Christmas Traditions

[CTGirl]

Every year, my immediate family, plus a few extra people, get together every year for Christmas. Aside from opening presents, we pretty much just hang around at home and eat and watch old christmas movies. Because there aren't a whole lot of us, and no kids in the bunch, we're starting to get kinda bored of our same old Christmas routine.

So, I'm wondering what you guys do on Christmas, anyone have any fun traditions that we could steal? Or any ideas for things you think would be fun to do on Christmas?

Thanks in advance!

[mishl982]

The only tradition we have is that our whole family celebrates on Christmas Eve. Although this year my aunt is being crazy and doing it the day before. I learned this weekend though that in our family (and Vietnamese tradition) is that you celebrate at the person whose house is the newest. Kind of like a way to celebrate a new home and bringing in good luck. I thought that was a cool tidbit.

Oh yea, the girl cousins also do a White Elephant exchange, and sometimes others will join in. Last year we got like 20 or 30 people in on it!

[WorkInProgress]

Christmas Eve, we usually attend an evening service. We go home, change into warmies, light the fireplace, and watch A Christmas Carol (with George C Scott as Scrooge), and then go to bed. It's usually 11 or so. We've done this for as long as I can remember. It's probably the scariest version of that story I can recall.

Christmas morning, we wake up, check stockings, make cocoa, open presents and then have a nice big breakfast--waffles or pancakes, bacon, etc. Mom and I make dinner to eat around 3 or 4 (think Thanksgiving, but not quite so much food). Thank you notes (ususally? hopefully?) get written that afternoon. We also either call or get calls from a lot of family members, pretty much all afternoon.

Not too terribly different from what you.

My cousins open only one gift each every hour, so their present-opening takes all day.

EDIT: I should note that usually, it's just my immediate family for Christmas. Sometimes we have various and sundry grandparents visiting, but as a general rule, no. We don't live near relatives.

[CTGirl]

Christmas Eve, we usually attend an evening service. We go home, change into warmies, light the fireplace, and watch A Christmas Carol (with George C Scott as Scrooge), and then go to bed. It's usually 11 or so. We've done this for as long as I can remember. It's probably the scariest version of that story I can recall.

Christmas morning, we wake up, check stockings, make cocoa, open presents and then have a nice big breakfast--waffles or pancakes, bacon, etc. Mom and I make dinner to eat around 3 or 4 (think Thanksgiving, but not quite so much food). Thank you notes (ususally? hopefully?) get written that afternoon. We also either call or get calls from a lot of family members, pretty much all afternoon.

Not too terribly different from what you.

My cousins open only one gift each every hour, so their present-opening takes all day.

EDIT: I should note that usually, it's just my immediate family for Christmas. Sometimes we have various and sundry grandparents visiting, but as a general rule, no. We don't live near relatives.

Yeah, that sounds a lot like ours, cept subsititute "grandparents" for "misfit children my siblings bring with them" lol.

I think we're just looking to liven things up this year.

[wordsmith]

Our entire tradition system is in flux, due to now not having the same presence of my brothers/their wives as we once did, now that people are married and splitting family time. So we're kind of floundering right now as to how to go about setting up new traditions.

[Deavan]

Um my family sort of doesn't do anything anymore...being a child of divorce christmas ususally was just one huge batch of anxiety for me since even though every other year we do christmas at the other parent's my mother was always ticked off by that arrangement and would always let us know.

Then after she passed on we no longer even see her family or get invited to anything by them for the Holidays so I really actually HATE this time of year.

Things with my Father are better then they have been in the past but I don't look forward to spending to Christmas Eve with him since things are justnot comfortable for me in that situation.

I am catholic and last year Channukah and Christmas were on the same day so I ditched my family and went and celebrated the jewish holiday with my best friends family instead.

[cache]

Growing up, we would open presents from each other on Christmas Eve-evening, and presents from Santa on Christmas morning. To help tire us out after opening presents on Christmas Eve, we would play "the dice game." My mom would buy 12 presents(2 for each person) of about 1-3 dollars in value, and wrap them up. All presents get put in the middle, and everyone sits around on the floor. You roll the dice, and if you get doubles, you get to take a present. Once all the presents are gone, you start taking from other people. After a while, you set a time limit, and at that time, anyone with 2 presents can go out, and those presents are yours. Anyone with anything other than 2 has to stay in until they have 2.

