Everyone has certain Christmas traditions that they look forward to each year, my family definitely have more than a few we uphold each year. This year things have changed slightly, we now have a bigger family, I have a boyfriend -and generally speaking, when there are more folks in the family it’s a little trickier to keep everyone happy. Regardless of these changes, there are a few things we’ll still be able to uphold which I’d like to share here.
Decorations
Pretty basic in any household but in our household as soon as the clock strikes midnight on the 31st of October -it’s Christmas! We typically get our decorations out mid November and my mom goes through the excruciating process of deciding what colour scheme or theme she wants for that year -and it takes quite some time. I always have a two foot tree in my room, which I put multi-coloured decorations on it which I have had since I was a baby. This year, as I’m staying at my boyfriends on Christmas eve I managed to talk him into having a small Christmas tree in his room too -you can’t wake up on Christmas day without a tree!
Shortbread & Tea Evenings
One that is a bit indulgent, and definitely hasn’t helped our figures over the years is our Shortbread & Tea evenings. Obviously, Christmas can be a really stressful time and it can be all too easy to get swept up trying to do Christmas shopping and tie up loose ends at work so my mom and I have a little ritual we do each year. It’s not a daily thing but something we find ourselves doing each December. In the evening we’ll chill on the sofa’s, catching up with a cuppa and a tin of traditional Scottish shortbread from M&S… yes, dunking is involved. I know it’s such a simple one, but it’s so lovely winding down in the evening without getting carried away watching youtube or overdoing it with work or studying. Just simply eat, slurp, and chill.
Christmas Eve
Now this is one that has slightly changed over the years. When I was younger, we would wake up before the crack of dawn and head into London. We would queue outside Harrods for opening time to go see Santa. We’d be given cookies and their’d be entertainers while we waited. After we’d seen him we would then go to the Christmas shop and just generally have a mooch around. We’d also have a MaccyD’s breakfast afterwards (when I say afterwards, this would usually be around 8 o’clock in the morning). But regardless of the early start and how tired I would be come mid-day, those Christmas Eve’s at Harrods were magical! And probably one of the few traditions my mom continued after my parents divorced.
These days it has changed slightly. As much as my mother would still love to drag me to Santa Claus (if she could) we obviously no longer do that. Instead, we find out what time M&S opens at our local shopping centre, wait at the doors with our trolley, and then bundle in as soon as the doors are open. We get profiteroles for my mom (she always gets two pyramids -and eats both of them) and then we get Salmon for my nan. Yes, we could get these from anywhere but theres a second part to our tradition. After getting our bits and bobs, we head on up to the cafe at M&S and have breakfast with my nan before the hectic-ness of Christmas Eve. This is especially nice if it falls on a weekday and my nan has to then go to work.
Boxing Day
Again, boxing day has changed over the years but the past few years we have made a new tradition. We all fall into the car and drive to the coast. We have a wander around and soak up the sea air before heading to the ice cream parlour or finding a tea room. After such rich and heavy food on Christmas Day, it’s nice just getting out for some fresh air and not really having to hold yourself to a timescale to see everyone and go everywhere like you usually have to do with Christmas day. Sometimes we even take some leftovers or make some light sandwich to snack on while we’re out and about.
So those are just a few of my family’s traditions, what are yours?
Cheerio for now!
