We play Christmas music on the stereo and drink homemade hot chocolate while we decorate the tree.

Decorating the whole house for the holidays - I just love seeing all the Christmas decorations from year to year, plus I enjoy adding to them each year with new things that I have made as well as purchasd.

driving around to see the lights

My Husband and I bought a Nativity set while we were on our honeymoon.  Each Christmas we have added one or more pieces to the collection.  It has grown each year and soon we will need a new fireplace to hold all the pieces.  Our Daughter looks forward to the day when she can put it up and design the village, shepherds, and our newest one is a fishing pond and men.

Love getting up & the family having hot coco while we all discuss the days plans.Makes me feel really close to my family

In 1951 my mothers family used a piece of Christnas red fabric and made a table cloth to be used each year. The first year I helped my mother and sisters to embrodery names of those at the family dinner where they had signed the table cloth. It continued to be used until late 1990 when we stopped having a Christmas dinner . In 1989 I purchased a Christmas tablecloth to restart this tradition with my family.

Midnight Mass brings home the meaning of CHRISTmas for our family. This year I made our Christmas cards and that may become a NEW tradition (was glad I started early).

My favorite holiday tradition is doing something for families that would otherwise have nothing for Christmas.  This includes donations of toys for children, food to the food bank for families that do have have enough for their family, and going to Church to celebrate the real reason of Christmas.

The family meal. Its wonderful to sit down and talk about times past and discuss the upcoming future. A little piece of everyone past is present for the get together.

Our whole family gets together. We bring a dish to pass and a white elephant gift. We eat and play a game to pick a gift. It's always fun.

Decorating our house for the grandchildren with ornaments from my childhood and our children's childhood. The granddaughters are allowed to choose 3 to take home for their decorations.  Family get togethers. Participating in gift bank for the local woman's shelter.  Making cards to send, cookies to share, fruit bread as presents for church and woman's group.  

I like making gifts for family members.  Last year I made a "personal "quilt for  each of my three grown children.  Other year's gifts have been simpler and I think will continue to be from now on. Maybe next year two quilts for my granddaughters.  Better start planning.

On Thanksgiving Day putting up the Christmas tree and watching "It's a wonderful Life" and "Miracle on 34th Street".  It was so special when the kids were little and we all helped in decorating the tree and house.  Now that they are grown and married, I do it alone and remember those special times.

I love Valentines Day.  It is a celebration of love for the young, middle age and seniors.  Even friends and neighbors show love and appreciation for each other.  If there was more love in the world, there would be no fighting and war!!

Decorating our house putting up the Christmas tree, making holiday cookies and spending time with family.  In addition to this I also enjoy our annual mini quilt group get together where we make hot chocolate together listen to christmas music and exchange small gifts.  

On Christmas day we love going to Church to celebrate the real meaning of Christmas.

Making something for each family member and cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning.

Our favorite? Two. Church on Christmas Eve with dear, sweet friends, then spending time on Christmas morning with family over sticky buns. My two, now adult, children have made these with their grandmother ever since they were old enough to stand on a stool at the counter!

all the lights

Getting together with family. (Over Thanksgiving there were 65 of us and that's not everyone.) Putting up the Christmas decorations and hopefully the outside lights before it gets too cold.  

My daughter and I bake cookies every year for the past 30 years and last year included her two sons age 4-1/2 and 3 years old. Love baking with my grandsons.  After we are done we watch a kid's special tv show and share a bowl of popcorn.

My favorite memory of Christmas is the making of each ornament for my children, daughter-in-laws, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I started this tradition on my first-born son's Christmas  44 years ago. I made him a small ornament and put his name and the year on the backside of the ornament. Every year since then I have made ornaments with their names on them and the year. I used these ornaments on my trees every Christmas. Then, when each of my 4 sons married, part of their wedding gift was a box filled with their ornaments. That way they would have something to decorate their Christmas tree. I am still adding ornaments each year for my son's trees and hopefully they will pass my grandchildren's ornaments to them when they get married. This all started 44 years ago when I did not have any ornaments to put on my first-borns Christmas tree.

