Hi, my name is Leah and I'm a part of Civitan's DTA, Media GSE, Fine Art Group GSE, and Flerish Thrift Store GSE. I'd like to talk about my favorite family traditions for the holiday season. Because my family are both Jewish and Christian, I have favorite holiday traditions for both Hanukah and Christmas.
One of my favorite Hanukah traditions was playing dreidel with my sister growing up. Dreidel is a game of luck or chance played during Hanukah. You spin a jewish spinning top called a dreidel that has a jewish letter written on each side and you play for chocolate coins called gelt. The letter you land on determines what to do that turn. When you land on נ(nun) you don't do anything and the driedel goes to the next person. When you land on ג(gimel) you win the pot of coins in the middle. When you land on ה(hey) you take half of the pot coins in the middle. When you land on ש(shin) you have to put one of your coins into the pot. The game ends when somebody lands on gimel and there are no more coins to play for. My other favorite Hanukah traditon is helping my mom and dad make latkes which are potato pancakes. They can be made with sweet potatoes or potatoes and are commonly topped with applesauce or sour cream. However, there are recipies for many different topping combinations if you want to get creative.
When it comes to Christmas, there are a few family traditions that are my favorite parts of the holiday. My first favorite family tradition is my mom makes a christmas morning brunch of strada, nog, and fruit salad. It's absolutely the best way to start my christmas morning. Another favorite family Christmas tradition is helping to decorate the house. I always enjoy beautifying the Christmas tree with lots of ornaments and lights, putting up our christmas decorations around the house, and lighting a few holiday scented candles to bring it all together. My final favorite tradition when it comes to Christmas is helping the family bake the sweets. It brings us all together, smells amazing, and can be really entertaining to partake in making our favorite holiday sweets.
These are my favorite holiday traditions because holidays are about celebrating with your family and friends, enjoying the company of your loved ones, enjoying amazing food, and partaking in your family's traditions; not receiving gifts. So get in the holiday spirit this season and enjoy the truly best parts of the winter season.