Christmas Customs

[David In Indy]

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

[David In Indy]

Merry Christmas, David!!!  

See if your pet can talk on Christmas at midnight?  Huh?  I don't get that.  Have you been dipping into the eggnog already?  

Gary

Well, yes I have actually, but that has nothing to do with the animals! There's an old legend that says animals can speak on Christmas morning, at midnight. They are given the power of speech for one hour. I try to talk to my animals every year, and so far they haven't ever spoke back to me. But I keep trying it again every Christmas! 

[serious crayons]

Well, yes I have actually, but that has nothing to do with the animals!

 

Fun thread, David! I do most of the things except the deeply religious ones and Christmas cards (I gave those up a few years ago). What's smudge the creche with sage about?

[pettifogger]

We also set carrots out for the reindeer.  Ever since my childhood in Pretty Prairie Kansas some 70 or so long years ago we always have an advent wreath as well  each  Sunday before Christmas a purple candle is lit except for the third Sunday when a rose Candle is lit and a scripture is read foretelling the coming of the Christ child.  ON the fouth Sunday all the candles are ablaze.

Then on Christmas Eve the three purple and one rose candle are replace by 4 white candle and one red in the center.  The red is the Christ candle and we light them all and sing carols every evening after dinner until Epiphany.

[ifyoucantfixit]

    I have always put a Christmas Village on top of the entertainment center..It is porcelain houses and churches,  It
is snow people instead of Santa and Reindeer., with elves.  There are trees and streetlights, and logs against the sides of houses.  The buildings are all lit and the lights glow through the windows...it is all on a white snow blanket, which I then scatter with candies.. Chocolate kisses, truffles, and such...then a sleigh full of them also...They are then refilled as needed.
     Every year its the first thing we put up...pretty and gets the mood going.  Started it when my kids were all little..
some XXXX odd years ago....LOL

[serious crayons]

Judging from the way you phrased this, inneedcrayons, I'm guessing you set cookies and milk out for Santa.  That's unexpected, but oh so sweet.   

Well, yeah, thanks. And then Santa gets to eat them -- leaving a few half-eaten cookies and scattered crumbs around for authenticity (Santa is in a hurry!) -- whether she's hungry or not.

[Penthesilea]

I could only tick five boxes plus one for "other".

We do

- Trim The Christmas Tree
- Set Up A Nativity Scene (Creche) (a small one, on a cabinet, not outside)
- Bake Christmas Cookies 
- Sing/Listen To Christmas Songs
- Open Presents On Christmas Eve Night

Like petitfogger, we also have an Advent wreath. One candle for each Advent week. The first week, you light only one candle, second week light two candles and so on.

Last year I bought a creche and set it up. Was the first time ever we had a creche.

We open presents on the evening of Christmas Eve. First I go to church with the kids, while my husband is cooking and putting the presents under the tree and locks the living room door. Then we eat, and then we wait for Christ Child to ring the bell. The bell is the sign that Christ Child and Santa Clause have been here and are just about to leave the house.

I think it was two years ago when my middle child said: "It's strange that Christ Child always rings the bell when Daddy is on his way to the bathroom..."  Smart child  .

[serious crayons]

My children are smart, too. Somehow at 11 and 13, they STILL believe in Santa, and expect her him to get them really good presents in addition to the ones they get from their parents. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

There's an old legend that says animals can speak on Christmas morning, at midnight. They are given the power of speech for one hour. I try to talk to my animals every year, and so far they haven't ever spoke back to me. But I keep trying it again every Christmas! 

Maybe they just don't have anything to say. 

[ifyoucantfixit]

         Jeff you are a nut...

[Jeff Wrangler]

         Jeff you are a nut...

Well, just because they don't speak doesn't mean they can't speak. It is better to keep silent and be thought a fool than to speak and leave no doubt. 

[tampatalon]

Well, yes I have actually, but that has nothing to do with the animals! There's an old legend that says animals can speak on Christmas morning, at midnight. They are given the power of speech for one hour. I try to talk to my animals every year, and so far they haven't ever spoke back to me. But I keep trying it again every Christmas! 

May pets talk back, but they are Parrotts. I get them stuffed toys fer Christmas and they chew them apart.

