Member-only story
Family Traditions
What are your family traditions
The holidays are filled with so many traditions for me, starting with Thanksgiving. At five, my son is getting old enough to understand and participate in them.
Thanksgiving has always been a time of family gathering, and we had a tradition of playing rock, paper, scissors, to determine who would get to break the wishbone from the turkey. We never ate our meal at a traditional time but instead had it between lunch and supper. Usually around two, in order to accommodate my brother’s and my work schedule. He worked in the mornings. I worked in the evenings.
The first of December started the preparations for Christmas. Every year like clockwork, we would get out the decorations and spend the next two days putting them up. Growing up, we didn’t have a big Christmas tree in our living room but instead had individual trees, one for each of us three kids, that we kept in our room.
My mother started the tradition of buying each of us our own individual ornament every year for our tree. She kept that tradition until we turned eighteen. I continued to keep up the tradition by buying my own ornament, and I now do the same thing with my son. He loves to go and pick out his special ornament.
Christmas eve is spent reading the Christmas story from the bible and opening the presents in our stockings. Then I tuck the little boy in bed, read him the night before Christmas, and go to sleep with excitement bubbling inside.
When Christmas morning finally arrives, its present opening time! We always open presents first, then have a small breakfast so we can leave room for the lunchtime ham.
Traditions are a part of what makes the holidays special. Everyone has their own way of celebrating with unique ways of spending time together.
