Michael Burch
Keelan CookWith young kids, my wife and I want to establish some good family #Christmas traditions.
What are your favorite traditions for Christmas and #Advent?
(boosts appreciated, of course)
Ben Briggs@keelan it hasn't arrived yet but we are starting a Jesus tree this year in addition to the Christmas tree, decorated with items that represent something about Jesus or his character. We also have a Nativity scene advent calendar that our boys love (a little figurine each day).
@ben that's a great idea. I also like the nativity with figures for each day.
We have a thing called Advent Blocks that attempts that purpose. You walk through a whole-Bible story set that culminates in the first advent. Each day a different block correlates to a particular story. We like it so far, but I may run some of what you're doing by my wife.
Jon Yoder@keelan Advent calendars are always fun, but in our house, baking and decorating gingerbread cookies at my mother-in-law's house is something that we get a kick out of
My little girl already loves baking, and so does my wife. We likely need to build a tradition around that.
We've got an advent calendar(ish) thing called Advent block. It serves a similar function to a calendar, and we do like it.
Joseph Louthan@keelan
- Xmas pjs on Xmas eve
- pigs in a blanket / cinnamon rolls on Xmas morning
We are still making traditions
- Xmas pjs on Xmas eve
- pigs in a blanket / cinnamon rolls on Xmas morning
We are still making traditions
@joseph
The PJs are a lock for us already. The grandparents ensure of that one, haha.
And I love the pigs in a blanket! We used to live in Texas, and we picked up an affinity for tamales on Christmas eve. But now that we're back on the east coast, that's been a bit of a bust.
I'd love to have some off-the-wall food traditions.
Sharrow_irl@keelan giving and reading books on winter Soltice.
Nona Rose@keelan looking at local Christmas lights on Christmas Eve. Going into the city to look at the big Christmas trees and lights in the week before Christmas. You could always make an advent calendar of activities.
@nona80_swanette A year or two ago, I made a map of all the different places in our metro area that had big light displays and we tried to check off visiting every one before the season was out. It was a ton of fun.
I still have it in fact, and should probably pull it out!
@keelan that sounds amazing. I wish I could do something like that here.
@nona80_swanette It's was a blast. We live in a big enough metro here in the States that there are about a dozen houses or places that do it up big.
@keelan I live in Sydney 😂 lights are not as big a thing as they are in the states, so the pockets that do have good lights usually take ages to get to because Sydney sprawls.
@nona80_swanette Ah, yes, that poses an obstacle.
Simon Detheridge 
@keelan My kids, two of whom are now adults, always enjoy watching a movie, eating roast chestnuts and stretching their stockings (my wife's knee socks) so that Santa can fit as much in as possible. They'll find various ways of yanking them, attaching them to things, coming up with silly little games. Anything to do with sock stretching.
@keelan oh, chestnuts is a ritual itself. You have to stick them all with a fork quite firmly to make sure they don't explode in the oven, and then peel each one after roasting. They're easier to peel when they're warm, at the expense of burny fingers.
The sock stretching had been doing on for the best part of 20 years, and they still do it despite now knowing it won't affect the number of gifts they get.
Glad you like our software! 
@s You've now got me contemplating chestnuts for the holiday this year.
And the sock stretching is hilarious.
OSIRIS 🎸 💻 🎙️@keelan Christmas is great for baking together. Ginger snaps, saffron buns and christmas bread (no idea how to translate "syrup loafs"). Hoping we'll have time to build a gingerbread house as well.
@osiris I've never heard of saffron buns or "syrup loafs." Are saffron buns a sweet or savory bread?
@keelan Swedish specialties :-D. Saffron buns, or directly translated "Lucia cats" (celebrating St Lucia on the 13th of december is one of the strongest Swedish Christmas traditions for some reason).
They are sweet, made from wheat flour, and garnished with raisins. One of my absolut Christmas favorites.
@keelan The syrup loaf is a rye and wheat bread with spices, but sweet in taste and with a caramelized crust.
https://swedishfood.com/swedish-food-bread-recipes/513-syrup-loaf
These are the ones we made yesterday.
@osiris This looks as good as the other. I think we're going to try to make some of this!
@osiris I think I have seen those before but had no idea what they were or about the Swedish tradition.
They look great. I may need to find a recipe. Thanks for sharing!
karen@keelan watching a muppets Christmas Carol on Christmas eve - it's the best tradition possible
@counsellingkaren I'm 100% for this. My wife, on the other hand, is not a Muppet fan. No idea why, but it grieves me, haha.
The kids discovered Sesame Street recently though, and they are big fans. So, I think my wife may get outnumbered on this one!
@keelan a good marriage involves understanding and appreciating each others cultures (and you can tell her a therapist told you that lol)
@counsellingkaren haha. I'll do it!
⁂ Fish Id Wardrobe@keelan Religious or not? If so, are you Christian? Lots of non-xtian folks celebrate in one way or another.
@fishidwardrobe
Yep. We're Christian and hope to keep that a focus for our holidays as we develop them. People celebrate in all kinds of ways, but we do want ours to be informed by our faith tradition.
I'm always game to hear what others from different traditions do, though!
She@keelan Chinese food on Christmas Eve. Started with my parents in my teens. No idea why but it’s lovely! My mum’s gone now but this year we will still have it with my elderly dad and kids round the table.
@vikatoyah I've heard of others doing Chinese food as well.
In fact, when I was little, we did that a few years. I think it was one of the few restaurants open on Christmas eve. Do you prepare it at home or do takeout?
Sounds like a great tradition to keep going in your family.
@keelan oh no we don’t cook it! It used to be at the restaurant, then takeaway with small kids and lockdowns. Anyway the method has evolved but the tradition remains x
’Nathan Burgoine@keelan A themed or nostalgia ornament for the year. Decorating the tree slowly turns into a wonderful trip down memory lane as the years pass. “The year we got the dog,” or “that time we went to X,” or whatever. Keep a little notebook with the ornaments to write down where they’d come from and what they represented.
Ah, a notebook to keep record is brilliant.
We've started collecting ornaments from our travels or major life events in the last year or two. That does seem like a habit that will reap big dividend in a decade.
@keelan our kids are 8 and 3, and enjoy The Christmas Star from Afar. We hide the star in a new location every night and each morning they find it and bring the the wise men to it (and then get a chocolate from their advent calendars while we read the verse for the day)
@michael
Hey, that's fun. I like making a game out of it.
Hey, that's fun. I like making a game out of it.
VbelleChristmas Eve read The Night Before Christmas. Leave cookies & a beverage for Santa & put kids to bed.
Drink too much & then while Mass at St.Peter’s is on tv start to assemble the trike, bike, racecar roadway, or the toy of the year while intoxicated. Discover at 2am that you do not have the proper battery pack for the toy of the year so your kid won’t be able to play with it on Christmas Day unless you can find it at 7-11!
Good times!