DECEMBER 2023 WISH dancing through the holidays

[piglet1979]

On my moms side, my grandfather is Italian (my great grandparents were the first in the family to come to América) and my grandmother is Hungarian. Surprisingly, I don't think we have any traditions from either. Maybe baking. My grandmother loved to bake. She would make poppyseed rolls, nut rolls and kolachy's. I don't like any of them but I will make Kolachys. The tree always goes up the day after Thanksgiving and we still do this one.

We do bake cookies and this was a big deal when I was a kid. I still make all the cookies and every once in awhile the kids will help. I wanted to be able to bake with my mom every year and we started that traditional and about a year or 2 after she was diagnosis with celiac, so that stopped.

Our gifts are all from Santa. My mom never wrote anything on the gifts. The way we knew whose gifts were whose was by the wrapping paper and where our stockings were laying. I still do this with my kids.

I only ever spent a few hours with my dad's family on Christmas eve (my parents have divorced since I was born). I don't think they had any traditions but I really don't know. We were forced to spend Christmas eve night at my dads one year as it was his weekend. There was a huge issue with this before hand as my sister and didn't want to. Christmas morning consisted of us watching our younger brothers open gifts while we sat their. We were not forced to do that again.

Jeff's family kept things very small. He has a very small family. Growing up it was just his mom and grandmother. He is the one that is really for the Christmas tree going up after Thanksgiving. He is also the one that really gets into the Elf on the Shelf. I hated this thing. We only move it but I would always forget. Even with the kids being 16 and 17 he still brings it out Thanksgiving night and moves it each night. Jeff doesn't talk much about when he was younger so I don't know if they ever had any traditions.

 

[Oneanne]

On my moms side, my grandfather is Italian (my great grandparents were the first in the family to come to América) and my grandmother is Hungarian. Surprisingly, I don't think we have any traditions from either. Maybe baking. My grandmother loved to bake. She would make poppyseed rolls, nut rolls and kolachy's. I don't like any of them but I will make Kolachys. The tree always goes up the day after Thanksgiving and we still do this one.

We do bake cookies and this was a big deal when I was a kid. I still make all the cookies and every once in awhile the kids will help. I wanted to be able to bake with my mom every year and we started that traditional and about a year or 2 after she was diagnosis with celiac, so that stopped.

Our gifts are all from Santa. My mom never wrote anything on the gifts. The way we knew whose gifts were whose was by the wrapping paper and where our stockings were laying. I still do this with my kids.

I only ever spent a few hours with my dad's family on Christmas eve (my parents have divorced since I was born). I don't think they had any traditions but I really don't know. We were forced to spend Christmas eve night at my dads one year as it was his weekend. There was a huge issue with this before hand as my sister and didn't want to. Christmas morning consisted of us watching our younger brothers open gifts while we sat their. We were not forced to do that again.

Jeff's family kept things very small. He has a very small family. Growing up it was just his mom and grandmother. He is the one that is really for the Christmas tree going up after Thanksgiving. He is also the one that really gets into the Elf on the Shelf. I hated this thing. We only move it but I would always forget. Even with the kids being 16 and 17 he still brings it out Thanksgiving night and moves it each night. Jeff doesn't talk much about when he was younger so I don't know if they ever had any traditions.

I've heard so many people say how much they dislike the Elf on the Shelf, mine is sitting on the armoire behind my desk so people can see him in video calls, but thankfully he's totally chill and just happy to be out of the box for a few weeks.

 

[Oneanne]

Almost forgot - why we say "Merry not Happy Christmas:

Spoiler: Merry

[/SPOILER Happy is a feeling where as merry is a behavior... at Christmas we make merry by gathering with friends and family to celebrate. First recorded use of 'merry' is in a letter King Henry VIII wrote to Thomas Cromwell. Now the question is, why is it Happy New Year, Happy Birthday and not Merry New Year and Merry Birthday...]

 

[PAsFab5]

Great topic @Oneanne

I do not know my heritage-my sister and I discussed doing ancestry DNA last year but never ordered the kit…I need to follow up with her on that!

As far as family traditions we would hunt for a tree together every year, my mom would host a big Christmas Eve party for our extended family, we spend Christmas morning with my moms mom and Christmas afternoon with my dads parents. It was chaotic but fun!

As far as our traditions as adults:

We cut a tree down the day after thanksgiving with all our immediate and extended family, which is always a great time!

I make “candy trains” for the kids in the family to start December first-I tie 25 sections, filled with candy, off with ribbon on long pieces of plastic wrap and the kids cut one section everyday that has candy in it until Christmas morning! My kids don’t eat candy anymore but I still make them for the nieces and nephews!

