from Cheryl Bastian

We really do enjoy making the holidays about other people and do so in ways that we can work with family members toward a common goal. The list below highlights some of our favorite activities.

Cookies

Yes, flour found its way to the tile grout and some of us looked like we had weathered a blizzard, but we enjoyed measuring and baking together. This was a generational tradition passed along to me by my mother and grandmother, and I wanted to share it with my children. It was perfect for multiple ages. As we rolled dough and created, I told stories about when I was a child, how I decorated, how we baked for days, and what recipes were our favorites. As they listened, my children understood they were part of a heritage, a bigger picture. In the end, deciding who to give the cookies to became an additional treat. My children remember packing up goodies for our sweet shut-in neighbor and blessing the mailman with a plate we packed, wrapped, and hid in the mailbox.

Gifts

Some years we made an ornament, other years we made wrapping paper by using cookie cutters dipped in paint and stamped onto butcher paper. As my girls got older, they wanted to make essential oil oatmeal soap balls and hand-crafted cards. For a season of several years, my dad looked forward to the peanut brittle we made and cracked for him. One year we cooked up homemade lollipops, another unique favorite.

Dinner Hosts

No matter how many people we host, children enjoy being a part of the preparation—from planning a new dish to share to scrubbing carrots, making centerpieces, or folding fancy napkins. One year, one of my teen daughters made place cards, writing three distinguishing qualities of the guest who would be seated in a particular seat. Seeing our guests read their cards brought tears to my eyes, knowing she had taken the time to encourage. Our guests felt empowered and appreciated. Allowing each family member to use his or her gifting to contribute to providing enjoyment for someone else has been a rewarding experience for all of us.

Writing a Family Christmas Letter

The family member who suggested this idea wanted to stay connected with the extended family—most were older—who could not travel but wanted an update of our annual highlights. Each child contributed, whether he or she dictated an account of an event or milestone to me or drew an illustration. This tradition extended several years, improving our communication skills and eventually encouraging digital design skills while keeping loved ones connected. Most would send a note saying how much they appreciated getting mail.

from Carrie Bozeman

Holidays are the perfect time to do something a bit “out-of-the-box” from your normal routine. Whether it’s creating a cranberry bog in your bathtub or having a Christmas campout.

Cranberries

We have a tradition that’s popular for our family and many Five in a Row families… we always make Grandmother’s Famous Cranberry Bread from the Thanksgiving picture book Cranberry Thanksgiving! The recipe can be found on the back of the book.

One of our young children’s favorite Thanksgiving traditions (that comes from learning about cranberry bogs and growing and harvesting cranberries) is to create a cranberry bog in the bathtub and harvest the cranberries. We fill the tub with about six inches of water and float a few bags worth of cranberries, then our children put on their rainboots and get into the tub. Using a colander or strainer, they scoop the cranberries out of the water and into a waiting bowl.

Balloons

We purchase balloons for our kids and let them have a parade around the house with their balloons while watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Often you can find mylar character balloons such as Mickey Mouse, Chase from Paw Patrol, and Sponge Bob Square Pants that will have a similar Macy’s balloon in the parade. If we have a character balloon that appears in the parade, we always pause the show and take a picture of our child with their balloon standing in front of the television with the matching Macy’s balloon character. The kids love this!

Family Night

We love having a Christmas movie-watching night and family sleepover on air mattresses under the Christmas tree. We leave the Christmas lights on until the kids fall asleep.

from Ashley Wiggers

Here are a couple of my favorite traditions our family had over the years that made the holiday season special!

Football

Every year in the warmth of the Florida Thanksgiving sun, my dad would take me and my brother outside to throw the football together. We played sometimes on Christmas too, but always Thanksgiving. Have you ever tried to catch a football only to have it bounce off of your brittle fingers? I have! My dad, being an English professor and a poet, used to say to us “You have hands of stone! Where are the malleable hands of flesh?” To which we always laughed with great delight. It wasn’t really a Thanksgiving football toss unless this comment made its way in at some point…

Special Breakfast

Another favorite tradition has been to have leftover pumpkin pie for breakfast the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’ll always remember sitting across from my mom at the breakfast table amid sweet conversation, feeling pretty lucky to be having whipped cream first thing in the morning.

from Kay Chance

Traditions can be simple. It’s really about making memories (and maybe sharpening your baking skills a bit too!).

Pumpkin Pie

Years ago my youngest son decided he would be the chief pumpkin pie baker. Of course, I helped those first few years, but at twenty-two he’s learned to do it “all-by-himself.” Last year he baked an extra one to bring back to his college friends as well… and surprisingly, the still warm pie made it all the way back to where he lived without being eaten on the way!

Christmas Eve

Each year we’ve gotten our boys Christmas Eve pajamas. They put them on and we watch A Christmas Story while quoting much of it together… and a few years ago, we even began to eat mashed potatoes and meatloaf for supper to keep the theme going. (If you haven’t seen the movie, you’ll have to watch it to see why!)

Holiday Traditions from Our Readers

Do you follow us on Facebook or Instagram? We asked our readers about some of their favorite holiday traditions and this is what they shared!

We also have a New Year’s tradition. We decorate a large mason jar and add small trinkets to it all year long. A business card from the salesperson we purchased a new car from. A rock or shell from a vacation trip. Movie ticket stubs. A receipt from a special dinner or museum or zoo trip. A hospital/Urgent Care armband. A copy of that speeding ticket you’d like to forget. A hotel key card you forgot to return. The last payment to a student loan or credit card. Whatever you think is memorable. On New Year’s Eve, we pour all the contents of the jar out on the kitchen table and reminisce about the year we had. The many blessings and the hardships. Then we take time to find out what each individual in our family hopes to add to a new jar for the coming year. We might even plan a vacation or pray over goals our family wants to accomplish in the new year.”

Remembering the Journey

“We collect all the Christmas cards we receive and place them in a box we keep in our kitchen. Every month we pull out a card or two and pray over the individual or family that sent it to us. If I feel led, I reach out to those individuals and ask if we can be praying over anything specific and write it on the back of their card as a reminder.

We also have a New Year’s tradition. We decorate a large mason jar and add small trinkets to it all year long. A business card from the salesperson we purchased a new car from. A rock or shell from a vacation trip. Movie ticket stubs. A receipt from a special dinner or museum or zoo trip. A hospital/Urgent Care armband. A copy of that speeding ticket you’d like to forget. A hotel key card you forgot to return. The last payment to a student loan or credit card. Whatever you think is memorable. On New Year’s Eve, we pour all the contents of the jar out on the kitchen table and reminisce about the year we had. The many blessings and the hardships. Then we take time to find out what each individual in our family hopes to add to a new jar for the coming year. We might even plan a vacation or pray over goals our family wants to accomplish in the new year.”

Honoring the Past

“At Thanksgiving, we place photographs of all our loved ones who have passed away and place them in the beautiful fall centerpiece on the table so our family members can still be with us at the table. Even though we do it every year and new photos get placed among the fall foliage on the table, we always smile and remember all the beautiful memories we have shared with them. I love our tradition and I am truly thankful for my family every year.”

Other Fun Traditions

“One of our favorite Christmas traditions is eating Chinese food on Christmas Eve and wearing new pajamas on Christmas morning.”