Holiday traditions: CityMoms edition
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Andy Williams crooned it best when he sang, 'It's the most wonderful time of the year..." It's hard not to be all heart-eyes for the extreme show of holiday spirit on display each December. Which also made it the perfect time to ask our CityMoms: What are your family's top holiday traditions?
Here’s how our CityMoms celebrate the holiday season:
CityMom Christine and her family enjoy the Winter Solstice (the shortest day of the year and the first day of winter). “We turn off the lights, eat dinner by candlelight, and talk about what we’re looking forward to in the new year.” They also talk about highlights from the present year and spend time outside in the warm glow of their firepit.
Want to learn more? Christine recommends reading The Shortest Day, which is all about celebrating Winter Solstice!
CityMom Victoria and her family celebrate their German heritage on Saint Nicholas Day (December 5th). The evening before, they leave a single shoe outside each of their bedroom doors. In the morning, the shoes are filled with small gifts! “Historically, the gift would have been an orange, because they were rare and expensive, and other treats.” Oranges are more common now, so Victoria usually puts a full-size candy bar and toys in her son’s shoe.
Victoria’s son’s shoe filled with gifts
CityMom Sarah makes the most of the season by taking in all that Indianapolis has to offer! “There’s something so magical about this city during the holidays. From The Circle of Lights to Newfields, and of course Carmel’s Christkindlmarkt!” She and her family attend all of the biggest and brightest events in the area to cram in as much holiday joy as they can. On Christmas Eve, they visit her inlaws for church and turkey soup with mush buns.
(We have no idea what mush buns are, but Sarah describes it as a biscuit her mother-in-law made up and promises it’s worth the hype!)
Sarah’s sons enjoying Christmas Day
CityMom Kira keeps memories alive in her home with a Depression Era secret family recipe for Bread Pie. When she got married, her grandma wrote the memorized recipe down, with no measurements! Now Kira makes it every year and describes it as a cinnamon roll in a pie crust. “My family knows that when they smell the aroma of Bread Pie, it’s officially the holidays!”
(Sorry mamas, she’s promised never to give up the recipe, we asked!)
Kira’s famous Bread Pie
CityMom Hannah is Greek and uses regional food as a way to honor her family traditions. Her grandma used to make pastitsio, egg lemon soup, and baklava, which made her home smell “heavenly.” Hannah now makes the same foods for her family, leaving them with full hearts (and bellies!).
ISO A GIFT FOR A HARDWORKING PRESCHOOL TEACHER?
CityMom Pooja and her family are Hindu-American and celebrate both cultures all year long. There is no specific Hindu celebration in December, so they look forward to local holiday festivities and family time. “We celebrate two birthdays in December, and throughout the month, we have fun putting up Christmas lights, decorating a tree, watching The Polar Express, drinking hot cocoa, and wearing matching pajamas.”
Pooja and her family
CityMoms Tiffany and Britny both have special holiday movies that they enjoy sharing with their families. Britny says, “Growing up, we’d watch A Charlie Brown Christmas together,” a tradition carried on today at her parent's home on Christmas Eve. While Tiffany’s family enjoys an annual viewing of Christmas Vacation, “Everyone wears their matching jammies, and it’s a really relaxing evening before the chaos.”
