Since we have a kid and my sister has kids, were all getting together for a Christmas movie and pizza night the Saturday before Christmas this year. Hopefully the start of a new tradition, as everyone is looking forward to it. My sister lives in Norfolk, VA and will soon be moving to Hawaii due to my BIL being in the Navy, so it will be nice to get together. Focus: What are your holiday traditions? Make any special food? Do something fun? Or do you just sit there in the dark drinking whisky like Ebenezer Nettdata?
Focus: We have a lot, though they've changed over the past 10 years or so with the passing of family members. But one constant has been that everyone waits while someone opens their gift. The idea is to see what they got and make sure that the person who gave it is able to watch as they open it. But also, it slows down the festivities a little, makes it last longer. I often will go for a quiet evening walk if time and weather allows. Sometimes I'll walk about a mile up the road, look at the houses lit up. Sometimes watch as people file in for church. But usually I just reflect on Christmas' past, remember those who are no longer with us. And I always watch all the old Christmas specials, just because. I'm not a sucker for nostalgia or anything.
I am a nut for any and all Christmas specials. I always have been. Last Friday the SO went and got buffalo wings and actually let me watch Elf (without bitching about it) and enjoy one of my fav foods. That may become a tradition. When I was a kid Christmas Eve was always at my Grandmas (RIP Gram). My Great Grandma made mInestrone soup (YUCK) and not one gift was opened until everyone ate. Since veggies and I didn't get along, the entire family was usually waiting on me. Christmas Day was for stockings and a massive meal at her house again. After my Great Grandparents died everyone kind of split off and did their own thing. Bound to happen as their own families grew and life happened, but my parents and I still went. Once my Grandma was gone the traditions were too. Now with my Mom in one state and my Dad in another, it's pretty simple. We spend it with the SO's side at our place. Small and cozy but easy. I do miss the chaos of those I enjoyed as a kid though.
We let our kids open their presents from us on Xmas eve, then their presents from Santa on Xmas morning (most presents from us, 1 or 2 special ones from Santa). The thinking is, they're going to my parents house that morning for presents, and then my wife's parents after that, and too many presents is like too much sugar for a kid -- the crash SUCKS!! As far as food goes, everyone has their specialty. I make my BLT dip (recipe in the cooking thread here). Then a few days afterward I go around in my truck to my family members' houses, collect their xmas trees once they've taken them down, and we all have a massive bonfire in my burn pit. Those things are major fucking fire hazards -- though, it can be argued, I am also a fire hazard -- so we try to get them out of the house asap.
When I was young, the last thing my parents would do every Christmas Eve before us kids went to bed was get out a record of Dylan Thomas reading "A Child's Christmas in Wales." So I continue the tradition myself. I got a turntable last year and found a near perfect copy of the record, too.
We eat prime rib and snow crab legs for Christmas dinner every year, so of course I look forward to Christmas more than Thanksgiving. Usually it's me, my mom, sister, brother-in-law, 2 nephews, aunt, uncle, and 2 cousins who get together at one of our houses. If I get to choose what we watch then I put on the NBA games (the one day of the year where I watch non-playoff NBA), but my 6-year old nephew usually has a monopoly on the TV now. Unfortunately I always have to drive home, so I stay sober.
I used to love watching "A Christmas Story" every year as a kid, but TNT ran it into the ground, then put a telephone pole on top of it, and pile-drove it into the ground on top of it. Does "holiday" have to mean Christmas? Because I've got a Thanksgiving tradition where I watch "Aliens" every year (not this year, though).
Hopefully a shitty new tradition didn't start this year. Came home last night to our tree that had fallen over. 3/4 of our ornaments broken, including some that we have from my folks that passed away this year. Goddamnit.
I try to go to the movies on Christmas generally but this year I’m thinking we will do a dinner and some movies at home. We do cocoa and make gingerbread houses, and we just...relax. Nothing ostentatious and since my family is spread all over the country we do some FaceTime.
I'd always heard that's supposed to be bad luck? One year we came home and our tree had fallen over, but we lucked out only one ornament broke: the angel on top of the tree, which was decapitated when it hit a shelf. We joked about how that was a bad omen and then nine months later I was in the hospital with a brain tumor. We got a better tree stand the next year.
We used to have a Siamese cat that would love to eat Christmas tree tinsel. The problem was that it never really got "processed" properly, or completely. We therefore had a Christmas Tradition of watching the cat run by with a 3' streamer of tinsel fluttering out its ass like it was doing some Olympic artistic floor routine... and we'd take turns "trimming the cat".
We will do presents with our kids at home, then go to my parents and do presents over there. Then go to my grandma's house and do presents then do lunch. When my grandpa was alive we would come back for dinner. Now maybe my mom will do dinner, maybe my aunt and maybe no body. Boxing day is at my inlaws just watching movies.
