Christmas Traditions

[Legalbuff]

Hi all,

I am thinking that along with our new life in Aus, we need a new Christmas tradition.

Good idea, but I don't have any "real" ideas as to what this should be?

What are your Christmas traditions? Do you have any ideas for a new one??

[polly]

We do a Christmas stocking for the kids. They put out the stocking the night before and 'Santa' fills it during the night.

Basically it keeps them busy so mom and dad can sleep late and they can open some small presents to keep them occupied.

(Not to self: not so many chocolates this year )

[TheBs]

Basically it keeps them busy so mom and dad can sleep late and they can open some small presents to keep them occupied.

Sounds like a good one - our elder two, now 15 and 13 always complain that we want to sleep late (as in 6 o'clock!!)

[TweetyandChester]

This will be our 1st Christmas away from home. We do not have children, the doggies are still at Keringa. We can sleep the whole day - but not keen on that. Would have loved to have some Christmas cheer. The container will only arive in the new year so no Christmas decorations, no tree, no family or friends. VERY depressing - all I can think of to get a bit of Christmas fever is cooking and baking ;-) At least my brother-in-law lives in Sydney so he can help hubby and myself to eat all the "cooking and baking".

Any ideas how I can make Christmas better? On the other side... maybe it is a good thing to have a quiet Christmas like this... it will bring me back to the real reason for Christmas! No Santa Clause or trees - just Jesus!

[VivaOZ]

Hi

We will also spend Christmas alone again, at least this year hubby won't be working on the 25th. I also want to start our own little family tradition and so I thought of copying the Daysof our lives - soap. I have always cried when they use to hang out those beautiful balls with all the names on.

So I am gonna decorate those littly decoration balls with glitter glue (or anything else that would stick) and put ALL the family members names that are not with us for Chrismas on them. And on Christmas day after lunch just go throught the names to remeber them all and wish them a Merry Christmas in our hearts. Yes it will be a sad tradition, but then Christmas will alway be sad for us without family to share it with.

And also because we stay in a hot part of Oz (close to the outback) I want to do away with the huge cooked lunch. I think this year we wil go for nice Tigerprawns and salads, and hopefully make that our Christmas lunch for the future.

To everyone thinking of a new tradions, think of the past Christmases and what you would have done differently. I used to hate the BIG lunches and mountains of dishes, that is why I want to make it a quick and easy lunch and a even faster cleanup afterwards.

Tweedy and Chester: if we were closer I would have loved to have you over for Christmas. Eventhough we will also be spending it alone, I still believe that it has to be spend with family and friends. We don't have family here so why not spend Christmas with new friends.

Anyway, have a happy and blessed Christmas everyone, and I hope that none of you will feel too lonely and homesick.

[polly]

My gran lived in the Free State. Since it is really hot there over Christmas, we never had a hot Christmas lunch. It was always cold meats (ham, roast beef, tongue, etc.), sliced fruits and vegetables (there was always asparagus too, yuck). Then off course you have to have crackers. A friend's tradition is to make her crackers herself. You can buy the bang things in craft stores. you can maybe edit the idea a little and put memories in each cracker, instead of a joke.. E.g. "remember when Jack fell through the chair..." Should help get conversation going.

I try to give at least one movie, so we have something to watch when lazing around on Christmas day.

I got glass Christmas baubles at Spotlight ($3.50 for 6). Printed photos of family members not with us, rolled the up, inserted them and unrolled them with a tweezer. Don't look half bad The kids enjoy them too.

I think this year I am going to do flapjacks for breakfast on Christmas morning. Might make a nice tradition The nice thing about flapjacks is you can make the dough the night before

Christmas ball (not the most expert thing, but we like it

Edited December 10, 2008 by polly

[TweetyandChester]

Thanks VivaOz!

I love the idea with the balls with names and photos of family members not with us on Christmas day - I think I wil cry everytime I walk past it. Already getting emotional just thinking of not having my parents in Aus. Our tree is still on the container... maybe I should buy a new and bigger one! My husband did not grow up with such a fuss around Christmas trees and decorations so not sure if he would approve of the idea of another tree though... I am not working as yet so will have to use his mony to buy it.... oops... Any ideas of making nice trees?

[Tracy]

I put tinsel on the bull bar of my truck!

[Legalbuff]

Polly - you are very innovative.

VivaOz - I had to smile - I was also thinking of the Days of our Lives balls!!! I think I'm going to make some of those.

I also like the idea of the flapjacks. And the memory crackers!!

You guys are great. Keep 'em coming!!!

[polly]

Tweety, you can always go 'arty' this year and get a dead branch with lots of small branches. Decorate that? With a few decorations, it should look designer

[TweetyandChester]

Tweety, you can always go 'arty' this year and get a dead branch with lots of small branches. Decorate that? With a few decorations, it should look designer

Aaahhhh I can even spray it silver or red or so... That could work... Hubby just suggested a few days ago I go look for a art shop or something - I love doing creative things - did not even think of doing a branchy tree - was thinking paper (but will be to flimsy) or wired ( will take to much time) but a branch is a great idea!!!

