Our 8 Favorite Holiday Traditions

With Christmas just a few days away, it’s the time to ponder upon all the good things God has blessed us with – and to resolve to become a better person for the coming New Year!

Personally, Christmas has always been one of my favorite times of the year. As someone who grew up overseas, Christmas was usually the time when we would come home to the Philippines and be reunited with other family members – a time for grand family reunions on both sides of the family (in Malolos, and in Naga); shopping at SM (things are MUCH cheaper here than in Brunei); and fun family bonding. 

On the years when we couldn’t go home to the Philippines, my older sister and brother would join us in Brunei for the holidays. We’d celebrate Christmas Mass together; attend Christmas parties; and have our own family bonding activities. Sometimes we’d go on fun road trips to other places, like nearby Miri in Sarawak, East Malaysia.

Growing up, the “staple” holiday traditions that were “instilled” in me almost always involved the three F’s: faith-related activities; family bonding activities / reunions; and Filipino food!

When I got married, I knew that my husband and I would have holiday traditions of our own – some passed on from our respective families, and others, traditions that we’d establish on our own.

Based on our past six Christmases spent together as a young family, here are our favorite holiday traditions:

 

1. The Advent Wreath
This is a tradition that we started when our eldest was three years old, while we were still in Timor. We used this Advent Wreath craft idea from Catholicmom.com. Now that our youngest is two and a half, we let her join in this year’s wreath-making too. (For more information about how the Advent Wreath is used, click here.)

 

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2. The Advent Calendar
The Advent Calendar is a new tradition for our family this year. According to Wikipedia, the Advent calendar is “a special calendar which is used to count or celebrate the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Some calendars are strictly religious, whereas others are secular in content. Despite the name, most commercially available Advent calendars begin on December 1, regardless of when Advent begins, which can be as early as November 27 and as late as December 3.”

We bought our Advent Calendar from Fully Booked – it’s actually a calendar cum book set, and contains 25 mini-books – 1 book to be read every day starting December 1 until December 25.

The kids absolutely love using our Advent Calendar – we read the book for the day after our morning prayers, and then they hang it on our “Advent / Christmas” tree.

 

3. The Jesse Tree
This is another new family tradition for us this year. According to Catholic Culture.org:
"The Jesse Tree dates back to the middle ages and came from Europe. Even some ancient cathedrals have Jesse Tree designs in their stained glass windows. The "tree" is usually a branch or sapling and is decorated with various symbols that remind us of the purpose and promises of God from Creation to the Birth of Jesus Christ.

Jesse was the father of King David and God promised David that his Kingdom would last forever. Two centuries after the death of King David, God spoke through the prophet Isaiah and said:

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots: and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of the fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:1-2) 

Each Jesse Tree ornament usually consists of a handmade symbol or drawing that represents one of the major stories of the Old Testament along with a brief verse of Scripture from that story."

This year, we were blessed to receive a Jesse Tree kit as a gift. The kit was made by a group of mothers of students from Mano Amiga Academy, a school for marginalized kids.  Since the beginning of Advent, we gather around the “tree” every evening, sing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” read and reflect on the Bible passage for that day, and say our prayers. The kids then take turns hanging the Jesse Tree ornament for that day on one of the tree branches. 

 

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4. Reading “Advent Books” together
Another tradition that we started this year is preparing “Advent Books” for the kids to read every day until Christmas, starting December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. We chose books from their current collection based on a certain “theme” or “value” for each day. I also scoured the nearest Booksale store for good Christmas-themed books to add to their collection.

Each day’s books were then “wrapped” for added effect and to make the kids excited about “opening” each “present” for the day – I used pages from an old National Bookstore calendar and old brown paper bags. 

This tradition has made reading books together with the kids all the more special – because we get to focus on specific themes and/or values each day.  

 

5. Attending family reunions
Hubby and I always make it a point to discuss where we’ll be spending Christmas and New Year in advance. When we’re in the Philippines, we usually spend Christmas with his side of the family (they always have a family reunion on Christmas Day) and New Year with my side (usually, my dad’s side). 
There were a few years when we spent the holidays outside of the Philippines though, since we used to be on mission in Timor Leste. We spent our first Christmas and New Year together as a family (with our firstborn) in Timor Leste in 2006; in 2009, we spent Christmas with my sister and her husband in Brunei (on the way home to the Philippines from Timor).

Attending family reunions is a great way for our kids to be “connected” to their roots, and be exposed to other members of the family. It’s also a time to catch up on one another’s lives, and to be grateful to God for the blessing of family.

 

6. Participating in the Celebration of the Holy Eucharist
Participating in the Holy Mass has always been part of our holiday traditions. God has a special place in our family’s life – and celebrating Christmas and New Year would not be complete without the gift of the Eucharist! 

I particularly remember with fondness the times when I was privileged to serve in the choir at Mass. This is something I hope we could do as a family later on, especially when the kids are older. Right now though, I’m happy that our five year old likes to sing along during the “Gloria” part of “Angels We Have Heard On High”!

 

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7. Sharing family meals
Even when we spent Christmas overseas, we always made sure that we shared a family meal together on Christmas and New Year. Whether it was just a simple meal of spaghetti, fried chicken and fruit salad, or a feast with all the works, bonding over food is something that we enjoy a lot – something that most Filipino families can surely relate to!

8. Giving meaningful gifts to the children
Christmas without gifts would probably be not as much fun for young kids like ours. That’s why my husband and I are committed to giving our children gifts every Christmas, no matter how “financially-challenged” we may be during that year. 

Along with the gifts though, we make sure to remind the children that giving is always better than receiving, and to be thankful to God for whatever it is they receive. We also make sure that we select their gifts carefully i.e. we don’t just give in to their every whim or wish. As much as possible, we do get them something they said they like or want; but we also accompany each gift with a “God-centered” gift – like a Christian-themed children’s book or CD.

I’m sure as the kids grow older, we’ll be adding more traditions to this list! How about you, dear reader? What are your favorite holiday traditions? Feel free to post your comments below!

Photo by THEMACGIRL* via flickr creative commons