Holiday Traditions | Mrs. Nelson's Chocolates
Just after Thanksgiving, as far back into my childhood as I can remember, my mother’s Aunt Kay and Uncle Nobby (yes, “Nobby”), sent my family a multi-tiered box of chocolates from Mrs. Nelson’s Candy House in Chelmsford, Massachusetts. They were distant relatives that I recall meeting only once or twice. But that beautifully gift-wrapped, hefty box of confections arrived by mail from them each year. A simple gift, sure, but as a kid, that box of chocolates marked the beginning of Christmas time. It was our first gift of the season and part of the fun was the anticipation of it. The pretty package, the irresistible scent when the cover was lifted from the box, and the fact that this was really good chocolate were all just a bonus. Aunt Kay and Uncle Nobby died many years ago, but Mrs. Nelson’s Candy House is still shipping fine chocolates worldwide. So early in December, I allow myself to get a little nostalgic, and I place my own order, await its arrival by mail, and share the wonderful contents with friends and family that come to visit.
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In September we sent our oldest off to college far from home. You drop them off hoping you have made a positive impact on their lives while they were growing up, not only with the big life lessons, but the small things that make each family different. Our daughter has a blog for a class she is taking and just wrote about some holiday family traditions that are important to her. All of them began when our children were small, they are now an important part of the way we celebrate. Here is an excerpt of her blog. I was happy to see how much she appreciates her growing years.
The 12th day of Christmas: My family celebrates the 12th day of Christmas. My brother and I each get one or two smaller presents that my mom held back from Christmas day. This allows us to still have a little something to look forward to after Christmas Day.(Sometimes its the gifts that my mom couldn’t find by Christmas, so it gives her an excuse to give them to us late
). It also reminds us that the season ends on the day that the kings arrived with their gifts.
-Latkes: Latkes are a Jewish food. They are potato pancakes. We first began eating them when my little brother was in preschool and had a holiday party. He loved them so, my mother had to learn to make them. My family eats them every year around the holiday time, even though we are not Jewish. This helps me to remember that this holiday season is not just about Christians but many other religions.
-Cutting paper snowflakes: Each year in the beginning of winter my mom, brother and I cut paper snow flakes. We them place them in each of the windows on the front of the house. We usually make my dad cut at least one so he takes part in this tradition. We don’t take the snowflakes down until winter is all over.
Thanks you Deb and Jennifer for sharing your traditions. Deb – good for you to continue the chocolate tradition – Mrs. Nelson’s is wonderful. Jennider – love your tradition of 12th day of Christmas! Mom’s are great! In my family, we got our last present on New Year’s day.