TampaTalon^">

[Kelda]

Maybe they just don't have anything to say. 

You made me laugh out loud there!!!

[Jeff Wrangler]

You made me laugh out loud there!!!

I'm glad, Kelda! 

[delalluvia]

Gah.  I don't celebrate Christmas, but I do celebrate Yule and Saturnalia, but am dragged by family custom/tradition to family gettogethers on Xmas day.  So unsurprisingly I eat too much and spend too much and send out holiday cards, but other than that, I don't do much.  I have an apartment so I do decorate the inside of my place, but it's not Xmas-y.  The tradition is much older. 

[Brown Eyes]

Well, I'm not a religious person at all.  But, I love Christmas and I've been raised with Christmas traditions as a major part of my life all my life... but primarily social traditions (my parents aren't religious either).

But, I love things like having big get-togethers with family and friends... I love all the food and the pretty decorations.  I love giving presents more than I like receiving presents.  While Christmas shopping can be stressful... I actually really love doing that too.  I'm an only child so lots of my traditions are really specific to what my parents and I have come up with.  One of our particular favorite traditions... is on Christmas Eve we (just the 3 of us) go out to a really nice restaurant.  We try to find a historic inn or a really old restaurant (or something like that) with lots of seasonal character.  Also, because my immediate family is small, we've developed lots of customs involving good, good friends of the family... which I love.  I love that our traditions very firmly extend to friends as well as family.

This is a really nice poll David.  

[David In Indy]

Fun thread, David! I do most of the things except the deeply religious ones and Christmas cards (I gave those up a few years ago). What's smudge the creche with sage about?

That is a tradition on my Mother's side of the family that goes back for generations. The Native American side of my family traditionally smudges the manger or creche on Christmas Eve night just before going to bed. Smudging with sage is a type of blessing. So, we are blessing the manger for Christmas. 

[serious crayons]

That is a tradition on my Mother's side of the family that goes back for generations. The Native American side of my family traditionally smudges the manger or creche on Christmas Eve night just before going to bed. Smudging with sage is a type of blessing. So, we are blessing the manger for Christmas. 

Interesting blend of cultures and traditions, David!

 

I'd be interested in hearing of other unusual holiday traditions. When I was in first or second grade, I remember being really enchanted when a classmate's mother came in to tell the kids about Christmas in Norway. This woman was an actual Norwegian immigrant, but since this was Minnesota, Christmas in Norway (or Sweden or Finland) was probably just a couple of generations back for half the class.  I thought it was very cool, though.

[David In Indy]

Interesting blend of cultures and traditions, David!

 

I'd be interested in hearing of other unusual holiday traditions. When I was in first or second grade, I remember being really enchanted when a classmate's mother came in to tell the kids about Christmas in Norway. This woman was an actual Norwegian immigrant, but since this was Minnesota, Christmas in Norway (or Sweden or Finland) was probably just a couple of generations back for half the class.  I thought it was very cool, though.

Well, as you know we have members from all over the world here. Maybe some of them will post their country's Christmas customs in this thread. Chrissi already told us about one of her customs in Germany which I found very interesting!

[dot-matrix]

When I was growing up we always had the advent wreath on the dining room table and an advent calendar on the refrigerator door.  You open a little window on the calendar every day and reveal another piece of the bigger picture until you get to Christmas Eve.  We always had sleigh rides, and we would paint apple rings with peanut butter and roll them in birdseed and then string them with orange slices, cranberries and stale cake donuts and then hang them in the trees for the birds.  Much to my Dad's dismay my Mom always put out pans of chopped apples, carrots and celery for the deer too. 

I still have an advent wreath and calendar.  I still bake cinnamon cookies using my Grandmothers molds on December 6 for the feast of St Nicholas.  We put our tree up around the 15, nothing fancy just tons of ornaments that have lots of special meaning for us.  We put a Victorian snow covered village underneath complete with trees, operating skating rink, carousel and train.  No presents until Santa comes on Christmas Eve.  We also begin putting our nativity together on the 15.... I put it on top of the entertainment center and surround it with potted palms and other green growing plants. Then I put the painting away that normally hangs there and hang three angels.   Then we add the statues a few at a time starting with the animals and ending with the baby Jesus on Christmas Eve. 