Decorating the Christmas tree with my husband, children and grandchildren while listening to Christmas music on the radio. Making this a family affair really makes it a special day without presents.

Our Christmas morning brunch, which now includes our first grandchild.  It is the favorite meal of the year for our two sons. After eating, we share Christmas stories and memories and then check out the filled stockings-- the same ones the boys have had since their first Christmases, with a stocking added for each new family member on their first Christmas as a member of our family.

I look forward to the yearly cookie cooking and then just giving them away to friends, people we work with and family. Being retired, we don't eat as many cookies, so it is still fun to cook, but to give them to others.

I make our Kiddo's...and now the grandkiddo's too...new Jamma's every Christmas.  Also love makin' cut-out cookie's with the Grandgirlie's too!  :)   My Husband & I make our "Famous" Caramel Corn every year too...and give as gifts to friends, Kiddo's, neighbor's, the Mailman..and UPS guy too! lol

Every year we'd get  the tree on a family day trip.  The six of us kids got to help string popcorn and paper garlands and hang ornaments and Mom would spend hours hanging tinsel one strand at a time from the trunk of the tree to the tip of each branch.  But my favorite part I enjoy a Christmas Eve tradition when Daddy would gather us in front of the fireplace near our tree and read from Luke Chapter 2 about the birth of Jesus.  I still like that story and carried that tradition into my family.  My son does the same. Today in all the hustle and bustle, the glitz and the glamour and the sheer commercialism of the season, I believe it's important that we all remember the true reason for Christmas, the coming of our Savior.

Every year we'd get  the tree on a family day trip.  The six of us kids got to help string popcorn and paper garlands and hang ornaments and Mom would spend hours hanging tinsel one strand at a time from the trunk of the tree to the tip of each branch.  But my favorite part I enjoy a Christmas Eve tradition when Daddy would gather us in front of the fireplace near our tree and read from Luke Chapter 2 about the birth of Jesus.  I still like that story and carried that tradition into my family.  My son does the same. Today in all the hustle and bustle, the glitz and the glamour and the sheer commercialism of the season, I believe it's important that we all remember the true reason for Christmas, the coming of our Savior.

We always have a Trim the Tree party on the Friday night after Thanksgiving. We put up the tree and enjoy hot apple cider and orange danish rolls....every year now for 25+ years. It's always so fun!

My favorite Christmas tradition is buying a tree ornament for each of our children. I started with my first child's first Christmas.  Each year I try to choose something that has to do with each of them, something that will be special for them.  I use a permanent marker to write the year if it isn't already on the ornament.  When they each had their own first Christmas trees they had almost two dozen special ornaments to use for decorating.  They have mentioned how special that is for them and it is very special to me too!

Getting the grandkids excited about Santa, family & never forgetting Christ's birthday!

Decorating the house/yard with Christmas lights, wreaths, poinsettias.  My grown children and grandchildren all come home for Thanksgiving and the tradition is to eat a BIG breakfast on Black Friday and instead of shopping with the hordes, we put up all the Christmas lights.  Our house is so tastefully bright that it lights the sky and the aura can be seen blocks away.  My husband and I are getting older and are so thankful that we can count on the 'family' to help out with climbing trees and walking on the roof!  CHRISTmas has always been our favorite holiday!  I hope you have a Merry Christmas too!

My favorite holiday tradition is a house filled with family and friends on Christmas eve telling stories and enjoying the reason for the season.  Then at the end of the evening when everyone has left, sitting in the dark with a lovely glass of cheer admiring the lights on the tree and saying a toast to those no longer here but still in our hearts.

Decorating the tree while listening to Christmas music.  While that's not unusual, it's especially fun to hand our special ornaments.  Since my husband and I have been married in 1998 (second time around for both of us), we've purchased an ornament for each state we have traveled to.  Recalling the memories makes it even more fun.  With hubby's retirement on Dec 28, we will have even more memories recall since we're going on a lot of road trips - large and small.

My favorite tradition is, that we decorate the house for Christmas as a family. We listen to Christmas Music as we decorate, and when we are finished, we celebrate it with a Christmas Movie.

Getting together with our kids and grandkids for Christmas dinner, present opening and fun!

