ROUND PANCAKES AND OTHER CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS

 

Today we are looking at family Christmas traditions. Every family is unique. They all have their ways to celebrate and remember. For example, a teenaged girl was observing her mother preparing a roast for dinner. Before putting the roast in the pan, she cut off a little bit on both ends.

“Why do you do that?” she asked her mother.

“Do what?” Mom replied.

“Why do you cut off each end of the roast?” she wondered.

“Well, I guess I never thought about it before. That’s the way my mother always did it,” was her answer.

She called her grandmother on the phone and inquired about this strange way of meal preparation. “Why dear," her grandma replied, “I cut the ends off so I could fit the roast into the pan.” They both had a good laugh and she reported her finding to her mother. That event became an accidental family tradition. 

Importance of Traditions

Here is a good definition of traditions:

There is a reason we intentionally maintain and create traditions – it's because they bring meaning to our celebrations and help bond us to those we love. They lend a certain spirit that nurtures the family connection, giving us a sense of belonging and helping us celebrate generations of the family..(I would add, they are part of our family story.)

www.childhelp.org › blog › traditions

The family roast story may seem odd, but there are other families who have some really unusual Christmas traditions:

• One family made a creche using items from all the places they visited or lived. It reminded them of those memories.

• Pop in a Can – On Christmas morning, after the gifts are opened, the family brings their coffee or egg nog and watch grandpa as he steps into the recycle can to compress the wrapping. They then offer him a toast then go back inside!

• Santa’s Lap – When you think about it, how weird that we take our young children to a bearded stranger to sit on his lap and ask for toys?! No wonder so many kids cry! As a child my dad would take me to see the santa in town. All I wanted to do is get away from him because he had terrible breath.

• Here are some Weird Christmas Traditions Around the World Buckle your seatbelt. Some of these are way out there!

One of my family’s favorite Christmas tradions is serving a Chrismas breakfast of aebleskivers. These are Danish pancakes (see photo above). You fix up the batter  and is cooked in a special pan in butter. They come out marble shaped and you can add syrup, powdered sugar, or both.  They are often served with lingonberry. See the recipe at the bottom of the article.

YOUR TURN...What is a Christmas tradition your family participates in each year? Please “reply” and share it with the rest of us.

NEXT WEEK...we will share a favorite Christmas memory. Be prepared to share yours!

Aebleskiver Recipe

(c) Wally Johnston 2020

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