As a family with one young child, we have been considering what holiday traditions we want to begin. This year, the kiddo is getting old enough to understand Christmas, Santa, and everything that goes with it, so it’s going to be fun, for sure!
One tradition we have is putting up the Christmas tree and holiday decor. In my family, we used to put it up on Thanksgiving evening. James and I have decided we want to do it every year on the following evening (Black Friday evening) instead. It will be more fun because he’s usually off work that day so we have plenty of time to get everything decorated.
Another tradition for our family is movies – we watch Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer while decorating the tree and house. We usually watch them at least once more so we can sit down and give the films our full attention.
We’ve also been thinking about food traditions…like eating certain foods only at the holidays or as we decorate the tree, watching holiday movies, etc. Hickory Farms is all about tradition, and they have lots of yummy treats that we could enjoy during the holidays. They recently sent us their Pack and Go Picnic Tote for review and I’ve already been to their website to see what else I could purchase for my family’s traditions!
The insulated tote is perfect for packing a lunch or snacks for a day out. I love the size and will be using it in the future. Inside the tote was a box full of yummy Hickory Farms foods for us to try. My husband dug into the box as soon as I opened it, and he loved the summer sausages and cheese. My son wasn’t too far behind him either, and he asked for a White Chocolate Pretzel as soon as he saw them.
I stuck mostly with the sweet treats inside the box, and the Peanut Brittle is very yummy! My mom got the Chocolate Peppermint Cookies because she likes the tastes of mint and chocolate together. I love that there was a variety of things in the Pack and Go Picnic Tote so that my entire family could share and enjoy it!
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About Kecia
i love going to pick out our tree
We always have a Christmas Eve dinner and watch a Christmas movie (usually one of the Home Alones) afterward.
And last year we started a new Christmas tradition: letting the kids dig into their stockings on Christmas Eve. Kind of takes the “edge” off of things, LOL.
My husband always puts up the decorations and takes them down, I guess you could call that a tradition. It’s as close as we come.
Baking cookies for our local Fire and Police Department, been doing it close to 30 years now and they look forward to our visit. They always let the kids explore the small jail and the Fire Trucks. another one is making homemade ornaments for family gifts.
trimming the tree together debbie jackson
djackson1958 at hotmail dot com
Watching the The Hollywood Christmas Parade on TV.
One of my family’s holiday traditions is going to church on Christmas Eve to a traditional, candlelight service. I love this tradition! Every year I look forward to remembering the meaning of the Season and giving thanks to the Lord Jesus for coming to Earth as a baby! I love the traditional carols, especially Silent Night, which we sing when we light the candles!
Merry Christmas!
My children and I bake cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve together.
opening one present on christmas eve
We like sitting out cookies and milk for Santa on Christmas Eve and throwing nuts outdoors for his reindeer
We always gather at my parents after Thanksgiving to decorate the Christmas tree. Even now that we are all adults with families of our own, we try to be there.
We always go to see the lights at the zoo!
Christmas eve we go to church
picking out and decorating the tree
tcogbill at live dot com
Our family tradition, which was choosen by my children many years ago, is to not partake in the commerlization of the holidays. We do not ‘buy’ each other gifts and show our appreciation for each other just one day a year, instead when someone has a need throughout the year they get that need fulfilled at that time with a holiday card attached. On the actual date of the holiday we sit and watch movies, play games, or whatever we feel like while enjoying each other in a very relaxed atmosphere.
The day after Thanksgiving we put up the tree, the lights and other decorations as a family and then watch a Christmas movie!
We always put our tree up the day after Thanksgiving. We decorate it over the next few days while listening to Christmas music. We also always watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
We watch The Santa Clause every Christmas Eve!
O Thanksgiving weekend we put on Christmas music and decorate the house and put up the tree. I love when the kids find ornaments they made and put them on the tree.
One of our favorite traditions is having a big family breakfast on Christmas morning before leaving the house for the day to visit my family
Thanks!
we hide a pickle ornament on the tree or in our case trees and who ever finds it gets a special gift
we always go to the arboretum to see the lights display,followed by movies and hot chocolate!
