American Christmas Traditions

[Cassie 8]

Here, for me, it seems like there is so much hoopla for Thanksgiving that it takes away from the whole Christmas season, IMHO. The whole "Black Friday get up at the butt crack of dawn to fight through crowds to buy stuff" idea holds no appeal!! Thankfully, we just have a meal with the family and hang out.

The DH and I have done some juggling around as far as Christmas traditions are concerned. When we spend Christmas in the US, we go down to his parents' house on Christmas Eve, go to Christmas Eve service, and then do the presents/Christmas dinner thing with them in the morning. We then go home and open our presents to each other and from the Canadian branch of the family (I grew up with the tradition of opening our Christmas presents after lunch, so this set-up is a concession to that).

[Laura+Tom 2]

I absolutely love Christmas and I'm determined to bring as much of the Christmas spirit over when me and Tom celebrate our first Christmas in the US next year. He spent last year with us in the UK so he knows what he is in for. We are up at the crack of dawn to open presents, then we laze around for the first few hours, maybe watching a film, then stuff ourselves silly and laze around the rest of the afternoon. Usually my parents will drag us out for a walk around the park to walk off the meal. Then it's more food, films and games until time for bed.

Incidently I've just made my Christmas cake today, so every week will be saturating it with brandy until I have to decorate it.

[Lou Lou 1]

We celebrate Christmas by going to a shelter/soup kitchen and dishing out dinner until we are pooped. I did it a few times when I lived in London and this will be the 7th year here in VT. It's the best Christmas we could ever have.

[catrocks 0]

Aly, I found my Christmas crackers last year in TJ Maxx! They were pretty good ones too and were $10 for 12 which I thought was pretty good

[Slightly Bonkers 0]

Glad you posted this, as I'm currently annoying my husband stressing about Christmas.

Can't go home as I'll probably only get AP just before hand and don't want to spend 4 months mortgage payments on a flight.

I've been away from home for Christmas quite a lot and don't really mind it, spent one in India and one in Japan.

I think it's because this year I'll be with 'a' family, and it won't be mine.

We looked into having a belated honeymoon but as well as the cost, even for within the states, and I kind of feel that I should get the first christmas over and done with sooner rather than later.

I think it's cos he spends a lot of time with his extended family with whom I have to be 'on', answering the same damn questions again and again, being all nice and fun, rather than just his brothers and sisters and parents who I can relax with.

ok hijack over, sorry to vent!

PS. Anyone know where I should post a topic looking for other VJ'ers in my area?

[NickyMcMillan 0]

We had Christmas pudding today!! World Market has them in already. They had mince pies too. We'll be stocking up for Christmas.

[GlobeHopperMama 95]

I've never experienced Christmas in the UK although I still hope someday we will...

If you're lucky enough to have a massive multi-national immigrant family like me and my husband, Thanksgiving here is a tame and boring holiday in comparison with the madness of Christmas.

We usually spend Thanksgiving with my Italian-American family, but we play it all-American, with the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, etc. We watch football, sit around and talk, play some games, go home. ONE TIME we participated in the Black Friday shopping insanity, but that was because I had a cousin visiting from El Salvador at the time and she insisted. Never again.

Ordinarily, Christmas is at least a week-long extravaganza. It involves the 24th with my Italian-American family, it's loud, there's a TON of Italian-American food, desserts like you wouldn't believe, gifts, music, talking, joking, craziness.

Then everybody heads to Midnight Mass, but my husband and I generally used to go to his cousin's house (this is the Mexican immigrant side). Over there we do all the traditional Mexican foods (posole, tamales, ponche, atole) and then we have the traditional Mexican posada where we sing and act out the story of Mary & Joseph looking for lodging. Then we have dancing and music, and this lasts till maybe 4am.

On Christmas day, we celebrate a bit more calmly by sitting around the tree in the morning/afternoon opening presents at my grandparents' house. At night we go to another relatives' house (the more Irish side of my family) and have a buffet dinner, exchange more gifts, talk, play games (especially billiards), and crash back at home after midnight.

