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Christmas Traditions Write OffDec 18 '03 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line Hang on to your hat, this sleigh ride is ready to go!
What a great idea! I am looking forward to capturing this in writing as it should be fun. Where to begin? Christmas Preparation The evening of Thanksgiving, we watch Albert Finney's version of a Christmas Carol called "Scrooge". I won't say its the best (to each his/her own epinion) but it is my favorite. Not necessarily the Saturday after Thanksgiving, but soon after, the tree hunt begins. Nothing artificial will do. Decorating the tree is quite a ritual in our household. We start with an angel at the top, and then string on the tiny white lights. We have a host of "special" ornaments, both gifts and purchases that go on the tree next, followed by the assortment of red glass balls- a traditional tree. Then, the train goes round the tree. O scale Lionel trains with a family full of engineers to man the transformer and the track switches. Its a lot of fun to watch the trains couple and uncouple cars, and to switch from one track loop to the next, stopping at imaginary stops to drop off existing passengers and pick up new ones. This is a tradition passed down from my father. Electric candles go in the windows and a wreath on the door. Next year, we will begin a new tradition of exterior decorating in a tasteful, non-Griswald family way. The candles are a tradition from my wife's family. Sometime between Thanksgiving and the week before Christmas, we will take the kids to the mall to sit on Santa's lap and get a picture. Our kids are young, but it won't be too long before we start sending letters to Santa. Holiday Viewing In addition to Scrooge, we typically take in "The Grinch who Stole Christmas", "A Charlie Brown Christmas", "Frosty the Snowman", "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer", "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town", "Miracle on 34th Street (the original)" and "Its A Wonderful Life". I'm proud to say I enjoy it all as much as my children or even more. Holiday Music "Last Month of the Year", The Kingston Trio. My absolute favorite. Can't get enough of this from Thanksgiving to New Year's. "Star Bright", Vanessa Williams. A gem of Christmas songs, old and new. Christmas Album, Nat King Cole. Right up there with the Kingston Trio in my must listen list during the holiday season. Vince Guaraldi, soundtrack to Charlie Brown Christmas. Excellent background music for Christmas parties as well as general listening. The Carpenters Christmas Album. I struggle with this because to me the music is so beautiful but so haunting with the tragedy of Karen Carpenter. Its beautiful nonetheless. I listen to quite a bit more holiday music, but these are my essentials. Christmas Eve A tradition for the men in the family is to do some gift shopping on Christmas Eve. This is not to say that we postpone gift shopping until 12/24, just that we go out for the experience of being out at the last minute with everyone else, looking for some "extra" gifts. We may or may not buy anything. The reason to shop is to people watch as much as it is to soak up the last minute shopping rush before Christmas. The traditional dinner on Christmas Eve is chili- the spicier the better, full of hot spicy Italian sausage, ground beef, beans, mushrooms, onions, and peppers. A splash of the red wine we will drink that evening goes in the chili as well. Champagne and a nice red wine complement the meal. This is a long standing family tradition. After dinner, we read "Twas the Night Before Christmas" as well as the Bible stories of Jesus' birth. "Twas" is a tradition from my family, the Bible from my wife's family. The kids leave homemade cookies and milk for the jolly old elf. We have a special cookie plate just for the occasion. The children are dressed for bed in their special Christmas pajamas provided by grandma each year. Not sure when my mother decided this was a good idea (probably right after I had our first child) as this was never the case when I was growing up! My final duty of the evening is to surprise my wife with a Christmas eve gift, as she grew up getting one gift every Christmas eve. Christmas Day Once the kids are up the fun begins! First off is the traditional "picture on the stairs". Out come the cameras for a picture of the children on the stairs, eager to see what is below. Breakfast is a combination of sweet quick breads, usually cranberry and pumpkin (or even banana), along with sausage cheese balls, something spicy and salty to balance out the sweet. If you have never had a sausage cheese ball may with Bass Farms hot sausage...mmm, anticipating 12/25 already! Orange juice, coffee and mimosas are the beverages of choice. Of course, the kids aren't eating, this is what the adults are nibbling on while the kids check out what Santa has brought (Santa's gifts are never wrapped, always assembled and ready to go on the hearth) and opening their stockings. Santa's gifts and stockings always come first. The gifts generally go somewhat round robin, with the children getting to open a gift in between an exchange of an adult gift. This way the adults can actually read the gift tags and cards. Most of this ends up in pictures and videotape as well. I have yet to master the fine art of "capturing the moment" with the videocamera and usually end up taping the whole event. Now if only I had a digital video camera, some time for some editing, and a DVD burner! Christmas Lunch No such thing in our house. Oh, there might be a small bowl of leftover chili or some nuts or things to nibble on, but lunch is usually skipped to whet the appetite for the upcoming dinner. Weather permitting, we go on a family walk in the afternoon, nothing too long, just a fun walk around the neighborhood to admire Christmas decorations and to get a bit of exercise. Christmas Dinner This always varies somewhat from year to year, but typically a large turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, acorn squash (or yams/sweet potatoes), real cranberry sauce made from scratch (no canned stuff!) and gravy are all on the table. A nice red wine (Pinot noir, Burgundy, or Cabernet usually) to complement the turkey completes the meal. Dessert is usually pumpkin and apple pie with freshly made whipped cream. The final gifts of the evening are a special treat just for fun at the Christmas dinner table. We refer to them as "table gifts". They are generally not very expensive, but something nice or fun to end the evening. This is something my family has done for some time. The Aftermath Once the kids are in bed and the tryptophan has kicked in, its time to relax a bit and reflect on the past year. We'll keep the tree up until New Year's unless it starts looking ragged, and once the tree is gone, the trains must go, too. Turkey sandwiches or leftovers for as long as the turkey holds out, or turkey soup are some good reminders of the holiday that has just passed. I hope you enjoyed a peek into my family Christmas traditions. It was almost as much fun writing about Christmas traditions as living them. Here's the link back to the W/O: http://www.epinions.com/content_3649806468  |
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