Our favorite tradition is making cut out sugar cookies with the kids. They help roll and cut out the shapes. Then I make several bowls of colored frosting and they are allowed to decorate as they wish. There are lots of decorations to put on top too. These are the best tasting of all the treats throughout the year. Started with our children when they were small, now includes the grandchildren too!

January when it’s all over.

Going to Christmas Eve Candlelight Service with our ever expanding family.

Hearing from family and friends.

Being with family

Because we have always lived away from family, our church has always been involved in our celebrations - meals, candlelight services, singing in the choir, etc .  My favorite is the Christmas Eve service by candlelight and singing Silent Night softly with the whole congregation.

Decorating the tree with the ornaments we've collected from all the places we've lived and telling the grandchildren stories about the really special ones.

My daughter and I make cranberry marmalade for family and friends.  This, plus baking family favourite cookies and Christmas cake are my definite favourite Christmas traditions!

My favorite holiday is Christmas - when I remember the reason for the season and I get out my decorations and go back memory lane and take the time to thank the Lord for every thing that he has given me over the years.  This is my favorite time because the family always tries harder to get together at this time and the Lord seems always to make it happen - no matter what gets in the way.  God bless,

My Favorite Christmas Holiday Tradition is our "Christmas Eve Soup Supper".  Growing up in the midwest, fresh oysters were available during the season. We would gather and have Oyster Stew with homemade quick breads, cheese, and fresh fruit.  This tradition continues today.  We usually prepare a second choice which may be Homemade Chili or Grandpa Shilling's Potato Soup.

When my children were were babies, I found

Something fun to put on top of our tree. We love

Nature and our tree topper is fun, joyful and

Represents our love of animals. It is a moose that

Has bells, a Santa hat and velcro on its legs .  Every

Year my son saves the moose until last and wraps the moose

Legs around the tree top.  

 Over the years, the tree decorations has changed

from balls and garland to pictures inside popsicle stick

frames and paper chains.  One thing has remained the

same- Bob , the moose from up north!

Spending time as a family, and everyone

Helping with the christmas dinner.

Just spending time w/family and the kids.  

I am hoping we start a new tradition this year.  We added on to our house and we now have room for all 12 of us to stay here.  So this year, all 12 of us will be under one roof for 4 days!  I am so excited!!!!  Might wear me out, but it will be wonderful!

Going to the candle-lit service at my church to celebrate the real reason for Christmas; the birth of Jesus Christ.

On Christmas eve, the extended family gets together for Christmas readings, musical numbers (talented family), prayer, and all the Christmas goodies you can eat.  But the highlight of the evening is all of the children put on a live nativity in costumes while the Christmas story is read.

Christmas - it highlights God's grace to us

I love being with family to gather for a good meal and have a low-key enjoyable day

Christmas - it highlights God's grace to us

I love being with family to gather for a good meal and have a low-key enjoyable day

We love to wander the city at night looking at all of the different ways that families have used Christmas lights to decorate their homes.  

We have a seafood supper on Christmas Eve and then Baked Ziti for Christmas Day.  My husband does all the cooking for this occasion - that's a wonderful gift in itself.

Although there aren't any children in our family we still shop for each other and wake up early Christmas morning to open gifts.  Family being together on Christ's birthday

gathering all my family together to go to church on Christmas

Gathering all my family together to go to church on Christmas Eve to rejoice the true meaning of Christmas.

Family Dinners....Holidays are the only chance some family members have for fellowship with other members of our family. Everybody brings a dish, the host provides the turkey, dressing, and gravy. But my favorite part of these get-togethers is getting caught up with everyone for the past months/year. Keeps us close.

Every year making cookies is a big part of the our holiday tradition.  My daughter and I bake cookies together.  We especially love making candy cane cookies since we only have them once a year.  Actually, quite a few of the cookies we bake are once a year.  We enjoy the closeness we have. She's grown now but we enjoy it.  Everyone loves the cookies. We usually make 12 different types. Merry Christmas

At Christmas my children come home for a week or more.  They are grown and live far away now.  We open presents on Christmas Eve and talk to the week hours of the night.  During their stay I make homemade pies and cakes and invite grandma, aunt, and cousins over for a sweet treat and to catch up on the latest family news.  