For me Christmas also means Lindt Santas etc.. I always keep the little bells that you get around their necks. I saw David Jones has little table ornaments. It is like a wired tree or angel which you can fill with little choccies. I did not see it in store yet but looks nice on the catalogue. Goes for about $17. I think it could make for nice gifts if you are looking for something small.

Another Christmas tradition we had in SA, we had an early Christmas with friends about 1 week before Christmas. Each family brought 1 gift for R100 which we would put under the Christmas tree. Then each family draws a number. Being the hostess I would have duplicates of each number in a hat. I would draw a number and th person who owned that number would pick any of the gifts. Then I draw the 2nd nr and this person could also pick a gift. You open the gifts as you get them. Then person nr 2 can decide if they want to swop their gift for person #1's and person1 may not say no.... Then you draw the nr for the 3rd person to pick a gift who can then pick nr2's gift or keep his own. This way you go through all the gifts and numbers. At the end when poor person #1 thinks that he was the unlucky one the little surprise comes - person 1 get to choose his gift between everybody's! NICE! We had lots of fun this way. Well, our friends decided to continue with my tradition back in SA this year. At least they will send me the photos.

With the same game you could even play it with your kids. Or even with all the family together. It works out a bit pricey if you try to buy a gift for every person. So get a budget and let everyone buy a gift within the budget and then you exchange gifts this way! Lots of fun and giggles!

[polly]

Glad to help Check out Spotlight as well. They have some nice crafty Christmas things. The same with the $2 store

[Monica_]

I wear my husbands thongs, and put sprinkle baby powder / bicarb all over my feet, leaving footprints to the milk and cookies, and pillowcase (we dont have Chrismas stockings).

M

[VivaOZ]

I wear my husbands thongs, and put sprinkle baby powder / bicarb all over my feet, leaving footprints to the milk and cookies, and pillowcase (we dont have Chrismas stockings).

M

Thanks for that idea. I have been wondering how I can make Santas visit more realistic. My youngest (7) have already started to remind me of the milk and cookies. She also loves to make plans on how to hijack Santa (luckily she falls asleep before he does his rounds)

Wilma

[Mara]

A new tradition we started in Australia was to have 'open house' on Christmas day for newly arrived friends. Depending on how many of our family members are around for Christmas we make up the numbers with newly arrived SA's, we hope that it makes that first Christmas easier for them and for us, it is great as having so many folks around, makes the missing of family still in SA easier to bear. We will be 17 for Christmas lunch this year, but have been up to 35. So check around and make some invites, you are sure to find someone that is going to be alone for Christmas.

[sonnetjie]

Every year we bake a gingerbread house and decorate it. We also do a number of German cookies like Lebkuchen, Pfeffernuessen and Star Almond cookies etc. Here some great recipes http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/6579/recipes/c8.html I also make my Ouma’s traditional Christmas cake and mince pies and Stolen (German Christmas cake). Homemade fruit mince is so much nicer than the bought one, it just gets everyone into the Christmas spirit. On Christmas day the whole family helps make a lovely lunch together. Each year we decide what is going to be the theme for that Christmas lunch then we all pitch in and help make it happen on the day. This year we doing a Spicy Prawn entre with mini Indian potato cakes and tamarind chutney. Main course will roasted pork leg in the Weeber, green salad (mixed lettuce, stuffed anchovy olives, red capsicum, pine nuts, pomegranate , red grape fruit segments),Ouma’s 3 bean salad, antipasta, Thai salad, Barbeque corn, Onions in foil baked in the barbeque. Dessert Chocolate Poppy Seed cake & fruit salad and cup cake meringues. For nibbles we will have smoked salmon on crackers with a dash of dill with sheeps feta, stuffed olive leafs, crudités with hommus and 5min dip.

[Fern]

Our tradition is we have a Christmas Eve big dinner not on the day

Then in the morning we open gifts and then have a Champagne/Orange juice breakfast

Go visiting in the afternoon

Fern

[Joanna]

Ask everyone you know to post you a flatish decoration. That way , you can hang an ornament ,from all the people that you love and miss

joanna

[JacquesV]

I got glass Christmas baubles at Spotlight ($3.50 for 6). Printed photos of family members not with us, rolled the up, inserted them and unrolled them with a tweezer. Don't look half bad The kids enjoy them too.

Wow, i think this is such a brilliant and creative idea - even though we still a year away from leaving SA i think we'll do this for our tree this year! Thanks for sharing!

Natz

[JacquesV]

My husband did not grow up with such a fuss around Christmas trees and decorations so not sure if he would approve

Maybe this can be your new tradition - my hubby also didnt grow up with a fuss round Christmas as a whole, but i did and i have made it a very special day for us and he has secretly mentioned to my mom that he quite enjoys it. I have fond memories as a child about how excited i got on Christmas day and how the whole day was about sharing and plain 'ol family fun! I dont live close to my family anymore (they in JHB and we in CT) but we make a special trip there every year to enjoy this very special day!

[Neola]

HI

I can really recommend the walk through Betlehem at 141 Central Rd in Nunawading. Free entrance, free entertainment for the kids and then you walk through a play where they portray the birth of Jesus. My son also did bungee jumping and was really proud of himself. Unfortanetely they are done now.

There is another one going at the 24 of Dec. Phone 94845333

Neola