time we went to grandmas house. Everyone gathers in the livingroom chairs are brought in from all other areas. Kids on the floor. Then santa is selected an argument alwasy occurs over whos turn it is. Finally someone is selected to wear the hat. This perosn picks the gifts out from under the tree and hands them out. Now this is NOT a quick process. Each gift must be opened, shown off and giver thanked. Then the next gift is given. If a stranger is there extra gifts have been added for them. Items like a giant jug of homemeade cookies, a banana bread, a jar of homemeade jam, a homemade knit cap and scarf. All daughters there are several in each generation are required to bring an extra gift.
As we are gathering in the livingroom the stereo is put on with hoilday music and the front door is always left cracked open. Its left open in case Christ wants to enter. But usually its a neighbor or old school friend home visiting their family. All know they are welcome at my parents home. Last year the Iraqi family that had moved in across from my parents came over with a desset and rug for my folks. My Dad and Mom had helped out when they moved into the neighborhood with their 2 girls. Small kindness use of the phone and bathroom til their services were turned on. Directions to places in town as they didn't know. They were amazed at how open and warm my parents were.
A word more about the gifts under this tree. None are expensive. Many are from thriftshops, yard sales and 2nd hand shops. Many more are homemeade. Funny things are laughed about and serious things are given with great grandma's line. "You've got one now even if you've already got 2 dozen you needed one more."
Then at 11:30 my baby sister (42), her husband, children (2) and inlaws (2) and sister inlaws family(3) all pack up and head off to midnight mass at their church. My family which lives an hour away also head out.
Its not about the meal or the gifts its about being together.

Laurie in Bradenton

 

[Darlene]

We used to give the kids pj's to open & they put them on and we all sit in the living room in front of the tree, fire burning, music playing & eat fondue for dinner. Laughing, talking and anticipating.

 

[mickee311]

We always go to my mothers house and my mom's family goes too. We all order Pizza Hut, watch a Christmas movie and then open the gifts we all got for each other. Except the gifts from my parents to us, we do that on Christmas Day. It's been a family tradition for as long as I can remember.

Yeah I know, Pizza Hut, we're weird.

 

[Dobby]

We live up north, so we've always done a sliding party, or if it's too cold, we play board and card games. We've been very fortunate in that we have always had quite a bit of family living here, so the gatherings are a little larger. At some point in the evening, 'Santa' (aka my grandma) shows up with one small gift per person. Even the little ones know it's not really Santa, but we all get a pic of ourselves on her knee, even the 6' men. lol!

 

[Buc-O-Mama]

Seems like a lot of our traditions are born out of adapting to unforeseen circumstances. Our Christmas Eve tradition is a picnic of snacks.

20 plus years ago we couldn't go to the scheduled service at our church on Christmas Eve because my dad got hung up at work. My mom had planned to come home and cook a big meal, but we were all starving and didn't want to wait. A business friend of my dads had sent us a big Swiss Colony type basket, so we ended up having a picnic in front of the Christmas tree with cut up cheese, sausage and crackers. Christmas Eve picnics are still our tradition. There is more food, and lots more people as our family has grown, but we still hold fast to that tradition.

Maybe talk to your kids, see what traditions they think are cool. Investigate your heritage, or traditions in other countries. I think you are really cool for putting so much thought into making these memories for your kids.

 

[MisaLady]

I love to open pajamas on Christmas Eve. We do this in my home now, even though we have no kids. I also love playing board games or cards on Christmas eve.

 

[mikandmari]

I like that idea, asking the kids to help come up with new traditions. Too bad that my kids have no imagination!

We have a big party at my Mom's. Over the years its gotten smaller, some older people family & friends have passed away... and Mom is getting older so can't throw such a big shin-dig. So its more intimate now.... but still gets a little loud!

One good thing about smaller gathering is that you can buy a little bit more expensive food. I could never afford to feed seven fishes to a big crowd!

 

[beesue]

We pile into the largest car (my parents' van) with insulated mugs of hot chocolate and coffee and drive around and look at all the Christmas lights.

Even my DH likes this tradition.

I come from a small family, just one sibling, so everyone fits in a single car.:santasm2:

 

[Michelle68]

We do pajamas for Christmas Eve thing, too. In fact a couple of years ago, right before Christmas, my kids were making jokes about how they knew what at least one of their presents under the tree was (the pajamas). I asked if they would rather have something else instead and both adamantly said that no, they loved getting the pajamas on Christmas Eve because it's "tradition".