I live too far away from family now but my favorite tradition was always decorating the tree!
We get Chinese food on Christmas Eve.
Opening new pajamas on Christmas Eve!!
we put up & decorate the tree together
We love to decorate the christmas tree together.
Putting up our tree right BEFORE thanksgiving
We love to decorate the christmas tree.
One of our favorite traditions is to have a candlelight dinner on Christmas Eve, followed by the nativity story from Luke.
looking at Christmas lights
I take and put numbers on my gifts instead of names that way no one knows which is actually their gifts. LOL It really bugs the kids , but they still end up shaking the packages so I also put do not not break on some of them . Sneeky aint I
I just love this idea.
We go the Festival of Lights every year.
we always go to my mom’s house and have a great feast and then play games…
We’d always have hot chocolate and cheese ball and crackers on Christmas Eve before opening gifts.
One of our family traditions is to not decorate the tree until the week before Christmas
We have a baked potato and salad bar for our New Year’s Day get-together – every year!
WE OPEN GIFTS ON CHRISTMAS EVE BECAUSE WHEN I WAS YOUNG MY DAD WAS A FARMER AND HAD TO GET UP EARLY TO MILK THE COWS.
every year on Christmas day I go to both my moms and dads lots of fun and love
Our tradition is to spend Christmas morning with one set of grandparents and then Christmas evening with the other set. Lots of food and fun in between.
2 weeks of food festivities where we invite all our friends and neighbors over to try different types of food —– Paul T/Pauline T aka Paul Tran ….. emscout9 at Hotmail dot com
Watching A Christmas Story
pedidentalasst at yahoo dot com
I make a Christmas morning breakfast casserole that cooks while we are opening presents and is done just about the time we are finished and need energy to start playing with everything. My mom made it every year when I was a kid and I have carried on the tradition in my family.
one of our holiday traditions l like is stringing popcorn to put on the christmas tree
thanks for giveaway
coupon.artis @ gmail dot com
Favorite Holiday tradition is to put up my mother’s Christmas the day after Thanksgiving.
I’ts a tradition that I make lots of different candies.
gourdsrmylife(at)yahoo(dot)com
decorating the tree together
On Christmas Eve we always have Sauerbraten and watch a new Christmas movie
we open one gift on christmas eve
decorating the tree and our cookie baking party on christams eve
We make homade ornaments for the tree
Decorating holiday cookies with my daughter!
we open one gift on christmas eve
We go out to eat christmas eve pizza every year
We go to church on Christmas Eve and meet my brother & his family and extended family there. Afterwards, everyone comes to our home for snacks and drinks. We’ve been doing this for years now and I really love it.
Thanks so much and happy holidays
Driving around to look at all the lights.
My favorite Christmas tradition is baking Christmas cookies with my daughter like I did with my mom and grandmother
we open one christmas gift on christmas eve
rypm25@aol.com
Bake some kind of cookies..
We all get together and decorate sugar cookies.
One of our traditions is to load the boys in the car, pop in our Mitch Miller CD and head out to look at Christmas light displays.
We all get together for Christmas Eve and I host Christmas dinner.
i love baking christmas cookies as a family
baking cookies!
Every Christmas Eve, we drive around, looking at lights. Then we come home and play games until it’s time for bed!
We love to light candles and sing Christmas carols on Christmas Eve.
THE BIG FAMILY DINNER WITH ALL THE RELATIVES
We go to church together and then come home for a nice meal.
Driving around looking at lights on Christmas Eve.
Thanks for the chance.
mogrill12@gmail.com
playing games
We always watch Rudolph together on Christmas Eve
open one small gift on christmas eve, GOD BLESS AND KEEP YA’LL SAFE IN HIS LOVING ARMS.
we get together and make decorations for the christmas tree
We string popcorn on the tree each Christmas Eve,
Watching the movie Christmas Story on TV
trimming the tree
After opening all the regular gifts we bring out what we call stockings, which are actually big bags, filled with all kinds of small gifts and goodies. Everyone agrees that this is the most fun of the day.
