holiday/family traditions ideas?

[katemom]

With all of the holidays coming up, and our lo's first birthday, I started thinking about starting some of our own family traditions. It's easy to copy the ones you grow up with that you enjoyed as a kid, but there is also an opportunity to come up with some new ones! What are some things you've done with your own family, or what traditions did you enjoy as a kid? Maybe if we all share stories/ideas, we can find some new things to try with our own families? Please share anything at all - birthdays, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. (or whatever holidays you celebrate)...

katemom

[daybyday]

We always decorated our Christmas tree as a family, Dad cursed the lights as he put them on and then my mom sat and handed out decorations to me and my sis...she never said ONE word about where we put them...although the tree always looked perfect the next day and me and my sis just thought we were that good

Growing up with always went to Church Christmas eve, my dad read the Nativity story before bed. We got to open one present, picked out by my mother, inevitably pj's.....

We had to wait until 7am before we were allowed out of our rooms..had to brush hair and teeth, Dad put on Christmas music etc...we looked at our stockings, and then had to eat breakfast, which was also a tradition...Homemade cinnamon buns, fruit cocktail and ice cream, and orange julius's, all eaten on China...but then we had to do the dishes, by hand....

THEN we opened presents....one by one...Dad handed them out...our christmas day lasted...I LOVED IT...we moaned and groaned, but while everyone else's "christmas" was done by 9am....ours took until lunch!

[LORRIEc]

My grandmother started this thanksgiving tradition in our family.  She had 5 kids, each with a spouse and 2 kids each, you do the math.  She said that she would be thankful if she didn't have to do the cooking for a big sit down dinner.  So thanksgiving, for as long as I can remember has been take out- pizza, chicken, and chinese food.  Something for everybody, even the pickiest eater can find something to eat.

We always have fruit salad on Christmas morning as well.  The dads, my dad, now dh have to make it, never, ever  the moms.

[sophiems]

most of the traditions DH and I have revolve around our faith practices and the special days for that.  But as for other traditions, here are a few things we do...

birthdays:  we keep it simple on teh day, just having grandparents or godparents over for dinner adn I always make their favorite meal and dessert of their choice.  I've only once had a birthday cake 'cuz my kids would rather have pies and cobblers and such than cake.  We also celebrate their feast days (the feast day of the saint with their same name) and make it a special day for them and something they enjoy doing. 

Fastnacht day (or donut day, or mardi gras...the day before ash wednesday).  We make homemade donuts all day long and invite friends and neighbors to stop in at any time during the day to sit adn have a donut and other little snacks.  Some stay for 5 mins some for hours, just sitting and talking and gettign to know each other. 

Christmas, we make christmas breads for friends and neighbors and deliver them a few days before christmas.

my oldest son makes cards for someone who is sad or who is sick and needs a little cheering up.

 

[gail.d.clark]

Hi all, This is my first post.  I thought I would share one of our most special traditions for our thanksgiving.  This is my favorite holiday.  We know of a couple who sell fried turkey's for thanksgiving, plus they live on a farm with ponds and such.  Kind of like you would find in Louisiana.  Anyway we get going early with the kids (4 boys, 3 are my SO's from and previous marriage and we have one together...ages 11, 9, 7 and 5.5 mos)  they have a fire pit going and gumbo, Cajun shrimp, Cajun rice, mimosa's etc.  We take them an apple pie for their dinner later in the day. We just hang out, the kids feed the fire,  check out the ponds, skip rocks in the water, play tag with other kids, we eat a little then we take a turkey to go while we have all the fixin's ready to go at home.  We come back the boys fish in our pond for a while, we have a large lunch with turkey and all the fixin's, we tell each other what we're thankful for then (this parts not so fun)  :(the older 3 boys head to their mothers for the rest of the day.  We just hang back and watch foolball and eat leftovers.  Its so memorable, stressfree, messfree and it's something we cherish greatly.  Noe that we have the LO we're looking forward to adding some tradition to the rest of our holidays!
Love, live and luck to all!  

[LORRIEc]

Congrats on your first post gail, we're happy to have you join us 

[shelliz]

Ohhhhh...I love the holidays for so many reasons but one of the biggest reasons is b/c of all the traditions!

