Mad or cute Christmas traditions?

[Puddingypops]

I absolutely love hearing about people’s crazy Christmas traditions, I don’t have any going on for my family at the moment unless you count my rather sweet one I mentioned on another thread where my cousin and I take tubs in sending each other a card I bought a few years ago, it’s my turn this year and I will write something cute, pop on this years Christmas stamp and she will have it for the year before returning it to me next year.

My favourite crazy was from a friend of my ex husbands years ago, he told me that his family had luxury breakfast, each member of the family (4 boys) had to get their order in with mum and dad by a week before Christmas and they could have absolutely anything they wanted. So one boy wanted takeaway curry which was ordered on Christmas Eve to reheat, another might choose mini Kiev’s and chips etc etc. Now I realise that sounds like hard work but I just thought it was so much FUN!

Does anyone here have any?

My family is mixed faith so we have Christmas lunch and then supper is a buffet of traditional foods from the other culture.

Our Christmas Eve movie is Arthur Christmas.

We have a Christmas eve picnic tea. We spread a picnic blanket on the living room floor and we all have our favourite snacky bits. We close the curtains, put all the twinklies on and watch Arthur Christmas while stuffing our faces

I started our own Christmas Eve tradition when the kids were little of reading 'Twas the night before Christmas' by candlelight. This was followed by being allowed to cut and eat the Christmas Log also by candlelight (big thrill), DSs are teens now - tradition over.

I remember years ago, John Peel saying on the radio that when his family were tiny they all used to climb the stairs to bed on Christmas Eve singing Jingle Bells and it was really cute. They were still doing it when their kids were late teens, only they were all a bit drunk and it was quite raucous.

@ShrimpSymphony

We buy the tackiest bauble we can find every year. It has to be from a real shop and not online. We have some real ‘treasures’ 😂

I went the other way and every year I bought one beautiful bauble. After 20 odd years, we have an exquisite tree if I do say so myself.

When my ds were young they always had a tin of crazy foam soap in their stockings. Then I would put them both in the bath before bedtime on Christmas day and every year they would have a foam fight using up both tins and trashing the bathroom

I've totally nicked a tradition an older lady told me her and her family had and I'm starting it this year. It started with gingerbread houses when her 2 dc were small and it got bigger each year until she said in their teens they were spending an entire weekend before Xmas constructing practically a town of gingerbread with all sorts of adventurous creations, put on display on the dining table and pigged out on thereafter. Love it.

My own personal tradition not done on Xmas day, but on an afternoon during the Xmas period, is to sob at the railway children in a gin soaked haze. I really enjoy it.

I love the anticipation of presents so much, that my DH indulges me by wrapping my presents in front of me. But it's not fair - he never tells me what they will be, and I can't see for myself, because I'm blindfolded! Actually, this is one of my favourite things of all in the run-up to Christmas.

The first year we were married my husband bought me one of those really old fashioned “to my darling wife at Christmas” cards. The sort of thing with screeds of cheesy rhyme about the times we share/ how much we care etc. He thought it was heartfelt. I laughed my head off. Ever since there is a competition to see who can find the card with the most verses inside. I think I will win this year. I got one in the Card Factory that actually says “extra special words inside”

"Is the Tree Fairy going to come?"

We love games, quizzes and competitions over Christmas, including such things as 'Who can keep their paper hat on their head for the longest?' after we've pulled crackers at dinner. (Cue lots of stealth knocking off of hats etc - DS actually went to bed in his one year, he was so determined to win!) Anyway, we have a red bag labelled 'From the Tree Fairy' full of little gifts that act as prizes. Only small stocking filler type gifts or sweets but there is such excitement (mainly amongst the adults!) about winning a prize, especially after a hard-fought game of Hungry Hippos! We won't all be together this year so I think the Tree Fairy may be delivering by post!