Do you have December holiday traditions?

[Aidensmom]

Things you ALWAYS do?

We put up our tree the day after Thanksgiving.

We go to church Christmas Eve.

We open immediate family presents Chrismas Eve (and we give no more than 3 presents a piece).

Santa's presents are always opened Christmas morning, and he brings the bulk of the children's presents.

 

[tiggersmom2]

We put the tree up the DAY Lowe's gets the shipment in.....I think it was the 16th this year.

We wrap ALL the presents and set them out on Christmas Eve while the kids are asleep.

We have a huge seafood feast on Christmas Eve....with lots of alcohol....

 

[Jasminesmommy]

We have St. Nicholas day the first Saturday of Dec

 

[bavaria]

No matter where I am in the world on Dec 6th my mother bakes a Puhmann (dough man) for me still (Nikolaus Day). It tastes good even a week or so later

Dec 5th is Krampus Day in remote parts of Bavaria and Austria but that would considered very odd if celebrated anywhere where people don't know the custom!

 

[burberryplaid]

We have about 12 Christmas themed movies we watch every year. We have movie nights where we pop some popcorn and enjoy!

 

[golfgal]

We have several but many of them are going out the window this year since we are traveling for CHristmas . Some of the ones we will be able to do, open one present after Christmas Eve mass, the rest of the gifts get set out after kids are in bed. We decorate the house the weekend after THanksgiving, that is mostly done. We usually cut down our Christmas tree the second week in Dec but since we are going away this year we bought an artificial one and will decorate that this year.

 

[SunFloridaDisney]

We usually begin the cookie baking on Black Friday, instead of shopping.

This year, since I'm working a part-time job in retail, I had to work Friday, so we're doing some cookies today instead.

We do Advent rituals, lighting candles on a wreath with prayers, and we have an advent calendar, where each day leading up to Christmas is a special reading.

St. Nick day is celebrated on December 5th ( morning of the 6th) and the kids get stockings with fruit, candy and maybe a small gift, usually something practical like socks.)

Usually the tree doesn't go up until the weekend before Christmas, but then we leave it up until 12th night (January 6th).

Our town has a holiday walk next weekend, where the main business area of town is lit up, and the shops are open with food treats, and there are carriage rides, singers, etc.

Fun time of year, but we try to keep more with the religious aspects and do most of our partying and celebrating right at Christmas Eve/Day and through the week to New Year's.

 

[momof3disneyholics]

We always take the kids out of school early one day and take them to see Santa.

We always take at least one evening and go drive around and look at lights.

We always let the kids open one present on Christmas Eve.

 

[donnajon]

I have four sisters. Every year on the Sunday before Christmas, we have a progressive dinner. We switch who has what courses each year (except the sister who lives on the other side of town usually gets deserts so we don't have to backtrack as much.) And we open our gifts to each other at the host house. That way there aren't as many gifts to open on Christmas as our mom tends to really go overboard and there isn't any walking room between about 18 people and the piles of gifts. We go to mom and dad's house Christmas Day for dinner - which is why she doesn't cook for the progressive dinner.

 

[Chattyaholic]

Our tree/decorations go up the weekend following Thanksgiving.

We watch "Christmas Vacation" at least twice during the season. And I watch "The Homecoming" at least once too before Christmas.

Christmas Eve we take a ride to a few local towns to see the lights in the neighborhoods.

Christmas Day our DS and DD and their families, and my parents, come to our house for the day. We basically have the same food each year too. And we do a $5 grab bag gift exchange after all the other gifts are opened. Everyone enjoys that so much.

 

[beattyfamily]

We go to Church at the Midnight Mass or very early Christmas morning.
The girls get up early and we open all our presents. We save the stockings for last. We watch the Disney parade. I make a special breakfast.
The Christmas meal is at my sister's house (Newton, MA). I provide desserts like all the baked goods I made the week before and Strufoli.

Christmas Traditions:
My sister has a big Christmas party the week before at her house for her friends and family and coworkers.
We love listening to Christmas music and watching all our favorite Christmas movies like Miracle on 34th Street, the Grinch cartoon and real Grinch, Charlie Brown etc...throughout the month of December.
We pick a real Christmas tree from a tree farm in November and then pick it up the first weekend in December and decorate it that night.
Right after Thanksgiving we get the girls' a photo with Santa.
We send out Christmas cards by December 1 every year!
One Saturday before Christmas we make a trip up to see my DH's family and exchange gifts.
The week before, I bake Italian Christmas bows, all kinds of cookies like shortbread choc chip logs and of course, I make sugar cookies with my girls.
I always get my girls Christmas pajamas.
Every Sunday we light the Advent wreath.
Every year I buy my girls each a chocolate Advent Calendar so they can count down to Christmas.
Most years (not this year, unfortunately) we do a Christmas show like either the Rockettes, the Nutcracker or a Christmas Carol.
The night before Christmas we track Santa's whereabouts.
We started a new tradition of hiding the pickle ornament in the tree and the first to find it in the morning gets to open a present first.

 

[Amy]

Our tree and outside lights go up the day after Thanksgiving. Not lighting them yet this year since Thanksgiving was so early, but will soon.

Since my grandma and mom died, Christmas Eve AND Christmas Day are both at my house; all presents opened Christmas Day. Usually end up doing both the early and late church services on Christmas Eve since DH and the boys got put on the usher schedule for the early service and DS17 and I are both in the handbell choir and bells only play for the late service.

