10 of Our Most Loved Christmas Traditions

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Having lost several loved ones in the past 5 years I now know how important family  traditions are. In family traditions memories are built. Through memories loved ones even when they have left this earth are never far away.

Here are 10 of our families cherished Christmas traditions.

1. Chocolate Advent Calendars

These chocolate advent calendars are the ones I enjoyed as a little girl and I have my kids hooked on them.

2. Christmas Crackers

My father is British and his family had Christmas Crackers when he was young, he shared them with my sister and I when we were young and now I am sharing them with my own children.

In case you are wondering what a Christmas Cracker is, here is a picture of my middle son taken several Christmas’s ago sporting his Christmas Cracker crown. You can find one in every Christmas Cracker as well as a joke and a toy.

To open the cracker each person takes an end and pulls and the cracker opens with an explosive “pop”.

3. Taking In our Town’s Light Display

Each year our city park and walkway is light up with millions of lights, from the traditional gingerbread houses to the nontraditional pizza tossing elf ( a favorite of my foodie son)

4. Decorating on Thanksgiving

For the past few years now we have decorated first thing Thanksgiving day and in doing so have created a tradition. My daughter anxiously awaits Thanksgiving so she can wake up and decorate.

5. Christmas Cookie Party

For the past 7 or 8 years our family has invited all of our children’s  closest friends and their families over to decorate giant sugar cookies. It has been a favorite event of ours for years.

6. Family Christmas Shopping Day

When the Children were toddlers family Christmas shopping day was a  trip to the dollar store.

Now that they are ages 10 to 16 it is a day in the big city where we not only shop for each other but take in a 3D movie.

This is huge to our children since we rarely splurge on big screen movies.

7. Christmas Getaway

Last year my hubby and I agreed not to buy each other big presents but instead have a night away during the holiday rush just the two of us.

We loved it so much we agreed to make it a tradition.

8. Candle Light Service

Our family attends a Christmas Eve service every year. My husband and I find it a great way to put the emphasis of Christmas on Christ, and not the gifts.

9.  Feeding Santa and His Reindeer

My kids are long past believing in Santa but they still love the idea of him. Every Christmas Eve before bed we put out milk and cookies for Santa and spread reindeer food on our walk way for his reindeer (oats mixed with sprinkles).

10. Giving

Each year we model giving to our children, whether it is placing groceries on someones front porch, or grabbing a few tags from a local Christmas tree project to buy gifts for those in need we want the children to know we are blessed to have what we have and that it brings great honor to God when we are willing to share those blessings.

 I would love to hear about your Christmas traditions.

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