One of our traditions is driving around looking at all the Christmas light displays, some pretty and others really outrageous and fun.
we have a family get together
watching christmas movies
We always make batches of sugar cookies and decorate them on Christmas Eve. My kids think it’s not Christmas without it!
One of our Christmas traditions is to go bowling & steak dinner on Christmas Eve!
My mom amd sister and i make fudge and gingerbread every xmas eve!
A holiday tradition of ours is to sing by the fireplace on Christmas Eve with our grandparents.
We always make and decorate sugar cookies.
We open presents on Christmas day and eat a big dinner with all the family.
putting up the Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving
We always each open one present on Christmas Eve!
listening to christmas music while opening presents and during dinner! so simple but always a nice tradition
we draw names for our family every year to save money
We have Advent Kalendars!
We like to drive around and look at christmas lights.
Going out as a family to look at Christmas lights and decorations.
WE always do the Operation Christmas Child– and then work the soup kitchen at church–we have a family cookie exchange too
Sis and I have a new tradition – each holiday season we see a Christmas production!
Thank you.
spending time with family
we decorate the tree together and the kids are allowed to open one present on christmas eve
Thank you for hosting this giveaway
Louis
pumuckler {at} gmail {dot} com
we love putting up the tree together
We make Christams tamales
One of our holiday traditions is to have breakfast burritos on Christmas morning when we visit my family.
My family always gathers at my mom’s house a few weeks before Christmas to decorate the Christmas tree together. We eat dinner, bake cookies, and listen to Christmas music.
we put up a christmas tree every year
Go hiking in the snow!! grammypenny@frontier.com
All the grandchildren get together at my mothers house every year before Christmas to bake and decorate Christmas cookies together.
Christmas morning we open our socks while we’re baking some cinnamon rolls for breakfast… mmmm… wonderful smell
We play Christmas music while we decorate and nibble on cookies
It’s a tradition that on the Sunday before Christmas the women and older children of the family get together to make holiday cookies and candies. We then divide them on to trays and pass them out to friends, loved ones and co-workers. Thanks.
partymix25(at)hotmail(dot)com
Every Christmas, I decorate our tree with a different theme- this year, it’s berries and Cardinals!
we have christmas eve dinner at my moms and christmas dinner at my house
We love to decorate the christmas tree together.
We always put out milk and cookies for santa!
Watching the original “A Christmas Carol.”
We pick out 2 new ornaments a year. One for the family with our last name or initial on it somewhere and the other a photo type of ornament for my son.
We watch the Claymation Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer every year!
watching christmas movies
Cooking a feast!
Our tradition is a big dinner with the whole family =)
We read the christmas story in the Bible.
i’m sorry but i’ve tried to answer this question more than once. my family is broken my only tradition is going to work so someone with kids can be off. it’s not a good question for everyone. especially non-christians
sorry just a little depressed right now
we always went skiing on Mt Hood on day after Christmas then came back to mom and dads for christmas dinner leftovers
since hubby is Guatemalan, we eat tamales at midnight on Christmas Eve
getting the family together
Watching A Christmas Story and Home Alone
When my son was little, I had my own in-home daycare. Every year at Christmas to help the kids learn about Jesus, and the meaning of Christmas, we would make a “Happy Birthday, Jesus” cake. At our annual Christmas party we would sing happy birthday to Jesus, and then eat the cake, and open our presents. I wanted to teach them that Jesus was the greatest gift of all. My son is 19 now, and my two daughters are tweens, but we still make the cake and sing “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. I hope that my kids will continue this tradition with their own kids someday. Thanks!
chinese on christmas eve
On Christmas Eve, we have snack and finger foods for dinner, including Hickory Fams sausages and cheeses.
we open 1 present on christmas eve
Decorating Christmas tree together
putting up decorations and all the great food
We always hang stockings on the fireplace mantle.
family Christmas Eve dinner
We use the Advent Book.
http://harvestlanecottage.blogspot.com/2012/11/a-cozy-christ-centered-christmas-2012.html
Our family tradition is to go out and look at the Christmas lights around twon.
On Christmas Eve we go look at lights then come home to new pajamas.We then watch a movie and relax.We leave out cookies for Santa and carrots with water outside for the reindeer.