None of this even includes my Guatemalan family in New York...I think it would get even more crazy...

Somehow we've built in all these extra post-Christmas festivities, so that we still end up gathering several times a week. Somewhere after Epiphany/Dia de los Reyes, everything tapers off and we return to life as usual.

I suppose we don't stand for the traditional American holiday experience, BUT, our families are proof that you can make any traditions from home last and even become bigger in the US. One of the things I love about this country.

[*JG* 2]

We go to Church. Dinner at my mom's with the family. Presents, dessert, games, movies, chit chat after. We end it by going to my friend's house to party what she calls Schmittmas......They are Buddists. It's the best time.

[Jeraly 4]

We had Christmas pudding today!! World Market has them in already. They had mince pies too. We'll be stocking up for Christmas.

Oh I am soooo glad! I was just looking up recipes Jeremy doesn't like it so all the more for me!! Just need to find some totally scrummy cream

Ooh! Or brandy butter - can you even get that here?

[john_and_marlene 162]

If you don't have the Christmas you wanted, it's probably because you didn't make it happen.

[Jeraly 4]

If you don't have the Christmas you wanted, it's probably because you didn't make it happen.

I think that is a bit unfair - my Christmas involves spending it with about 20 other family members and there is no way they could all make it out here, we can't afford to fly back to the UK let alone fly everyone out here and Jeremy's family live far away - the ones that are still alive that is. His father died two years ago at the age of 44.

While I would love to make it happen, it just isn't an option this year. Hopefully next year when things are more stable, I have a job and we have some savings behind us then we can make it happen. As it stands I am merely looking for other options for this year.

[*julez* 124]

I think that you should incorporate your UK traditions as much as possible since you can't be with your family. That's what we've tried to do when griff was here for Christmas before. Now that we're tgether permamnently, we are striving for that even more. I want him to feel at home as much as possible, plus I think its good for my kids to see other traditions. We had Cristmas crackers, and will again this year.

I think the main difference is that since we've just had turkey for thanksgiving, I typically do a ham or a roastbeef, and maybe just a turkey breast. Otherwise, we do the gifts early in the morning, a nice English breakfast, then have my family over for a meal, more gift exchange and try to have a bit of fun. The Christmas crackers went over very well last time we had them and I already have some for this year!

So, while you may not be able to have your family here, there are some things you can do to make you feel like its your usual Christmas. And maybe make a few new traditions that you and Jeremy think up.

[Jeraly 4]

I think that is what we are going to do Julez - it will just be weird with it being just Jeremy and I! I think we are going to start incorporating a few UK traditions into Thanksgiving when we will have Jeremy's family around - it will only be six of us but at least it is something! For Christmas I think we will just have to play it by ear... I'll get inventive with his gifts and make them all something we can do together later in the day!!! We're also going to go up to the mountains where it will be snowy and maybe mass on Christmas eve for the spirit of things... and who knows what will be going on Downtown? Maybe we can go for a nice after dinner walk... there is plenty we can do but it will be so totally different to what I am used to and that makes me feel a bit sad and uncomfortable

[Krikit 1,164]

If you don't have the Christmas you wanted, it's probably because you didn't make it happen.

Well, aren't you just a little ray of sunshine?

The first year I moved here I was trapped because I didn't have my AP and I couldn't go home, so we spent it at my in-laws' place in NC. It was my saddest Christmas ever. Plus my husband's family is the exact opposite of my family so I was very uncomfortable. The food is different but it's not bad. Last Christmas we went back to Canada. This Christmas..... well, I'm due to spend it at the in-laws but I've told my husband that it's entirely possible that I will go home for it instead. I don't know if I can face another Christmas like that.

Oh, and I've seen Christmas crackers all over, Aly, so you should be alright there! It's too bad all the ex-pats didn't live in the same neighbourhood. We could just have Christmas together!

[Jeraly 4]

Oh that would be so cool! An ex-pat Christmas!!! Maybe one year we can all gt together somewhere and all chip in with the cooking and prep - whoever has the biggest kitchen can host!