Christmas Traditions

Its hard to believe but Christmas is right around the corner.  I love hearing how my friends spend their Christmases.  Traditionally in our family on Christmas Eve, we would all go out for dinner at a Chinese restaurant and then meet again on Christmas day for a big breakfast.  My dad cooks up bacon, eggs, homemade hashbrowns, sausage and fluffy waffles made with an ancient waffle iron...served with real Canadian maple syrup (yeah, its expensive but sooooo worthwhile as a treat!).  I think its the waffle iron that makes these waffles to die for.  Seriously, I have given up trying to find another waffle iron that makes magic waffles like this one does.  It is so old that it is a fire hazard!  We never have enough chairs at the table for all of our family to sit around and eat breakfast so we eat in "shifts" and take turns either cooking or eating (well, mostly eating).  After breakfast we head into the living room to open gifts.  My sister and I used to be responsible for ensuring that everyone has a gift to open at all times.  Lucky for us, we have our kids to do this job now...uh, I mean we've passed down the tradition.  After all of the presents have been opened, we head to our respective homes for a nap and return later for a huge feast.  Homemade biscuits and my Dad's famous sticky rice are all part of the meal.  

What holiday traditions does your family follow?

Hey Christinabean, that sounds like a lot of fun with your family.  The one thing I remember with my family when I was small was that my brothers and I had to open our presents one at a time and in order.  And we had to show the others what we got each time.  It was fun and it used to make the present opening last so much longer.  I'm sure it always made it easier for my Mum to remember what was from whom as well. We used to follow up with a big breakfast that would keep us going until about 4:00 pm - my Mum refused to cook more than twice on Christmas day.  I have passed that tradition down to my kids as well and they seem to enjoy it as much as I did.  It would be lovely if it got passed down to the next generation as well.