[David In Indy]

When I was growing up we always had the advent wreath on the dining room table and an advent calendar on the refrigerator door.  You open a little window on the calendar every day and reveal another piece of the bigger picture until you get to Christmas Eve.  We always had sleigh rides, and we would paint apple rings with peanut butter and roll them in birdseed and then string them with orange slices, cranberries and stale cake donuts and then hang them in the trees for the birds.  Much to my Dad's dismay my Mom always put out pans of chopped apples, carrots and celery for the deer too. 

I still have an advent wreath and calendar.  I still bake cinnamon cookies using my Grandmothers molds on December 6 for the feast of St Nicholas.  We put our tree up around the 15, nothing fancy just tons of ornaments that have lots of special meaning for us.  We put a Victorian snow covered village underneath complete with trees, operating skating rink, carousel and train.  No presents until Santa comes on Christmas Eve.  We also begin putting our nativity together on the 15.... I put it on top of the entertainment center and surround it with potted palms and other green growing plants. Then I put the painting away that normally hangs there and hang three angels.   Then we add the statues a few at a time starting with the animals and ending with the baby Jesus on Christmas Eve. 

That sounds beautiful Dottie!!

Since I was raised Catholic, we also had an advent wreath. It sat on the dining room table, and we lit the candle(s) every night at dinner. Three purple candles and a pink one. We lit a new candle each week up until Christmas.

And I also had an advent calendar when I was a child. It was a wooden one from Gelderland in the Netherlands. My Father's side of the family brought it over when they immigrated to America. It had little wooden doors, and Mom always placed a piece of candy behind each door; and sometimes a small toy. I still have my calendar. I hang it up every year, but devoid of any candy now!

[David In Indy]

Speaking of Christmas customs, I remember one year the Children's Museum here in Indianapolis had a huge display called "Christmas Around The World". It featured exhibits from dozens of countries around the world. They were scenes you walked past, including life size mannequins dressed in native costumes. Some of them moved too!   Most of the featured countries were European, but they also had several countries in Central and South America featured too.

I think Christmas customs are very interesting. And they are always so beautiful and magical. As you know, most of our Christmas customs in the US come from Europe, and it isn't unusual at all to find one of our neighbors incorporating French customs into their Christmas traditions, while another family across the street incorporates Danish or Swedish or English traditions. We always celebrated Sinterklaas in my family (complete with my Grandfather entering through the door in full Sinterklaas costume to quiz us on our behavior during the past year).  Before I realized Sinterklaas was actually my Grandfather, he scared me because he was always so strict; kind but strict.

I really do hope some of our Euro and Aussie brokies contribute to this thread. I think these kinds of things are very interesting and always very beautiful.

This year my English boyfriend and I will be combining our Christmas customs; some British and some American. I think it will be a lot of fun!

[Dagi]

We go out into the woods with the kids, and we decorate a tree and leave little apples and nuts and some sweets for the animals, and for the elfs and dwarfs.

We bake cockies, of course!

We light lots of candles, and decorate the house.

I make an Advent wreath, and burn one more candle every sunday the four sundays before Christmas, and we have a Advent calendar with sweets for the kids.

We spend too much, and we stress too much and we eat too much!

We are not religious, but Winter solstice is a reason to have a party! Imagine what that date meant to people before our days with electric light and heating...

[belbbmfan]

We always celebrated Sinterklaas in my family (complete with my Grandfather entering through the door in full Sinterklaas costume to quiz us on our behavior during the past year).  Before I realized Sinterklaas was actually my Grandfather, he scared me because he was always so strict; kind but strict.

I really do hope some of our Euro and Aussie brokies contribute to this thread. I think these kinds of things are very interesting and always very beautiful.

ahh, Sinterklaas! You gotta love him! He arrived in Antwerp last saturday. This is for you David! The original Santa Claus.  He announced from the balcony that 'all the children had been very good this year'.

[youtube=425,350]http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=SVCDsO_hZns&feature=related[/youtube]

[Jeff Wrangler]

That is a tradition on my Mother's side of the family that goes back for generations. The Native American side of my family traditionally smudges the manger or creche on Christmas Eve night just before going to bed. Smudging with sage is a type of blessing. So, we are blessing the manger for Christmas. 