Having the family over on Christmas Eve for tamales and Posole and we have lots of fun playing the wii game rock band, lots of laughs :)

Putting a movie into the Christmas stockings, because you can see what Santa brought as soon as you get up.  This kept my children occupied when they were small, and I continue to give a movie every year, so family time can be shared on Christmas Day.  Also Lasagna into the oven as you walk out the door for Christma Eve services, and it's ready when you get home.

Making Christmas treats with my oldest granddaughter (whom we are raising), decorating the yard and house inside and out. Putting up and decorating the tree with all the decorations past and present and having the oldest grandchild finish the tree with the star on top.

We play games on most every holiday or family celebration.  If the kids are too young to play on their own, they team up with an adult.  We have lots of memories of fun, laughter and JOY!

My favorite Christsmas tradition is going to candlelight services on Christmas Eve at church.  The best part is when the lights are dimmed, and we all stand holding our small candles and sing "Silent Night". There I am surrounded by family and friends who have such a special place in my life and in my heart all year long.  

My favorite holiday tradition is the Christmas Eve candlelight service followed by gathering with the family to listen to grandchildren recite their pieces they had at their programs, reading the Christmas story and then exchanging gifts.

Our favorite tradition is making 30 lbs. of Polish Sausage.  My children  each have a job to make the sausage.  My oldest boy had to take on the job of turning the handle of the stuffer because my husband passed this last year.  The jobs are turning the handle of the stuffer, tying the ends of the sausage, and packing it for storage.  My mob is the mixing of the ingredients for stuffing and guiding the casing during stuffing.   We have a wonderful time together and the added experience of have a wonderful sausage dinner together.  It is truly a family affair.

Our favorite Christmas tradition is a birthday cake for baby Jesus.

Our favorite tradition is simply that of spending time with family and friends. Cuddling by the fireplace, and just being thankful for what we have.

Getting the whole family together is special. We celebrate Christmas with my husband's family on or near Christmas eve with a meal, gift exchange and singing carols (one of the grandkids plays piano for us). We celebrate Christmas with my family some day during Christmas week & it's great to see my brother & his family as we only see them once or twice a year. We catch up with the kids, play games, eat, chat & exchange gifts. It's hard to get everyone together for any occasion as we all have busy lives so the holidays are a special time for us.

Every year, at Christmas day supper, we have "table presents".  My mom came up with this idea as a final present you get at the end of Christmas day.  It could be something funny, or a small curiosity, or your "big" gift - you never knew what it would be.  My whole family looks forward to their yearly "table present", and we've carried the tradition down to our own children, and grandchildren.  My mother's Christmas spirit lives on!

My favourite holiday tradition is putting up and decorating the Christmas tree.  I love looking at all the ornaments that my son made in school, my friends and I have given to each other over the years, and the decorations brought home to remember special occasions.

I like Christmas dinner on Christmas day.  Everyone is so happy and kind to one another.  It's a good family day.

Well Christmas at my house is usally a pretty quite day . It is just my son and I and we do our presents thru out the year. So mostly we just have a dinner . WE enjoy doing ours this way and it works well for us. WE both are just so thankful to have a home to live in ,food on our table ,and we both have wonderful online families to celebrate with . So its a good day for us both.dinner is our big tradition. I am thiking of trying something differnt this year.  LOL  Barbara

Our favorite holiday traditional is getting up earlier, opening gifts then my daughter and I head off to the kitchen where we prepare meal a fit for Royalty, once lunch is made we all gather around the table to enjoy the meal God gave us to feast on. After that once the kitchen is clean we all find our spots in the living room and we start out talking about our goals for the next year will be--- with one or more falling asleep! lol Once we're all awake again we spend the rest of the day watching TV or playing games until it's time to say good night. This is one of those days you don't ever want to end! I look forward to this day each year!

For the years we are home and not traveling to my family or my husband's family for Christmas, we take an evening to put up the tree. We put on Christmas music, fix eggnog to enjoy as we take out ornaments that have been collected over the past 45 years. The most special one is the one my mother bought me as a child as I was able to take with me when I left home - an oriental velvet kitty with sequins and beads sewn on it. It will be interesting to see how our 9-month old kitten deals with the tree this year.