AND....the first weekend in December we take a mini-vacation to Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, WV, to see their festival of lights. We've been doing this every year since 1990, and the boys really look forward to it. DS17 will be in college next year and I asked him if I need to schedule the trip around his school breaks and he said I'd better - he doesn't want to miss it! That made me feel good.

Although this year we won't be going to Oglebay - WE'LL BE IN DISNEY! Our high school band will be marching in Epcot and a stage performance in Downtown Disney. So I guess the Osborne Lights will have to fill in for Oglebay....no problem!

 

[LUVMYTINK]

We decorate the house the first weekend of Dec.
Watch every single Rankin & Bass christmas special ( Rudolph, Frosty the snowman, Santa Claus is coming to town, etc....) & Chralie Brown & Grinch. We (the kids and I) try to watch them everytime the come on unless DH catches on (Hey we've already watched this one) For myself I have to watch It's a Wonderful Life on tv (doesn't matter that I have it on dvd) & the Christmas Story marathon on Christmas Eve.
Set the radio station (and this year the Sirius) to the 24 hr a day Christmas music station staring on Black Friday.
Leave milk and cookies out for Santa & a carrot for Rudolph.
Everyone opens one present (usually the one from my sister) on Christmas Eve.
On Christmas morning we open the stockings & the present from Santa, then have breakfast while watching the Disney Christmas Parade

 

[Hercules10]

Go to the nudie bar. Drink beer. Oh wait...that's a year long tradition.

We go to our candle-light service each year. Something about singing Silent Night by candle light makes it Xmas.

 

[apirateslifeforme]

We get Chinese for Christmas Eve dinner.

 

[SleepyMom]

We decorate (usually) Thanksgiving weekend.

If we are in town, we go to the Parade of Lights (the day after Thanksgiving).

We take a drive around town drinking hot chocolate and looking at the lights.

We listen to lots and lots of Christmas music.

We watch a ton of Christmas movies, so far we have watched Christmas Vacation, Santa Claus 1 & 2, Mickey's holiday DVD and Christmas with the Kranks. We still will watch Christmas Vacation a couple more times, plus It's a Wonderful Life and Christmas Story. Throw in Rudolph, Frosty and Santa coming to town and we'll be good! Hopefully Charlie Brown too!

We spend one weekend baking and delivering goodies to friends and neighbors.

Christmas Eve the girls open one present, and it's always pj's that they wear that night. They still leave milk and cookies for Santa and carrots for the reindeer (even though they are 22 and 13 years old )

We go to the late service on Christmas Eve, and on the way home drive through the park the city has decorated with thousands of lights.

After the kids are in bed Christmas Eve, the Santa presents are put out by the downstairs tree.

We always have a late Christmas on my side of the family, and will try and get to DH's side just before Christmas.

 

[mickeyboat]

We cut and put up the tree the first weekend in December. This year it will be the 8th because we will be out of town for a wedding on the 1st. Each child gets to place her special first Christmas ornament.

St. Nicholas visits our house with small gifts and treats during the evening of December 6th.

We visit the LaSalette Shrine to see their huge display of Christmas lights. We don't stay long, since it is always freezing cold when we go.

We have Chinese food on Christmas Eve, and the kids get to open gifts from their out of town grandparents (although we might wait until Christmas morning this year, since they are getting fewer gifts this year from Santa because he is bringing a big gift).

We open stockings first on Christmas morning, but wait on gifts until we eat cinnamon rolls, and until FIL arrives to watch. When we are done opening gifts, we have brunch. We might take a break in gift-opening to ahve brunch if there are too many gifts.

We all play and rest during the rest of the day, but have a big dinner Christmas night.

Denae

 

[coles1mom]

Spend the most money possible in the least amount of time

Judi

 

[Trish Bessette]

Cut down Christmas Tree and put it up the first weekend in December - that's next weekend

Bake, bake, bake during the weekends in December. Deliver baked goodies to family/friends the weekend before Christmas.

All gifts are from Santa. Christmas morning I always make my homemade coffee cake to have with coffee. BIG dinner that day - seafood or prime rib.

We save the girls stockings until night time on Christmas. I LOVE this tradition. Gives them something else to look forward to at night time.

Many get togethers. Work parties, relatives, friends. How we do it I don't know!

This year I'm volunteering with my oldest DD to help with the Polar Express train! Should be fun!!

 

[flipflop]

On our drive home from Thanksgiving dinner, we put Christmas music on for the first time.

We put our tree up the day after Thanksgiving and decorate the house the rest of the weekend. This is the first year my kids "get" Christmas and they helped decorate the tree and it made me cry.

We do one activity with my aunt, uncle and their two young children to get the kids together separately before all the larger family gatherings. This year we went to Storybook Land for Santa and Mrs. Claus' arrival. Last year we took a ride on a train with Santa.

This year, for the first time, we are going to take the kids out in the car in their jammies to see the large light display at the Arts Center.

Our family gets new jammies as gifts on Christmas Eve.

We have everyone (ILs and my family) over on Christmas Eve for apps, dessert and cocktails. Santa makes a brief appearance on Christmas Eve to see our half asleep children. Santa used to make brief appearances at my grandparents' christmas eve party when I was a small child.

My mother, step father, brother and his fiance come over for breakfast on Christmas morning. I make homemade sticky buns and DH makes quiche.