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Sharing Joy, Love, and Reflection Through Unique Holiday Rituals
As the holiday season approaches, families around the world embrace their own unique traditions, creating cherished memories year after year. From Christmas Eve to Christmas morning, these traditions remind us of the importance of togetherness, gratitude, and joy during the holidays.
Each of our team members shared some of their favorite traditions and rituals for the holidays.
MARGARET DABBS: One Christmas, I realized I hadn’t seen any of our family open their gifts, but more importantly I had missed their joy (or disappointment) when they saw it. Thus, our new tradition is we go around our circle and open one present at a time now. We’ve learned to savor the moment and are appreciative of each one. It was super hard when the grands were younger, but now they appreciate it!
JESSICA EUDY: Every Christmas morning, my grandparents and great-grandparents would come over early and watch me open presents. We’d eat a big homemade breakfast and listen to Christmas music. I’ve tried to continue that tradition with my son, inviting his grandparents over Christmas morning!
AMY EVANS: Our family traditions include putting up the tree together. My husband adds the lights. My husband and I take out all the ornaments and the kids decorate the tree. We all have hot chocolate and then watch a Christmas movie together.
AMY HUSTER: When the kids were little, we would pizza up on the way home from Christmas Eve service. Now, we make custom pizzas at home together after the service.
KRISTIN MORRISON: Every Christmas Eve we will sit together as a family and watch a Christmas movie together. After the movie, we will let our daughter open one gift…usually one that she and I have picked out so nothing big is spoiled for Christmas. My parents used to do this with me as a child and I love the fact that we continue the tradition.
JENNIFER PARSLEY: We begin each year with reflection – my husband and I sit down with calendars and look all the way back to the beginning of the year. Each month is honored and remembered. Appointments, big events, small wins, big misses – we cover them all. We laugh A LOT, sometimes we cry, and we always leave the conversation with a heart full of gratitude and determination that we can face anything – together.
LORA RIDDLE: We started buying a special children’s book each year for the kids when they were in middle/elementary school. We started with ‘You are all my favorites’. On Christmas Eve, they open them, and they take turns reading each page out loud. It has changed a little since they are grown, but they always looked forward to their books under the tree!
DAKEITA VANDERBURG: We had a set of sleigh bells purchased from a flea market. When the children were little, I would snuggle them in bed to read Christmas books on Christmas Eve. Their father would sneak outside and jingle the bells at the back doors of the house. Their eyes would get as big as saucers, and they were ready to get in bed ASAP!
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