[Heather V Long]

We have a couple of traditions that have evolved from our families and a couple that my husband and I have used for the last ten years. The first is that on Christmas eve, we open family gifts. We open the gifts we give to each other and on Christmas morning is the big 'loot' fest from Santa for our daughter or the exchange with the rest of our family and friends.

The night before, of course, is just for the intimate and immediate family. We invariably sit and read stories, play games or tell them up until it's time to go to bed and my daughter started wanting Twas the Night Before Christmas read to her about two years ago. So that's a new tradition.

Getting ready for Christmas also involves getting an Angel from an Angel tree. My grandmother started doing that with me nearly thirty years ago when they weren't just angel trees but picking someone who may not have the money to celebrate Christmas and doing something for them. The first year we did it, my grandmother knew a lady she worked with that had four kids. The woman was just barely making ends meet and didn't have any extra. We went out and bought a present for each one of the kids and one for the mom, very specific presents that matched them, wrapped them up and on Christmas morning, we packed into our car and dropped the presents off on the lady's steps.

We didn't sign any of the notes, except to say from Santa with Love. It was a terrific feeling to listen to the woman and her kids tell all about it and we never told them it was us. It made them feel good and I liked feeling that way. So every year, I get an angel from a tree or if I know a family that's less fortunate, I play Santa. My daughter picked her first angel last year and this year she's already started asking me when we get to be angels again.

Our traditions are pretty simple, but I have always believed that Christmas is about giving and the wonderful feeling you have when you can make someone else smile. I love the loot and I know my daughter does, too. But the first time you're under 5 tells you they wanted to make you smile and that's why they did something, it's like being rewarded for every smile you've ever given! A little sappy perhaps, but I hope she continues the same traditions over the years when she's grown up that we do now!

Heather

[HappyWife]

Kudos to you for instilling such a strong sense of values in your daughter. Thanks to the foundation you are providing, she is likely to grow into an adult who will continue giving her entire life.

Our Christmas traditions are pretty simple, too. My husband and I spend most of the holiday travelling to meet other family members, so we like to bump everything up a bit for our own celebrations. For example, we decorate in early December and hold our own private gift exchange a few days before Christmas (which no one knows about!). I'm also an avid caroler, and while the carols bring cheer to shut-ins and others, I get the benefit of meeting a lot of great people while doing it!

Who's next to share a Christmas tradition?

[MrsBrown810]

We all go to my parents house on Christmas Eve (which may change when we adopt our baby. We live 600 miles from them and want to have Christmas at home). They have a big party. We also go to church with Jason's family on Christmas Eve. We run around like crazy Christmas day, to see everyone. Jason and I buy one new Christmas ornament every year and I start looking in November for the perfect one.

Is it a tradition, or just me being crazy that I have an overwhelming desire to listen to Christmas music right after Halloween passes.

[annharth]

Christmas in the Southern hemisphere is very different from the snowy cozy times that I grew up with. When I moved from New England twenty years ago, Christmas was the time I was the most homesick. Since then we have started our own traditions here.

As it's very hot here (sometimes cyclonic), we tend to spend our Christmas days immersed in, or playing with water. Since our kids were tiny we have hosted the 'orphans Christsmas' and all the people in our area who don't have family to visit come to our place. We've had Christmases with over fifty people from as many as ten different countries. Everyone brings something to eat and we provide the venue and the water slide. Last year we had poeple from 6-60 sliding down a slide in our back yard. We make a point of not inviting poeple until after 1:00 pm as the mornig is just for us. It's a different feeling at Christmas time, but we still celebrate warmth and caring for friends and family.

[aura]

Hi everyone,
I have been married a little over three years and my husband and I wanted to start family traditions for our now almost three year old. His parents both died by the time he was 15 and so family is very important to him. Every Christmas eve we have all the family over to our house for a big dinner and we open presents, except those from Santa of course. We cook something different each year from lasagna to tacos, this year he wants to BBQ and everyone thinks it's a wonderfull idea. Our little one has so much fun that she sleeps late on Christmas day, for now anyways, and after she opens up Santa presents he cooks us a big breakfast and we spend the day being lazy and putting together toys (both his and hers!! ) One other tradition we have started is each year we get our daughter a christmas ornament, what ever she is into that year such as Dora or Winnie the Pooh. When she is older and has a family of her own we want to give her the ornaments, each with a letter of what she was doing that year and what she was like. We also have started telling her the story of Christmas, as we are christians and feel it is important that she know! Aura

[markbarnes19]

My kids are very young. So, just two years ago, when my son was one, we started opening one present on Christmas Eve. Now, with my 20-month-old daughter, it's very exciting for us to think about them both opening something. I'm looking forward to it already.

[mcmama]

Christmas gets more exciting as the years go on. My boys look back fondly on the adventure you are about to have as the "tear, rip, destroy" years. We had lots of fun with Santa - we all still believe. And we have never been dissappointed.
It becomes a lot of fun when you look back on the Christmases because of certain gifts or visits. "that was the year we got the playhouse" "that was the year we visited the cousins", "that was the year Joe sang the boy soprano solo", etc. We always have fun figuring which book to read aloud, and which choo choo to torture the cat with. Christmas eve is the time when we all play together, as well as pray together!
We do a lot on Christmas eve when they are here - for so many years they were forced by the court to divide their time between my house, (Christmas Central) and their dad's house (We'll just have a little tree and not fuss too much and sleep a lot) Now that they are older, they are in charge of where they will go and what they will do. Their dad is usually so depressed by Christmas that Christmas eve is more like a funeral - so they tend to spend Christmas eve here and then go visit him on Christmas morning when he is usually "feeling better". Deck the halls with cyclothymia. Now since Dad is depressed, they gather with me - and we have a great time!
For a few years, my oldest used to go with a couple who no longer live in the area to cook for the homeless - he made that his Christmas tradition. and it was very liberating for him In college he stopped, because they moved and he got involved with his girlfriend - and had already made his point about choosing how to spend his holiday. The first year, my ex fought it in court, trying to get the judge to "forbid" it. The judge refused, said she thought it was a great idea for him to go. When he made the point that it was soo terrible, his son was going to spend Christmas with STREET PEOPLE rather than with his OWN FATHER, the judge said "yes, I hear the shelters are really lovely this time of year!"
Maybe when your kids are older you will do something like that as a family. In the meantime, enjoy the fun!

[Tsunshine]

Hi,
I was wondering if any of you would mind if I quoted you in a Parenting article about Christmas traditions. I have written a blog on my own family Christmas traditions but I want to share others as well.
If you don't want me to use your Christmas traditions please let me know.

[GraciesMommy]

I heard about this when I was in highschool and decided that I wanted to do this when I had a family. Each year we buy a new Christmas book, and each year we wrap all the Christmas books we have. Then every night before Christmas the kids pick a "present" and we open the book and read it. That way each year we have a brand new story to read, plus all of the ones from the last year. Eventually we'll start doing it on December 1st, but we have to build up our book supply. We bought 2 this last year, so next year we'll start reading a book on December 22nd and go until Christmas Eve. I thought it was a neat way to spend time together as a family, and read (which is something DH and I love to do)

[amyr3]

We always go to my moms house! She decorates during Thanksgiving. We always go look at Christmas lights, and have a big dinner X-mas eve, she invites my in-laws. X-mas morning we go back to my moms and she cooks another big meal and we spend the whole day together eating and watching Christmas movies. I'm sooo excited this year because my husband and I just gave birth to our first child! This year will be extra special and bring forth new traditions.