Creative Ideas for a Traditional Christmas
By Kathryn H. Kidd

After the deluge of letters we got about decluttering our lives, we got a comparative drought with the request for Christmas traditions.  Most of our readers must be too busy decompressing from Thanksgiving and getting ready for Christmas to help us out with this topic!

Fortunately, the letters we've received so far have been excellent.  Maybe these good ideas will inspire the rest of you to send in your own suggestions.

What do you do to add meaning to your Christmas celebration?  I’m looking for ideas, traditions, and anything else that will help us make sure that Christmas this year is more than a holiday.

I love this question and I love this topic. I am almost 30, and each year at Christmas is celebrated in my family with that same childhood excitement we had growing up. We grew up not dirt poor, and rich. We were poor to some of the things of the world, but my parents never let us know that. We grew up grateful for all we had and my parents made the most of what we had. It was fun.

Not until we were in middle school did we recognize we couldn't afford what our friends and other classmates could afford. Each year at Christmas time we found people who needed far more than what we needed, and we gave to them. 

Some of my most memorable Christmases were the ones when we helped others who really needed it with time and with material items. My mom has a talent for crafts, and whatever she could dream up, my dad would cut or make with his wood tools. Adorable wooden toys and crafts were left with treats at the doors of unsuspecting neighbors or friends. We would ring the doorbell and run so no one would know who it was. What a joy that was, knowing that we were making someone else feel loved. 

We were also able to devote time in sorting out gifts and giving them to families through toy drives. Not only would a child receive a wonderful toy from Santa on Christmas, but food and other items were given to the families that were much needed. In a very good way, we were more grateful for what we had. It seemed liked so much more.

My parents not only taught us to serve others and to give to others at Christmas time, but it was instilled in us at a young age to do this year around. We did so. 

The best Christmas we ever had, was when these acts of service were given to us. That year we were very lucky to have our dad survive an accident that he miraculously walked away alive from. He was out of work due to being so hurt from it for months.

That Christmas my parents told us that this Christmas was going to be very little. I remember all of us kids telling them that it was fine, because we had our dad. That ended up being our biggest Christmas ever! Ward members, and friends (whom still to this day, thirteen years later, we don't know who they were) left boxes of presents, much needed items and a complete turkey dinner with everything you can think of at our door. Over the course of a few nights, our doorbell would ring and no one was found ― only the boxes left by these loving and generous people. To this day, it's our most memorable Christmas ever! 

Do our acts of service go unnoticed? No. Do they affect the lives of those we do them to? Yes, for the rest of their lives and our lives. Christmas is a time for us to reflect upon all the Savior has done for us. His life was full of service. Whether it be gifts of our time, or money, or whatever it may be, giving and serving others will make your Christmas a whole lot more memorable. It doesn't matter if we're rich or poor ― we can all do acts of service and give to those around us. It's the random acts of service that are fun to do. 

Giving and service is the true meaning of Christmas. The Savior taught, "That when ye do it unto the least of these my brethren, ye do unto me." 

Thank you!

Sharing some Christmas Memories

What an excellent way to start this topic, Sharing!  It reminds me of the first Christmas Clark and I spent together ― back when we barely knew one another.  I had been assigned by my editors at the Salt Lake City Deseret News to take sub-for-Santa gifts and food to a half dozen families, and I asked Clark (who was convenient because he lived in my apartment building) to help out.  I can't think of a better way to start a relationship with somebody than to take Christmas presents to people in need!

My scheme must have worked, because we just celebrated our thirtieth wedding anniversary.  And to this day, both of us have a lot more fun giving presents than we do receiving them.

I could write a book (on Christmas traditions), but I’ll just tell you two that have served us well over the 33 years of our family:

There, I’ll stop now. But the Christmas spirit in our home has always been Christ-centered by doing good for others, and finding ways to keep the focus off what we’re GETTING to what we’re GIVING to others.

We LOVE Christmas!!

