Christmas Traditions

I was recently reading an article about Christmas traditions that got me to thinking about some of the traditions in our family. One of the few things that we have done every year since the kids were born is that they always get to open one gift on Christmas Eve. They have caught on to the fact that it is always a new pair of pajamas. I just thought it was nice for them to have nice new pj's on in all the Christmas morning pictures. We of course leave milk and cookies for Santa. Before they were born, I bought a little plate that says Cookies for Santa and a mug that says Milk for Santa.

There are some traditions that I remember from childhood. We always got fruit in our stockings...though we didn't always have a stocking...sometimes Santa would leave the fruit in a bowl that he borrowed from my mom's kitchen. I also remember going for drives on Christmas Eve to look at lights. We would always manage to see Rudolph's nose blinking. Of course this was long before you could track Santa's route on the Internet. I also remember my sister always waking up extremely early on Christmas morning. That was the only morning that she was an early riser...and the only morning my dad ever wanted to sleep in.

While reading this article, I came across a tradition that I think I would like to add to our Christmas. Save your Christmas cards in a small basket and then each night pull out the top one and add that family to your nightly prayer. Then tuck their card to the back of the pile. Continue that nightly and you will spend the year praying for your loved ones.