Starting New Traditions

In case you don't already know this about me...I'm sort of a traditionalist. I am conservative (yet politically liberal), sometimes prim and proper, and there's nothing I love more than having traditions year after year. Maybe it goes back to my hatred for change?

Anyhow, Kimberly did a fantastic post yesterday about our family's holiday traditions and just about all of them are the same ones that I love and look forward to each year. It all kicks off on Christmas Eve morning and lasts until very late on Christmas night. It's a lot of fun, but admittedly for Shaun and me, it all revolves around both of our family's traditions (you can read all about that in last year's how we spend the holidays post)...which doesn't leave a ton of one on one time for the two of us and our own traditions.

So we started a few small traditions for our own family of two to enjoy and look forward to every year.

First, we kick off the season with Christmas tree shopping on the weekend after Thanksgiving. Since we've been married, we get our tree at the same place (the 14th Street Garden Center in Jersey City, which surprisingly always produces a great tree!).

 

We tie it up on the roof of our small sedan and cart it home where we proceed to have a little tift while trying to set it up in the tree stand. We then tag team the lights and decorations, while watching football.

 

As of last year, we started a new tradition of having a holiday date night on Christmas Eve Eve. On December 23rd, we've vowed to keep the night open to doing something fun together, just the two of us. For holiday date night 2010, Shaun took me to a fancy schmancy dinner at Edward's in Jersey City.

 

Unfortunately, I then spent the rest of the evening wrapping gifts and watching The Grinch, while he was locked in the bedroom (since it was his gifts being wrapped!). This year, we're going to an early showing of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (obviously extremely romantic and holidayish, but I don't care! I cannot contain my excitement!) followed by dinner at one of our favorite spots, the Lighthorse Tavern in Jersey City.

 

 

Lastly, we have our own tradition of opening our gifts during the wee hours between Christmas Eve and Christmas morning...usually around 1AM after my family has gone to sleep. Neither of us like to make a spectacle of our gifts, and so we open them on our own, just the two of us, in the quiet, dark house. I love this time of the night!

And that pretty much sums it up! Of course, many of our traditions (ours and our family's) may change slightly once we have kiddos running around - and maybe new ones will be formed! - but for now, I'm happy to bask in all of these things and soak up the season!

Questions of the Day:

What are your favorite holiday traditions?

Do you have any new ones that you are instituting this year?

Comments

[amy @ fearless homemaker]

sounds like you've made some lovely traditions for the two of you. we've made some traditions, too. every year, on the 21st (today), my husband plans a surprise fancy dinner out - i just know what time to be ready -- the restaurant, the menu, etc. is all a surprise. on christmas even, we always have a quiet, romantic dinner at home, + on christmas morning, we do a big brunch + open gifs just the two of us before heading out for a big day of family. i think it's just as important to make our own traditions as it is to stick to our family's traditions. merry christmas, rachel!

[Lauren at Keep It Sweet]

I love how you and Sean open your gifts just the two of you, what a nice idea!

[LauraJayne]

I consider myself to be conservative (yet politically liberal) too - our traditions all revolve around Thanksgiving, almost none around Christmas. I don't know if it's because we don't really celebrate it, but instead, my sister and I have created traditions instead - of doing our own decorations, stockings, and a post-Christmas trip!

I haven't started any new traditions this year, except maybe working on school stuff during the break? Oh, and we all watch the bowl games together. That's pretty much the only thing we watch!

[emily (a nutritionist eats)]

I'm really in the "I want to start making new traditions" phase right now...I love your idea of date night on the 23rd...this year we are flying home Christmas afternoon so we'll actually have Christmas morning to ourselves which has never happened before but I know that probably won't last forever.