Judy Kay Frome
Las Vegas, NV (for a while)

I love your ideas, Judy.  I've never heard the one of doing something different every day of the Christmas season, and it was a terrific suggestion.

Your collection of nativity sets reminds me of my own all-time favorite nativity set collection.  I once was in Scot and Maurine Proctor's home near Christmas and saw their collection of nativity sets from all over the world.  Each one had been identified with a prominent sign that gave the place of origin.  I walked around the house reading the signs ― England, Italy, Israel, France, Spain, KMart.  Once I stopped laughing about the KMart, I realized that it was a little reminder that we don't have to travel the world to find inspiration.  Sometimes inspiration is there for the finding in our own backyard.

Hi my name is Georgia Brain, I live in Mount Waverley, Melbourne, Australia.  As it is summer here during the Christmas period we don't eat the "traditional" Christmas fare. It is too hot and too heavy for my family, so each year a day or two before Christmas we have a family tradition of going berry picking. We spend the day walking up and down the berry orchard filling our buckets with raspberries, brambleberries, loganberries, blueberries and any other berries that are ripe and ready to pick. We have a great day laughing and talking and encouraging each other with the picking the choicest berries. That evening we sort the berries ready for jams and sauces and those that will star in our Christmas traditional breakfast.

We invite the missionaries in our ward and area to come for breakfast, which consists of huge piles of pancakes ready to be topped with the berries and sauces that we picked and made, cinnamon apples, cream.  For those that love savory we have bacon and other foods for them.

During FHE before Christmas we make stockings and baskets for the missionaries. For the Elders we combine practical with fun, so they get a pair of socks, one is filled with practical things like shoe polish and sewing kits, toothbrushes and toothpaste and other everyday items that they need. The other is filled with fun things like water balloons, games, trinkets and lollies. For the Senior Missionaries and Sisters we make baskets with some fun games and trinkets and like the Elders we put envelopes and writing paper in too. All the missionaries receive a basket full of cookies that we made and some of our fresh jams and sauces.  We also make our own Christmas crackers so we can add a scripture along with the traditional hat, trinket and joke. 

For us having the missionaries in our home on Christmas morning reminds us of how lucky we are to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  We enjoy giving the missionaries a family Christmas while they are so far from home; they bring with them an abundance of the spirit and we get to give something to the Lord's servants while sharing our family's love with them.

The rest of our Christmas day is spent relaxing and enjoying our gifts from each other. It is the one day a year in our house that lollies and biscuits and other treats are readily available to all whenever they want it, as we had such a hearty breakfast the bowls of lollies are usually still full at the end of the day. In the evening we have an adaptation of the traditional Christmas fare, but we serve it cold. Then we ring all the family and friends we have to wish them a Merry Christmas. This year we plan on making plates of cookies for all the neighbours as we are new to the area and haven't met them yet. We may even sing them a carol or two.

Georgia Brain

What a fun letter, Georgia!  Your idea of inviting the missionaries for a Christmas breakfast is truly inspired.  And what a great suggestion to give stockings to the missionaries that are filled with practical trinkets as well as things they can use for fun. 

It's not just missionaries who may be lonely at Christmas time, readers.  If someone in your ward has already claimed the missionaries for Christmas, there are sure to be people in your ward boundaries who need a little extra love during the Christmas season.  By doing things to bring joy into their lives, you will also enhance your own Christmas spirit.  Love is something that is always needed, but it is never more needed than at Christmastime.  If you see a need and fill it, everyone will benefit.

I enjoyed the article on decluttering our lives. Here are a few of my favorite ideas for Christmas:

I plan time so I can read a few of the newest LDS Christmas books each season. I find that feeding my soul with the Christmas Spirit helps me to stay focused on why I do all the extra things I do in December. It is my gift to myself.