The presents, obviously, were not valuable, usually a can of Pringles or a couple scratch off lottery tickets or a pack of pens or something like that. But no one knows what's in them, except for one person. So people start to "think" they know based on shape and sound, and certain presents become popular or unpopular.

It is really fun. We still play, and usually spend an hour or so doing it.

[WorkInProgress]

Growing up, we would open presents from each other on Christmas Eve-evening, and presents from Santa on Christmas morning. To help tire us out after opening presents on Christmas Eve, we would play "the dice game." My mom would buy 12 presents(2 for each person) of about 1-3 dollars in value, and wrap them up. All presents get put in the middle, and everyone sits around on the floor. You roll the dice, and if you get doubles, you get to take a present. Once all the presents are gone, you start taking from other people. After a while, you set a time limit, and at that time, anyone with 2 presents can go out, and those presents are yours. Anyone with anything other than 2 has to stay in until they have 2.

The presents, obviously, were not valuable, usually a can of Pringles or a couple scratch off lottery tickets or a pack of pens or something like that. But no one knows what's in them, except for one person. So people start to "think" they know based on shape and sound, and certain presents become popular or unpopular.

It is really fun. We still play, and usually spend an hour or so doing it.

That sounds like a lot of fun, cache.

[MetFanL]

We get drunk and go to Midnight mass. Good times. Especially if its a vigil and they give us candles. ;)

[WorkInProgress]

We get drunk and go to Midnight mass. Good times. Especially if its a vigil and they give us candles. ;)

I always wanted to go to midnight mass (except, you know, for protestants). :rolleyes:

[Winter Storm]

Um my family sort of doesn't do anything anymore...

Same here. I'm lucky if we get together and there is a hot meal since no one cooks anymore.

Used to be that I'd go to my sisters Xmas Eve to wrap her gifts, we'd have egg nog and listen to our favoritate Motown Xmas music but the last few years that got cut short cause she had other plans that evening.

I'm hoping to one day have my own family so I can start some traditions on our own.

[Orca]

My sister is working in Asia this year so things will be different this year as for the first time she won't be home.

We always go for a walk on the beach while the turkey is cooking. This is usually a close-to-hypothermic experience guarenteed to make everyone hungry!

[Ciderhillnh]

I just have Xmas with my parents.
I usually sleep over on Xmas eve, but I dont know that I want to do that this year......
We wake up around 8, and HAVE breakfast first. OJ, cinnamon rolls (with hard sauce)
We open stockings first (my mom is nuts over these.....we dont get socks, toothpaste, razors)---she goes full out with presents, and they arent just stockings they are mini laundry bags in red that she put decals on (have used them since I was a baby)

After those are finished, we open gifts from my grandma, so we can call her and thank her (this year she apparently wrapped everything and addressed them to my mom forgetting about my father and me.....we know some stuff should be for him and I but we wont know until they are opened)

Then we start on other gifts under the tree.......then we read, check out stuff we go etc.

Then my mom starts to put on food; turkey, peas, cranberry sauce, stuffing, potatos, rolls and champagne

While thats all cooking we shower and dress to have dinner.

After dinner, we sit for a few, then head over to my uncles for a bit...then I go home.

My BF and I started our own traditions last year. We bring all his presents from his family to my house on Xmas Eve (they live on the other side of the world) and we do stockings for one another over breakfast.... then we open our stockings, and then open gifts from his family....then we do our gift exchange.
Then we do a mini Xmas dinner (turkey dinner sandwich)

[winneythepooh7]

My fiance's family is Italian, so Christmas Eve is a big deal. His father pretty much cooks the whole meal, seven different types of fish is the "tradition". There is also lotsa pasta and antipasta. Followed by a TON of desserts. We open our gifts at midnight, and stay over at his parents.

In the morning, we head Upstate to my parents house. It's usually just me, my fiance, mom, dad and sister. Sometimes my aunt and uncle come, sometimes not. Sometimes my mom's elderly friend and her mentally insane son (another thread ;) ) come over as well. My mom always makes prime rib on Christmas. We spend the time unwrapping gifts, visiting and watching random shows on TV.

