Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Ten for Tuesday, Holiday edition

Holiday edition and holiday traditions. My family has a bunch of holiday traditions, many that haven't been done since we were kids, but I remember them...
this is the exact nativity and creche that my mom had when we were growing up

1. Dan and I buy our tree from the local Catholic Church, Our Lady's in Newton. I've never bought a tree from an organization that wasn't benefiting from the sale and I probably never will. Even this one, the attached high school, Trinity, rents the space to the tree seller, so they get the rent each year. The tree can be no higher than the top of my hand when i put my arm up. Otherwise, the topper will never get up there.
2. Making fudge. Nana J's secret recipe... and it's delish.
3. Sending cards. My SIL has the right idea- if they send an e-card, they are off the Christmas list.
4. Christmas eve at my parents. Everyone laughing and raising hell, drinking a little too much, eating WAY too much.
5. Meatballs and sauce on Christmas eve at my mom's... everyone's got a piece of bread dunked in there throughout the day... just waiting for it to be 'done'.
6. Opening stockings and presents on Christmas eve... what can I say, we're Norweigan!
7. Finding the LifeSavers storybooks and Tootsie Roll trees in our stockings... like we're still 5. And we hide them immediately to prevent theft.
8. Blue-tin cookies... you are a definite north-shore-er if you know the blue-tin cookies
9. Midnight Mass. It's poetic and mystical and soothing to me. Our church has the holy spirit knock on the door and the congregation invites the spirit into our church and our lives. It moves me.
10. My cookie swap... it's silly, but fun and everyone has a great time.

12 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:32 AM

    I love the "e-card off the list" idea. I spent many years making elaborate cards. Hate e-cards.

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  2. ...like we're still 5.

    That's the magic of Christmas, I think!

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  3. Like we're still 5! I love it! And yes, I did hide my lifesaver story book too, because my brother would totally eat mine so he could save his!

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  4. No Massachusetts blood in me, but I still know the blue tins (provided we're talking about the same ones, of course). The chocolate chip cookies and the sugar-crusted pretzel ones were my favorites.

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  5. I love blue tin cookies. Good one!

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  6. I loved getting the lifesaver story book. I didn't feel like it was Christmas without it. Blue tin cookies always as well :) In fact I found a mini one so hubby can keep some at work. As for the creche, that looks just like the one my grandmother had too!

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  7. I know the blue tin cookies!

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  8. What? You mean...we aren't still 5?!?

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  9. Anonymous10:55 PM

    I have 2 favorite holiday traditions with Mini:
    1. Telling each other we're going to wait until Christmas morning to open presents and then totally losing our cool, like we're five, and opening our presents on Christmas Eve.
    2. Packing way too many people into our apartment for dinner. If you want to talk to someone at the other end of the table, you have to go out the back door and walk around to the front door to get to them.

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  10. Anonymous10:57 PM

    That last comment was from me.

    PC

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  11. Christmas is a million times better if you can pretend you are 5! I haven't had a Life Saver story book in years but I'm going to get one for Hannah now because of this post!

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  12. Anonymous1:24 AM

    Hello! I awarded you with "The Most Versatile Blogger Award" over at my blog The Greener Bean. I totally don't expect you to participate if it's not your thing -- I just wanted to say thank you for stopping by during NaBloPoMo!

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