A Christmas tradition for our ever growing family is a simple dinner of deli sandwiches and meatball soup. My DD  and DIL  do this at their homes now & for me it is a real easy day getting ready. I make the soup days before. The grand girls (3) would receive gifts from aunties and play cards while we adults sit around with some good wine. We have a new granddaughter this year and wont it be a fun day to have her  passed around the table like a Christmas ham. LOL We played many games over the years as a family, my departed Daddy was a huge fan of board and card games. My SIL has a great tradition we go to her home after Christmas to play Joker Poker she now has a 12 piece board set.

Wow, where do I begin?

Well, first we start off the holiday season by making homemade decorations on Thanksgiving morning as we wait for the Turkey to cook.  After a few days or so we decorate the Christmas tree while listening to Johnny Mathis.  Mind you, I have the original album but over the years we have upgraded from album to cassette to the CD version of the same album.  This by far is my favorite part of the season, we started this tradition when my oldest daughter was 2 and she is now 30.  

I have many decorations i have made over the past 41 years of marriage including a banner I made before that, Everything is displayed ,sometimes in a different setting , but the one tradion passed down by my mother is my sweet buns. After everyone has opened their gifts and while waiting for the turkey to finish roasting we all share an green iced home made sweet roll  loaded with walnuts,brown sugar,butter, cherries and cut fruit peel ,Even the Grand children look forward to this part of the day.

I have many decorations i have made over the past 41 years of marriage including a banner I made before that, Everything is displayed ,sometimes in a different setting , but the one tradion passed down by my mother is my sweet buns. After everyone has opened their gifts and while waiting for the turkey to finish roasting we all share an green iced home made sweet roll  loaded with walnuts,brown sugar,butter, cherries and cut fruit peel ,Even the Grand children look forward to this part of the day.

I LOVE baking Hoska bread for all my brothers. My Mom always made Hoska, a Bohemian Christmas bread, and now that she is gone, I make it for my family and also my brothers so the tradition can continue.

After my daughters married and moved away, I was having trouble getting into the spirit of decorating for Christmas. So, when my first grandson was two, I invited him to spend the night and help Grammy decorate her tree. It was magical! We had so much fun together. Every year since then I have him and my other three grandchildren come to spend the night. We decorate the tree (I don't change it when they leave either!), bake Christmas cookies to take home and work on a small craft project for them to give their parents for Christmas. It is a wonderful time and we all love it.

I love to decorate for Christmas with my granddaughter as I used to decorate with my mother in earlier years and then for my mother as she got older.  Now miss doing Christmas with my Mom, but have lots of fun and memories with the grandchildren!

My Favorite tradition is to attend christmas eve services then come home to Oyster Stew & open our Christmas Presents, This has been a Family Traditions since I was  a small child. My grandparents are of Norweigen desent & celebrated in this fashion when they were young & growing up. Of course they also had the Ludefish but I leave that out & since I can;t  or dont make Lefsa which I dearly love that gets left out alot of the time to.

Unpacking the decorations and reminiscing about where we got each has always been a fun beginning for our holidays.

When Mother and Daddy married right after WWII, they didn't have much money so their tree decorations were few.  Mother bought a few balls and two candy canes made out of chenille (pipe cleaners).  My sister and I grew up each putting a candy cane on the Christmas tree.  When I was in high school we moved to Alaska and somewhere along the line, one candy cane was lost.  So, it became our tradition that the Christmases we are together, we put the lone candy cane on the tree last together.  We are both in our 60s and have been doing this for many years.  Neither of us can put the candy cane on without crying and I usually start as soon as we being the "ceremony"!  It's wonderful to have family traditions.  They are the things that hold families together and make beautiful memories for each one present.  Our parents are both gone now, but we have a special memory of them each time we put the candy cane on the tree.  God bless everyone this holiday season.

