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| My mom gave us this decoration years ago--I love it because it reflects the joy my boys have always had playing outside in the snow, and it also reflects our many good times as children sledding. |
Like many, I am a collector of traditions. I do love the warmth, connection, and happiness that positive traditions bring. Today as I wandered about my house, I thought of the traditions that make up our Christmas and New Year's celebrations. Traditions that have evolved over the years and traditions that will evolve more after this mostly stay-at-home pandemic holiday season.
Window candles
Where my husband grew up, almost every house had candles in the window. I loved that look and adopted that tradition too. At my house as a child, my father always decorated the bushes with lots of lights and a wreath on the door. We have a wreath on the door, but have yet to decorate the outside of our home with lights--someday I'd like to do that.
Holiday decorations and the manger
Over the years I've collected a number of holiday decorations. Some, like the snowman shown here, were gifts from students, friends, and family members, and others I purchased myself because I really liked those decorations. I also have a manger and figurines from the First Christmas story. As a child, I loved playing with those figurines to recreate the Christmas story time and again. That manger and the figurines bring back those memories and remind me of the story and meaning of the Christmas holiday.
Photos: I take out the old photos in Christmas frames of the days when my young sons sat on Santa's lap. Those photos bring back good memories. I also have a Christmas photo album of all the cards we've sent over the years--mostly pictures of our sons which I love to look at.
Christmas cards
We adopted the practice of sending out a family photo each year to our friends and family members as a holiday card. We enjoy receiving those photo cards and sentiments too--it's fun to see how families grow and change over the years. Some friends send letters. I've thought of doing that as I like to hear about the stories from many old friends and distant family members that I don't get to see very often, but we've yet to do that.
Gifts
We give a few small gifts to close family members and friends. Of course, I'd always like to give more, but that doesn't work for us for a number of reasons.
Baking and Cooking
During the holidays, we have special foods and drinks. My mom was a great baker, and over the holidays I enjoy baking too. This year's homemade foods included the following:
- cranberry breads (Fanny Farmer recipe w/fresh orange juice, walnuts and cranberries)
- cookie collections: thump prints, spritz, peanut-butter chocolate bars, and coconut macaroons
- seafood newburg or gumbo, sushi, Nana's crabmeat dip
- beef bourginguignon
- Christmas morning brunch with crepes with berries and whipped cream, potato latkes and applesauce, and holiday egg dishes
- eggplant parmesan
- Feta/veggie bake
- fish tacos
Ornaments and holiday films
Our holiday traditions will likely evolve as our family grows and changes. We'll certainly adopt new traditions as our sons partner with loved ones and have their own families. We'll also finesse our own traditions, keeping the ones that mean the most to us. I find it interesting to hear about other families' traditions for the holidays too as one way to learn new ideas and keep our celebrations fresh. Traditions help to make the home a warm and welcoming place when they have that loose-tight quality of holding on to traditions you love, but also be willing and flexible with regard to updating those traditions in ways that best meet your families' needs and desires.