December 17, 2007 • Print This Post
I’m deep in Holiday Frenzy.
The shopping is nearly finished. I haven’t wrapped a thing, but the house is all decorated.
So time to think about the baking…well I was considering trying some new cookies, and not doing the usual candies and cookies that I bake.
Right, you’d think I set fire to the kitchen with the reaction I’m getting from the Santa and the Elves (played by my husband and three sons).
What? No peanut butter balls?
No.
No English Toffee?
No.
What about the caramel turtles? Russian Tea Cakes? Peanut brittle?
No, no and no! I was thinking, Mint cookies, black and white cookies and miniature cheesecakes. Only one of you elves lives at home now, and Santa and I are trying to cut back, so I thought I’d just have enough goodies for Christmas day.
All at once, Santa and the elves cried, NO SUGAR COOKIES? WITH FROSTING, SUGAR CRYSTALS AND CHOCOLATE CHIPS?
Sigh. Want to guess what I’ll be making? Barely a week left, with more shopping to do, nothing is wrapped and yet…
It makes me grin that I set this tradition when the kids were small (they always baked with me, and still will if they are home) and they are very attached to the tradition.
So Mrs. Clause will have to get her oversized butt in gear and make at least some of the goodies. Apparently sugar cookies are non-negotiable.
Your turn! What are your non-negotiable holiday traditions? And just to stay in the holiday spirit, I’ll pick one commenter to win a $15.00 Barnes and Noble gift card. I’ll announce the winner in the comments Tuesday Morning, December 18th. You have all day Monday to comment.
Happy Holidays!
Posted by Jennifer Apodaca @ 3:00 am • Filed under: Jennifer Apodaca
RSS feed for comments on this post.
The URI to TrackBack this entry.
Want your own gravatar? Get one here.
The holiday tradition in our house is that we don’t put up the tree and decorations until December and no listening to holiday music until after Thanksgiving.
Hey Jen! Don’t feel bad. I haven’t done a lick of baking yet, either.
In our house, it’s Spritz cookies, Fudge and Banana Bread. My MIL taught me to make the Spritz and Banana Bread, but I have my own Fudge recipe.
Gah! i haven’t even started my baking yet and Santa will need cookies, not to mention a family shindig next sunday! As for types of cookies, my kids like chocolate chip for Santa, but hubs has a fit if he doesn’t get polverones as well. *g*
As for holiday traditions. Most of hours are changed year to year, except for two. There is one gift to open Christmas Eve for the kids and the cats get treats as a gift. *g*
Have a great week baking!
One Christmas tradition that we do with our kids is putting out wooden shoes for St. Nick.
We just last night put up our Christmas tree. I don’t like putting it up too early. When I was a kid the tree didn’t go up until the weekend right before Christmas (if Christmas was early in the week, then we would put it up the week before) and we didn’t take the tree down until after the first of the year.
For us its my mom’s rum cake. We NEVER go a year without making it. We haven’t done it yet (we’re procrastinating) but will have about 2 lbs. ready by the weekend. My friends and family are already asking for thier piece!
Homemake yeast rolls from my Grandma’s recipe. It’s just not Christmas (or Thanksgiving for that matter) without these rolls! These are incredible straight from the oven, or make great sandwich material later!
Now, I’m staving and having cravings.
The baking that is done for the holidays, and the cookies that are not normally made except at Christmas time. And my Mom’s fruit cake…..which no one seems to be able to duplicate.
I always make my chocolate covered cherry cookies and fudge for my family and for work (even the place I use to work) every year. So, today is the day to start the cookies especially the ones for work. Also, we put up our Christmas decorations on or around Thanksgiving.
I rarely bake, but I do Christmas dinner at our house and Christmas Eve is at my aunt’s with the baked clams, antipasta and all the Italian goody hors dourves and then dessert and of course Italian pastry on Christmas.
We now have the pasta on Christmas with all the meat as it is just a small group on Christmas Eve now and my mom and aunt are elderly.
You guys are making me hungry! I want to try all the stuff you’re making
It’s so cool how everyone develops their own traditions.
My baking frenzy will commence this week. I always wait until the week before to do that.
We always have to read ‘The Cajun Night Before Christmas’ on Christmas Eve before we go to bed. And I have to make peppermint bark!
Everything else is pretty much negotiable.
Snickerdoodles for son in WA, peanutbutter date balls for sons in FL and MN, and fudge for the grandkids. They let me know if their favorite isn’t mailed to them in their Christmas box!