At least once during the Christmas season we all pile into the car and go to one of the more upscale malls here in the city. We all walk around, window shop and people watch. We get some hot chocolate and eat at the food court. It's sort of crazy with all the shoppers, but it's our little tradition that we've been doing since the kids were little.

One other tradition we have is to go to a church that is a couple of miles away which has a "Town of Bethlehem" every evening for about a week. They build town replica and members of the church are townspeople and they have a living nativity scene. We eat tamales, drink hot chocolate or hot cider and the kids (when they were smaller) would go on hay rides. It's fun and free (except for the food and drinks) and everyone looks forward to this tradition.

 

[guest002]

We give a small (usually fun) Christmas Eve gift.
We make "reindeer food" and sprinkle it on the yard.
We use white luminary bags to make a path to our house for Papa Noel.
We do the cookies & milk thing for Santa.
We watch A Christmas Story (you'll shoot your eye out!)

 

[peanut]

We used to (my kids are grown) have a special Christmas Eve dinner by candlelight - linens, silverware, crystal - the works - and DH would read the Christmas story from Luke in the Bible.

Then we'd go to the Christmas Eve service at church. We tried to find a candlelight service. The girls really liked those.

Then we'd drive around town looking at the Christmas light displays. DH often listened to the radio reports on light displays ahead of time. We had friends who followed the city Christmas Light Tour buses around town with their kids. The city scouts out the best displays ahead of time and creates a bus route to take people around to see the lights...but not on Christmas Eve. We'd chat up our friends and just hit the highlights Christmas Eve.

When we arrived back home it was time for hot chocolate and snacking on goodies. When the girls were older, they helped me stuff stockings. Your 19 year old might be there. Sometimes the girls would bake Christmas Eve too...Christmas cookies (Danish butter cookies).

Then we got to open one gift each from under the tree. That was it.

Then to bed it was, because Santa doesn't come till the kids are in bed.

We slept in Christmas Day and open the rest of the gifts then...and have another big meal in the afternoon sometime.

It just kind of goes on and on here...

Jean

 

[HisDaisy]

For as long as I can remember we have had homemade pizza on Christmas Eve.
My mom (or I ) made the crust and rest of us 'decorated' the pizza. Growing up I loved 'decorating' the pizza with my dad. For dinner, we would have salad, pizza and Christmas cookies.
Some years before or after dinner, we would go out and look at Christmas lights.

 

[madhen]

When I was a kid, we opened presents on Christmas Eve, and we couldn't open them until dinner was done AND all the dishes were put away. Thus began the tradition of having hot dogs for dinner on Christmas Eve and of having them on paper plates.

 

[MoonMommy]

What about the family getting together and making a gingerbread house each year. You could all try to do a part of it. We do one every year (although not Christmas eve) with our kids. My kids are little, so the houses haven't been very big or extensive, but each year, we have gotten better at it, and each year the kids look forward to do it. Then I make sure to take a picture of the kids sitting by the House.

 

[frugalbabe]

Well, I sew so I make my kids matching jammies and they get to open one present which is always a book.

We read the Christmas story out of Luke, listen to music, sometimes drive around and look at lights while we munch on gingerbread men.

On Christmas day we always bring a plate of goodies to the different fire stations or hospitals in our town to thank the emergency workers for being on duty and away from families to keep us safe if we needed them. My kids LOVE doing this and insist on it every year.

 

[kittykatstrong]

We also do the pjs on christmas eve. We go over to my aunt-in-laws home and do that side of the family. In the morning then it is more relaxed and no running around.

 

[joyofsix]

Dinner is variable, but I try to make it something the kid's will like ie. pizza, tacos, nachos. We go to the 7pm Christmas Eve service, drive around and look at the lights after that. I must watch A Charlie Brown Christmas. The younger kids will watch it with me, and then off to bed with them. Then I spend way too long dragging in presents.

 

[Patty A]

We do a Christmas Eve dinner, and open gifts. Then Christmas morning is for the kids and Santa. With the adults being all done with gifts its easier to help the kids when they need your help to put things together or set them up to play with.
We snack on left overs and that way I don't have to cook anything on Christmas day. It really makes it a fun day of just kicking back and having fun.