Thursday, December 20, 2012

Christmas Traditions

Christmas is by far my favorite holiday. It's filled with traditions, some old and carried on, and some completely new. One of the wonderful things about starting your own family is that you get to share traditions from when you grew up, and you get to tweak them and make new ones. 
I wanted to share a few of ours, and maybe inspire you to add a few to yours. 

The first is my Surprise Balls....




When I was little, occasionally, we got this wonderful ball to unwrap. As you unrolled the colorful crepe paper, toy surprises and jokes were revealed. 
They were so much fun, even if you just got a bad joke and a cheap plastic ring. 




 Now I make my own for my kids. I buy rolls of colorful crepe paper streamers from the party section at the grocery store. I print off Shakespeare quotes and bad Christmas jokes from the internet, and one good prize for the center. The wrappings work best with small flattish prizes like fake mustaches and chocolate coins. I then sit in front of the TV, one night after the kids have gone to bed, and get rolling. I'm sure you can still buy these somewhere, but it's much more fun to personalize them, and easy to make your own, so why bother with searching for them.





The kids love them and open them with a frenzy. We then spend time wrapping each other up like mummies and taking photos. 


Next is The Count Down....





Now this tends to cause me some anxiety every time I look at it, but the kids love it and get so excited. It's an idea I got off of Pintrest. It's just an old frame that I use a dry erase marker on. 




 I have three boys, so we have two advent calendars that are going. The first is a Playmobil calendar that has little boxes that you open each day and then the characters get placed in a winter scene. I have bought 4 or 5 of then and carefully save them for the next year. Now I rotate them instead of purchasing more. I'm thinking I will carry this tradition on even when I have grandchildren someday. The second is a garland made of little knitted hats and gloves. I believe I bought it from the Sundance catalog. I buy chocolate truffles and fill these. The boys then rotate who gets to do what, with one of them taking the day off. 




Then the stockings hung by the chimney with care..... 

When I made these, I did not know how to knit or crochet. I just had an idea from my mom trying to teach me when I was little. They are wonky and out of proportion, but that's what makes them charming. I made one for each of my boys. One is crocheted, one is knitted, and one is sewn. There is no pattern, sorry, and I couldn't even begin to recreate them, but I encourage you to try your own. Now a days you can look up a tutorial on the internet, but when I made these I wasn't internet savvy. 








I now know how to crochet very well, thanks to the internet, and have made Christmas pillows. 
( Feeling rather clever now. )





I also have a thing for terrariums. 
This is my Christmas scene in a vase. Kosher salt for snow, a tree from holiday decor in a craft store, and one of my sons toy animals. 




And then there's the food....

Sushi Christmas Eve
(there's a story behind this one)

Fondue
(cheese and chocolate for desert)

Crepes Christmas morning

and 

Stunning deserts!














 and always Christmas Crackers...

If you haven't tried these, pick up a set. They are an after Christmas or New Years dinner treat with a paper crown, a joke, and a trinket. Two people take hold of an end and pull. It has a small firework that makes a loud pop or "crack" sound. Sometimes you can find one's with Christmas games or nicer trinkets. It really depends on how much you pay for them and where you shop for them. I thought of stuffing my own, but I haven't run across a kit. These I bought at Pier One Imports, but I have seen them at Williams Sonoma and other specialty stores. 

 Happy Tradition making!

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