My sister in law makes lasagna and 7 layer salad on Christmas Eve-it’s the only time I eat it all year it’s SO good!

I made cinnamon rolls every Christmas morning!

I loved reading everyone’s traditions!

 

[ShannyMcB]

The only big compromise I remember was presents for DS - Santa brought the big wishes in my family, and sentimental stuff came from Mom & Dad. It was the opposite in DH's family - Santa filled the stockings, but the biggest gifts were from Mom & Dad. We ended up doing a mix.

I read a suggestion to have Santa bring the small or mid sized gifts so that way when the kids are talking in class it isn't weird that he brought one kid a bike and another a sweater.

With you @piglet1979 i am not a fan of the elf...would have not gotten one if it was up to me but I lost that battle to DH. When he worked late nights I was in charge of the elf. Now that he gets home at a decent hour the imp is his problem.

 

[newski_mom]

Traditions are so fun! Ours are changing a bit now that our two oldest don't live with us any longer. We've always done the 23rd with DH's family. It's his mom (his dad passed away 3 years ago) and his sisters and families. It has grown a lot now that many of our nieces and nephews have kids of their own. It's a lot of fun though.

On Christmas Eve we get together with my mom and sisters family. We typically get together around 3, open gifts, eat and early dinner and then go to Christmas Eve service at church.

Christmas morning has always been at our house with just our immediate family. We always did the big gifts from santa. Partly so we didn't have to worry about wrapping them lol! Now that the kids are well past Santa age, we still do the stockings which we all love doing. We would get up, open gifts and then have cinnamon rolls and breakfast before casserole. We then typically headed to my moms early afternoon for Christmas with my aunts/uncles/cousins on my mom's side. After dinner there, we head back to my in-laws to spend the evening often coming home well after midnight.

It's was always a long day, but so much fun!

 

[Oneanne]

Happy wonderful wintery WOOHOO!



What has you excited today (please just ignore that tiny 2015... he was just too cute to pass up).

 

[piglet1979]

I've heard so many people say how much they dislike the Elf on the Shelf, mine is sitting on the armoire behind my desk so people can see him in video calls, but thankfully he's totally chill and just happy to be out of the box for a few weeks.

I read a suggestion to have Santa bring the small or mid sized gifts so that way when the kids are talking in class it isn't weird that he brought one kid a bike and another a sweater.

With you @piglet1979 i am not a fan of the elf...would have not gotten one if it was up to me but I lost that battle to DH. When he worked late nights I was in charge of the elf. Now that he gets home at a decent hour the imp is his problem.

I am the one that started it. But back then it was just moving him at night. Then came all these people that made theirs do bad things and my kids wanted ours to do it too. He never did. That was just too much. I forgot to move it all the time so I passed it on to Jeff and he loves it. Also my sister got her kids the reindeer and St. Bernard and my kids then wondered why they didn't have them. So off I went and got those too. Thankfully the kids can touch that one and they don't get moved each night. It is all too much. We will keep it going with the grandkids though and even before that Jeff will still be moving him every night.

I made cinnamon rolls every Christmas morning!

We make biscuits and gravy for breakfast. My grandma always made this whenever we were over for anything and she taught me. It is made with bacon gravy so this is the only day all year that we make it. I think I am the only one in the family, besides my grandma, that know how to make it. No one ever helped her with it but me.

Happy wonderful wintery WOOHOO!

View attachment 815866

What has you excited today (please just ignore that tiny 2015... he was just too cute to pass up).

I am WooHooing that Elizabeth got her drivers license last night. She passed on the first try. She has a double late arrival for school so she doesn't go in until 9 and I was having to drive her. It is a big pain with having to work too. Today she drove herself. I was a bit nervous but happy at the same time.

 

[Oneanne]

I am the one that started it. But back then it was just moving him at night. Then came all these people that made theirs do bad things and my kids wanted ours to do it too. He never did. That was just too much. I forgot to move it all the time so I passed it on to Jeff and he loves it. Also my sister got her kids the reindeer and St. Bernard and my kids then wondered why they didn't have them. So off I went and got those too. Thankfully the kids can touch that one and they don't get moved each night. It is all too much. We will keep it going with the grandkids though and even before that Jeff will still be moving him every night.

We make biscuits and gravy for breakfast. My grandma always made this whenever we were over for anything and she taught me. It is made with bacon gravy so this is the only day all year that we make it. I think I am the only one in the family, besides my grandma, that know how to make it. No one ever helped her with it but me.

I am WooHooing that Elizabeth got her drivers license last night. She passed on the first try. She has a double late arrival for school so she doesn't go in until 9 and I was having to drive her. It is a big pain with having to work too. Today she drove herself. I was a bit nervous but happy at the same time.

