What's Your Favorite Holiday Tradition? Enter to Win

OMG - there are so many holiday traditions that I love!! I don't know where to begin. I guess, if I had to pick my favorite, it would be my family Christmas Eve traditions. My mother makes three or four different kinds of soups - clam chowder and chili are always the staples. We eat it on the floor in the living room under the tree. My sister and I are allowed to open one gift (that's remnants of childhood!) and then, we do a holiday production of some sort. When we were kids, I would play piano and my sister would do a skit. Now that we're older, we sometimes read poetry or just tell stories. We have two young kiddos in the family (my nephews) who are just about at the right age to start doing productions of their own. They will probably sing us a few songs this year. I can't wait!! Now that I've started thinking about it, I'm even MORE excited!

My mother has a "grandmother's Christmas" the Sunday just before Christmas each year. All of the nieces,nephews and cousins show up with all of their children to open gifts, admire the tree and have a meal made up of various hot and cold hors d'oevres. The littlest kids love being able to eat with their fingers, the older members of the family have the opportunity to enjoy the once a year gathering of the entire family and who doesn't like opening gifts in front of the tree?

My favorite holiday tradition is the entire family decorating the Christmas tree every year. It really brings us all together and we can discuss year's past Christmas's and how special each one was.

My favorite tradition takes place on Christmas Eve when we make an Italian style meal of homemade pizza and sausage sandwiches (my husband is Italian :). After dinner, we head out and drive through neighborhoods looking at everyone's lights and decorations while we listen and sing to Holiday tunes. Then, we come home and have hot chocolate while we each open one gift from each other before Santa comes. It's the best night of the year!

[oaclass=articlesummary]Can you believe it's already December?! The year has flown by, but we're excited for what's in store and hope that you'll celebrate this holiday season with us by participating in our latest contest. Tell us about the holiday traditions that are meaningful to you and your family and you could win big. [/oaclass]My most cherished (or should I say what is becoming my most cherished) holiday tradition is Christmas breakfast with my sons and daughter-in-laws and grandchildren on Christmas Day. Now that my two sons are married with children of their own they celebrate Christmas eve and on into Christmas Day at their respective homes however, they don't go back to bed but bundle up the kids and get in their cars to come to my house for breakfast. So, I get up at 4am and begin to set a formal Christmas table w/placecards I make on the computer that reflect something I learned that year that is special to the person to be seated there. (For example, my grandson, the first grader, lost a lot of teeth this year and is excelling in gymnastics and spelling. For his placecard I would put say a gymnast or a toothfairy or a picture of a spelling bee and write a brief but special message to him about his accomplishment.). After the table is set, I start making the batter for the pancakes and the biscuit dough. I crack all the eggs into a bowl and then cut up all the fruit for the table. They usually arrive about 5:45am so by 5:30am everything is cooking (i.e. grits or oatmeal is simmering; turkey bacon and sausage is in the pan; and the eggs, pancakes and biscuits are the last items to prepare). Everything comes to the table piping hot and we sit around 6am and laugh and talk about the past year and any ideas or asperations they have for the coming year and just have a good time. Everyone helps with the cleanup and have enough time to go back home and take a nap before they have to go to visit any other family or functions they have decided to attend. It is the best celebration and the easiest one of all. No stress just a good hearty family breakfast with the immediate family and the rest of the day to relax (well, at least for me that is)! :-)

My dad *loved* Christmas. He was very poor growing up, and for him Christmas was an orange and maybe a piece of hard candy. He wanted his children to have all the excitement and joy of Christmas that he never had so he always went all out for Christmas. Things would start the day after Thanksgiving with putting up the tree and decorating the house. Daddy was in the army (he was a Sergeant), and my Mom always felt sorry for the GI's who couldn't go home for Christmas. Many of them were just 18 or 19, away from home for the first time and really homesick. So she'd invite them over for events like putting up the tree. It was always this huge crush with us kids and about a dozen GI's running around, decorating the tree, drinking hot chocolate. Mom would start baking about then (and in later years, I did), and we'd make cookies and candies and pies and put them away in the freezer for Christmas. The house smelled wonderful that whole month with scents of baking and cooking wafting everywhere. We always had a lot of special food made because Daddy wanted us to have the thrill of that. We generally would leave first thing Christmas morning to travel to my parents families which were about 10 hours away, so we opened presents on Christmas Eve. Again, all the GIs would be there. I remember one year I was about 5, and I was worried that we would leave the next morning before Santa Claus could get there. Around 5 p.m., we heard shouting in the carport and bells ringing. We went running out, and there was Daddy with all of our Santa presents scattered about. He said he saw Santa flying by and caught him to get our presents so we wouldn't be missed. I'm older now, and I don't have kids, and Daddy died years ago, so we don't put as much production into the holidays as we used to. But for me, the holidays will always be about Daddy, because he made them so much fun for us.

