I wonder how you plan to celebrate the upcomming christmas days.
Do you like that time, the family meetings, the food, the smell of apples and cinnamon flies thru your well heated house, outside it's ice cold and snow was falling; the chistmas tree in the livingroom, the chistmas presents, maybe the chistmans bonus ...

...or do you prefer to scipt christmas?

I for me, I like nearly all what has to do with Christmas exept Snow and ice, but it belongs to chistmas like (hm...don't have a good proverb now )

What about all of you where no snow was falling (Florida, Texas, New Mexico, parts of Arizona, south Calfifornia, etc.) Are you missing snow and ice for chistmas sometimes?

Jens

 

I'm not much of a holiday person. To much hustle. Not what its supposed to be. And for the last two Christmas days I've been alone. Nothing is open, no work for the day, and everyone I know is gone. And I don't know that many people I call friends. So basically I sit home working on projects and watching TV.

 

I'm a single parent with two girls and pretty much celebrate Christmas for them. I agree with Tyler! Christmas is'nt what it used to be.

 

It took many years for me to get use to wearing shorts on Christmas. I've been in Fla. since 1976. Grew up in Ill. then we moved to Colo. so I remember the fun of snowball fights with my brothers, building snowmen, sledding and even making a game of shoveling that white stuff. Our family wasn't so spread out back then and the holidays were filled with lots of food, relatives and friends dropping by. I don't know if anyone still does it, but we use to go caroling with our church group. I've never seen that down here.

Steve's a cracker so he never got to experience the "white" Christmas thing, but when it comes to holidays, his mom has been frozen in time. She's kept the spirit of food, family and friends alive more than anyone I've ever met. You walk in her home and you can feel the holidays come alive. Other than the snow, it reminds me of the way holidays were celebrated when I was growing up.

I love the holiday season. I love the traditional Christmas music and the classic movies and especially the cartoons. We try to alternate which side of the family gets us. My folks lives down here and Steves live about 3 hours north of here. This year we're off to his folks. Can't wait!

 

To me Christmas is what you make of it, Ya commercialism of the whole thing has gotten a little out of hand, I just ignore it


It's traditional all the way for us, a time for family & friends and a celebration of life. My side of the family (German) celebrate on Christmas eve up here on the farm, a few start to trickle in a few days prior to the 23rd. On the morning of the 23rd my dad and I lead the "half day" hunt for the perfect tree (I have 4+acres of perfect Christmas trees starting less than 300 yards from the house) but with dad the "tree hunt" has always been an adventure, I'll pass this on for generations to come.

While were out hunting for that "perfect tree" All the women above the age of 10 or 12 stay behind and start to prepare the feast, "ya I know it's sexist, but I aint messin with tradition" Plus I think they get into the Schnapps in fact I'm sure they get into the Schnapps, as soon as the bird is in the oven they all go down for a nap.

We, the men put up that "perfect tree" and let the younger generation have at er. By the time they finish decorating the tree, it's time for the feast, after the feast we open gifts from each other (Santa's gifts still miraculously show up in the morning) we then spend the rest of the evening catching up, looking at the old photo albums and trading pic's for new albums.

After the morning gift session (usually before 7am) Deb the kids and I pack up and head out to Kingston Ont, that's were Debs family is. (most of my family stays up here at the farm while were gone, it's big enough to accommodate all of them and there's lots of fun stuff for the kids to do) Deb and the kids sleep for the 2 1/2 to 3 hour drive. If snow conditions are good in Kingston I bring the snowmobiles, Debs brother and son, my son and I usually tear up the Kingston area country side on the sleds, visiting family for the rest of the day. At about 5 we regroup at Grandma's house for another Turkey dinner (no complaints about turkey dinner 2 nights in row here) Then after dinner and gifts we sneak out for a night ride on the sleds, back up to my brother in laws place (Syndnam Ont about 50 to 60klm north of Kingston)

Then comes the night of the 25th after sledding all day, we regroup at Debs Aunt and Uncle's place for Christmas card night, the kids watch moves and play board games, and we the adults play cards till we hours of the morning.Debs family is pretty big so we usually have at least 3 card tables on the go, some of the adults opt for the movies with the kids, or just watching the cheaters at cards.

After about 3 or 4 days with Debs family it's back home, we spend another day or 2 with my parents before they leave. Then we try to get in a few small day trips on the sleds.

Then comes New Years. We sled out to some friends of ours out by the lake, they have a big one every year inside and out, 2 to 3 hundred people, live band, real big bonfire, ice skating, ice fishing and sled drags out on the lake, fire works at midnight.
Actually come to think of it most of the party has been out on the lake for the past few years.

This Christmas will be a tough one, there's a good chance it's probably my moms last Christmas, her cancer is spreading, and she's not doing to well, especially with knowing it's incurable and spreading fairly quick. So we will make this Christmas the best yet!

After writing this I now have the urge to do a little gift shopping this afternoon, maybe even start stringing up the lights this weekend, I don't have to turn them on yet, I can just hang em up and be ahead of the game.

 

Mmmmm, I LOVE the holidays. There are certain parts that bug the heck out of me but for the most part I love it. My family always made a big deal out of the religious part of CHristmas whereas my darling husband (this will be our first Christmas married) his family just goes for the gifts. And no one seems to appreciate anything. Its almost like the feel like you owe them or something. Last year, we WAY over did the present thing and I hated it. Our nephews (husbands sisters boys) just tore into everything and had most of it lost before they even got to play with anything. I swore I wouldn't buy into the present thing so much this year and I think it will be much more enjoyable. Simplicity. Such a wonderful thing. I do love to see family that I havent' seen forever but this year will be kind of a strange one I think just trying to figure out what traditions to carry on for our own little family. Mother in law was telling me a few weeks ago how hurt her sister and brother in law are that their two boys won't be spending Thanksgiving with them. I told her , Well they are grown men with their own families and thats just what happens. She was really quick to agree and say it doens't matter to her. So I think we're going to stay home. I would rather we do our own thing then fight over who's parents to celebrate with. Maybe we'll just spend a few hours at his and a few hours at mine and the rest just the two of us......Sounds good to me.

 

best time of the year...I love the spirit of Christmas...feeling of love and family....I love seeing the relatives and eating and enjoying time away from work. I wish we did have snow here on Christmas, but either way I enjoy it.

I do think the commercialism of it all is CRAZY....I HATE going in any store anywhere near Christmas...people are so rude and inconsiderate (hmmm...the exact opposite of what it should be.)

 

No tree, lights, wreath, etc. for us this year. We're going south (to her Mom's) so we don't have to decorate. Her whole family on her Mom's side is going to be there for their Xmas Eve party. I've met all but a few uncles and aunts, but I've never been down there for the party. They do one of those white elephant gift exchange things and I hear it gets pretty wild.

I hate the commercialism too, if I didn't have to shop for nieces and nephews I wouldn't set foot in a store until after New Years. We draw names for gifts in my family, then just get stuff for the kids. Other Bower wants to adopt a family like her Mom does and get gifts for people who need it, but my family hasn't been very receptive so far. Last year she delivered 12 cases of poinsettias she grew to a senior home in town. Everyone got one and we had a lot of fun passing them out.

This year we are going saltwater fishing over the holidays. We're hoping for an oyster roast for New Years. Maybe Sandy Claws, or King Neptune, will bless us with loaves and fishes? Or just fishes, that's good too.