Christmas memories

I was thinking about Christmas traditions earlier today. Right around the time I met R, I was fresh out of Christmas excitement. Actually, until we had kids, both of us had serious cases of Christmas decorating blahs. We were still excited about the holiday, but not so much about decorating.

And then the kids came along and it just meant more all of a sudden. T had just turned one when we moved to Germany, and one of the things we packed in the 30 day shipment were our Christmas decorations. In that huge, empty apartment while we waited for our household goods, we had the Christmas tree up. T was fascinated, but never really bothered the tree. I remember sitting on the futon cushion and staring at the tree at night. It was like a small piece of home followed us to Germany. It was at that moment that I realized how much I wanted to make new traditions with our little family.

We do stockings and presents on Christmas morning, and while my family does a Christmas breakfast, so far it's turned out that we are more brunch oriented. Plus, the kids could care less about food with all the excitement of the day, and I want the magic to last as long as possible. This is the first year that both kids have been super excited and aware about Christmas, so I can't wait to see what happens this year and in the next few years. I want all of us to have a say in shaping what our Christmas traditions are, and I also hope that the kids take away that while traditions are comforting and wonderful, they are also adaptable to what works for you.

What are your Christmas traditions? R looked at me blankly the first time I asked him and in 10 years I haven't gotten much more out of him other than 'open presents' and 'eat ham'. So please, don't leave this nosy blogger hanging!