My favorite tradition is baking cookies.  As a child I helped my mother bake all the different kinds of Christmas cookies.  Then I got to be the one to go out in the snow with the tins and deliver them to my Aunt Lenora and our neighbor Mrs. Napolitan.  They were two of my favorite "grownups" in town.  I always got to sit down for a good long chat and of course sample some of Mrs. Napolitan's Italian Christmas cookies.  Since I grew up and moved to Texas, I've continued this tradition.  I bake tons of cookies and give them to my friends at school, stepchildren, neighbors, my husband's golf buddies, whatever team or group from the high school that he drives the bus for, and of course, my best friend's daughters who she has shared with me for 25 years.

My favorite tradition is watching "Its A Wonderful Life" in my flannel Jammies all curled up with a hot cup of Wassail, a turkey sandwich from dinner and some Christmas cookies with my family.  What could be better than that?  hugs,

Wanda

Making loaves of Pineapple Nut Bread for our family and friends.  My Grandmother made these loaves every year starting when she was a young girl and she gave the recipe to me when I was a teenager.  We make and enjoy it in her honor every Holiday Season.

My favorite holiday tradition is working on the ornaments that I make for each of my sons, daughter-in-laws, grandsons, granddaughter, and my first great grandson. It started 44 years with my first born. I made him an ornament by hand that had his name and the year on the back. It is a tradition that I have continued each year adding others as they were born or married. When each of my sons married I gave them a box with their ornaments as part of their wedding present. I wanted them to have the ornaments  for their first Christmas as a married couple. It helped them to have something to put on their first tree. Because I didn't have ornaments for my first tree as a wife and mother, I made that first ornament and the rest is history.

My favorite holiday tradition is working on the ornaments that I make for each of my sons, daughter-in-laws, grandsons, granddaughter, and my first great grandson. It started 44 years with my first born. I made him an ornament by hand that had his name and the year on the back. It is a tradition that I have continued each year adding others as they were born or married. When each of my sons married I gave them a box with their ornaments as part of their wedding present. I wanted them to have the ornaments  for their first Christmas as a married couple. It helped them to have something to put on their first tree. Because I didn't have ornaments for my first tree as a wife and mother, I made that first ornament and the rest is history.

Just visiting and playing games with family.  But also sitting by the Christmas tree, sipping on hot tea with Christmas music playing, and maybe a fireplace going if it's ever cold enough (in Texas).

I like to have a Christmas movie on while we decorate the tree and the family room.  It's just my husband and me home now. I spend the week before Christmas baking cookies.  The kids and grandkids come over on Christmas eve and we have a great time together.  I have been giving piano lessons to several of the grandchildren.  Right now I only have 2 younger ones, but during those years they always learn new Christmas music and play for the family on Christmas eve.  A very short Christmas concert, but so nice.  

we don't celebrate "the holidays", so there is no tradition.  i suppose we collect the holiday cards that others send to us.

Having the family all together, a big pile of prawns ( you call them shrimps), cold ham, salads and a giant pavlova for desert in the shade of some pandanus palms at the beach. The day will probably be 30 + deg ( about 90 deg for you) and we will be in and out of the surf all day. Lots of chilled wine and beer and a nanny nap after lunch.

Our favorite Christmas tradition is Christmas Eve Dinner. We gather around about 5:30 Christmas Eve to have a dinner of homemade Clam Chowder and a light dinner with seafood and/or fish. Then we have the grandchild open their presents. They then are free for Christmas morning to have their own Christmas at home where they are free to play until their hearts are content.

It's not Christmas at my home without tortiere pie. We only have this meat pie at Christmastime usually before going to church. The mass on Christmas has to be the most beautiful of the year because of the wonderful hymns and carols, played and sung.  Everyone is decked out in their holiday best and filled with good cheer....  then it on to the presents.  It is so much fun giving that perfect gift and seeing the smiles that show appreciation, especially for the homemade items that have hours of labor and thought put into them.  Merry Christmas everyone

MyChristmas traditions are making pumkin brad all from sratch ( I se a real pumpkin ) and give it as gifts to people we know. I also make jelly and crocheted and quilted gifts to give away to others I don't know( like bookmarks and potholders.