What a milestone for Elizabeth to get her license!

 

[Oneanne]

Woohoo... the repairman finally came yesterday to clean and tune the propane stove and I have heat! There's a heat exchange unit in the dining room (one of the reasons I'm using it as the living room) but it really only heats where its blowing, the stove is heating the entire house. It's right here beside my desk and it is so nice and cozy and the flames are adding the feeling of romance. I love it.

Woohoo... Wednesday night is TV night with Survivor and Amazing Race and both are really good this season, I'm really liking the 90 minute episodes. Plus there are people I'm rooting for in each: for Survivors its Emily and for Amazing Race its the Dad's from Idaho... if Joel (the one with the long beard) was 15 years older he'd 100% be my dream guy.

Just realized I forgot a woohoo... I am loving the hat I am currently knitting. It's very simple color work as far as the pattern goes, but every row is different based on the color. It is the perfect amount of easy/not having to look at a pattern, but engaging because every row is something new... plus its scrappy, in that you can use up odds and ends of yarn. I'm thinking I'll make a cowl the same way, and possibly some mitts.

 

[piglet1979]

Woohoo... Wednesday night is TV night with Survivor and Amazing Race and both are really good this season, I'm really liking the 90 minute episodes. Plus there are people I'm rooting for in each: for Survivors its Emily and for Amazing Race its the Dad's from Idaho... if Joel (the one with the long beard) was 15 years older he'd 100% be my dream guy.

I love these two shows too. I am way far behind on Survivor because Nick wants to watch it with me. He is just never home. I don't have a favorite here yet. I am the only one that watches Amazing Race and I am caught up here. I really like the father/son team. They really work together. The only team that is aggravating is the father/daughter team. I liked them early on but the daughter is really getting annoying with yelling at her dad.

 

[Oneanne]

I love these two shows too. I am way far behind on Survivor because Nick wants to watch it with me. He is just never home. I don't have a favorite here yet. I am the only one that watches Amazing Race and I am caught up here. I really like the father/son team. They really work together. The only team that is aggravating is the father/daughter team. I liked them early on but the daughter is really getting annoying with yelling at her dad.

I like the father/son team as well, and agree that the father/daughter team grate on the nerves.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I am WooHooing that Elizabeth got her drivers license last night. She passed on the first try.

Way to go, Elizabeth!!!!!

 

[newski_mom]

I've never watched Survivor or Amazing Race - sounds like I might need to try them. I watched the bachelor a couple of seasons ago when my middle DD knew two of the girls on the show. She lived with one of them her sophomore year of college.

My woohoo is that things are going good at work. It's our fiscal year end, so lots of things to work through, but so far, so good!

Also, Wednesday is my official weigh-in day and I'm down a pound from last week. It's been slow going, but I'm ok with that!

 

[PollyannaMom]

I'm WooHoo-ing the first snow:



Yes, I'm one of those crazy people who doesn't mind snow and thinks it's pretty!

 

[newski_mom]

I'm WooHoo-ing the first snow:

View attachment 815977

Yes, I'm one of those crazy people who doesn't mind snow and thinks it's pretty!

So pretty!!

 

[PAsFab5]

@piglet1979 WHOOOHOOO to Elizabeth this is amazing news!!!

I am whooohoooing that I got my Christmas Day games sorted and written out as well as prizes for each!

Whooohoooo I got everything I need for games/prizes added to my Walmart order already so that is all done!

Whoohooo I have Awana tonight so I get to enjoy the beautiful decorations at church! They set up an interactive outdoor light show this year and it’s so nice to see families in their cars enjoying it!!

 

[ShannyMcB]

Woowhooing that my washing machine maybe isn't broken? It was throwing errors tonight but after much hitting of buttons it seems maybe there were too many towels in there causing it to not drain.

Woowhoo DD is expanding her spoken vocabulary...and it's beyond just repeating some of the words are actually showing thoughts behind them which is amazing. She won't speak on command its still very much when she wants to but when she does it's incredible.

Woowhoo tomorrow is my Friday. DH and I are doing some shopping on actual Friday and Monday including looking for a new matress....goodie.

 

[Oneanne]

THANKFUL THURSDAY



What is something your current self is thankful your past self did? And what is something your future self will be grateful that your present self has done?

 

[PollyannaMom]

What is something your current self is thankful your past self did? And what is something your future self will be grateful that your present self has done?

Oooh, good question!

My current self is thankful that my past self developed a liking for healthy foods (so some of that credit goes to nature and my parents!) But I'll take some for trying new things when I was developing my own cooking habits as an adult.

My future self will be thankful that my present self makes time to walk and do yoga! I want to keep my bones strong and my joints flexible so I can stay active as I age.