Seasonal Traditions

My absolute favorite thing about Christmas is the midnight candle light service at my church. The church is packed with people. We sing christmas carols by candle light. Silent Night at the end is my favorite part. Just looking out at all the faces of the people I love so much... it is something I look forward to all year.

 

My christmas tradition started 2 or 3 years ago: spending it alone. It sucks but I suppose its better then spending it with my moms boyfriends family.

 

Mama puts up the tree some days after Thanksgivings.

On Christmas Day, we open presents, say thank you's, clean up, and go our separate ways.

 

We draw names, and whoever you pick is who you spend the majority (or all) of your shopping budget on. You can buy little things for other people, but you focus on the person you drew. I have my sister this year.

Christmas Eve - dinner at my parents house. The menu varies, but my father cooks, and it's always yummy. Just before dinner, we do the "white elephant" gift opening. We all find the absolute WORST gift we can find and wrap it. For the opening, we put them in the center of the room, everyone picks one, and we all open them one at a time. Usually there's a LOT of laughter, and sometimes tears, as these things can get hideous. We usually pick a winner each year. I've only won once, with this wretched homemade lamp. It was painted purple and grey, stood four feet tall, and looked like a disco catcus. One year, I gave a huge electric shaver that I found at a Goodwill store...that still had beard trimmings swimming around inside the case. UGH!

Christmas day, we meet at my parents again. Gift opening in the morning around 9am or so. We take turns, everybody opening one gift, and then going around the room. Brunch is always my father's apple sausage ring with scrambled eggs in the center. We nearly always nap in the afternoon, and then dinner again at my parents. (Not always, but usually.)

The schedule is a bit squirrely this year, as both my brother AND my sister don't get into town until the 28th. That'll be Christmas. Three extra shopping days.

Lex

 

make ambrosia salad, and play pinacle til 3 in the morning, I hate pinacle.

 

Its been like this for as long as I can remember.

Get up at like 8AM open presents destroying living room in said process.
At about 12PM some years we would cook the turkey and such and the granny's and grandads come or we got to there's and such normally getting home at about 12AM. This year I'm going to my aunt and uncles. oh joy...

 

Christmas Morning tradition: we wake (me, my 2 brothers and my mom) up at 7 or 8 am, my mom makes coffee, then we all open our stockings. we then take our time handing out gifts, like the ones from santa to us, from mom to us and vice versa. we clean up all the wrappings, play with our toys and get stuff ready for 11am, which is around the time my two aunts and my grandparents would come over for brunch, and we'd open more gifts.

This year my grandfather and one of my aunts is spending the night christmas eve, i dont know how I feel about that. I like my traditions as-is, so I get upset when people try to change things....