Christmas Traditions Thread

[bayoubengal]

A place for all of us to share our favorite Christmas Traditions.

[bayoubengal]

And I will start:

 

When I was a child in addition to owning the local Ford dealership and later the Honda MC dealership my family owned and operated a dairy farm in South Louisiana. Cows don't take Christmas day off and my father always gave the farm help Christmas off, meaning he was always milking at o'dark thirty Christmas morning. Therefore we had our family Christmas on Christmas Eve. Nothing better than hot gumbeux on a cold night. So over forty years ago my mother began making seafood gumbeaux once per year only on Christmas Eve. My parents live in our guest house and later today Mom will walk up and we will cook all afternoon so tonight when we have our Christmas celebration we will have a big pot of fresh seafood gumbeaux. I shopped yesterday for gulf shrimp, oysters, catfish, sea scallops, lump crab, catfish and crawfish for my magic potion. After walking away from the checkout counter at the seafood market I was reminded why we only do this once per year! But I will cherish today as I know the years I have of making this with my Mother are limted.

 

What are some of your family traditions?

[Quinn]

Once my brother and I got too old for Santa, my parents moved Christmas morning to Christmas Eve after supper so they could sleep in and we could be out and about with our goodies in the morning without having to wait for them. I've carried on the tradition of sleeping in on Christmas day.

 

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[Matts_12GS]

When I was a kid we always did dinner and opened one gift before going to church at midnight. I have carried that one with my wife and my son; in fact, I hid my wife's engagement ring in our tree and had her find it.

 

After we got married and I got more in tune with her family's traditions, we picked up doing a pot of Oyster stew and sandwiches before church. We've moved off the one gift Christmas Eve mostly because it distracts my son from the message at church.

[Mister Tee]

The Tee's personal tradition is to get up early Christmas morning and locate a coffee shop that is open. Scored a latte and some donuts.

[elkroeger]

We've carried on my dad's tradition of having dungeness crab for dinner Christmas eve. That, and a nice bottle of bubbly.

 

Then we spend the rest of the evening sipping on egg nog, watching Christmas movies and the NORAD Santa Tracker.

 

www.noradsanta.org

[rocks]

I'm the third generation with now my kids being the fourth generation of writing poems for each of the stocking gifts we give each other. Sit around having breakfast on Christmas morning and read poems, laugh, and open stocking gifts... this often lasts until noon!... Take a break and then open the presents under the tree.

The poems are often written late on Christmas eve so its good fun... every one complains about doing it but all enjoy the reading of each others "creativity"

[hANNAbONE]

hERE iN AahWuh we simply sit on comfy chairs with a fire cracklin' near us and sip St Brendan's whilest dressed only in our Speedo's.

 

Yeah, I know...

[KMG_365]

The life of a firefighter doesn't mesh well with fixed dates of any sort. All of our "feasts" are by necessity movable ones. We do our best to mark the holiday season and now with a three year old in the house try to keep the "magic" alive for her.

 

My extended family used to gather some time before Christmas and decorate sugar cookies together. It was a blast. It's one of the Christmas traditions I miss as my mom was the anchor of the event and no one has been able to take up the mantle since.