khirstyn

Ever since I can remember we’ve always come home to Louisiana for Christmas which is where my parents grew up. My mom has nine siblings who have all more recently popped out kids (making me one of the few older cousins, and ring leader) while my dad had a total of somewhere around eleven siblings.

The first tradition:

We open presents from our parents in Texas the night before we head to Louisiana. I’ve stated that I don’t need anything or want anything because I truly feel like I have everything I need or could possibly want. Even though I’m older now, my mommy loves to wrap presents and give them so I still get more than I need. Not complaining.

Second tradition:

Starting the day of the eve if chirstmas eve we head to a different part of Louisiana, usually just my dad, baby brother, and I head down to visit my grandmothers graveyard, say some prayers, give her fresh flowers, and clean her picture up a bit. Then we head to visit my dad’s older sister where this year some of our cousins were home. On my dad’s side my cousins are all older and have little babies so I usually play with their kids and we eat the best seafood basically all day. This time around I also tried to get some studying in.

The next tradition:

Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve day is spent all day in jammies with my mom’s side of the family. I set aside four and a half hours to study but of course there was breaks when crying kiddos came in to help me mediate their fights (because apparently I’m an adult now so I’m suppose to help do that) and other kiddos asking me to take photo shoots of them in dresses they made (which honestly I don’t mind.) We usually head to the movie theater to watch a Christmas movie and eat brunch but this year so many new littles have popped up and toddlers are antsy so we opted for a movie in our aunts home movie theater. Did I mention I had a total of two matching pajamas for this one day? Not extra or anything, but ya know.

Another tradition:

Midnight mass. I pride myself in not falling asleep ever for the past twenty years I’ve been alive (can’t really remember the first six though if we’re being honest). When we get back it’s fairly late and we have a little family snack in the kitchen before making the littles go to sleep.

Final Christmas Day traditions:

Christmas Day! The little kids wake us up (used to be me up until a few years ago) to open our stockings. Food prepping goes on almost all day, and we eat. Then somewhere in between there’s night swimming (only in our heated pools of course plus it’s Louisiana so it’s not unbearably cold) and opening of presents.

Everyone has traditions whether you label it that or not! And if you really don’t, it’s never too late to start some. I have an extremely large family that feels like it grows at an exponential rate, but even if you’re just a party of two, heck even one, the holidays are what YOU make of it! Merry Christmas from mine to yours 💕

Feel free to share some of your favorite family traditions below!