Tuesday 17 December 2013

Traditions?



At this time of year I am a sucker for magazines, even more than normal. The shiny covers, the promise of inspiration, the helpful guides to perfection! And every year I read with envy about all the beautiful traditions that people have, the tiny repeated history makers and it makes me feel a little, well, sad that I am clearly not creating traditions for my family to remember and pass on.


But then I asked the children what they thought and realised that actually we do have our own traditions. They just aren't.... … traditional!

BC (before children) my decorations went up on Christmas Eve. It wasn't a bah humbug decision, just that Christmas started once work had finished. Now they go up in time for DD's birthday on the 15th. We make an event of it with music and laughter and birthday celebrations. There's a 1970's card which goes up every year and my tacky 1970's mouse decoration has pride of place!



Christmas Eve is spent at home, a film and hot chocolate followed by the playing of a really rubbish Disney LP telling a dreadful story with dreadful sound effects. But we laugh!
Christmas Day itself follows a pattern, sadly that has had to change now Noels Christmas Present is no longer prime time viewing. But we still have salmon and scrambled eggs and sparkly wine! (Well I do!) Dinner is a joint venture as they all know my cooking shortcomings. And Christmas Day tea is now what the family lovingly refer to as 'orange food' - cheap easy cook party stuff from Iceland!!!
It's fun and it's relaxed and mostly stress free. And surely that's the best tradition of all?


9 comments:

  1. Your family traditions sound absolutely lovely, and your children will always remember them with a lot of love, I'm sure. Love this happy post!

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  2. These sound such fun family traditions!
    I didn't think we had traditions either, until my daughter took charge the year I had the stroke (2007, she was 10), and said we had to have this, that and the other as we ALWAYS do it that way :)
    She's now adding her own traditions - like baking xmas biscuits for all her friends!

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  3. Thank you lovely ladies!
    I just realised this morning I missed a golden opportunity to ask for other people to share their traditions - d'oh!
    Would love to hear more about the things that other people do to make their Christmas special... biscuits sounds like a good one. DD is repeating the gingerbread house experiment this year - last years did end up as Horror House with zombie gingerbread men and headless snowmen :)

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  4. Beautiful, BEAUTIFUL photographs…

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    1. Thank you - Am still trying to find my way around the new tablet camera thingummy ;)

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  5. Love that 70s theme you've got going, Karen :). What fun, heart-warming traditions!

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    1. Not quite sure how I stumbled into it, it's definately happened 'organically' but I am enjoying the plasticated loveliness and it makes people laugh!!

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  6. Your house sounds like a fun place to be for Christmas! I'd love to see a photo of the zombie gingerbread men!!

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    1. I'll see what I can do! The trial run of gingerbread men ended up a little odd but at least they tasted nice :)

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