We like to drive around and look around at decorations on Christmas eve.
Decorating the christmas tree
We all get together and watch a Christmas movie together, it changes every year (the movie). I love it!
one of our holiday traditions is a annual cookie exchange party usually the first or second week of december
The first weekend in December, we head out to a local farm and cut down our Christmas tree. The family loves it.
My favorite tradition is decorating the Christmas tree
We always decorate the tree together.
jofo120 at yahoo dot com
We always put up the tree on Thanksgiving.
I love baking cookies
Baking cookies with my sister and sending them out to our family
before we open each gift we say something we are thankful for. When there is a lot of gifts we get pretty creative on thank yous
vmkids3 at msn dot com
One of our traditions is going to see the Christmas Light Display at a Local Park.
Making our own ornaments and giving them out as gifts!
We have a big family dinner for on Christmas day and then go to a movie.
we dont open gifts till christmas morning
we open 1 gift on christmas eve
Goint to the mountains on the day after Christmas:)
Whoever has Christmas Dinner has Bread Dough Covered Ham .
We love going to all the local Christmas parades, that’s our tradition.
we always spend one night oohing and aahing over Christmas lights.
One of out traditions is having a Christmas Eve dinner and then opening one gift each.
Gathering at Christmas Eve at my Grandma’s house
annabella @ centurytel dot net
My family celebrates St.Nick’s Day on Dec.6th it is a tradition that my family has celebrates since they came over from Germany in the 1880s.
Everyone in the family used to get one special thing every year in addition to regular presents. Dad got chocolate covered cherries, one uncle got Life Savers story book, the other got a Hickory Farms Summer Sausage, etc.
our tradition for as long as i can remember was for our whole family..all my brothers and familys to gather at my mom and dads on christmas eve for dinner and gifts..which was also my moms birthday..but since both are gone now…..we dont get to gather as we should
Ironically, I always always always get my fiance a little Hickory Farms sample box! We always try to spend Christmas very peacefully with lots and lots of thanks.
I like how my sisters and I like to discuss what we will be eating for the holidays (our own ethnic food or traditional foods i.e. turkey, ham…) We then ask our mom to cook it all for us….lol
Our tradition is to put up a tree. Thanks for the giveaway!
For Christmas Eve, we all get a new set of pajamas.
We make appitizers and open gifts on Christmas eve
traditionally we all get together and make our own tweaks to our homemade cheesecake recipes…it is fun and yummy.
@classy_mommie
The only tradition we really have is to have Christmas dinner as a family. We try to get everyone together to eat and open gifts.
we all decorate the tree together
Big family dinners.
we do peel and eat shrimp at midnight on xmas eve.
Decorating the home made sugar cookies that we do every year.
decorating the tree
Baking cookies together!
Baking cookies with my girls, thanks!
We put a lit candle in a cupcake, then place it in front of the manger and sing Happy Birthday to baby Jesus on Christmas morning.
I love getting together Christmas Day with family I don’t get to see that often.
After Thanksgiving we have made it a tradition to go Black Friday shopping.
we eat pizza on christmas eve
we have a big xmas morning breakfast and then the kids get to open their Santa booty
brich22 at earthlink dot net
We look forward to decorating our house and our tree
we watch christmas story all day christmas day
ardelong2(at)gmail(dot)com
Letting the children open one gift on Christmas eve
We go to my inlaws for a very fun few days.. Lots of baking and egg nog.
We always decorate for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving.
Baking gift baskets for our neighbors!
Leaving cookies out for Santa
One of our holiday traditions is to bake and decorate while listening to Christmas music- kind of a decorating party.
On Christmas Day, whoever is gathered together at our house, has all of their gifts that are under the tree placed in front of them. From oldest to youngest , each one must choose a Christmas carol and we all sing that carol and then that person gets to open their presents.
we bake cookies to give to the neighbors
decorating the tree together
Making cokies
*cookies
we all get together on Christmas Eve, eat, visit, and play for best game ever “The White Elephant Gift Exchange”.
thanks for the sweeps
One of our family traditions is that we buy the kids an ornament that marks a milestone in their life that year. It makes decorating so much fun because, we all go over what each one represents.
