Do you watch football every Thanksgiving? Does an elf sit on your shelf before Christmas? Or do you spin a dreidel on Chanukah? We all have our traditions to personalize the holidays and make them feel special.
But some traditions are more common than others. So we want to know... what holiday traditions do you follow each year? Tell us to win a $50 Etsy gift card and a Thanksgiving Thankful Tree Kit!
To get you started, here are some of the non-traditional traditions SheSpeaks staff members celebrate during the holidays:
We do a Thanksgiving Tree every year. Everyone gets leaves and they write what they are thankful for and then we hang them from branches that we collect together. It's very sweet. - Aliza Enter below to win your own Thanksgiving Thankful Tree Kit, plus a $50 Etsy gift card!
Each kid gets a new ornament for our Christmas tree every year. We buy it from a store that has tons of ornaments - they even write their name and year on it. My kids are now 21 and 16 so we have tons of them, everything from soccer, gymnastics and baseball to graduations and driving. - Missy
Instead of gifts every night for Chanukah, we spend some nights doing activities with the kids, usually involving food and a giant mess. We've tried making sushi (a sticky-rice mess), fondue (a chocolate mess) and pasta (the biggest mess of all - flour was everywhere!) - Susan
We make homemade pizza on Christmas Eve, for every year of my life I can remember except one! We even make the crust from scratch and everyone picks their own toppings. Even my teenage son calls it "the best tradition ever." - Carol
My New Year's Eve tradition is to make a fancy dinner at home and skip the crowds. In addition to getting some decadent food, we try a new signature cocktail, candles & mood music so we can feel like we've transformed our house into a swanky restaurant. - Emily
*One lucky commenter, Tweeter or Instagrammer will be chosen at random to receive a $50 Etsy gift card and a Thanksgiving Thankful Tree (if the tree is sold out, the prize will instead be a $75 Etsy gift card.) Giveaway is open through November 25th, 2018 to U.S. residents at least 18 years of age. Entrants must be a member of SheSpeaks. If you are not a member, click here to join. Winner will be notified by email.
Update: Thanks to all who entered! Congrats to our winner, SheSpeaks member peter26.
Decorating my home makes me happy.
I love going on a thanksgiving hike with my family then coming back and having hot cocoa!
We read books and drink hot tea
We read books and drink hot tea
My favorite holiday tradition is to bake Christmas Eve with my kids and give it all away to neighbors and friends.
My Dad started a traditional family photo every year during the holidays. I'm the oldest of five. We hated it. In 2012 my Dad lost his battle with cancer. Those family photographs are among our most cherished memories. My family has continued the tradition every year. Just recently, we've even added a theme. We usually do one in ugly Christmas sweaters and a more normal looking one. It's my favorite holiday tradition because it reminds me of my Dad as well as creates new memories for my family going forward.
baking and decorating
my kids and i make our own candy and cookies, its fun for all of us, we listen to music and have a great time. i enjoy being able to teach them how to make different kinds of cookies.
I love driving to a tree farm and picking out my favorite tree!
We enjoy hosting a New Day get together with family and friends!
On Thanksgiving, I get together with my family.
My favorite holiday tradition is getting together with my family.
I enjoy spending time with family
I love baking pies, cookies and making candy with my nieces.
Spending time with family is the most important. But we also enjoy getting together and teaching the younger ones our family candy recipes. On Thanksgiving day before we eat we fit everyone together holding hands in a circle and say what each of us are thankful for, pray then eat. On Christmas Eve my favorite is still getting together with my father thats in his 80s and drive around looking at Christmas lights & decorations.