Every year 3 couples get together at our home (we are all retired military) and have a wonderful dinner, exchange gifts and spend hours talking about what the year has been like for us.  It is amazing even though we are friends we do miss things during the year so it is nice to catch up and enjoy each others company.

Directing the tree while listening to Christmas music.

When I was younger we ALL used to gather at my Mom and Dad's to open presents on Christmas Eve, then the kids would play with their new toys (sometimes they had to "fight" the adults for them)! Some adults would go to the kitchen to play Euchre, some would watch, others just sat around talking, or playing with the grandkids. Now that all they grandkids are married and have kids (and some with great grandkids) we all just gather separtly with our own families. We are hopefully starting a new tradition this year. Since one son always has to work on Christmas Eve, we are going to his house for breakfast and opening of presents on Christmas morning. Being with family is the greatest blessing and watching grandkids open their presents-- besides of course the birth of Jesus. Merry Chirstmas to all.

Going to church on Christmas eve with the kids and grandkids and then coming to our house for Christmas dinner.  We then open presents and watch the kids (both big and little) play with their new toys or play board games together:)  On Christmas morning after the kids have opened presents at their respective homes, they come back for brunch with us (Grandma and Grandpa).  Then we have to share them with their other grandparents:)

My husband and I go, with our son and his family, to Dull's Christmas Tree Farm and cut a tree. We try to go on the weekend that farm animals are in one of the barns and when one of the neighbors is there with his lovely horses and wagon taking folks for a ride. Then we come home and the grandchildren and I decorate the tree. We all enjoy Christmas treats and watch the movie Christmas Vacation.

For many years, it wasn't Christmas unless I was rehearsing with the Symphony to play Handel's Messiah!

I haven't done so the past few years because of some paralysis I went through...and came back out of.  I'm too rusty to play the piece anymore without lots and lots of practice!  Now...it is putting up the tree with the kids after Thanksgiving Dinner....sometime my kids (15, 17 and 18) pull out their instruments and play Christmas music out of the books I got them.  Midnight Mass is another tradition in our family.

Playing the organ for Christmas Eve service, coming home and having oyster stew and seafood lasagna, watching Christman comedy videos and just having family around.  Putting Christ in Christmas makes it a whole different ballgame.  I LOVE Christmas.....make all my own gifts.  What a wonderful time of the year!!!

Making Pizzelles, Italian Waffle Cookie. It's been a family tradition for many years. The Iron has been passed down for generations. Well, 3 that I know of , and I'll pass it down to my niece when I'm gone. I make Pizzelles for Christmas gifts and usually include an embroidered kitchen towel or place mat set.

Putting up the tree & decorating the house.  I love the lights!  I don't care for the commercialism that has crept into Christmas, but I love the quite times with family, enjoying each others company & sharing the love.

When I was a child, my extended family would get together at Grandma's house for any and all occassions. Nowadays with everyone so busy all year, my favorite part of the holidays is the family get-togethers.

My favorite holiday tradition we started about 11 years ago is we will set up the camera on a tripod and get a family photo...dogs included in front of the Christmas tree.

Having Christmas Eve dinner with family.  I have been doing this since I was born more than 60 years ago.  The foods have changed,the members have changed, and not everyone is here evey time.  But they can count on a special dinner,  different themes each year, lots of love and cookies too.  

I've been giving my brother chocolate covered cherries for many many years -- this year it will be home made chocolate covered cherries.   Giving him this candy eacy year always reminds me of the Christmas celebrations we had as kids.

This is the 40th year we have held our Holiday Wassail.  Always held the first full weekend in Dec., this year the three event Wassail had 75 people in attendance.  We serve wassail and holiday cookies made by me, my sister, and mother.  It is a great time to reconnect with family and friends.  It also gives me an opportunity to share my latest quilts and quilted projects!

we just started a new tradition about 3 yrs. ago Evertone puts in $5.00 and then i buy all kinds of goodies with the money and make up a big Christmas basket and then on Christmas we draw for a winner out of the family members that put in the money for the drawing. Everyone has so much fun. Then every year i sew or quilt a homemade gift to also have a family drawing for. The last two years i made placmats of Halloween and Christmas with scalloped edges and my son and his wife won both years. This year i made a Pillow of leopard and cheeta material with a little baby cheeta, machine embroideried in the center for this years drawing.