We all get together to bake for the Holidays.
we bake goodie baskets for family and friends
Putting the tree up during the thanksgiving holiday with family
One of our holiday traditions is going to get a tree for my mother in law at a family member’s tree farm. We cannot have a real tree due to allergies, so this is really nice for us.
We start decorating Thanksgiving night and finish up the next day as a family.
Decorating the house and tree for Christmas.
tdlsfm(at)yahoo(dot)com
We love riding around town in our car to see all the different kinds of lights and decorations on houses .
My husband and I drink wine by candlelight after the kids go down on Christmas.
We always have a bnack type buffet on Christmas Eve
No traditions but growing up, we were allowed to open one gift on Christmas Eve.
We make christmas cookies as a family the weekend before christmas.
We like to go to a tree farm and cut our own Christmas tree, then bring it home and decorate it. It’s so fun!
We love to make a gingerbread house together every year.
Putting up lights and a Christmas tree!
Putting the decorations and lights up on the outside of our house always gets us in the Christmas spirit.
I actually love the tradition we have of opening a present on Christmas Eve. It is less about the presents and more about the whole family being together and spending some time enjoying each other.
On Christmas Eve we drive around looking at Christmas lights.
we cut out and decorate a ton of christmas cookies every year and give out to friends and family
We bake cookies every year…such a fun tradition started by my mother years ago
Every Dec 23rd we do Christmas at my mother in laws. It’s her day. She has done this for years so that noone is stuck working and everyone can come. We love it!
Baking snicker-doodle cookies and other sweets with my mom while listening to Brenda Lee holiday music
my favourite tradition is staying up in the wee hours just eating, talking and laughing.
We prepare all of the Christmas cookie doughs during the week, and then bake in assembly line format at the end of the week!
The youngest person hands out the gifts.
We have an open house party with latkes and other traditional Hanukkah things!
opening one present christmas eve
making sugar cookies!~
I always love waiting for the stroke of midnight to open our presents as a family, grandpa acts as our santa clause sitting in the big chair reading the “froms” and “Tos” to the whole family….. Ahhhhh Christmas time, is the time…
Baking cookies on Christmas Eve as a family
we eat out Christmas meal at supper time, we also go to church on Christmas eve and when we get home we open one present
Every year my we take the kids to ride through to see the Christmas lights at the Newport News park here in Virginia
Even though me and my brother are in our 30′s,we still expect and look forward to our momma giving us colors and coloring books every year!!
all of the kids in our family get together and decorate my mom’s tree each year
jagar0047 at yahoo dot com
I love to decorate the tree with my kids and my grandkids. We get to decorate it with the ornaments that my mother has given all of us every year since we were born. It is by far the best tradition ever!
My mom and I always bake an enormous amount of Christmas cookies with our family recipe. We usually have Christmas cookies well into January lol.
We make cookies on Christmas Eve…for ourselves, not Santa. (Our oldest is only 3.)
we always eat snowball cookies while opening presents
Opening one present on Christmas Eve
A favorite holiday tradition is my children picking names with each other for secret santa presents.
One tradition we have is baking Holiday cookies and breads and giving it to family, friends and neighbors.
We listen to Christmas music and lots of it!
sledding on chiristmas afternoon
My husband and I wait until Christmas eve to wrap presents. We stay up late, drink wine, wrap, and watch Christmas Vacation!
Eating Chinese food and going to the movies on Christmas Day.
We have fondue for dinner on Christmas Eve.
On Christmas Eve we all open one gift and then all watch a Christmas movie together. Love the Hickory Farm products. The ones I’ve tried have been very good. Thanks for this contest!
Can almost smell the box
we always decorate the tree together, no matter where we all live.
We like to drive around our neighborhood looking at decorations.
We bake cookies every year.
We bake cookies & hand them out to our neighbors
We buy a huge sandwich platter and for Christmas eve and Christmas, when friends and family are stopping in, there is food. I don’t have to cook, everyone loves sandwiches, and everyone now expects it.
We select a tree to cut down and decorate it.
baking cookies
We love opening the non-santa presents on Christmas eve while watching movies together.