Xmas traditions in your house....

lamplady

We have lots of traditions.

On Dec 1st we start an advent candle (a candle with 1-24 marked on the side) and we burn it every breakfast time while listening to christmas music. it's obligatory to comment on how far it's burnt down and how close it is to christmas too!!

We have a December basket with an item wrapped for every day until christmas. Sometimes it's a christmas themed movie or book, sometimes a craft activity and sometimes a charity related activity (such as making a hamper for an elderly neighbour)

Throughout christmas we have hot chocolate every night on a special christmas tray (from the pound shop), with marshmallows.

On Christmas Eve we always go to the cinema in the afternoon to see a christmas movie we then nip into the posh food shop and buy all their reduced goodies just before they close!

we do the PJ thing, but wrapped with them is an annual so the children can get changed and then go to bed with something to read as it's so hard to sleep on Christmas Eve. When they are tucked up we watch 'It's a wonderful life' and sneak the presents down, usually putting together a ridiculously diffcult toy thatcomes in 50 pieces.

We have Sausage and mash and champagne for christmas lunch and do Christmas dinner on Boxing day, as it's just too hectic otherwise. On Christmas morning we meet lots of our friends in the park for mulled wine and we do a chocolate coin hunt for the children (always telling them there are 60 when we actually hid 50 as it keeps them busy for longer )

scuzz

Loving this thread.

When I was little we had no decorations up before Dec 16 - sis' birthday. We'd wake up and find the birthday fairies had been and left her birthday tree (a small silver christmas tree) It would be plugged in by the side of her bed. Then we'd go downstairs and find "fairy land" had arrived. This was our sunlounge, which had chasing lights around the windows, strings of lights going back and forth across the roof, all wrapped in silver or white tinsel to make the lights twinkle more, and lots of shiney decorations. Poor Mum and Dad would spend all night putting it up. The fairies would also leave the boxes of our Christmas decorations.

Dad would film us putting up decorations around the house. We always put them up together and argue as to whether or not a certain applie shaped bauble would go on the tree! Christmas music would be blaring in the background, and I would get way too excited!

Advent calendars would arrive via fairies, who'd leave them in the fireplace, courtesy of Father Christmas. These would be opened every morning.

I'd help Nan to make the HM sweets and Christmas pud - using a recipe which has been in the family for over 150 years! I stopped eating it when I found out the ingredients! I do eat it occassionally now though

Letters to Father Christmas would be left in the fireplace before going to bed, and in the morning, fairy dust would be in their place where the fairies had come to take them to the North Pole. I'd like to add that Father Christmas brought everyone's presents, so there was nothing under the tree until Christmas morning.

Christmas Eve, my Nan and Grandad would come over to stay. I would start pacing about 10am demanding to know where they were and would keep checking outside to see if they'd arrived. When I wasn't moaning about where the grandparents were, I'd be pleading to go to bed! Bathtime was always before bed, and fresh sheets would be on everyone's beds. Mince pie, carrots and glass of milk (couldn't have Father Christmas flying the sleigh drunk) in the fireplace, then off to bed, putting out sacks (pillow cases) at the foot of the bed) I'd be first awake on Christmas morning and would wake everyone with flying leaps from about 3 foot away. Amazingly no one ever got hurt, not even me! Then everyone would be haulled into Mum and Dad's room for sis and I to open presents in our stockings. Somehow we'd all fit on the bed. There are many un-glamourous photos of us all first thing in the morning with hair flying everywhere! Mum and Nan would then go and start dinner and make the much needed cuppa! Everyone would get up and put best clothes on before opening presents under the tree - all of which would've been examinied by yours truly trying to figure out what everything was and to know where mine were:D

Crackers and hats with dinner and snowballs - I love snowballs. Then after all the washing up was done, everyone would sleep and I would play with new toys.


These days, there's just me, Nan and Mum at home. Dad died three years ago and sis is married. I help Mum with the sweets in the run up to the big day and any other bits that need cooking. I insist on getting a real tree and shoo everyone out until it's finished. Christmas Eve I spend peeling potatoes and carrots making sure as much is done beforehand as possible. Sis will come over with presents, which I put under the tree. I'm 23 now, but after Dad died, Mum started giving me a stocking again - from Santa! - which I open on my bed before heading to work at 6am Christmas morning. We always take wreaths to my Dad, Grandad, and great-grandparents' graves a week before Christmas. I always think of Dad when I hear Stop the Cavelry as it was his favourite Christmas song. He really made my childhood magical with fairies involved in everything, so Christmas always reminds me of him.

Racklen

all those traditions are lovely i really just cant wait till xmas now after reading them all.

rosieben

cat4772 wrote: »

Everything would stop at 2.55 to fill our glass with a little sherry to toast the Queen at her speech, then carry on eating afterwards.

That reminds me of Christmasses with my Uncle - we'd watch the queen's speech and he insisted that we all stand for the national anthem. Bless! how I would love the chance to do that with him again this year.

lamplady wrote: »

We have lots of traditions.
We have a December basket with an item wrapped for every day until christmas. Sometimes it's a christmas themed movie or book, sometimes a craft activity and sometimes a charity related activity (such as making a hamper for an elderly neighbour)

I love this idea, thanks! I've filed it away for next year as its too late to plan for this one.

SPANIEL36

What a wonderful thread. I must admit, reading some of the post brought tears to my eyes. I only have a few traditions, the christmas tree goes up on the 1st weekend of december and its always me who has to untangle the lights!!! Santa gets fed up of sherry so he has a tia maria n coke or a pimms in our house!!! For christmas breakfast we always have bacon, cheesey oatcakes (staffordshire delicacy) sausage, beans n toast as usually we go the in laws for a late dinner as she always decides to work christmas day so the rest of us have to wait till she gets home and because ther's about 20 of us you always end up with a kiddies sixed portion of dinner hence the large breakfast!!! Although last year i did my very own and first christmas lunch and it was worth missing the inlaws for (wont be going there this year either as we dont get on, the OH and kids will go down to swop pressies etc in the afternoon whilst i have a mini pamper session to myself with my smellies)

I love the idea of Jam jam elves, i'll be doing that this year

I'm really looking forward to it now

poppycracker

lamplady wrote: »

We have Sausage and mash and champagne for christmas lunch and do Christmas dinner on Boxing day, as it's just too hectic otherwise. On Christmas morning we meet lots of our friends in the park for mulled wine and we do a chocolate coin hunt for the children (always telling them there are 60 when we actually hid 50 as it keeps them busy for longer )

Wow, someone else who has sausages and mash! :j

jo03

On xmas day I have a houseful usually and santa leaves them all a special present each on the tree wrapped in a little food bag covered in red tissue paper (this can be tricky - a good tip is to wrap up some empties and switch them for the real at the last minute).The present is always chocolate or sweets that the person who is receiving them specially likes.My hubby generally gets licquorice of some kind,one year his mum was dieting (at xmas -bizarre) and santa brought her some weight watchers sweets!!
Everyone loves this tradition as I try to get to the old fashioned sweet shop and get unusual things for them that they might not have had for years.

granshaz

Hi, could anyone tell me which internet site to use to follow santa on christmas eve, i'd love to follow santa with my grandson.

ashli_2

Hi Granshaz, it's this one:

http://www.noradsanta.org/en/default.php

rosieben

granshaz wrote: »

Hi, could anyone tell me which internet site to use to follow santa on christmas eve, i'd love to follow santa with my grandson.

See post 41 at the top of this page