My favorite family tradition is going to a church service featuring the children of the congregation - then coming home to gifts and eggnog.

Danny & I have been married for 23 years & each Christmas Eve we sit in front of our beautiful blue decorated tree & he tells the Night Before Christmas that he has memorized.  It is so beautiful with the Christmas tree lights & means the world to me that he loves me so much to do this.

Christmas morning, get up, find what is in your stocking, christmas breakfast -homemade cinnamon rolls, scrambled eggs, then presents, then the rest of the day is yours, no formal meals but lots of family, friends and food

I love cutting out, frosting and decorating sugar cookies with four of my grandchildren (ages 5-9). The kitchen is a mess but oh, what memories we will have!

My favorite tradition is discussing past holiday memories with my family members

we have a favorite cookie recipe that our family enjoys every year for the CHRISTmas holiday.  It is also a tradition that the youngest members (now the grandkids) decorate all of the "special family CHRISTmas cookies".

Fighting my hubby about starting to open gifts 5 or 6 days before Christmas, he has been doing it for 19 years now and I still can't get out of opening at least one gift.   In fact he did it tonight, he said " it is something you can use now", well turns out it is something I can use very much.  My mouse for my computer  ****** on me and the new mouse is not a mouse I am used to it is a ring mouse.  I don't know how it will work out but I have it charging now and will try it out later on.    I am a big bingo fan on fb and was losing games because my mouse would not move.  I sure hope my new ring helps LOL.

My favorite tradition is on Christmas Eve.  We all gather at my mom and dad's for snacks then onto dinner which has always been oyster stew.  This has been a tradition my entire life and for as long as my mother can remember in her life as well.  Since my dad isn't a big fan of oyster stew, he always makes a gumbo or something along those lines.  We all sit down to eat then the youngest (not me any longer) have to clean up the dishes before we open presents.  

While I love the glow of lights and candles at this dark time of year, it really is all about the food, mostly sweets, for our family. My in-laws always made lots of candies: hard candy, hand dipped chocolates, date logs, fudge, and peanut brittle. My family made caramels, taffy, and penuche. And we each had our own version of the cookies we loved to make for the holidays from shortbread and iced sugar cookies to butterscotch nuggets, spritz, springerles, and molasses ginger cookies.  So when my husband's siblings came to the west coast from Michigan to celebrate his 60th birthday in October, my son's one request was to make Christmas hard candy with all his aunts and uncles helping out. The one flaw with this was the fact that Grandma had always cooked the candy and poured it onto the powdered sugar, so no one knew when it was "done"! We almost overcooked the first batch and then wondered how much of the flavoring oil to put in! Needless to say, we had lots of laughs and great fun with all the stories of Christmases past and everyone has a bag of hard candies to enjoy this year!

My favorite holiday tradition is to go out in the car during the Christmas season looking at the lights and then go to DQ for an ice cream cone after.

Growing up in an Italian-Portuguese family we always had seafood for Christmas Eve supper.  I always maintained that even when it was only fish sticks because money was tight.

Spending time with family. Playing Yankee swap which turns out to so much  of a fun game. Even the little grandchildren play. When all the gifts are taken, then you get to steal from other players.

So much fun.

Spending time with family. Playing Yankee swap which turns out to so much  of a fun game. Even the little grandchildren play. When all the gifts are taken, then you get to steal from other players.

So much fun.

Well I don't really have to show up if I don't have my fudge for everyone. I might as well not even think about going to celebrate Christmas without the fudge. It is very low calorie, only a little over one billion calories. I don't even have to bring gifts as long as I have my fudge.

Serving at our Church for all of our Christmas Eve Services (not all on Christmas Eve we have about 15 to 20 of them every year with all of our sites).  Also going to a movie on Christmas day with my family has become a new tradition since we are so far away from all our extended family.

I crochet on the tops of dish towels for my siblings, nieces and  nephews and  they become  more popular each year

I make gifts for all my family and make sure that I make something for all the stockings that I have made for all family members.