Christmas Traditions {Old}

We decorated our tree over the last few nights. I love doing that as a family – it’s magical. The Christmas music blaring, the boys happy & laughing… it really is the best:) But the thing I love most about this time of year is the traditions, and getting to pass along the traditions my parents gave me, onto my own family.

My Favourite Christmas Traditions

1. Santa/Gingerbread Guy on Top of the Tree When I was little, my Mum bought a package of Christmas patterns that she sewed to use as decorations. One of those things was a Santa that always adorned the top of our tree. When I left home, I got to take that Santa with me. 35 years was about all that Santa had in him. But I juts couldn’t put a star on the top of my tree…

2. Giving the Kids a New Ornament Every Year My parents gave my brother & I a new ornament every year. They wrapped it and gave it to us the night we put up the tree. They wrote our names & the year on each ornament, and when we left home we got to take our ornaments with us. I loved that, it is a piece of my childhood that I get to keep with me in a very real way. Now we are doing the same for our boys. This year’s ornaments… Nutcrackers!

3. Having an Eclectic Tree Don’t get me wrong – themed trees are beautiful, but what stories do they tell? Most of the ornaments on our tree lead to a story… about a place we’ve been or people we love or friends we miss dearly.

4. Laundry Detergent {Snow} on the Tree Growing up in the Caribbean, we never get a Christmas Day that drops below 85’F. Snow is never a possibility! So we have to get a little creative:) You put a little powdered detergent into a bowl, add some water and voilà – Caribbean Snow! Now I live in Canada where I have more snow than I will ever need, but I still need to put a little Caribbean snow on my tree:)

5. Siblings Exchanging Gifts on Christmas Eve I didn’t realise the brilliance of this when my brother & I exchanged gifts on Christmas eve, I was just happy to be opening a present early! But now on the flip side – being the Mum, I get it and love it even more… When the boys exchange their little gifts with each other on Christmas eve, there are no other presents to compete against, so the present they got from their sibling gets to be the absolute best gift ever, even if only for a night!

{Gift exchange pictures to follow after Christmas eve}