By Hannah Schuller
A draft from the window meets my elbow. Aha! I find the culprit; I retuck the edge of my blanket behind my elbow. There… back to my cocoon of warmth. Amy Grant’s voice fills the room, “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jackfrost nipping at your nose…”
“Have y’all ever roasted chestnuts on an open fire?” I ask my soon to be sister-in-laws. No one had. “What do roasted chestnuts even taste like?” asks Kelsey.
[3 candy cane shaped cookies, 2 mugs of coffee, & one Christmas movie later]
“Chestnuts for us to roast on an open fire, ladies,” says Brittany holding up a sack as she walks through the back door. A spark of excitement rises in me. An hour later the three of us, all puffed up from layers of clothes and winter gear, are standing around a fire open to the night sky. We are commenting on our exceptional skills in the art of chestnut roasting as our words turn into small clouds against the cold air. “They taste like potatoes,” says Kelsey. I brave a bite of hot, puffy chestnut. “They do!” I say. This must be what it feels like to have sisters, I’m think to myself. I like it…I like it VERY much. “I think roasting chestnuts every Christmas Eve should be our new tradition,” I announce. Britt and Kelsey nod, as I hear one of them say, “Most definitely.”
I’m a sucker for traditions! They’re fun; they bring us together. I’ve been trying to think of Christmas traditions for my family including my 5 and 7 year old. I’m hoping you can help. I would like some fun ones but especially some Christ-centered meaningful ones. Every Christmas before we open gifts, my mom has one grandchild read the Christmas story while the younger ones use the manger scene characters to act it out. My father-in-law chops up the Christmas tree after Christmas and saves the logs to burn on the following Christmas Eve. Some years we’ve done shoebox Christmas gifts for Africa. I’ve heard of baking a birthday cake for Jesus’s birthday. What are some of your Christmas family traditions? I would love to hear!
Blessings to you and your family!
