Our stockings. My mother made all of these to match mine, it's the same one I had throughout childhood. There are a lot of fancier or more beautiful stockings to be had out there for sure, but I could never bear to replace these. This is my very favorite thing to get out of my Christmas boxes each year. (I especially love how Matt's is bigger than all the other ones - I think that was subliminal crocheting)
The pickle ornament. Matt's family has a tradition of hiding this ornament in the tree on Christmas Eve. The person who finds the pickle in the tree on Christmas morning gets an extra present. My kids love this tradition.
Our Christmas book collection. Each Christmas Eve we get in our (new) pajamas, drink cocoa, read a new Christmas book, then read the nativity story in the scriptures. The book on the top of the pile is the first one we got (1996) it was a family favorite in Matt's home. The "Three Trees" book is my very favorite.
The "Holiday Express." Matt and I set up this train around the bottom of the tree after the kids have fallen asleep on Christmas Eve. When they wake up in the morning it's racing around the track. Last year, Will wasn't interested in anything else but this train.
What are some of your favorite decorations or traditions? I'd love to hear in my comments or through your posts.
Heidi, thanks for sharing those traditions you do! I was just thinking today how fun it would be to all share traditions we all have in our families! How much did you get that train set for? I checked them out on ebay so I am curious. That sounds so fun for the kids!
ReplyDeleteYour Mom is amazing..she is so talented. Lets all get together over the holidays!
The pickle thing is also so cute!
Those traditions are SO fun! We don't do anything that creative, but we do have a couple of traditions.
ReplyDeleteBefore Colby & I dated he was working in the produce department. One day I asked him to tell me all about a pomegranate so that I could have an excuse to talk to him. We talked for about 15 minutes about the benefit of the fruit & he ended up counting it as his break. Ever since he always has a pomegranate in the bottom of his stocking.
We also get new ornaments for each other every year. Colby usually makes mine and they always turn out way better than anything I buy...so I think we'll end up making them each year.
And last but not least, we can't open up presents in the morning until we've eaten an orange.
Now that our kids are getting old enough to understand the holiday we'll have to start some more fun things.
I love all of the things you wrote about, it is all of the Traditions you start that make the Holidays so special:). Our Traditions are pretty lame, we set up all of our decorations the day after Thanksgiving, Ty will allow no Christmas movies or music until this day. This really helps the kids to appreciate that Christmas does not last from Halloween until New Years Eve:). We usually have seven layer dip and other snacks throughout the day instead of sit- down meals. We do our annual drive and look at Christmas lights the Monday before Christmas for FHE, The boys and I decorate 'gingerbread' houses made out of graham crackers, and we have tried to have a manger that each time you do a good deed for someone, you put in a piece of straw. I am starting a collestion of Christmas books, we now have 2:).
ReplyDeleteI also love "Three Trees" and cry every time I read it...I love it. We always put up our Christmas tree and decorations the day after Thanksgiving while listening to "Amy Grant Christmas" - no better way to get you in the Christmas spirit!
ReplyDeleteThose pictures and ideas are so much fun. I didn't know that you set up a train around your tree. What a great idea. I'm glad that you and Matt help each other put the presents out, I bet it is fun for you to do that together. Mike and I are in the process of developing our own traditions, but so far we have a new ornament each year, we try and do some kind of service for someone special each year, and Mike's family always watched Babes in Toyland on Christmas Eve and so we are going to be starting that tradition as well.
ReplyDeleteHeidi, some of our traditions are me and the girls going to the nutcracker each year, gingerbread house party with my family, opening 1 present on chrstmas eve (pajamas),reading the christmas story, the kids pick out one ornament every year..that is about it! I like the manger thing!
ReplyDeleteFun Post Heidi! We do the pickle too - how fun! We wrap all of our Christmas books at the beginning of December and then unwrap and read one every night. I have more than 25 now, so we just wrap how many we need to do one a day until Christmas.
ReplyDeleteI saw on someone else's blog something about reading about Christ's birth at the beginning of December instead of waiting until Christmas Eve (what we usually do). So if we ever get around to FHE this week, we'll do that.
Our first FHE of December we always get our 12 days of Christmas ready to do for a few families. Then we secretly leave them something everyday for the 12 days. The kids love it and the only way it gets done is having everything ready to go ahead of time :).
We also started about 8 years ago with a photo ornament for every kid every year. It's so much fun to hang them up on the tree now!
Thanks for sharing!
I love this post...I'll have to get the decorating done and post one of my own. I love the pickle tradition-we want to start a similar one of our own.
ReplyDeleteWe hope you have a wonderful holiday season.