One of my favorite family traditions is on Christmas Eve.  Growing up (and still in recent years)  my parents, 3 sisters and I have a cookie decorating contest. We just buy the refridgerated sugar cookie dough and my mom gets out all the cookie cutters, sprinkles and cookie decorations. Each family member attempts to make the best and most original cookie!  The cookie MUST be decorated on wax paper and transfered to the cookie pan AND THEN....the judge (usually a grandma that is over for Christmas Eve dinner) chooses the best looking cookie AFTER it is baked.  That is the tricky part b/c the cookies oftentimes look fab until you bake them...LOL! Btw...the judge doesn't know whose cookie is whose.Then on Christmas day when all the family come over for the big dinner, all of the cookies are on display. They usually get a bunch of laughs! It is a very fun tradition!  One you start young and keep up through the years! 

[LORRIEc]

That sounds like a lot of fun Shelby,  I love your new avatar, what cute babies.
Lorrie

[taylorbean]

I love hearing about all these traditions.  Our big tradition is that on Christmas Eve, while we wait for midnight mass, we play Balderdash by the fire at my parents house and then open presents after we come back from Mass. We stay up until 3 am and then have a late night lunch with ham, cupcakes and cranberry sauce.  Loverly!!!

[elliesmama]

You guys are so fun!  Such great ideas--especially the cookie contest!  I love that!  My family is full of fun traditions.  My favorite holiday is Christmas.  On each of the five nights before Christmas, we watch one of our five favorite Christmas films as a family in this order: A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th Street (the black and white version only!), Christmas Vacation, Christmas Carol (on Christmas Eve--we can only watch the one with George C. Scott), and It's a Wonderful Life (Christmas Day).  On Christmas Eve, my mom makes a ham and cheese stew that we eat on her special christmas dishes, then we go to church, then we read the Christmas Story, 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas in Texas That Is (my mom's Texan and proud of it!).  Then, we open one present and then pop popcorn and watch the movie with apple cider and fudge, too. 

Christmas morning, we wake up as early as possible, push start on the coffee maker and wake up my parents (when we were little we did, anyway).  We open stockings and then one by one, we open presents.  It takes FOREVER.  Then my mom makes a sausage and egg casserole and we sit around, watch football, and get fat all day.

[shelliz]

You guys are so fun!  Such great ideas--especially the cookie contest!  I love that!  My family is full of fun traditions.  My favorite holiday is Christmas.  On each of the five nights before Christmas, we watch one of our five favorite Christmas films as a family in this order: A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th Street (the black and white version only!), Christmas Vacation, Christmas Carol (on Christmas Eve--we can only watch the one with George C. Scott), and It's a Wonderful Life (Christmas Day).  On Christmas Eve, my mom makes a ham and cheese stew that we eat on her special christmas dishes, then we go to church, then we read the Christmas Story, 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas in Texas That Is (my mom's Texan and proud of it!).  Then, we open one present and then pop popcorn and watch the movie with apple cider and fudge, too. 

Christmas morning, we wake up as early as possible, push start on the coffee maker and wake up my parents (when we were little we did, anyway).  We open stockings and then one by one, we open presents.  It takes FOREVER.  Then my mom makes a sausage and egg casserole and we sit around, watch football, and get fat all day.

Laurie....

  Texan here .  that is sooo funny...we also wake up as early as humanly possible, start our parents coffee AND we also have the sausage and egg casserole, watch football and GET FAT all day!   We also have the tradition of all 4 of us sisters go up into one of our bedrooms and we watch "Home Alone" every Christmas eve. It is hilarious b/c ALL of us fall asleep long before the movie is over!  Before we head up to watch the movie, our dad reads a Christmas story to us (for the LIFE of me I can't remember the name of it...LOL.  It is about a train that picks up the kids and heads to the North Pole ).  So...that is the majority of our Christmas traditions.  Fun Fun!!

[Messa]

Before we head up to watch the movie, our dad reads a Christmas story to us (for the LIFE of me I can't remember the name of it...LOL.  It is about a train that picks up the kids and heads to the North Pole ).

The Polar Express?

[shelliz]

THATS IT....thanks Melissa!!!  i had a brain fart!!!  lol

[Messa]

LOL, you are allowed

[elliesmama]

 

AND we also have the sausage and egg casserole, watch football and GET FAT all day!   

I would be surprised if that sausage and egg casserole wasn't on every table in Texas on Christmas morning.  I went to a potluck ladies tea at my mom's church down there, and at least five different women had brought that casserole!!  lol!