My absolute favorite time of the year is the holidays and all of its traditions. Once November 1st hits, I’m all about fall decor, preparing menus for Thanksgiving and Christmas, thinking about my Christmas decorations and watching all the Christmas movies I can fit in!

I start looking at local event schedules to see what area churches are doing in connection with the season. I am legit upset if my top holiday traditions don’t happen.

Concerts, Displays, Boat Parade & more!

I want to take in every musical, concert and sermon I can!

church

Light displays? I want to go see them!

carridedisplay

Festivals? Where, let’s go!

Boat parades, golf cart parades, the more, the merrier!

boat parade

Confessing Christmas Addict

Some might say I am Christmas crazy. Maybe so.

But it all just brings back so much nostalgia and I do not ever want to lose that.

It reminds me of holidays spent with cousins in south Georgia, running around with sparklers after dark. 

Of more than 40 (give or take a few) people crammed inside a 4 room house less than 1000 square feet big. And yet we had plenty of room.

It reminds me of gift exchanges, chicken and dumplings and 17 layer homemade chocolate cake.

And a ceramic Christmas tree that was my grandmother’s that I still put out every single year. (which somehow I have NO picture of. Rectifying that this year!)

5 Top Holiday Traditions

As I prepare to celebrate this holiday season, I thought I would share some of my top holiday traditions.

  1. Celebrate Thanksgiving and fall decor! This one may seem like a “duh”, but how many people do you know that skip straight from Halloween to Christmas? Am I right? I like to give Thanksgiving its’ due with table decorations, a fall door wreath and yard flags and of course…pumpkin candles. (As you will see below, I need to up my fall picture game)
  2. Plan the meals…especially the treats! I LOVE to bake. And this time of the year I bake a TON of goodies. My husband owns a business and the first year I set a tradition of baking goodies for our customers at Christmas. A few years ago, I added Thanksgiving. Guess what? Don’t start something you can’t keep up as my Daddy would have said. The customers ask every year if I’m baking.
  3. Tree MUST be up no later than Thanksgiving night. It was always this way growing up and I plan to do it this way as long as God grants me the ability to. My favorite Christmas decoration is my tree. I have collected numerous ornaments over the years, each with special memories. That tree becomes a living reminder each year of all the wonderful Christmases, vacations and family gatherings before. And I want to enjoy it as long as possible!
  4. Watch Christmas movies! Hallmark, Lifetime, The Nativity Story, Elf, all three Santa Claus movies…I want to watch all of them I can between now and the new year. And if I miss one, I will record it and still be watching Christmas movies in January. Don’t judge.
  5. Ride through neighborhoods to view Christmas lights! There is something about this that brings all the childhood feels back. It’s been a tradition in my family for as long as I can remember and I truly enjoy it so much! Secular or sacred displays. Elegant or whimsical. I don’t discriminate.

Holiday Traditions of Christmas past

Sharing is Caring!

I’ve shared mine…won’t you share yours? I’d love to hear how your family celebrates this joyous season!

Ammie Senn