Holiday traditions bring families together. As each new family forms, they establish and follow their own traditions. Each family member is strengthened and the family as a whole grows in unity and love when a family has their own personal traditions, wether religious or otherwise.
I was reminded of this the other day as I was stacking our holiday video collection by the t.v. The Grinch, Rudolph, Frosty, The Snowman, etc. All of these I remember watching as a child and they formed into a holday tradition all on their own. So I started thinking about it, and realized that I had a nice little list of traditions that I had kept up as well as formed since I left the nest, so to speak. So, here's what I came up with.
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Stollen (It's just not Christmas without this for breakfast.)
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We buy a new keepsake ornament for the tree each year.
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Each child recieves their own keepsake ornament for their first Christmas.
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Lebkuchen! It's not Christmas without this somewhere around. This is similar to gingerbread. When we lived in Germany, we got one of these tins every year. Here's a recipe that I have used to make my own. It calls for oblaten, however, if you can't find any just use rice paper.
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Baking lots of goodies. Among them are fudge, peanut brittle, rum balls, cardamom meringues, and fruit cake cookies.
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One present is opened on Christmas Eve
- A Christmas time line. I have a picture taken of the kids every year at Christmas. I frame the largest print and hang it on the wall. That wall is used only for these pictures. I can see at a glance how much the children have changed over the years. Prints also go out with the Christmas greeting cards.
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The family alternates Christmas Eve / Christmas Dinners. For instance one year we might have Christmas Eve dinner with my family and Christmas dinner with my husbands family.
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Putting an orange, and apple, a small bag of chocolate coins, and a small bag of nuts into each stocking.
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Giving back to the community. We choose several "ornaments" from our church's giving tree, purchase those gifts and donate them to Christmas for Kids, our local Christmas charity program for needy children.
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Gingerbread House. Make your own templates or use a cutter set. -
Each child recieves ornaments from various family members. When it's time for them to leave the nest, they will have a small collection to get them started.
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Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (I wish they would make one without the Destiny's Child crap. Bleh. I don't have anything against them, they just don't belong in this.)
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Don't forget cookies and milk for Santa! Here's a nice plate set. -
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Driving around and looking at all of the beautiful Christmas lights.
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Decorating our tree the week before Christmas and then taking a picture of it.
Free Christmas clipart from Christmas Gifts.
Here is a fun site of Christmas traditions from around the world.
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