Christmas Traditions

Merry Christmas!

My siblings and I a few years ago...

Christmas is by far my favorite holiday season of the whole year. It has everything--family, romance, nostalgia, and more. It's celebrated around the world, whether in the religious or commercial sense, and don't you feel as though it has a bit of a super power? The idea of Christmas (and with that Hanukkah and Kwanzaa) and the general sentiment that surrounds it brings out the very best in people.

Think about it, this holiday caused a brief truce in World War I. The war that devastated the world was put on pause because all sides had that much respect and love for Christmas. This holiday brings families together, gets kids excited beyond belief, and helps all of us, old and young, believe in magic ever so slightly.

It also brings to mind traditions. The kind of traditions we don't realize we need until we're older. Every family has them, and mine is no exception. Since I'm half way across the world this year, I thought I'd reflect on some of the traditions my family has.

• "Christmas Bells"- Apparently my grandfather loved this Snoopy song, and as soon as post-Thanksgiving hits, my mom likes to blare it in the car. We all sing along. We don't know any other song on that CD, and I don't even think my mom has ever played any other song on the CD, but we know all about Snoopy and the Red Baron.
• This Christmas, A Wonderful Life- Movies we definitely watch as a family (though I think Frozen is soon to be added to the list). This Christmas is fairly recent, but A Wonderful Life has been in my life since before I can remember.
• Baking- My mom always makes chocolate chip cookies, chocolate crinkles, snickerdoodles, and thin sugar cookies. Sometimes she adds other things, but these four are the core group of the Christmas baking. Keep in mind, she doesn't really trust any of us with the actual making, but she will let us roll them in sugar or do the sugar cookie cutouts. I know, we're between 19 and 22 years old, and she still doesn't quite trust us! 
• Sneaking Cookies- My mom prepares aforementioned cookies about a month before Christmas (right after Thanksgiving to be exact), and then she puts them in the basement freezer. My siblings and I may or may not have snuck a good amount of those cookies over the years. And we're pretty bad at disguising our thievery. But it's tradition now! Despite how not pleased my mom will be to think that. Heheh.
• Sitting at the Top of the Stairs- We're still doing this long after we were told Santa isn't real. Like we did it last year, and not all three of us could fit in a row at the top of the stairs...   
• My Sister Waking Us Up- She does it every year! At 7 a.m. It's absurdly early, and usually there's a lot of grumbling, and then all of us (dog included) pile into our parents' bed to fall asleep again.
• "It's a Kohls Box!"- At both our morning Christmas traditions and the one with extended family, we have this funny thing where we'll shout "IT'S  A KOHLS BOX" or -insert store name- box. Every time.

There's much more I'm sure I'm forgetting. Do you have any traditions? Next year we'll have two little tykes add in to our holiday traditions! Hope all you beautiful people have a wonderful holiday!