Comments on: December Contest

By: D.O.

D.O. — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 05:25:42 +0000

One thing I remember loving about Christmas Eve from my childhood was the series of services at church that the day hosted. My dad, being the unofficial lay-leader of the century at my home church, was always an usher for said services and as early as I can recall I’d help him between services picking up the empty plastic cups from the communion… and now that you’ve sparked this thought I’m going to stop fleshing it out here and start a draft for odfm.

Thanks for the idea, and thanks for the book that I’ll surely win.

By: Greg Rhodes

Greg Rhodes — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:50:50 +0000

P.S.S. Jargon Scott ROCKS! They’re like cuddly throw-pillows.

By: Greg Rhodes

Greg Rhodes — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:48:34 +0000

The years we lived in Africa my parents started a tradition born out of their “look at the bright side of life” mentality. We couldn’t go to the grandparents, and only occasionally could we get through on the phone (for $10/minute), so after the presents and a HUGE lunch there wasn’t a lot to do. We didn’t have family, but it was 80+ degrees in December so we would take all our holiday cheer to the local swimming pool. Nobody else would ever be there (after all it’s Christmas!). While my parents soaked up the sun (probably pining away for a white Christmas) my brother and I would be busy trying to get them wet with our belly flops and cannonballs, and then come home with some serious sunburns. Ahhhhh, memories.

P.S. The African Santas ROCKED!

By: mandi

mandi — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 16:04:26 +0000

we had a big christmas eve dinner (this also happens to be my bday so my parents always called it my bday dinner- yeah right- what other 10 year olds had to eat turkey, dressing, etc on fine china and candle light for their bday? with all the old people from church?) and then we would put out the cookies for santa. my brother and sis and i would all sleep together listening to christmas music. then we would run out about 5 am to see what santa brought. we were allowed to open santa gifts without the parents. very nice! after i got married my husband refused to sleep in my sister’s day bed with me and my siblings so that ended THAT tradition. party pooper…

By: Jargon Scott

Jargon Scott — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 03:56:22 +0000

We always sit around and tell jokes. Here’s my favorite one.

“What do you call a dog with no legs?”

“It doesn’t matter what you call him, he ain’t gonna come!”

Har har har har har!

By: Jacob

Jacob — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 03:26:44 +0000

May not be my favorite…it’s just what I remember the best. Christmas Eve was always (and still is) at Grandmommy and Granddaddy’s house. Grandmommy would make a ton of finger foods (ranging from sausage balls to peanut butter cookies). We would eat and then go sit in the living room to be warmed by the gas heater. Good food and good time with family.

By: erin

erin — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 21:27:29 +0000

We always went to look for Christmas trees together and pick one out for our house. Then we got to go to Whataburger afterwards for a greasy hamburger. :) Funny huh?

By: Darlys

Darlys — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 17:26:47 +0000

Every Christmas Eve we also got to open one gift – but every time it was a new pair of Christmas pajamas. Then my four siblings and I would all sleep in the same bedroom in our new pjs so we could wake up early the next morning to look in our stockings and admire all the presents until our parents woke up and we could open them. We STILL get new Christmas pajamas every year (sometimes Jason and I get matching ones) but we sleep in separate rooms now. :)

By: Kim

Kim — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 06:51:30 +0000

When I was a little girl, every year on Christmas Eve my mother and I would have a “Teddy Bear Tea Party.”

She would put all of my favorite teddy bears on the chairs in our dining room. Then, she and I would get dressed up and we would drink tea and eat her special Christmas cookies. I was allowed to open one Christmas present, but the rest had to wait until Christmas morning. This was a very special time for my mom and I, and I hope to carry this tradition on with my daughter.

By: Megan

Megan — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 03:16:29 +0000

On my mother’s side of the family, we do “Christmas eve gift.” The theory behind it is that if you say “Christmas Eve Gift” to someone before they say it to you, they have to give you a present. There are lots of midnight phone calls and elaborate schemes to be the first to get my grandfather in particular. One year we snuck over to their house in the middle of the night and decorated their yard with “Christmas eve gift” signs and banners.

Everyone on that side of the family answers the phone “Christmas Eve gift” on Christmas eve, which confuses all non-participants. It was fun, and my parents always let me get them and I got to open one gift early :).