My family would have Christmas crackers at dinner, but after my grandfather passed that tradition died off. Christmas went from a big holiday to barely remembering there's a holiday after my grandmother passed. Since my mom passing away last year, my dad has surprised me with how important its become for him. Overall, it's not so much the holiday that's important to him as having what remains of the family is together. Mom passed only a few months before the holidays last year and I think this holiday season is harder for him. This year the wife's parents, sister, BIL, and niece as well as my dad and brother are coming to our house...it'll be the first time we've had that many staying with us and the most those two groups will have been around each other. Her dad is opinionated and my dad can be cranky...this could get interesting. Christmas cracker for those that were wondering: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_cracker
We would always go out to eat on Christmas Eve and come home to Santa. Once we got older it turned into finger foods (sausage balls, crabbies, taco wantons, cheese balls) for a bit and then ride around to look at lights while "Santa" came. Once my mother died all the traditions did as well. It's now year to year on if anything happens. My dad and step mom usually throw up a tree but actually vacation during the actual holiday leaving me to deal with the entire dysfunctional family. I'm guaranteed to host my little brother, his ex-wife/possible new wife, their two (alone very awesome children/gasoline mixed with tannerite), and my older sister that neither I nor my brother speak to. She also brings her two little hellions. Christmas starts off as a fun family time and devolves into me arguing with my sister and vowing to never do it again. Yet every year I fall for the promise that this year will be different. It's never different. Luckily we do at least eat well on Christmas. King Crab, Prime Rib, Wagyu Porterhouse.. Year to Year is always something different. But the family BS is starting to outweigh the food. I'm thinking I may follow my dad's footsteps and just vacation this year. Bah Humbug!
Growing up JW I figured I missed out on all the Christmas traditions but after reading this thread I may have lucked out! So much family drama yeeesh The town I live in has the fire dept dress a guy up as Santa and ride through the neighborhoods on the top of a fire truck all decked out with lights and music while volunteers come behind him collecting canned goods and passing out candy canes to the youngsters. It is bar none my wife's favorite part of the holidays. We'll hear the music when he is several streets over, she'll run outside and her eyes light up like a 5 year old when she sees him so it pretty much is my favorite part of the holidays.
To me, getting older, this has been the key to better major/family holidays; reduce the drama. Thankfully most of my family has hopped on board with that as well. We no longer do things because we felt obligated due to tradition, we do things because we genuinely want to, and it's so much more enjoyable and relaxing as a result. No more hopping in the car XMas morning for a 3 hour drive to go visit relatives that you see every XMas Day and that's it... that kind of thing. We now do a XMas Eve "lasagna and wine" family dinner with everyone where the kids get the latest Lego set and the adults sit around and just enjoy each other's company while the kids build stuff. XMas morning alternates between my place and my sister's place where we show up and start drinking mimosas at 11 and then cab it home after dinner. We also tend to go see a XMas Day movie or something, some people cook, some people work on puzzles, some people play video games, some people watch movies... it's just a nice, mellow "couch day" as a group. Hell, some years we just order Chinese when nobody feels like cooking or doing dishes. Gone are the days of bringing out the "good" place settings that were generational hand-me-downs... usually it resulted in cleaning old shit that wasn't used since the year before, and they usually weren't dishwasher safe so had to be hand cleaned. Now it's either the normal daily dishes, or even paper plates... whatever is easy. More than anything, we've just mellowed out and relaxed and started enjoying ourselves way more. Minimal drama, because we only invite those people that are drama-free.
That's the key to enjoying the holidays, for sure. Hell, every other day too. When my grandma was alive, we were visiting on Christmas Day with our then 6 month old son. My "black sheep" cousin was there with her brood, a bunch of savages if ever there were any. They completely ruined the whole thing, scared the hell out of our son. I snapped, and we abruptly left. I could see Grandma was disappointed we cut the visit short, and she called later to apologize ( not that she needed to for anything ). So after that we would go visit her the day after, when it was quieter and minimal chance of my asshole cousin and her horde being there. It was never the same, but it isn't as you get older. Accepting that sometimes takes time. That and severing ties with shitbird family members. My family is low key, come in your pajamas if you want. My inlaws used to dress up for Christmas Eve, so I was expected to as well. I was always uncomfortable so one year I just stopped. Now they're more laid back as well. Except my wife's aunt who gets a bit pushy about the day's events. Alcohol helps.
We (as in my family) now realize that my sister is much more enjoyable and tolerable when she's a bit buzzed. The rest of us be sure to include "sister's booze on hand" as one of the supply checklists for any major family event. Lately it's been my version of a Harvey Wallbanger that she's enjoying, so we keep orange juice, galliano, malibu, and grenadine on hand for her. I don't think she's clued in yet, and it's been going on 3 years since the first "eureka" discovery.
Also grew up JW and never did shit until my brother had his daughter. He, my sister, and I had broken away but I'm not married and don't have kids, my sister's kids sorta grew up JW so they kinda missed out too, so we just didn't do holidays. Now my brother takes the lead for most holidays, we all cook, and go to his house to hang out and have a few drinks. It's all low key with our remaining family and his wife's. Good food, a few drinks and some good laughs. I still suck at gift buying but just to spend time together as a family is really cool.