How do you celebrate it? anything specal that you do each year?

Growing up we alwasy did our family thing on chrsitmas eve. Dinner and presents. Then christmas day we would either go to both grandparents house (did that for a while) then we did every other year. It was really nice boht ways.

Now since we are all grown with families of our own, we usually have to sit down and pick one day in that week that everyone has off. so you knew know. (heck like for thanksgiving we did it 2 days after) I plan to try and do our thing iwth the girls here on the eve. and then santa gifts on the day. and if this year goes well, the 26th will become harrison and monicas day to come.(or us go there)

Well, my Christmas plans just changed. I now will not be able to visit Jay that day. I guess we will just hang out here, open presents, make lasagna and BBQ Chicken Salad.
We usually have a real quiet Christmas. Nothing fancy, no big dinner. Just simple.

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~Jen





Co-Hostess of Interracial/Intercultural Families

Well i bake cookies for elise's teacher..and then she and I bake cookies christmas Eve together..except this year she will be a much bigger help! and then we all open one present on Christmas Eve. Also on Christmas eve we bake a cake. On Christmas day we take that cake and sing happy birthday to Jesus. then we all open presents cook christams dinner and hang out with some hot choclate and apple cider. I love this time of year!

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Ours will be pretty simple. We are having a small party for Emma's birthday 2 weeks before Christmas. Christmas eve we'll have a nice dinner. Elijah and I will bake some cookies for Santa and then the kiddos are off to bed. Christmas day they will open presents and some friends and family will come by to visit.

It was always like that: all the family (brothers and sisters and some cousins of my mom) coming to one place (rotating, every year it was held by someone else) - so many people, laughs, talking, having fun until the dinner - of course after looking for the first shining star in the sky Then in a quiet athmosphere the oldest person (before it was grandpa then grandma, now my uncle) is reading the bible - the chapter describing the birth of Jesus Christ. Then we are sharing the ... uhm i dunno how its called in english- its a thin white thing that u can eat (a wafer??) and wishing all the best each other. Then we have the dinner, and after it we sign Christmas Carols. And finally the youngest kids have the important task they are taking the presents from under the tree reading labels with names and delivering the gifts to the recipients. Then we usually have BIG fun, words cant describe some evenings with my crazy family
So in our home HERE we wont be doing much, I guess we wont even have a tree this year, cuz some things are still in boxes...

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We'll be going to my friend's mom's house for Christmas Eve for dinner. The mom is also a friend of mine, so we're all like a family, she's sort of my "second mom" as well as a friend. Anyway, we go there for dinner and company, talk a lot (with Italians, what else?), play with the kiddies, there are only two so far, and OPEN THE PRESENTS!!! After all the excitement we usually go home and Franca goes to midnight Mass to the gothic church in front of her house. She lives in the historic city center.

On Christmas day this year we're at my SIL's new house because we can all fit there, we should be a whole bunch this year. Last year everyone was out of town so there were just the three of us at my MIL's house. Pretty sad.

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Susan