Growing up, my favorite holiday tradition was heading to the Hallmark store and picking out a new ornament for the Christmas tree. I still remember the first ornament I got to pick out. It’s a cute little fox standing on its hind legs, holding a golden 1996. I can’t tell you why I picked it, but I still have it. It makes me smile even now as I decorate my tree with my husband.
Family
Getting married was extremely exciting for me. Not only because we were starting a new family together, but also because we got to start new holiday traditions together. When our first holiday season rolled around, my husband and I sat down and listed the different things our family did for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, etc. We picked what we wanted to keep going and we also got to mold other traditions into something more unique for ourselves.
Our Traditions
For us, we chose to celebrate Halloween with a costume party every year. Halloween wasn’t something either of our families celebrated. However, we love getting dressed up and laughing at silly costumes with our friends. We were a little disappointed that you cannot trick-or-treat as adults, because we have THE BEST costumes! So, we created a tradition that allows us to show off our mad cosplay skills.
We also love Christmas. Black Friday isn’t a shopping day in our household; it’s decorating day! It’s the day our house goes from black to the most wonderful scheme of green, red, and glitter! We take a day to ourselves to light up the house with Christmas spirit. This means we also turn the AC on full blast, light a fire, and sing to our favorite Ultimate Christmas playlist to usher in the new season. We use all the ornaments we have collected over the years, including my ’96 Fox, to decorate the tree. We’ve also carried on the tradition of buying a new ornament for our tree. I’ll keep you posted on what we pick out this year.
What about the tradition from my husband’s family? We haven’t started it just yet because we don’t have children. However, we are extremely excited about it! Every year, after all the presents have been opened and the dust begins to settle, my husband’s parents bring out a MYSTERY BOX for us! You never know what’s going to be in it. I have never been disappointed after multiple years of being on the receiving end of a mystery box! When our kids are old enough to find joy in an extra hidden present, the mystery box is absolutely going to be a tradition we carry on.
For Newlyweds
If this is you and your partner’s first holiday season, I encourage you to have the talk about family traditions. Sit down with a cup of coffee or cocoa and really engage with each other about how you want to shape your holiday season together. Not only will this bring you guys closer together, but you may be surprised at what you learn about your partner’s childhood. It could be fun!
Also, don’t forget to take time this holiday season to be thankful for your family and the traditions that raised you. Appreciate the opportunity to build personal, unique and new traditions with your spouse.
Merry Christmas, y’all.