I am a big believer in tradition. In family traditions. They lend structure and beauty and give you a tangible little shelf on which to place the art of being a family. Kids love tradition. It doesn't need to be fancy or high fallutin'. It just needs to be the same every time. On Christmas Eve we go to church and then out for Chinese at a hinky little strip mall restaurant. Nothing elaborate, but it's tradition. (This year I will be passing out a little holiday surprise with our fortune cookies...new pajamas for everyone - possibly a new tradition!)
Lewis is already asking me if we are having coon balls on Christmas morning. Because what the hell is Christmas at the Patton house without coon balls? (We also have very rich and creamy cheese grits and baked tomatoes. And part of that tradition is that everyone, but me, talks about how disgusting baked tomatoes are.)
"Hush up and eat your coon balls!" is what I say. And yes, I will give you the recipe for coon balls...because you're just dying for it, I know. And perhaps a paleo coon ball? Hhhhmm.
Our tradition states that no one can just bust into the living room on Christmas morning; we have to enter together as a family. So traditionally, there's a lot of screaming for folks to hurry up. We see what Santa brought then we all stop for breakfast. Coffee, vanilla steamers, coon balls, grits and tomatoes at a fancy table. And then my children massacre the presents under the tree. In the blizzard of wrapping paper, it becomes wildly obvious that we have so much to be thankful for and so much to give. This year we are looking for more ways to give, more ways to help, more ways to share. More on that soon.
Embrace your blessings. And remember to pay all those blessings forward.
What are your families traditions? I'm always on the lookout for new ideas!
A wonderful post - it really hit home as our family is thousands of miles away this year. Since the boys were little they received new xmas pj's on Christmas eve - perfect for the next morning. We bring our special stalkings wherever we are in the world to hang with care. We enter the living room as a family - yes we too have lots of "get up, get up". Stalkings are enjoyed first -always filled with beautiful oranges, some treats, a special little gift and a new tooth brush. We enjoy breakfast part way through gift opening as we take our time one by one. This year we will be in Switzerland and will be sledding until we cannot move another muscle. Family traditions is like bringing family with you wherever you are. Yours sound wonderful!!!! (not sure if I have commented before but I absolutely love your blog and we miss our yearly visits to Durango).
ReplyDeleteCheers
Chey
yes, we do oranges in the stockings too, and nuts, and thin mints! love YOUR blog...amazing photos!
DeleteOkay Ivey, what are coon balls cause I don't think they are the balls on the critters that are in my pecan trees.
ReplyDeleteOur tradition has always been to open one gift on Christmas eve, and it's always a new pair of pj's or a gown, then we put them on, fill our glasses with hot chocolate, eat fudge and watch It's A Wonderful Life. We have been doing this for thirty years and I hope we will be doing it for at least thirty more.
oh your christmas eve sounds lovely! dare i admit that i have never seen 'a wonderful life' ?!?! i think this is the year!
DeleteYou've got me hooked now....Coon Balls?
ReplyDeleteOur traditions are still in the fledgling stage...we do and Advent stocking thing...and so far that's our strongest tradition. I love tradition too and it's exciting to be in the phase of thinking about which ones we want to start for our little family. One year I made a tradition gingerbread "pudding" (bundt cake) and then lit a pan of rum on fire and poured it onto the pudding. That was quite impressive, plus delicious, so I am thinking of making that be our Solstice Tradition (you know with the fire and the light theme?)
i think i need the recipe for the flaming cake! sounds awesome!!! coon balls coming soon!
DeleteRon was raised in a little mining town in Arizona so it's always a Mexican Christmas Eve for us. Chicken enchiladas, Machaca Beef, Elk Tamales and loads of guac, salsa and Mexican Wedding Cookies. This year isn't "our" year to have the kids so we'll trim down the menu and double the Sangria ;))
ReplyDeleteoo la la...that sounds perfect...maybe we'll do that christmas day night!!!!
DeleteI want to know what coon balls are too :)
ReplyDeleteWe are in search of a new family tradition this year. We usually spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my family, but this year it will just be Christmas Day, so we are thinking about what tradition we want to start this year...just the three of us.
i know whatever you come up with will be beautiful!!! i'm pushing for skiing around here, to get us all up and out after the wild whing ding!
DeleteThis is our first Christmas in 6 years of marriage that we are staying home, just as a tiny little family. It feels a bit odd, but we dont know what the next set of holidays might bring (hello deployment). So we are starting a few new traditions of our own. The first will be Indian food on Christmas Eve, in honor of our daughter-to-be :) We checked the box for Cut Your Own Tree and made the fun new memory of when it came crashing down in our livingroom last night! Ha! Love your traditions Ivey, love your family, love you!
ReplyDeleteI love it. Being a south georgia girl, I just love to hear the words "coon balls". Just makes me laugh Ivey. I'm going to create my own fan club, though I hear there is one already. Merriest of Merrys!
ReplyDeleteWow. I need to have a new tradition, too! Something beyond James Taylor's "At Christmas" album and hanging paper snowflakes. I did some peppermint bark last year. That rocked. That should for sure be a tradition. Hmmm....I'm gonna keep thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteXO