I have fond memories of the things I did as a kid for the holidays. The family Christmas party where Santa (aka Dad) came every year, helping aforementioned Santa deliver gifts to those in our are who were in need of Christmas cheer, opening, one present of Christmas Eve that was always pj's, well you get the idea.
There are some things that I still do with my children and some things that I don't. After I got married of course I had to mesh my holiday traditions with my husbands. Lucky for me his family didn't do anything too crazy or outlandish. One thing that Layton Dad did every year as a kid was make a gingerbread house. I think this is a fun tradition and have also adopted it as one of our family traditions. I love it, the kids love it.
This year we have started a new tradition and thus far I love it. Last year for Christmas my Grandmother sent me a fun little book. It contains a scripture, song, and story for each day of December. Every night as part of our bedtime routine we sit down, read the verse of scripture, sing the Carol, and read a fun story. Some of the stories are long and a little much for my kids but they are so good to sit patiently anyway. It is a good way for us to bring more of the true spirit of Christmas into our home. We have taken the opportunity to talk more with our kids about those who are less fortunate and how to feel the spirit and help them. I really believe that it has helped to change the spirit of our home.
Now I am curious; fun, silly, or serious; what are some of your holiday traditions?
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
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3 comments:
One of our traditions is to always go to Island Park Thanksgiving weekend and cut down a Christmas tree, the kids love it! Another one is to have a gingerbread house making party with all my siblings and their kids. It is fun for both parents and kids. I love the idea of the Christmas stories at night!
Christmas Eve growing up: we'd go skiing, then come home and do luminaires, then open a family game (like a board game) and play it. We'd also read or reinact the Christmas story from the scriptures. Christmas Day we'd just open gifts super early in the morning.
Now, Pete and I are trying to figure out what we want to do tradition-wise, because his family's were jacked up. (Like, they'd open all their presents from family Christmas Eve. Who DOES that???) So far, though, we get up whenever the kids do on Christmas day, and I make butterscotch rolls (have I given that recipe to you? It's delish!), and we open gifts with them. And Christmas Eve the last couple of years we've gone to my parents' house for dinner and games. I would love to start luminaires in our neighborhood, because it looks so beautiful when everyone does it.
This year my mom gave us a book of 15-ish stories, and I've been reading those to the kids every night. Um, the Little Match Girl? She dies at the end! What's up with that??? Merry Christmas, the little girl that was hungry and cold and didn't have shoes DIED!!
Enjoy my novel! ;)
Hahaha! I just read The Little Match girl to my kids too, Nat! So depressing! The kids looked at me at the end, like, are you serious?? It was funny. And I echo Nat's thing on skiing, luminaires, games. We have the funniest Barbie re-enactment of the nativity on tape - I should find a way to post it on my blog. Hilarious.
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