Yes, but what exactly do you do? Do you burn the sage, like incense, and let the smoke drift over the creche?

[TOoP/Bruce]

My family had an old tradition of having oyster stew on Christmas Eve.

[David In Indy]

My family had an old tradition of having oyster stew on Christmas Eve.

I've never heard of this tradition before. In fact, I don't know if I've ever tried oyster stew. I like clam chowder. I don't like fish very much, but I do like clams and oysters.

Yes, but what exactly do you do? Do you burn the sage, like incense, and let the smoke drift over the creche?

We would light a small bundle of sage (smudge stick) and fan the smoke towards the creche with a large feather. Mom had an eagle feather. We would sometimes sing a Christmas carol, and Mom would chant a prayer in Lakota to the Christ Child. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

I've never heard of this tradition before. In fact, I don't know if I've ever tried oyster stew. I like clam chowder. I don't like fish very much, but I do like clams and oysters.

I've heard about the oyster stew tradition, but I can't place where I heard about it. 

We would light a small bundle of sage (smudge stick) and fan the smoke towards the creche with a large feather. Mom had an eagle feather. We would sometimes sing a Christmas carol, and Mom would chant a prayer in Lakota to the Christ Child. 

Thanks, David, that sounds very nice. I figured it was probably something like that. Does the sage smell sweet?

[David In Indy]

I've heard about the oyster stew tradition, but I can't place where I heard about it. 

Thanks, David, that sounds very nice. I figured it was probably something like that. Does the sage smell sweet?

Not the sage we used! At least it didn't smell sweet to me. It pretty much smells like something is burning; smoky smelling. It's an "acquired" smell I guess! 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Not the sage we used! At least it didn't smell sweet to me. It pretty much smells like something is burning; smoky smelling. It's an "acquired" smell I guess! 

Too bad.  I picked a sprig of mountain sage when I was up on Broke(n)back during the Wyoming Road Trip last May, and when I crushed it between my fingers it smelled kind of sweet. 

[TOoP/Bruce]

I am thinking the Christmas oyster stew tradition was something from the Irish side of the family.

[Dagi]

This sounds like a really nice tradition. If you ever happen to see any elves let me know.  

Gary

P.S. If you're planning on decorating one of the giant sequoias when you're here, be sure to bring a really tall latter, and lots and lots of garland.  And I do mean lots.

  I just knew you would say something like this. 

And I´m not planning on decorating one of the sequoias. Most likely I will just fall on my knees in awe and forget everything around me!

[David In Indy]

ahh, Sinterklaas! You gotta love him! He arrived in Antwerp last saturday. This is for you David! The original Santa Claus.  He announced from the balcony that 'all the children had been very good this year'.

Oh, thank you so much for the Sinterklaas video! That was so cute!

Sinterklaas never did arrive in Indiana on a steamboat unfortunately. I remember I asked my Grandfather why Sinterklaas would come to Indianapolis to visit us if he is in Europe visiting the kids over there. He simply told me "Sinterklaas visits the good and bad Dutch children in America too".   

[David In Indy]

HAPPY FESTIVUS!!!!

Now bring on out the metal pole and we'll commence with the Airing of Grievances.

IT'S FESTIVUS FOR THE REST OF US!!!

(Sorry, I couldn't resist it!)

Ya'll watch Seinfeld re-runs?   

[TOoP/Bruce]

The more I think about it, the "oyster stew" on Christmas eve had to be from the Irish side of the family. 

The family recipe is exceedingly simple - 1 can of oysters, 2 quarts (or so) of milk, butter and pepper to taste.  Heat oysters and butter, add milk and pepper.  Serve with crackers.

All my brothers and sisters loathe it.  My mother and I are the only people who will eat it.

[Jeff Wrangler]

HAPPY FESTIVUS!!!!

Now bring on out the metal pole and we'll commence with the Airing of Grievances.

IT'S FESTIVUS FOR THE REST OF US!!!

(Sorry, I couldn't resist it!)

Ya'll watch Seinfeld re-runs?   

Sinterklaas comes on Festivus? 

Am I missing something here?

