TOS Blog Cruise Discusses Holiday Traditions

The Old Schoolhouse hosts a TOS Blog Cruise.  Each week there is a topic introduced for TOS Crew members to write on.  So far this Blog Cruise Season I have either not had a chance to write or the topics have just not been something with which I have had experience. 

This week's topic is:  How does your family celebrate the holidays?

We have just started to incorporate some traditions into our holidays.  We are still figuring this kind of thing out.

For Thanksgiving the traditional meal seems to be a must whether it's just us or us plus visitors.  I remember growing up and watching parades.  That is something that I really miss since we do not have a television.  Last year I think I tried to watch some on the computer but I was having a hard time getting it to stream fast enough or finding a parade from the same year.

Do you have any Thanksgiving traditions?

What about Christmas traditions?  I didn't think we had very many and then I began to type!

One thing I like to do once during the Christmas season is to make cut out cookies.  I've learned that a big fluffy paint brush or pastry brush works WONDERS for painting on the frosting.  Sometimes we do sprinkles and other times we don't.  Another helpful hint that I've learned to help the colored sugar sprinkles stay on your cookies is to take a water spray bottle and spritz the top of the cookies before you sprinkle the sugar on.  It grabs the sugar and holds on until the oven has a chance to melt and absorb it into the cookie.  :)

Last year we started to take our children to a dollar store with a list of loved ones to have them pick out gifts.  We were feeling the need to start teaching them that Christmas includes giving and not just receiving.   It was a pretty inexpensive way for them to purchase and give to others.

At the end of each Season I also collect used Christmas cards from friends and family.  We cut off the back side where most people sign and write.  Then we keep the top pretty part for the following year.  After Thanksgiving we use Christmas stampers on the back side or write Merry Christmas and we make a field trip into a Nursing Home to deliver them. In past years I gave the boys Santa hats and a handful of cards to just go and pass out while saying "Merry Christmas."  The residents just think they are THE CUTEST!  It's a great experience for my children to see those older faces light up, it's also great in that it helps them break out of their own shells in the fact that they almost have to touch other people they don't know (and sometimes get snagged by a cute grandparent type who just wants to pinch a cheek!).  :)  It takes us out of our comfort zone but is a wonderful outing. :)

Two other traditions we have started are two of my favorites and are very special to me.  Growing up I was allowed to open ONE gift on Christmas Eve.  The ONE gift was always in the SAME box and that box ALWAYS contained one pair of NEW pajamas!  This is a fun new tradition for the kids.  Once they have their jammies on we cuddle around Hubby who then reads the Christmas story to us from his bible.  It helps us remember that it's not about Santa (even though we let him visit us) it is all about Jesus and celebrating Him.

What traditions do you celebrate for the holidays?