Traditions

     I'm sure every year, everyone has holiday traditions. Mine started with my children when they were very young and I wanted to take pictures on Christmas morning without them wearing their most comfortable pajamas. Pajamas that consisted of favorite worn T-shirts sometimes with or without pants. So, I started a tradition on Christmas Eve. All my children were allowed to open up one Christmas Eve gift. A “Santa” gift. It was always a new set of pajamas. When the kids were younger, they loved the idea of opening at least one gift early, even though, as they grew older, they knew it what that gift contained. This tradition satisfied two major things for me. The first being my children got to open at least one gift early, and second, my Christmas photos consisted of children dressed in a matching pair of pajamas. As the years have gone by my children have grown, yet we still maintain this tradition. A tradition which now brings a chuckle to everyone as they always ask: “Gee I wonder what Santa will bring us this year?". It has become a challenge now for everyone to have the most surprising reaction when they open the box and see their new pajamas.
      As always Christmas Eve is celebrated at my house. Along with another tradition we have of decorating Christmas cookies. In the past this is brought a challenge to see how many Christmas cookies I could bake and make them decorate on Christmas Eve before opening up that first Christmas eve present. These decorations have ranged from the traditional pretty decoration to morbid decorations due to my children's odd sense of humor. Those evenings are always full of laughter, jokes and general family goofiness. This year will be no different, I’m sure, as each of my family members who gather have always been close. In fact, we are looking to have nine adults eight dogs and one two-year-old this year. It will be a very noisy and fun filled evening. On Christmas day everyone takes their gifts and heads out to spend the day with other family members. This is fine with me, because I know, every Christmas Eve my children are here and I am one lucky lady. In fact, this will be the second year in which there will be four generations represented in one room. For that, I am blessed for the holidays.
     I hope whoever reads this has a tradition they can count on for the holidays. Especially this year, where we all need something, we can count on to be certain. Happy holidays and take care of you and yours.