Christmas Traditions

In honor of the start of December I thought I would share some of our holiday traditions.

1. I make these wreath cookies that are like rice krispie treats but with corn flakes and dyed green with red hot berries. Totally gross no matter how I try to make them healthier with organic corn flakes or whatever. My family LOVES these.

2. Christmas strolls. These are so fun! We love the Centerville and Hyannis strolls. In Hyannis they have a boat parade of lit up boats and Santa comes in on the Pirate Boat. Argh!

3. Frosty. We have a plastic Frosty that peeks out our attic window. Last year, a secret neighbor left us Christmas With The Kranks and a sweet note about how much she likes our Frosty. In our neighborhood, it is all tasteful, Yankee, New Englander, white lights and real balsam wreaths so it is nice to know that someone was appreciating our nod to kitch.

4. Homemade gifts. Every year, we try to make a bunch of gifts. We've made ornaments, scarves, food, etc. When I was little, I would come to the Cape to visit my dad, and Meg would always make something with me. It is a happy memory I have kept with my kids.

5. Candles. I can never have enough on Christmas. I even save them year after year and bring out some that are just Christmas candles.

6. Cookie swaps. Last year, I had two of these and that was too much. But one is nice. Cookies, a craft, kids with frosting on their faces....what could be better?

7. Driving around looking for Santa. I have my mom to thank for this one. One year, when my brother was about 6, and I was 10 or 11, she saw Santa on Huron Ave coming home one night from the laundromat. She came home and bustled us in our pj's into the car to see if we could catch a glimpse. Sometimes now I catch sight of Santa myself, and in our pj's we head out to see if we can find him.

8. Tree trimming. Oh, I love doing this in the dark after getting the tree.

I am sure there are more, and as we do them I will post. But that is enough. I am in the spirit now, and think I'll go make some cocoa for the kids. Oh, yeah. One more thing. Thanks to the lovely Sarabeth, we have started calling cocoa Snowman Soup. Heavy on the marshmallows.