The Eve of the Holiday--Customs, Traditions and all that fun
By JC1969
@JC1969 (1224)
United States
December 24, 2006 8:38am CST
It amazes me how the time period between Halloween and the holiday season passes by in an almost blur. I keep asking myself, "Where did the time go?"
Well, it's finally here--the eve of Christmas (for those of you that celebrate). I always find this day to be a bit nostalgic, and my mind wanders back to my own childhood, to the times spent with family, some of who have long passed on. I think about the excitement of gathering with my cousins and forecasting what we would find under the tree in the morning, as we watched the adults eat, converse, and share in the merriment of the season.
Now, I have my own family, and we do not generally spend the holidays with our extended families because we are stationed usually far from everyone. However, we have our friends and our children, and we make up for it and manage to still embrace it festively.
So, this evening I will put out a spread of delicious hor'dourves, cocktails, and desserts. We'll have our children, their friends, and some of ours join us as well. We love to watch the old movies, like "A Christmas Carol", "White Christmas", "It's a Wonderful Life", and of course, the variety of kiddie specials that are on.
How do you spend the Christmas Eve? What are your traditions, cultural customs, etc?
1 person likes this
9 responses
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
24 Dec 06
you sound like you get along fine with imitiate family as that s what me and Hubby did for years for we were usually far away but alot of times ended up at his pops for Christmas.
TOnight my son that just got stationed here will bring Grand son over and we willl walk around the neighbor hood to see how the neighbors have lit up thier yards!!!!!
Then tomorrow we will go to his house for a dinner and passing out presents This will only be our 2nd Christmas with this son of mine and first with grandson am hoping to get in to better tradition with him since they are here.
@JC1969 (1224)
• United States
24 Dec 06
OH, I am so happy you will get to spend time with your son and your grandson. My oldest son went off to college back in the US in August and he just got home for the holidays--I am so overjoyed about that. We are stationed in Italy, and it is so nice to see the different cultural interpretation of the holidays and their customs and traditions.
When my kids were all really young, we would round them up in the car and drive around the neighborhood looking at all the festive houses that were lit up. hmmmm you gave me an idea--maybe we will go looking at all the local houses that are decorated tonight. Believe it or not, decorating the outside of houses for Christmas is fastly catching on here in Italy.
1 person likes this
@redmondn (33)
• United States
25 Dec 06
Yeah, time really does fly...
but anyways... my family used to go to my step father's sister's house for dinner on Christmas Eve... but that apparently stopped this year... my family would also go to midnight mass and then come home and open presents, but ever since a real big storm about four years ago that also stopped... now we really don't do anything at all...
2 people like this
@dnatureofdtrain (5273)
• Janesville, Wisconsin
25 Dec 06
I help my parents out bringing up gifts and stuff, and We usually open one present, the family all sits around and watches classical Christmas movies the Grinch and It's a wonderful life, and the naughty children go to their rooms, and I sit and keep watch for them to make sure they stay upstairs as I chat away with my internet friends, and read all the christmas cards I got and try to send christmas cards to the right people and return all the ones who sent me with nice cards if I can get them all....
I then stay up all night on "snoop watch" lol.
- DNatureofDTrain
1 person likes this
@brightbluesea (1143)
• United States
25 Dec 06
I agree about how fast the time seems to fly between Halloween and then Thanksgiving, leading to Christmas! I hardly had time to shop this year, and then next week it will already be a new year!
We have had the same holiday traditions since I was little and I am very fortunate to say that I went to my grandmother's for Christmas Eve dinner and presents again tonight-which I have been doing all of my life. Now my kids go too. It's a big dinner and gifts usually, and through the years we have had some great times
1 person likes this
@momofvma (71)
• United States
27 Dec 06
Christmas is my favorite time of the year, not sure if it is just the fact that people seem generally nicer and happier this time of year or what. We have a tradition of my whole side of the family comes to my house on Christmas eve, we go to 4 pm mass at my church down the road which is beautiful, our faith means a lot to us and I find it so peaceful to be in church singing carols and feeling like we belong as a church community and we all chat after ward and there are hugs and wishes for a Merry Christmas. It is very nice. After mass my family and us walk back to my house and we have dinner, this year lasagana and stuff shells, salad and garlic bread. We are Italian so that is our annual Christmas eve dinner, then we have cannoli which my dad makes. Then the kids go on a ride with my dad and husband to find santa and his sleigh and in the mean time we put the presents out, then the kids come back and open gifts.
After that, we have a big snack fest, shrimp, and finger foods, they all leave and then my husband and I did the rest of the gifts under the tree and the kids wake us up at 7 am and we open gifts with them, have breakfast and head off to my inlaws house. A very long and tiring day but a fun one.
1 person likes this
@sanjuktadas (52)
• India
24 Dec 06
Christmas is not my festival but the whole idea of Christmas excites me and makes me very happy. I put up a Christmas tree every year and decorate it. I also go to midnight masses and cut cake. The very idea of Christmas brings the coluor red and white in front of me. My favourite Christmas movies are Grinch and Home Alone all the parts.
@JC1969 (1224)
• United States
24 Dec 06
You know I hear that alot with some of my friends, that spending the holiday with family they can always count on some sort of disagreement or quarrel. I wonder why it is so common for family squabbles to take place on a holiday that is supposed to be about embracing the family, and being peaceful?
1 person likes this
@luzamper (1357)
• Philippines
25 Dec 06
When I was young, we celebrated Christmas as many others do except that we have not much to spend. Now, I became a Christian and we follow the Holy Bible.
Nowhere in the Bible indicate that the early Christians ever celebrated Christmas and the Bible itself did not command Christians to celebrate Christmas. There is not even a specific date when the Lord was born. December 25 is not at all stated in the Bible that it is the birthday of the Lord.
May God bless you all.
@JC1969 (1224)
• United States
26 Dec 06
You are absolutely correct. There is no written record of of the date of birth of Jesus, and if you were to dissect the bibles written accounts surrounding his birth, if would place it during the season of Fall--not winter.
Many Christians do not even realize that, and when you point it out to them they become angry and defense. Nor do they want to believe that much of the traditions and customs surrounding their religion were taken from much older religions. It was a way in which the church could convert those who subscribed to the earlier religions.
