GTKY- Christmas/ Hanukkah

[waverly]

1. What are your fun Christmas or Hanukkah traditions?

2. Anything that you do that is not a tradition?

3. Bonus Q- Did you decorate yet?

4. I lied, here is another Q.  Do y'all do anything for the solstice?  Every year, I act like I am going to do something and then never do.  

[waverly]

1. I don't really do traditions because I like to do something different every year. During Covid for 2020, and 2021 we saw a lot of light displays due to social distancing, so I am fine not seeing any for a while. I do send out Christmas cards every year, no perfect family photo, just random photos from over the years. I do like to see a show, but it doesn't have to be the same show. Last year we saw Blue Man Group and this year it was Hamilton. We do usually stay home this holiday also.

2. Last year, I hosted a girl to decorate cookies and that was fun, DD did not want a cookie baking party so this was my alternative, pre-baked cookies and just decorate. We actually got take out from one of the places that was open on Christmas day and it was very yummy! It was this shrimp place we had never been to and never went again because they actually moved out. I really like doing new and different things for the holidays. DD and I also went to a high school murder mystery play. We actually sat onstage. The murder weapon was a spork, so it was obviously hilarious. Very unique experience.

3. I feel like there is more pressure to decorate at Thanksgiving, so I always feel behind, but we got it up last weekend due to DD and societal pressure.

[mae0111]

1. What are your fun Christmas or Hanukkah traditions?
We go to a couple different light displays every year. One is near MIL's house 5 hours away - a drive through display. So we usually do that when we're there for Thanksgiving. The other is a walking path through a large estate locally. We bundle up and walk through and then we go out to dinner all together. I also make homemade cut out cookies and homemade frosting and icing and the kids decorate them for Santa on Christmas Eve during the day.

Christmas Eve evening we get in our PJs and watch Mass online. We make homemade pasta and chicken parm and watch a Christmas movie after dinner.

2. Anything that you do that is not a tradition?

This year we went to see Frozen as part of the kids' gifts. We don't always do a show. I might let the kids each have friends over to decorate cookies.

3. Bonus Q- Did you decorate yet?

I'm about 1/2 way through decorating. The kids keep fighting when we try to decorate together, so I keep cutting it short.

4. I lied, here is another Q. Do y'all do anything for the solstice? Every year, I act like I am going to do something and then never do.

I cannot take on one more thing this time of year, so no, nothing for solstice.

[sdlaura]

1. No unusual traditions. We do advent calendars, make cookies, decorate gingerbread houses (I need to buy some kits) and the kids wear matching jammies on Christmas Eve - I get a new set each year for them and all the cousins. Some years we've done the holiday coaster train with Santa, or a teddy bear tea at a resort nearby (the kids love it because tons of sweets, but super expensive). This year we'll go see the Nutcracker next Saturday afternoon. We have no family on this coast and I'm not a fan of taking everyone cross-country around the holidays, so it's usually just our immediate family for Christmas.

2.On Christmas Day afternoon we get to go meet our puppy that can come home in mid-January, so that will be exciting. The breeder is like an hour away. On Christmas morning we're going to hang a stocking up with puppy stuff inside to surprise the kids. Did someone here recommend a good puppy care book for kids? I want to add that to the stocking.

3. In terms of decorating, we did it the weekend after Thanksgiving. So lights and tree are up. I hang all the holiday cards we get from people on a garland on our banister, so I'm looking forward to receiving more of those.

4. My parents' wedding anniversary is on the winter solstice, and this year is their 50th anniversary. My sister and I combined their anniversary and Christmas gifts and got them some big gifts. So my Dad is getting a Peloton bike and my Mom is getting a gold ring. I arranged the Peloton delivery for that day, so my sister will go to their house and she'll FaceTime me. We're planning a family vacation next summer to celebrate their anniversary. My parents were living together before they were married in the 70s and my Mom's parents said they couldn't sleep in the same bed when they went back to Ohio to visit for Christmas unless they were married. So they got married on 12/22. One time I said "why did you guys get married on the shortest day of the year?" and my Dad said "it was also the longest night!" Ewwwww

[supertrooper1]

1. We don't have a lot of traditions other than putting up a Christmas tree. The last 5 Christmases have all been different due to changing custody schedules and Beau and I figuring out how to blend our families.

2. This year is the non-traditional year because we'll be in Hawaii the week before Christmas. We get home early on the 24th and DS has to go to his dad's starting the evening of the 24th through the end of Christmas break.

3. I'm only putting up the tree and stockings this year. I have the tree up and need to get the stockings out of their storage box.

4. I don't do anything for solstice.

[rere]

My Christmas is starting to look a little different with the kids getting older.

1. Thankfully we still have some of our traditions this year. We waited for Ds to do the tree. I've also made 3 batches of homemade cookies so far, 1 together, 1 because ds ate them all, and one to send back with him. Dd and I will make another batch. We will also make candy at home and at a candy party. We also make a bunch of appetizers on the 23rd to snack on through the holiday.