[MetFanL]

My fiance's family is Italian, so Christmas Eve is a big deal. His father pretty much cooks the whole meal, seven different types of fish is the "tradition". There is also lotsa pasta and antipasta. Followed by a TON of desserts. We open our gifts at midnight, and stay over at his parents.
I wish my Italian family did this, but none of them eat fish, so it's kind of a lost tradition. They do seven fishes for the seven sacraments, yes? I have friends that do 13 for Jesus and the Apostles!

Christmas Eve is still the biggest part of our holiday b/c it's all extended family, but we just don't do the traditional Italian thing.

[SmilesSoSweet]

With the exception of this year, since my family will be in Hawaii, every year past has had a typical tradition.

Midnight mass is typical. Then the morning of Christmas is when we open gifts with our immediate families.

Then we either gather at my mom's or aunt's house. It's all the relatives that gathered for Thanksgiving. There's food everywhere once again.

Before we open gifts (and the living is usually overflowing with gifts!) we have lunch and then watch the Laker game (NO JOKE - I'm mentioned this already). Once the game is over we can finally open gifts. The cousins have been doing Secret Santa for a few years now. And then it's my dad's favorite - White Elephant gift exchange.

We all get excited and are just like little kids when we open up our gifts. It's great.

But this year my family (minus my sister) and my one of my dad's brother's family will be in Hawaii for a week. One of my cousins already lives there. My brother and his wife have a week-long time share to use that just happened to be during the week of Christmas, so that's where we're going.

For Christmas 2007, it's back to our traditional Christmas. :)

[vxmike]

Um my family sort of doesn't do anything anymore...being a child of divorce christmas ususally was just one huge batch of anxiety for me since even though every other year we do christmas at the other parent's my mother was always ticked off by that arrangement and would always let us know.

Then after she passed on we no longer even see her family or get invited to anything by them for the Holidays so I really actually HATE this time of year.

Things with my Father are better then they have been in the past but I don't look forward to spending to Christmas Eve with him since things are justnot comfortable for me in that situation.

I am catholic and last year Channukah and Christmas were on the same day so I ditched my family and went and celebrated the jewish holiday with my best friends family instead.

Same here. My parents are divorced and we have no traditions anymore. We are now all geographically seperated and no nothing on holidays..this includes extended family too due to various situations.

I make it a point to not do anything special on all holidays. I sign up to work 16 or 24 hour shifts at double time and I can use the extra money to travel and visit people more often throughout the rest of the year.

[TinyDancer]

I have a huge family on my dad's side. . . we have a soup supper on Christmas Eve. Each family brings a different soup, and it's awesome. On Christmas Day, we have the whole sha-bang. . . but I kinda like the soup thing even more.

Our biggest tradition is gambling. I love it. We all bring quarters and play blitz or our new "Left, Right, Center" dice game after dinner. We have such a great time, and everyone gets into it from my grandparents to my grade school-aged cousins.

Fun times. :)

[coll214]

Also kid from divorced 'rents here, but Christmastime always seemed to work out okay. Christmas Eve has always been spent with my father's extended family as for the most part we're all local. my aunts/uncle/dad would take turns hosting and we'd do gifts, have a nice dinner, and just catch up. We did a grab bag a couple years which was a lot of fun, but my aunt has poo pooed it since. Oh, and Dad is no longer welcome. Normally after those festivities we'd go to my father's to open our gifts there, but doubtful this year as i'm not speaking to him. all together, i guess there'd be about 20 of us.

When i was younger we'd then go to midnight mass w/ my mother, but we haven't done that in 10 years. Since i've moved out i'll now get up around 9ish, shower and go to my mother's to open gifts/stockings there, we'll eat an early dinner, and just veg out playing with our new toys and watching a cheesy christmas movie. For about 20 years my aunt and her family would come over but that's stopped since my cousin's gotten married and g-ma's too unhealthy to travel, so now it'll just be the three of us, me, mom, and sister. As long as i have my lemon poppyseed cake, it's all good :-)

[spokes]

why not volunteer as a family somewhere - soup kitchen, delivering christmas hampers to the less fortunate etc.

