We all have family traditions or whatever that we keep alive each year during Hanukkah, Christmas or Kwanzaa.

What is one tradition that you have kept from your childhood? Or is it something you created on your own as an adult, or when you got married, etc?

I have two small ones:

I keep the Christmas tree on all Christmas eve, throughout the night, and into Christmas day. Normally we'd turn it off of course, but during that 48 hours, they stay on and the window blinds are turned open.

The other is that on New Year's Day, I make black eye peas. We eat them for good luck. That stems from childhood. I prepare them as I do pinto beans. I boil a ham hock (or salt pork) and make a quick stock (about 45 minutes with rosemary and garlic). I use the stock to start my pre-soaked peas (or beans).

How about you?

General drunkenness and other debauchery. Nothing that different from the rest of the year

A few holiday traditions -

• My mom used to make oyster stuffing for the holidays and my sister has kept the tradition going.

• Holiday movies, It's a Wonderful Life was my Mom's mandatory viewing that I continue.

• My sister-in-law has announced that gathering at her house for Christmas is a tradition.

• Christmas music, variety is key but it starts with Vince Guaraldi



I think I need to start a tradition this year.

Thinking about fancy hot chocolate with candy canes but we'll see.

S2DG said:

A few holiday traditions -

• Christmas music, variety is key but it starts with Vince Guaraldi

I have that on green vinyl.

TrivialPursuit said:

S2DG said:

A few holiday traditions -

• Christmas music, variety is key but it starts with Vince Guaraldi

I have that on green vinyl.

Nice. It's just timeless music.

S2DG said:

TrivialPursuit said:

I have that on green vinyl.

Nice. It's just timeless music.

Yeah, it really is.

I'm from Oklahoma originally. Since the mid-50s, there is a local jeweler, B.C. Clark, that had a pre-Christmas anniversary sale jingle they played every year. It has become the unofficially second state song for Oklahoma. Literally everyone knows it. I even bought it as my ringtone this year.

Vince's album is just as classic to me as the BC Clark anniversary jingle.

TrivialPursuit said:

S2DG said:

Nice. It's just timeless music.

Yeah, it really is.

I'm from Oklahoma originally. Since the mid-50s, there is a local jeweler, B.C. Clark, that had a pre-Christmas anniversary sale jingle they played every year. It has become the unofficially second state song for Oklahoma. Literally everyone knows it. I even bought it as my ringtone this year.

Vince's album is just as classic to me as the BC Clark anniversary jingle.

Regional things like this, especially a holiday thing, is interesting and cool to me. I know it's just a jingle but I wanted a longer version, so I just lisen to it a few times.

I've read that we have a period of our life that we make these associations that last a lifetime.

onlyforaminute said:

My favorite tradition, finding new versions of, carol of the bells. I think this one is appropriate this year. To think it's going onto a year for something expected to only last a couple of weeks. Beautiful. https://youtu.be/GqeJ38DThVc

Today I learned that Carol of the Bells is Ukranian folk chant.

This is a beautiful version, thanks!

spending a lot more time with family

I guess my tradition for the last 20 years is...

that i always have to cook!!!

That's ok, though, i love to do it.

Every year is different.

This time it will be pork rib roast with stuffed mushrooms, red wine sauce and brioche bacon dressing.

...maybe a side of milk

ShellyMcG said:

This is my first Christmas on my own since I moved to Ireland. Well, I'm not on my own exactly. I have my son. But for the last few years my cousin, her husband and their gaggle of children were here too. The house feels kind of empty. And it's definitely not decorated as well as previous years. Hopefully my other cousin will still drop by to see me on Christmas Day despite her sister not living here anymore. Otherwise there's a lot of turkey that's going to go to waste. Which brings me on nicely to favourite holiday traditions. I don't have many seeing as we never really made a big deal about Christmas at home. But since moving here it's kind of become a tradition where I eat a ton of food over Christmas week and then attempt to lose the extra weight by the end of January. And I generally give up on that goal quite quickly and it ends up taking me until about March or April to get back to my pre-Christmas weight. There's also something new for me this year which will hopefully become a Holiday tradition in that this is my first time ever cooking a Christmas dinner. Turkey, ham, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, gravy etc. I'm pretty good with a microwave and a toaster but this may be more than I can chew. It could be a total disaster. So, wish me luck because I'm going to need it.