Since the beginning of grandchildren I started a tradition of giving tree ornaments to each one every Christmas. I do this until they marry. This gives them a start on building their own traditions with memories from their past. I try to choose ones that relate to experiences that year.  For instance, the year of the dedication of the Nauvoo Temple they each received an ornament of the temple (we were all there for the open house). The year my husband and I served our mission, they received an ornament in the shape of Texas (where we were serving). Sometimes the ornament is geared to their personal lives. It has been a fun project.

After reading The Christmas Jar last year, I started a jar of my own. My husband and I are agreed on where it will go. It is amazing how much change we carry around with us. We do not know how much is in our jar but we will never miss it and we know the chosen family will make good use of it.

I know an extended family that makes humanitarian kits for a Christmas project. I want to suggest at our next gathering (Thanksgiving) that our family do this. A list of what is needed in each kind of kit and supplies are available from Mandalay International, Inc. in Pleasant View, Utah. to contact phone   801/782-7973 or http://www.humanitarianproducts.com/. We find that Dollar Stores and Big Lots are also good places for supplies at a nominal cost.

That's it for now. Love Meridan!!

Beverly Wellington
Roseburg, Oregon

Nifty ideas, Beverly.  Lots of us collect Christmas ornaments, but the idea of tying the ornaments to important things that happened during the year goes a step farther.  It's almost a family journal by Christmas ornament, and that's a terrific thing.  The Christmas jar and the humanitarian kits are also excellent suggestions.  Our readers come up with the most creative suggestions!  Thanks for yours.

I am the mom of six children, all grown, and when I read your topic for the next discussion I wanted to respond.

For many years, we followed my family's tradition of having an elaborate Christmas Eve dinner.  It was wonderful, but more stressful than I realized.  Then a few years ago, a new tradition began.  A family in our ward asked my husband to dress up and be Santa for their family.  Early Christmas morning we went to their home, where the gifts had been left on the porch.  At the father's signal, my husband would enter the home dressed as Santa and place the gifts by the tree as the children, hiding all over the room, watched.  It was magical.  "Santa" loved it! 

This family has since moved from our ward, but other families asked him to be the Santa for their Christmas Eve family celebrations, so we spend Christmas Eve going from home to home, bringing a brief visit from Santa to the family.  He plays the part very well, and has such fun doing it.  One of the families has a handicapped daughter who is always thrilled to see Santa, and  Santa is thrilled to see her.  He always leaves that home with a tear in his eye and a catch in his voice.  (I don't get to go in the house, I am the elf that drives the car ― but I get plenty of feedback.) 

Our single kids still come home for Christmas and the first year of the Christmas Eve Santa visits brought a flurry of protests about dinner, but they rose to the occasion and while we were gone they made gingerbread cookies and soup for supper.  Thus a new Christmas Eve tradition was born ― while Dad and Mom are out doing Santa visits, the girls make tortilla soup and cookies for a simple Christmas Eve meal. 

Then they await Santa's return and the stories he tells of his visits.  We enjoy a relaxing supper and then have our traditional Christmas Eve, with readings from the scriptures, music, hanging stockings, lots of love and laughter and good feelings.  No mountains of dishes to wash, no kitchen to clean up, just lots of family good times.  Christmas Eve has changed from a festive but frantic time to an evening of sharing talent, bringing joy to others, and enjoying our family time together. 

A Sister in Texas

Thanks for some great ideas from the Lone Star state.  I especially like the way your
Santa tradition grew accidentally, when your children helped out that first year by making the soup while you and Santa were off on your mission of mercy.

I know I'm going to get a dozen requests for a taco soup recipe.  You didn't include yours, so here's mine:

Since we live in a neighborhood with different beliefs, and traditions, Christmas is a great time for our family to do missionary work. There are about 26 homes in our neighborhood, and for the past four years we have handed out baked cookies, or Christmas movies that have been produced by the Church. One year we had a Christmas party and invited all the families to celebrate.  This year we will be sending Christmas cards with pictures of the Nativity, with an insert of the Washington DC Visitors Center schedule, inviting every one to take their families to see the programs.  We love doing this and people appreciate the fact that some one thought of them.

