Does your family have any Christmas traditions? As a child I can remember how, every year, my granny would make Christmas cake. We all lived together, and she, my mum, and I would each stir the cake batter before she transferred it from her bowl to the tin. The smell of cinnamon and cloves was intense, the festive spices wafting through our little bungalow from the minute granny began baking until, finally, the house was filled with the heat of the oven and the scent of the warming spices. Eventually came the decoration, the rolling and layering of marzipan followed by the rolling and layering of white icing. The off-cuts of marzipan were rolled into marble sized balls for me to eat like sweeties, I loved them. Granny would nestle little snowy figurines and frosted trees into the icing with a Merry Christmas plaque neatly in the centre, the finishing touch a dusting of icing sugar.
Now, my mum has taken over, even making the marzipan balls. They’re my favourite bit – I actually don’t much like Christmas cake… Still, I wonder if I’ll continue this tradition anyway, purely out of nostalgia. Maybe one day Nathan or Kittie will too, though perhaps the tradition will dwindle down to a giant pile of marzipan balls.
My own little family is of course quite new, but already we’ve established an early-December routine of going to Tayside Forestry to find our Christmas tree. After we’ve picked the perfect one – usually around 6 foot, bushy but not bottom-heavy – we visit the on-site Christmas shop for a new bauble, finishing with hot chocolates in the café. Once we get home we have something to eat, waiting for the sun to sink a little before we decorate our tree with twinkling lights and precious trinkets, singing along to classic Christmas music.
I’d love to hear your memories of childhood Christmases, or the traditions you’re setting for yourself now.
I’m wearing
Coat, Zara (old, but this season’s versions here and here)
Fair isle jumper, Brora (pr gift)
Jeans, Baukjen (pr gift) – 15% off with CHRISTINA15
Boots, Jones Bootmaker (pr gift)
This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission for my efforts in creating and sharing my content. Thank you for your support if you choose to shop through these links, which makes no difference to the way you shop/spend.