It wouldn't be a proper holiday at my house without homemade walnut sticky buns fresh out of the oven on Xmas morning. This has gone on for so long I would probably be shot on the spot if I tried to substitute something else, or just not "do" the sticky buns. We enjoy them with coffee or cocoa as we unwrap gifts.

Giving to those less fortunate than me. Growing up, my Dad would go out on Christmas Eve with the car full of food that Mom had made, fresh citrus from Florida, and nuts that we had collected at my grandparent's farm. No matter how cold it was or how much snow was on the ground, he would go visit the elderly and leave them with as much as we could spare. It truly is the Season of giving - try it you'll feel wonderful!

We do many things leading up to and on the day of Christmas both at work and at home. Since I am work most of the time, I will mention what is most meaningful to me at the holiday season when I am at work. In our department, it's just me and my supervisor, on the last day before our break she bakes my favorite cookies (lemon bars and something chocolaty) and we exchange gifts. She is by far the best supervisor I have ever worked for because she takes time, energy, and effort to do this out of the kindness of her heart...now that's the true meaning of Christmas!

[oaclass=articlesummary]Can you believe it's already December?! The year has flown by, but we're excited for what's in store and hope that you'll celebrate this holiday season with us by participating in our latest contest. Tell us about the holiday traditions that are meaningful to you and your family and you could win big. [/oaclass]My favorite holiday tradition is picking a family from our local "Adopt a Family" organization and taking my three children shopping to pick out the gifts for the family. We have done this for the past 4 years and it's the most rewarding feeling. My kids get so excited picking out the different gifts for the kids. Not only are we helping out a family in need for the holiday season, but my children are learning the value of giving and realizing that there are other folks in the world who need things more than they do. They are learning to appreciate the little things that I am able to do for them and are more respectful in that manner. It's such a blessing to know that we were part of that smile on a child's face Christmas morning. We plan to cotinue this family tradition until we are not able to give anymore!! Merry Christmas to Everyone.

I have a few traditions at this time of year, but my most enduring and favourite one is that I get all my shopping done in plenty of time, so that, come Christmas Eve, I can head along to our local cinema to watch Its a Wonderful Life. Its such a beautiful film, and, at this time of the year, its easy to get caught up in all the stress of the season, so to absorb yourself for a bit and get it all into perspective is a great way to round things off - plus you still feel all christmassy!

Our family celebrates Christmas in a big way like many of you who have responded already. One of our small family traditions has always been the exchange of ornaments. When I left my parents home I already had a nice collection of ornaments given to me by my parents and family through the years. Many of them hold very dear and special memories. Some are homemade, some are very showy. All were given with love. When I began having children of my own I carried on the tradition. My three kids each receive a special ornament every year. A couple years ago I invested in clear plastic ornament tubs for each of them so that their ornaments are kept all together. When it's time to decorate they each have their own box of assorted ornaments to place on the tree. At some point, particularly with my older son, I know he'll be ready to take his personal ornaments when he leaves the nest. Where ever life takes each of them I know they'll have a box of memories to go along and just maybe they will carry on the tradition too.

My favorite work tradition is baking tons of cookie for Christmas gifts at work. My daughter loves the time together baking and my bosses love the food. At home, since our family is a combination of religions, we share both Christmas and Hanukkah traditions with my daughter. She is growing up to respect and enjoy both sides of her family. It is fun watching her learn to understand and integrate both traditions in her world - I can't wait to see how she recreates them with her kids!!

I am new to celebrating Christmas, it wasn't until I was married and then had kids that we started "our" traditions. Every Christmas week, my boys and I bake up a storm of cookies and then on Christmas Eve day, we take the cookies to our local police and fire stations. These folks are our local hero's and the fact that they have to work and not be with their families means a lot to us. My kids love to see the hero's in uniform and the fire trucks are a bonus! Plus it teaches them about giving and appreciating what they have. Lauralee Borrero Global Account Executive ConferenceDirect

We start Christmas on Christmas Eve, and go through to Boxing Day. Christmas Eve is spent singing carols before bed. Christmas Day has been the same for as long as I can remember: Church, then big cooked breakfast before opening the presents. Lunch with the grandparents, drinks at a family friends house then home to cook dinner. We always have home made pudding after dinner, then cheese and we play cards till the wee hours. Boxing Day was my grandmothers birthday, so we spend it with my mum's family - usually a BBQ and swimming (don't forget - it's summer at Xmas down here!!).