We always read The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve. When the boys grew up and moved away I sent each of them a copy. Sometimes I call them on Christmas Eve and read it over the phone – and they are now in their 30s and 40s!
My kids are not fussy about what cookies we have but there must be some cookies or sweets. Chocolate is a must. Now that the kids are older they want to open presents on Christmas Eve.
Homemade pierogies are a must for Christmas Eve dinner here. As for cookies it’s Sugar Cookies with sprinkles and Peanut Butter with Kisses in the center.
I need to eat a turkey on christmas eve with my family and we have to watch a christmas movie after all the eating
We don’t really have any major traditions, other than to eat until exhaustion… which can be called a tradition!
I always make White Cranberry-Walnut Fudge.
Some holidays tradition are throwing a bucket of water out the door to “throw away” the bad vibes of the old year, eating 12 grapes as the last 12 seconds until New year.. There’s more but those are the only ones I can remember.
I look forward to the turkey and all the trimmings because we simply don’t have that whole meal much during the year. I was ready to pout when there was talk of just getting a ham for Christmas next week. LOL But we’re having both. So I’m happy.
And as a general tradition, it’s also my and sis’s birthday this month too (hers past weekend, mine this coming) and for a good number of years now we’ve been getting an ice cream cake. Totally look forward to it, and gotta have it. Even one year in between, sis got an ice cream cake but I got a chocolate and peanut butter cake. Normally I’m a huge chocolate nut and with peanut butter, oh, all the more better. . . but ah, just not this one time.
Gotta have the Carvel. 
Lois
Homemade eggnog is a must in our house. I also have a tradition of baking 3 or 4 types of cookies. This year I made 4. One type is my standard sugar cookie recipe and the other 3 were new recipes I tried. One of our traditions is to go out and see the light displays and then come back sit around the tree, listening to Christmas music, while we munch on cookies and drink egnog or hot cocoa.
Our Christmas Eve dinner has to be fresh crabs, and Christmas day dinner is always a baked ham and lasagne.
The one non-negotiable that I always have to do every year is see all the Christmas window displays in New York City.
The first is a tree trimming party – started with an uncle who had no where to go (38 yrs. ago) and now there’s ten of us (my grown daughters and their signifcant others, a nephew and his wife who have no children, and that uncle who now has a significant other). Lots of snacks, wine and laughter! I serve a nice dinner and then we put on National Lampoons Christmas Vacation.
My other tradition has to do with reading The Littlest Angel to my daughters. Everyone gets a good laugh because Mom can’t read the book without sobbing her heart out. I am not a crier but I just can’t get through this book.
Our holiday tradition each year is to go and see the Christmas lights in Washington Park in Michigan City. It gets bigger and bigger every year! It winds all around the park.
Also, my husband and I love to get on our Christmas hats, take our picture in front of the Xmas tree and grin like silly fools! We love it! Then, we have Christmas at my mom’s house with snacks and dinner. We open our presents in the evening.
Then we usually head over to a couple of friend’s homes and wish them Merry Christmas. We try to make the most of Christmas day. We inevitable always have snow on Christmas since I live in the north. So driving conditions always vary. That is fun trying to negotiate the roads when it is slippery out.
Well, one year we did get stuck in a snow bank but then a pit crew happened by and pulled us out. We got really lucky that night! We shouldn’t have been out in the first place because it was so bad out! It was blowing so bad you couldn’t see the road!
Happy Holidays Jennifer! I wish you and your family a blessed Christmas!
Michele L.
we dont have one, but i will be seeing my grams and graps this yeear, that will be great, i dont see them much, they live in antohter country
Our holiday tradition is go to my parents to decorate their tree as a family, it was cute last year my grandma was there decorating with us, she usually just watches.:)
Not a tradition really, but I have to have my fix of shortbread because it’s the only time of year I indulge myself with it.
our tratdition is to put up the tree the weekend after thanksgiving. hubby does the outside with the girls while I do the inside. we bake cookies and candies all my sisters and friends meet at our house for a day of wine and cookies. good times.
Time to announce the winner of hte $15.00 B&N gift card….And The Winner Is…
DRU!
Congratulations Dru! Please email me at Jenapodaca@aol.com with your mailing address.
Thank you all, I really enjoyed reading about your traditions!
Thanks! This is a nice holiday gift. Again, thanks.
wtg dru