OT Christmas at Your House What traditions?

[raindrops]

What a touching thread!


We try to focus on giving instead of receiving at Christmas. Each of the kids chooses a child a year or so younger than them from our church's list of needy children in the community. We then go through toys and clothes to find things to put in a package for them (Faith and Gabriel always love this part), and then the kids are given $10 to buy something new to give them. We also have Cookie Extravaganza day, where we spend all day in the kitchen baking and wrapping cookies and oranges to take to elderly neighbors. That evening (around 6:00), we go on a family drive to drop off all of the cookies. We leave them on the steps, knock on the door, and then hide so that the person won't see us. Afterwards, we go on a drive to see the Christmas lights (I try to remember to bring cocoa and cookies to share). The kids and I also spend a good part of the year sewing fleece blankets from donated fleece at the fabric store, and I always carry them around in my car. If we see any homeless people, I'll give them a couple, and the rest are dropped off at various shelters.

We always go to Old Salem to see the Moravian Christmas celebration, and usually our tribe has a celebration, and we are planning a trip to see The Nutcracker this year. We also go caroling with our church (my favorite), and the kids usually have a holiday recital with dance or piano.

We have a very small tree, and each day it gets decorated with an ornament representing another part of the Christmas story, to read that night. On Christmas morning, Santa also sets up a little wooden windmill tree in the center of our dining room table, with candles lit and warm mugs of cocoa and plates of cinnamon rolls.


On Christmas Eve, the kids get to open a pair of pajamas and a new board game or book (i.e. last year it was the Polar Express, this year it will be Scrabble). We spend some time together as a family, and I'll make cornbread and chili mugs for dinner so that we can eat in the living room (quite the treat). The family exchanges their homemade gifts (we all make gifts for each other; it's always a big surprise, but I know that everyone is getting a new knitted sweater from me this year) and then we go to bed early.

The next morning, the kids get to open their stockings and their gifts from us before breakfast. We eat, and then they are allowed to open the envelope that Santa has left for them. That rascal always hides their presents! They have to decipher codes, read invisible ink, figure out combinations, etc. to get to their present. It's like a big scavenger hunt that can take a few hours, but they love it! By the time they find their gift, it's either time for dinner or close to it, so they may get a few minutes to play. I always make turkey, corn pudding, rice, peas, hot rolls, baked squash, and warm soup. We can eat off of that for days!

[Dancing_Queen]

My family tradition involves some huge arguement over something stupid. You can imagine what happens as the night goes on [img]eek.gif[/img]

I hope when I have kids one day I can make it better for them. Not just with presents either. Some kids think that a ton of presents will make you happy. Yes it is fun for the day and to brag when you are a kid, but I would have rather had a Christmas celebration of some kind. Especially when I got older and realized I was missing out.
I try to make is good for my dollies at least.

[geneobug]

Our kids are grown , but luckily live in town.
Our DGD are 6 and 1. The newest tradition we have added is creating a gingerbread house at Nana's. That is our centerpiece for dinner where
ever we eat. Then it becomes a Christmas gift for the birds. Then we make a christmas ornament for the parents and grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. The first Christmas I painted the babies hands with white paint and put them around a flocked or satin ball. I wrote the age and date on it. I had done that for my own kids, but the flocked ones have faded (paint fell off) so you can barely see them any more. The ornaments with pictures of the kids has been the best. There are many cheap frames you can use, or buy one at Hallmark. I have used canning jar lids, cross stitch "watch" ornaments and doilies. All are precious!

Brenda

[Felicity_Fan85]

My mom and I usually bake lots of cookies. And on Christmas my everyone in my family watches new movies that we get. We don't have a lot of family traditions other than opening presents together, watching movies (A Christmas Story is a must) and baking cookies/making dinner. Last year I brought Felicity downstairs so she could meet Susie right away so all the girls (or at least one or 2) will come downstairs again this year to meet Jess!

[shuffar]

I can't wait to establish some new holiday traditions. I was married just over a year ago, so things have been shoke up.

I'm definitely saving up your ideas, hopefully I can establish some of them in my own family someday.

Thanks everyone! Though? I'd love to here more!

[vew-tori]

For us the holidays begin at Thanksgiving. Santa arrives at the mall the day after Thanksgiving and we are usually there. He is wonderful complete with story time and Mrs. Claus (Maggie). He is the only Santa DD visited with and now she can recite the stories right along with him. We go as a family with my nieces and nephew. When Tori was little she asked for 3 things - I think that is all she could remember [img]wink.gif[/img] but now equates it with the wisemen.

She also picks a child from the Angel Tree either at the mall or church.

On Christmas Eve my nieces come over and we bake cookies. We then have dinner at our house or my sisters. The kids get to open one present- pajamas. After changing we load up in the car and go to my mom's to leave cookies for Santa and food for the reindeer. Then the girls have a sleep over usually at our house. Christmas morning we wake up and met at mom's where Santa has left the gifts. We live less than a mile from each other. For the last couple of years we have let the kids open their gifts first. While they are playing with their new things the grownups open presents (in peace and quiet!) Then, we have a big meal around 1:00. Most years we leave the next day for PA and my inlaws and do it all againwith them. One year we went on Christmas day and it was really fun to travel that day. I'm not sure about this year since we are meeting them in NY for Thanksgiving.

I'm glad Tori has her cousins to share the holidays with. It helps with the "Only Child Syndrome" we are guilty of creating.

I'm looking forward to the holidays already!

[Felicity_Fan85]

I think of the christmas season as starting on Thanksgiving too-it starts for me when Santa makes it down the parade route at the macy's Thanksgiving Parade-I watch that every year!

This year I'm going to try to help my dolls/stuffed animals put on a Winter Festival for their small doll town I just started this summer!

[Patti7106]

Something we've done that is super fun is called the twelve days of Christmas. We buy a nativity set and carefully choose a family that we think will appreciate it. Then, starting on the 13th of December we leave a piece of the Nativity set on their doorstep along with a poem or scripture that goes with it, ring the doorbell and run! This is a great activity to do with kids. Each night we leave one more piece of the nativity set until the last night (the 24th) we give them the baby Jesus. We stay and introduce ourselves and also give them the box that everything goes in so they can pack it away after Christmas.

To go along with that, I buy a new nativity set each year. This year, I am planning to get one made of olive wood from the Holy Land.