2. I have a women's Christmas party where we wear pajamas, eat, drink, and play silly games. I'm wearing and Army sweatshirt with pj bottoms from dds University.

3. I had to hold off until Thanksgiving to decorate with ds or else I'd have done it the first of November. I usuallyput one up in the basement too, but it seems like to much energ this year

[campermom]

1. What are your fun Christmas or Hanukkah traditions? My mom makes 3 batches of different cookie dough for each of my sisters and I-isn’t that a gift! We just bake them. We do breakfast w Santa, but do it at a different place each year-whatever matches our free time.

2. Anything that you do that is not a tradition? I am one of the only people I know who doesn’t have an Elf. I just can’t handle anymore tasks.

3. Bonus Q- Did you decorate yet? Yes-boyfriend put up light this weekend while did the inside. Got the tree done yesterday.

4. I lied, here is another Q. Do y'all do anything for the solstice? Nope

[macmars45]

1. I'm hoping we can revive some of the fun stuff we did with DS(7.5) when he was 2-4. He was sick basically all of December the last two school years so we did no fun things. So far we got to decorate gingerbread houses. I'm hoping to make cookies with him this coming weekend as well. Fingers crossed he stays healthy.

2. I don't think so.

3. We almost never put up the tree until the first weekend in December. We were going to decorate the tree last weekend. We discovered the pre-lit tree lights finally died so H spent more than an hour taking the lights off (they were attached very well). Then we didn't buy enough lights. So hopefully tonight we can get the tree decorated.

4. No.

[librarychica]

1. What are your fun Christmas or Hanukkah traditions?
We are pretty low-key around the holidays, or at least I try. We put up a tree and do some decorating, we watch a lot of Christmas movies, and we usually have appetizer dinner on Christmas Eve — which is also DD1’s birthday — if we are home. Every year we alternate between Christmas Eve at home and visiting family on Christmas Day, and the reverse. Last year we started putting together a larger holiday Lego as a family.

2.Anything that you do that is not a tradition?

My brother is hosting a family Christmas party this year and evidently there’s going to be karaoke. H and I are also going to a book and booze exchange party.

3. Bonus Q- Did you decorate yet?

Yes, indoor. Aiming to get some lights up this weekend.

4. I lied, here is another Q.  Do y'all do anything for the solstice?  Every year, I act like I am going to do something and then never do. 

Nope

[mommyatty]

1. We do cookies, and decorating, and until this year we always did the elf on the shelf.
2. Every year we have a party where we tell our friends to drop off their kids. We decorate cookies, watch a Christmas movie, and eat pizza, while the parents get to wrap gifts or do whatever the heck they need to do that can’t get done with munchkins running around. We also count down the 12 days until Christmas by reading a Christmas picture book every night. The kids might be too old for that this year.
3. We have mostly decorated the inside of the house. Haven’t done our outside lights yet.
4. Nothing for the solstice, but OMG I am loving sdlaura’s story about her parents’ getting married on the longest night of the year. I laughed out loud at that.

[librarychica]

mommyatty, my mother read us Christmas books on Christmas Eve. She had a particularly pretty copy of the night before chrisgmas. I haven’t carried on the tradition — I had almost forgotten it until you mentioned yours — but it makes me all warm and fuzzy thinking about now. We do have Christmas books and we do read them, but there is something special about it being an intentional thing.

[dglvrk2]

1. One fun and somewhat unique tradition we have is celebrating the Feast of St. Nicholas, which is tomorrow. It's a tradition passed down from my maternal grandmother's family, which was very German. "St. Nicholas" (aka I) puts a small gift in a shoe or boot for each DD on the night before the feast. They get their gifts the morning of the feast day.

This year, because mornings are pretty hectic for us, St Nicholas came tonight and both girls were stoked to get new Christmas pajamas.

2. Something that's not a tradition: I love looking at Christmas lights but don't do this every year

3. I've put up all of our decorations, except the outside lights. Usually they're the first thing to go up. I think we'll wait until this weekend.

4. I don't do anything for Solstice now. It was a big deal in my hometown, so I used to go to parties etc on the Solstice...

[twinmomma]

1. What are your fun Christmas or Hanukkah traditions?
We always go to the local festival of trees every year. It happens in late November so that if you win a tree in the raffle you have it all December. It's like our kick off to the season. Our other big tradition is our cookie weekend with my family. We bake 700+ cookies to give out as gifts to everyone. My mom started it when she was teaching and my dad was on the fire department and it's just become a thing now.

2. Anything that you do that is not a tradition?
We sometimes tack on other events - looking at lights, school holiday breakfast, family parties. It just depends on the schedule and the year and the custody schedule shake out during the season.

3. Bonus Q- Did you decorate yet?
Oh ya! The inside of the house has been decorated since mid-November. I might tackle outside lights this weekend since the weather is going to be ok.

4. I lied, here is another Q. Do y'all do anything for the solstice? Every year, I act like I am going to do something and then never do.
Nope, nothing for solstice.