Hope you get a good turnout for your feast. You've got this!

Merry Christmas!

S2DG said:

Trying to find the single Starbucks that's open in Madison on Christmas Day, putting a little Tupperware container of Rumpel Minze schnapps in my purse, and tipping it into my mocha before heading back home.

Genesia said:

ShellyMcG said:

Genesia said:

Trying to find the single Starbucks that's open in Madison on Christmas Day, putting a little Tupperware container of Rumpel Minze schnapps in my purse, and tipping it into my mocha before heading back home.

I feel sorry for any Starbucks employee that has to work on Christmas Day. I thought I had it bad having to work on Christmas Eve. I have to work one out of every eight Saturdays and because the universe hates me, my turn to work Saturday is this week. I'll be off at about 4pm but still. That's like half the day gone. And my son is still young enough for Santa Claus so he'll want to go to bed super early so that means I won't get to spend much time with him that day.

Oh, no! One Saturday every two months?! The horror!

Genesia said:

ShellyMcG said:

Genesia said:

Oh, no! One Saturday every two months?! The horror!

LoL. I'm not even complaining about that part of it. It's the fact that my next Saturday is on Christmas Eve that's the problem. For me, it means not seeing my son for most of the day and for him, it means spending most of his Christmas Eve at his "aunt's" place. And for his "aunt", it means babysitting duties when I'm sure she'd rather be out enjoying herself. Inconveniences all round. I was thinking about just calling in sick to be honest. I'm sure they'll know I'm not really sick but given that I've never taken a sick day hopefully they won't mind. I don't know. I'll probably just go home early instead.

If I were an employer and someone called in "not really sick" on a day when there was likely to be a skeleton crew to being with, that person would be fired. Seriously.

I say this as someone who spent YEARS working holidays - rarely because I wanted to. (I always figured I'd made my choice when I went into broadcasting - a 24/7/365 business.) Think about the impact your decision will have on your coworkers.

And it's better for your son for his mother to have a job (and to see her honoring her commitment to that job). Think about it.

Genesia said:

ShellyMcG said:

Genesia said:

If I were an employer and someone called in "not really sick" on a day when there was likely to be a skeleton crew to being with, that person would be fired. Seriously.

I say this as someone who spent YEARS working holidays - rarely because I wanted to. (I always figured I'd made my choice when I went into broadcasting - a 24/7/365 business.) Think about the impact your decision will have on your coworkers.

And it's better for your son for his mother to have a job (and to see her honoring her commitment to that job). Think about it.

I don't have co-workers, as such. I work the front desk at an IT company where most of the workers work from home. So even on a normal day, I might see less than 20 people in my whole shift. Most people are finishing up today (Friday) for Christmas so you're talking about maybe 2 or 3 people at most who will be in the office tomorrow. Having said that, I do appreciate your advice and concede that you're 100% correct. Luckily, I was speaking to my boss earlier about it and he said I can switch Saturdays with another guy who works here who was actually asking for overtime over Christmas because he's Indian and doesn't celebrate Christmas. So I'm going to leave a thank you card and a bottle of wine for him on the desk before I leave tonight so he'll get it on the morning. So all's well that ends well, I guess. I hope you have a great Christmas

See? It all worked out! I'm glad.

One thing, though - some people from India don't consume alcohol for religious reasons. Might want to find out if wine is an okay gift.

You have a great Christmas too!

Even if you're in a new place with just your kid or whatever, it's time to create your own traditions with the child. Ask the child what they'd love to do at home with you, or whatever, and let that become a new thing, maybe changing it a bit every year. Is it baking sugar cookies? Maybe you let them pick out a new cookie cutter every season, or ice/top it with something different every year. Things like that can build your own new traditions.

TrivialPursuit said: