With Christmas I've been thinking a lot about traditions, what our family does each year, and which ones I would want to pass onto our kids. It's a lot to think about. I look back on Christmas with so many fond memories. My family never decorated for anything, but for Christmas? The sky was the limit it seemed! It somehow made it extra special.
So... these are our traditions.
1) Both Mike and I's families bought ornaments for us growing up. We have quite an impressive collection from that. I love that I have all these ornaments that represent different aspects of my life.
2) One random year, my family decided to name our Christmas tree. Why, you ask? I have no idea, but it stuck, and it's still a HUGE tradition. In fact this next saturday we will venture out to the tree farm. We will stand there, and decide indeed whether the tree is a boy or a girl, and name them before we cut it down. Afterwards we will go to a local bakery and get hot cocoa and goodies!
3)Christmas Eve has sort of modified over the years, but has now become a soup buffet at my sister's house, followed by Christmas Eve service as a family, complete with driving aroud and looking at Christmas lights afterwards. Normally Mike and I end up at home watching a Christmas movie with homemade hot cocoa.
4) Some years, Santa came early at Mike's house growing up! Yup, EARLY! He would stop off, often during dinnr, and drop off something fun, maybe for the whole family? Like a VCR or new PJ's for everyone to wear to bed? I think it's fantastic! Maybe not every year, but I think hear and there is a great idea!
5)Christmas morning is spent with Mike and I at home by ourselves. We made that a tradition, if you will, when we got married. We didn't want to be the traveling couple at the holidays. We get new pj's for Christmas Eve, and enjoy presents in the morning along with cinnamon rolls... :)
Growing up we never did Advent, but Mike and I have talked a lot about starting that tradition with our kids. Does anyone have any ideas on this one?
So those are some of ours....
I'd love to hear about yours!
2 comments:
We did Advent for as long as I can remember..mom always bought us advent calendars for each of us, usually ones that had little sayings/verses. We also had one that had chocolate candies in them! We also had an advent wreath that we did as a family each night before dinner...we would always fight over who got to light and blow out the candles though!
I have wanted to get one for Caleb and I but can't find one that we like. And I haven't done advent calendars since I got married...when we have kids? Sure. And I do an Advent thing with my students - I have a kit called "What God Wants for Christmas"- they love it! And we do a countdown on a Santa face (the kids glue a cotton ball on each day until Christmas day).
My family was never too traditional in the sense of "family traditions." We never did advent, but I think I'd like to do that with our kids one day. We always opened gifts on Christmas Eve (night). As I got older, we always put up the Christmas Tree on Thanksgiving night--something I still like to do. I think when you have children it forces you to think of what you'd like to do with them, to start traditions of your own. Clearly, I still have time to work some out. :)
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