[cheshrcarol]

I am very big on traditions and doing things the same way every year and I'm getting totally thrown off this year. Usually I stay at my parents' on Christmas Eve, and we'll have a nice dinner and open a few presents. On Christmas morning we would open the rest of the presents, have a big breakfast and then go to my grandparents' 2 hours away. At my grandparents' we'd do more present opening and have a big Christmas dinner with aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. After dinner we all hang around and play trivial pursuit. The next day we'd all go out to the movies or something, and then the day after go home.

This year we are completely changing the game plan. Because of the day christmas falls on and because my parents are flying to florida on the 27th, we're going to the grandparents' on the 23rd (also my mom's birthday) and then coming back on Christmas day. And instead of going out for my mom's birthday with the immediate family like we normally would, we're ordering in some Chinese or something because we're making big dinners on both Christmas eve and Christmas.

I'm kind of sad too, because my brother decided to volunteer to work over the holiday so he's not even coming with us. And one of my aunt's decided she's too stressed out to buy gifts, so she's not giving anyone anything and we're not supposed to buy my 2 cousins anything. This is going to be so bizarre.

[wordsmith]

When I was in my early twenties, I was the one who threw off family tradition, becuase I worked for a church in Chicago, and as such, didn't have Christmas Eve off...in fact, I was always an integral part of the program. So in the years I did that, my family would pack up, drive into the city, we'd grab dinner at one of the nine million Chinese restaurants that were open on my street (my family calls those years the "Fa-ra-ra-ra-ra" years, like in the movie "A Christmas Story," where Ralphie's family has Christmas dinner in the Chinese restaurant after the neighbor dogs eat the turkey). Then they'd come to my work's candlelight program, and then I'd go back out home with them, and we'd get to their house around midnight and my mom and I would stay up and drink tea. I usually took a couple of days off for the holiday, before anybody had to bring me back to the city.

[CTGirl]

why not volunteer as a family somewhere - soup kitchen, delivering christmas hampers to the less fortunate etc.

I've thought about that, but I'm not sure the rest of the family would go for it. I see them preffering something a bit more adventurous and unconventional.....

[Millenial]

Our family christmas this year will definitely be a lot different. my dad is in iraq, we don't talk to his side of the family really since my grandfather died a few years ago, and all my siblings are college-aged. i also have to fucking WORK on CHRISTMAS. thankfully it is just the afternoon and evening (even though technically it is a day off usually for me).

my plan is to hang with my gf's family on christmas eve until 6 pm then go hang with my family and go up to see my mom's side of the family on christmas day (something we don't usually do until around new year's). i will probably leave ct at 12 and go back to mass and go to work at 3.

traditions: usually have a fire in the fireplace on christmas eve. open 1 minor present, drink beer, eggnog, have shrimp. sometimes we have herring. we have a lot of swedish holiday stuff. our family is roman catholic except for me, so they go to midnight mass. christmas day is usually pretty typical, i feel christmas eve tends to be more exciting.

[EmberMae]

My mom's family is italian, but we don't do the 7 fish thing. Namely because no one else in our family likes it. Every once and awhile she'll make one kind of fish. But usually dinner on christmas eve is pretty simple. We go to church at 4 or 6, come home and watch christmas movies. We used to open up one present on christmas eve but most of us don't do that anymore. We open presents and have a nice breakfast on christmas morning and then play with our new stuff.

[CTGirl]

Wow, so no one out there does anything totally unique for Christmas? Hmm, looks like I'm going to have to be creative and come up with something myself......

(and I mean no offense to anyone's Christmas traditions, they all sound lovely, just not what I was looking for)

[pisces2473]

CT--what about looking up Christmas traditions around the world, and incorporating one of those that you like into your holiday celebration?

[CTGirl]

CT--what about looking up Christmas traditions around the world, and incorporating one of those that you like into your holiday celebration?

oh, good idea! I'll have to check into that......

