Andy, thank you for having me today, and thank you even more for organizing this holiday event. Christmas can get so hectic and it’s nice to take a minute or five to reflect on what a special time of year it is. Christmas has always been the most important holiday for my family. We have all sorts of traditions that make it wonderful, but this year I will be missing out on most of them. This year is the first year I won’t be going home for Christmas. I am sad to be away from family over the holidays (although they are coming down to see me on Boxing Day, so I can’t complain too much). And this year marks …

Christmas Rituals My own memories of Christmas are very fond ones. I grew up in a large family (my parents have four siblings each) with lots of cousins, and on Christmas Eve everyone met either in my grandparents’ flat or ours. It was always crowded, as well as a lot of coming and going, but I loved the bustle as a kid. Everyone talked, and laughed, and of course ate too much. My husband’s family celebrated Christmas very differently. It was only him and his parents and everything was quiet and done in a completely different fashion. So, when we celebrated our first Christmas as a family, we had completely contrary feelings on how to deal with everything. Add to …

Growing up in blended families meant I didn’t have the traditional family holiday. It’s only gotten worse as we grew and married. Through all the travel to attend the 4-5 Christmas ‘present events’ we go to each year, finding the time to do fun things together with two kids can be a challenge. We have a few rituals that we always do together but the hustle and bustle can get the better of us. There are 2 we never, ever fail to do. Bundled up in boots and warm, waterproof coats, armed with cocoa… we brave the elements to find the perfect family tree. No rain, mud, sleet, snow, or this year’s holy crap my face is frozen wind chill …

Hello all you wonderful people who have stopped by Andrew Gordon’s wonderful blog to read all about how Christmas has effected each of us in a special and unique way. I am going to talk briefly about my son. On this day, December 13, four years ago I met the sweetest, most adorable thirteen year old boy in the world and fell in love. People I meet now often ask me to tell them how I came to the decision of adoption because it seems like such a wonderful thing to do for him and how giving I am etc… And I respond by saying it was a completely selfish thing I did, because I was only thinking about how …

For much of my children’s childhoods money was an issue. I was a single parent and though I earned a decent living, that income had to pay a mortgage for a home big enough to house us all. It had to feed, clothe, and educate three little people – oh, and me too! Can’t have a naked bookkeeper balancing your ledgers! We weren’t on the poverty line, by any means, but I had to be careful and plan for Christmas months in advance. That planning usually started in the post-Christmas sales! Despite thinking about the next Christmas as soon as the current one was over, my gifts were rarely extravagant. I decided very early on in my parenting life that …

Andrew invited me to participate in his holiday event, providing the theme of family and kids. My mind immediately ran to the myriad of experiences a mother of four has after spending 20+ years “holiday-ing” with her kids. Josh’s first Christmas, when a roomful of twenty adults sat looking at each other from six a.m. until noon because the one-year-old was still asleep and a mother never wakes a sleeping baby. The year PJ (3) and the cat curled up in matching boxes and feel asleep under the tree. The first year Asia (18) brought a male guest to Christmas morning and my husband felt the immediate need to clean all his guns at the kitchen table. The year the dog got tangled in …

Hello everyone! I am so excited to be here today and thanks so much to Andy for inviting me over to his blog! My name is Jay and I run a m/m romance review blog called Joyfully Jay.  In my real life I am a suburban mom of two wonderful girls, ages 10 and 12 1/2.  Yes, we are right on the cusp of having teenagers, and let me tell you, the view is scary from over here!  But they really are fabulous and my husband and I are so lucky to have them in our lives. Andy asked me to share my thoughts about kids and the holidays with you guys.  I love the traditions of the holidays, the …

So I’m a few days late with the schedule. I meant to do it sooner, but there never seems to be enough time this during the holiday season.  That made me a bit behind in confirming with everyone their dates, so I held off until now. The theme of the Event is Parents and Christmas. The participants are all all parents – or soon to be parents, some are even grandparents. Those posting are practice different religions, live in many different countries, and run the gamut of orientations. The goal was a diverse group so I could get a wide variety of posts. I think I’ve achieved that mix. Here is the list of everyone participating and the days their …

Memories of a Christmas Past by Lena Grey The Christmas season is a magical time of year, when we allow ourselves to suspend our disbelief and let the spirit of our childhoods reign. It presents us with an excellent opportunity to put aside our differences and come together in peace and harmony.

A PAGAN CHRISTMAS Well, actually it’s called Yule and should really be celebrated on the 21st December, the Winter Solstice. However, I didn’t think it was fair on children to ask them to celebrate their festivities four days early. Children, being the ‘live in the now’ creatures they are, could easily have all their presents on the 21st and still get upset because they don’t have Christmas Presents on the 25th. So, we moved Yule on by a few days. We still celebrate with a ritual on 21st, but so many of the rituals and symbolism have been ‘stolen’ by Christmas it’s really all blurred into one.