Not all the families are Christian and maybe not all will go to see the programs, but by now they know who the "Mormons" are in their neighborhood. 

Mirna Barker
Laytonsville, Maryland 

Thanks for your suggestions, Mirna.  Christmas is a great time to do missionary work, isn't it?

Our ward is doing something similar, in that we're producing a cookbook to hand out to nonmember friends and neighbors.  We'll give it a name such as Mormon Home Cooking to identify who we are, and we'll sprinkle facts about the Church in the cookbook as fillers.  We have found a terrific company that does the publishing dirt cheap (for less than $3 a book!), and they do just about all the work for you.  Their package includes eight "free" pages at the back, where we'll be able to include things about church history and doctrine, contact information, and other things that may be of interest.  Needless to say, our cookbook will include such "Mormon comfort foods" as Jell-o salads and funeral potatoes!

If any of you want a link to the company we're using, here it is:  http://www.morriscookbooks.com/default.asp?ref=googwb.  I don't think this group is LDS, and there may even be some LDS companies out there that provide a similar service.

When I was a child, we would go out as a family on Christmas Eve to the local tree lot and Mother would pick out a special tree for us.  Dad would spend an hour or two sawing away at the trunk so it would stand upright in his handmade tree stand.  Then he'd spend some time stringing the (very old) lights. The kids would put up the decorations, most of which were handmade, and we'd string some popcorn garlands and make paper chains.

It doesn't sound like much, but Mom and Dad were very careful to have us understand that Mommy's tree was special, not letting us know that we didn't have more than 50 cents to spend on a tree (last on the lot, marked down). Those trees were always crooked, bare on one side ("better to snuggle up against the wall"), and dropping needles from the moment we brought 
them into the house. But we loved how they looked when we were done decorating. The two presents we each received were never wrapped ("makes no sense to wrap it up just to unwrap it again").

It wasn't until years later that I figured out what really went into making a "Mommy tree" into a grand Christmas tradition ― lots of love and sacrifice. Our Christmases were wonderful.

I have an artificial tree now (I hated having to pick needles out of the carpet for 6 months), and somewhat better means than my parents had. But the tradition of love and sacrifice continues. Over the years, our family has donated food to the Salvation Army Christmas dinner, caroled with the youth at nursing homes, and volunteered at our Creche Exhibit given each year at the chapel. I gave blood at the Red Cross every year until health problems forced me to stop, and have encouraged my children to do the same.

We make a special dinner for the missionaries, and this year, we are working with the ward to 
fill Christmas baskets for our less fortunate brothers and sisters in a neighboring city. We can't do grand, expensive things, but I have learned that money really can't buy the most important things of all. 

Mommy trees are priceless.

Rita Miller
Ann Arbor,Michigan

I agree with you about Mommy trees, Rita.  We've had a similar practice in our own house, although we have never called our trees by that name.  We have traditionally looked for trees that would probably never find a home unless we took them in, and have adopted those scraggly trees as our own.  Clark and I are a little scraggly ourselves, and it seems fitting that we take in trees that would otherwise sit unclaimed in the lot.

And yes, we know Christmas trees don't have feelings.  It's just one of those sentimental things we do for absolutely no good reason except that at Christmastime you do things you might not do for the rest of the year.

That's all for this week.  Meanwhile, if this column has inspired you to send your own Christmas ideas, let send them to circleofsisters@meridianmagazine.com. Put something in the subject line that will let me know your letter isn’t spam.  And when you write, be sure to include your full name, city and state or province. (If you’d rather be semi-anonymous, sign your name as “A Reader from Michigan” or “Sandy from Timbuktu.” The important thing is that we hear from you.)

Until next week — Kathy

"An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory."

Friedrich Engels
(Contributed by Circle of Sisters Reader Carla Child)