[AG_47]

We had a huge family feud between my dad's sisters so we've only celebrated Christmas with my mom's side of the family for the past ten or so years. We get together either on the weekend before or after Christmas - alternating every other year between my parents house and my Aunt and Uncle's house. It ends up being my grandparents, my parents, brother and SIL, my aunt and her husband and three kids and my Uncle and his wife and two kids (Actually, the youngest of us cousins turned 18 this year and the oldest is 23 so we aren't kids anymore). If my Uncle R. is around then he will show up but he is usually either in jail or in a mental hospital around Christmas time (he hears voices, thinks he's an alien and threatens to kill people). Everyone will usually get there on Saturday morning and the cousins will spend the morning watching cartoons, the guys will sit around debating football (my family are Viking fans, my Aunt's family are Packer fans and my Grandpa is a Bear fan), and the women will finish up their cooking or catch up on what's been going on. That afternoon we will open Christmas gifts and eat a small supper. In the evening the guys will play poker and the women will play Trivial Pursiut (my Grandma always wins). There will be lots of treats to munch on while we play. Around 10PM everyone will get together to play Dominos until early the next morning. On Sunday morning we will have a huge breakfast. We always have Hot Cross buns made with my great, great, Grandma's recipe, bacon, baked eggs, and eggnog. The men will spend the afternoon watching football and the women will go shopping. The cousins will usually play board games like monopoly or life. That evening we will split up the snacks that are left over and everyone will hug, say goodbye and leave. That's our typical Christmas weekend. This year it will be New Year's eve weekend and only half of my cousins will show up because the other cousins are in the Army and have been sent to Iraq.

[wordsmith]

Evidentally, my sister and I are going to go with the local high school music program alumni group (we are both alums), and play carols at the nursing homes and hospital on Christmas Eve, now, and my parents will come to listen. Should be interesting, it's been a good three or four years since I've touched my flute. My sister's still good on the trumpet, though, so at least one of us is solid.

[steph78]

Oh, I'm so excited - only three more days till we go up to my parents' for a week for Christmas!

Christmas Eve afternoon we open presents with immediate family (my parents, brother, maternal grandmother, and my husband...and now our daughter!). That night we have a nice dinner and then go to the Christmas Eve service at church. The next day extended family comes over - my aunt, uncle, cousins, other grandmother, and great aunt...and we have a big traditional Christmas dinner at noon.

We always play Trivial Pursuit starting in the late afternoon, and snack on leftovers from the big meal for supper (ham and turkey sandwiches!). We've had the same teams established for about 20 years - people that marry into the family get placed on whichever team has fewer people at the time. Spouses are usually on opposite teams - it gets pretty rowdy. :)

[yankeeyosh]

welcome back steph...and congrats again :)

[dr.cate]

This may not be quite as adventurous or exciting as what you are looking for - but my family always gets together on Christmas Eve before the midnight service to generally hang out and eat as much as we can. No gifts, just a chance to really talk and catch up with people. we make it a little different by inviting people that aren't just family - friends, neighbors and a lot of people who don't have family around to spend the holiday with. So every year it grows a little, and we get to see some people that we never see at any other time of the year. It's great because the emphasis is on connecting and socializing with people, rather than the frantic ripping of wrapping paper that follows the next day. There is also a park nearby that has an enormous light display, so we always drive through that and see what new things have been added.

Other than that, it's pretty traditional...open presents one by one at my parents house, then go and gorge ourselves on three different holiday dinners. For my mom's side of the family we do a white elephant and for dad's side of the family, we draw names (which come with lists, thankfully). My husband's family is not at all predictable, so we do something different each year.

My mom and sister and I also have a tradition of baking cookies together (which unfortunately didn't happen this year, but I improvised and had some friends over to bake cookies) - you could always do something like that, baking, making ornaments together to give as gift or making Christmas cards together... just an idea.

[cheshrcarol]

We always play Trivial Pursuit starting in the late afternoon, and snack on leftovers from the big meal for supper (ham and turkey sandwiches!). We've had the same teams established for about 20 years - people that marry into the family get placed on whichever team has fewer people at the time. Spouses are usually on opposite teams - it gets pretty rowdy. :)
I'm glad we're not the only crazy family that plays trivial pursuit! Our teams are usually men vs. women or kids vs. adults.

[blueyes]

Does anyone do the Italian Seven Fishes thing? My aunt married into an Italian family and they do the whole thing: lobsters and shrimp and mussles and clams and squid and all sorts of fish. I don't actually KNOW the reasons behind it, except that it's a delightfully entertaining evening. To me, that means Christmas is really here.

[wordsmith]

I love trivial pursuit, but people always end up getting pissed at my dad and I for always kicking major ass.

[pisces2473]

People in my family are too stupid to play. *sigh*

[weary]

we usually play taboo and/or pictionary w/ a big easel. fun stuff.