  

[serious crayons]

The family recipe is exceedingly simple - 1 can of oysters, 2 quarts (or so) of milk, butter and pepper to taste.  Heat oysters and butter, add milk and pepper.  Serve with crackers.

We used to have something like that at my grandma's when I was little. Only the crackers were right in the stew.

I remember liking it OK. Nowadays, though, I prefer my oysters raw!

 

(I'm using the smiley icon, in this case, to mean "yum!" rather than "yuck!")

[Jeff Wrangler]

The more I think about it, the "oyster stew" on Christmas eve had to be from the Irish side of the family. 

The family recipe is exceedingly simple - 1 can of oysters, 2 quarts (or so) of milk, butter and pepper to taste.  Heat oysters and butter, add milk and pepper.  Serve with crackers.

All my brothers and sisters loathe it.  My mother and I are the only people who will eat it.

Hmm. Sounds like a recipe for clam chowder except with oysters.

Tell you what, I got to thinkin', maybe in times past oysters were just so rare and expensive that they were reserved for special occasions, like Christmas? Maybe that's how oyster stew became a Christmas custom?

And I guess, being Irish and therefore presumably Catholic, they couldn't eat meat on Christmas Eve?

[Ellemeno]

My children are smart, too. Somehow at 11 and 13, they STILL believe in Santa, and expect her him to get them really good presents in addition to the ones they get from their parents. 

Ah, the precious innocence of [wily] children.  Lil darlins.

[Ellemeno]

Well, I'm not a religious person at all.  But, I love Christmas and I've been raised with Christmas traditions as a major part of my life all my life... but primarily social traditions (my parents aren't religious either).

But, I love things like having big get-togethers with family and friends... I love all the food and the pretty decorations.  I love giving presents more than I like receiving presents.  While Christmas shopping can be stressful... I actually really love doing that too.  I'm an only child so lots of my traditions are really specific to what my parents and I have come up with.  One of our particular favorite traditions... is on Christmas Eve we (just the 3 of us) go out to a really nice restaurant.  We try to find a historic inn or a really old restaurant (or something like that) with lots of seasonal character.  Also, because my immediate family is small, we've developed lots of customs involving good, good friends of the family... which I love.  I love that our traditions very firmly extend to friends as well as family.

This is a really nice poll David.  

Amanda, you couldn't have written anything more designed to help put my mind at ease about not giving MiniMeno siblings if you had tried.  This sounds so beautiful.    Thank you.

[ifyoucantfixit]

         LOVe that David   thank you...              

[David In Indy]

Most of you are probably familiar with snow spray.  It's that thick foamy stuff that you spray on Christmas trees, and it's supposed to look like snow, but doesn't.  Anyway, one year my father got it into his head that snow spray would look really nice on our tree.  And so he applied a can of it...after we had already hung all of our ornaments.    

It looked like a HAZMAT team had decontaminated our living room, and for years we had nothing but speckled white ornaments.

Gary   

I did that once too Gary, except it was with a can of tree flocking. My Mom liked to kill me for it. She had some very expensive German, Swiss and English ornaments they bought on a trip to Europe hanging on the tree, and I sprayed them white. I'm not sure about snow spray, but tree flocking takes several years before it's completely off Christmas tree ornaments.

 

[David In Indy]

Hi David,

I just looked up tree flocking, and it and snow spray seem to be pretty similar products.  In fact they sound like different terms for the exact same thing. 

How old were you when you did this to your Christmas tree, and inadvertently to your mother's favorite ornaments?  When my father did it, he was close our age.  

Gary  

15 or 16 probably. Old enough to know better. At least that's what my mom told me. The thing is, I can easily see myself making the same mistake now. 

[Front-Ranger]

A few things: my kids wrote a letter to Santa, ostensibly telling him how good they were that year, but they usually ended up talking about the reindeer. I have kept all the letters. Santa wrote a reply on the back.

I also like to lie under the Christmas tree and watch the shadows of the blinking lights on the ceiling.

After the children were in bed, Mr. and Mrs. Claus liked to make love before the fireplace. That is, if they weren't required to put out the fire so Santa could get in.

One more ritual is the sojourn to find the perfect Christmas tree either on our property or in the nearby Forest Service land. You have to have a permit, but it is easy to get.