Day 2 of "12 Days of Home for the Holidays

I'm blessed. I get the honor of reading everyone's answers before posting them here. Each answer brings it's own story. Everyone has some part of his or her story that overlaps with my own.

My questions remain the same…

What is one Family Holiday Tradition that was handed down to you
from someone in your family that you continue to observe?

How do you preserve those traditions?

Welcome to my guest blogger, Crystal Jeffrey Rieger. I became aware of Crystal through 2 Peas in a Bucket messageboard. One day I followed her to her blog and fell in love with her work. Creative beyond words! Something that made me go back to her blog over and over: she would talk with me. If I sent an email, she responded quickly and with care. When I joined “My Craftivity" she was my first “friend.” That impressed me in a world where everyone is busy and no sees others very well. Crystal impressed me as a person who cares.

Crystal Jeffrey Rieger is a scrapbooker—heart and soul—and nothing sets her creative adrenaline racing like aisles and aisles of colourful paper and a fresh packet of photos. Crystal started scrapbooking as a creative outlet and a way to document her life, but it soon developed into a full-time career. Crystal still pinches herself every morning because she feels so lucky to have a job she is so passionate about.

Crystal’s scrapbook pages have been widely published in many magazines and books and she has written two books on scrapbooking; Cut Loose (Memory Makers, 2008), and The Scrapbooker’s Handwriting Workshop (Memory Makers, 2009). Crystal was a Memory Makers Master and Contributing Editor for Memory Makers magazine before joining the team at Scrapbook & Cards Today as Creative Editor. Crystal travels throughout North America to share her passion through workshops and demos. More of her work can be seen at her blog CJR.

Ms. Crystal Jeffrey Rieger

My grandmother was a wonderful cook but it is her baking that I remember the most. I used to love to watch her bake because she never needed to measure anything and to me, as a child, it looked like magic as she tossed ingredients into a bowl. My childhood is filled with memories of holiday baking with her as she prepped for Christmas day. Before she passed away, I had a chance to record a bunch of her “famous” holiday treats which I now make with my children during the holidays. I am not as talented as her and need to measure everything but it is wonderful to me that my children eat the same holiday treats that my mother, grandmother and I all ate as children. It helps to keep all the generations connected.

Since I am a scrapbooker I have recorded this holiday tradition onto a scrapbook page. Here we are last year creating my grandmother’s sugar cookies. We spent a fun day in the kitchen giggling and taste testing and letting the holiday spirit come alive in our home.


Merry Christmas to you and you family, Crystal!

Tomorrows Guest is Ms. Elena Lai Etcheverry


Gratitude List
1. not being sleepy
2. music
3. dependency on God
4. God never letting me go
5. Grace unimaginable

Comments

  1. Wow, they both cool crafters. I have add their blogs to my list. Thanks for sharing.

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  2. What gorgeous work. Thanks for showcasing.

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  3. Love the work it's breathtaking and so very inspirational wowowowo

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  4. maryannehoekman52717:47 AM

    Crystals' story about baking truly was inspirational and what a wonderful layout!!! Reminds me of when my mom and I used to make sugar cookies of different shapes for christmas.

    What teriffic work Patti does as well!!

    Thanks for sharing the blog links with us! I have saved them!

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  5. As to answer your question about the holiday traditions...
    When we were younger, we always baked a cake and celebrated Jesus' birthday on Christmas. This tradition is something I carry on to my kids. I bake the cake and make the icing then let the kids decorate the cake and on christmas day, we have a full blown party. Our gifts to him are love, prayers, praise and worship. Then we sing happy birthday to him and cut the cake. Have ice cream too!

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  6. I so love that today's guest was able to record her grandmother's recipes. While I have some of my grandmother's recipes, some of the items are gone forever. How sad that makes me at times.

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  7. Tina S9:36 AM

    My grandmother was a fantastic cook as well and each Thanksgiving and Christmas I make the pumpkin and mincemeat pies with her recipes. And her birthday cakes appear at birthdays, too!

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  8. Oh, what fun the stories are. I really enjoy meeting up with family and friends this time of year

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  9. Wonderful layout! Family traditions & saving these memories are sooo important.

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  10. Debbie C10:16 AM

    Family traditions give us precious memories to share.
    I enjoyed reading about Crystal's cookie tradition and her layout she shared is beautiful. Growing up our family (of 11) tradition was to celebrate Christmas eve when dad got home from work. To this day we still (10 of us now) and all our families (40 in total) still get together Christmas eve to celebrate. I have also carried my Christmas baking traditions down to my daughter and now to my granddaughter.
    Debbie #4668

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  11. Great LO Crystal and I love the fact that you are preserving wonderful family memories and traditons!!

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  12. So lucky to get your grandmothers recipes..It is very nice of you to share that memory with all of us. Your LO is very pretty! Crystal's story about baking was very inspirational.

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  13. I'm also a grandmother and when my grandbabies come over i like to bake with them i never had a GM to share this moments with so i take upon myself that my GB have that memory with them . Great Lo By the way

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  14. Anonymous12:39 PM

    Most of my family have passed away. But we always had a count down. My mother did it every year for my children. She passed away when they where in high school but we have always continued this for them. This year my mother in law suggest that I make a count down for my granddaughter so that I would not have to find them just add what we wanted to the days. So I did---little did I know that my son and daughter where not happy. He told me that it was a tradition and he was not ready to change it or do away with it. So I went and bought the countdowns for him, his wife and our daughter. Our granddaughters will be special one. Even though he wanted the other kind for her.

    Cindy Mc

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  15. Anonymous1:02 PM

    The layout is great.Since both my parents have passed away I don't do much for christmas any more especially with doing a family tradition.We used to go up to my sisters place christmas eve for a while and we used to have christmas dinner up at here place every christmas day.I don,t go to my sisters place any more as she moved out to calgary 3 years ago.

    Joan Fiskateer #808

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  16. Since I didn't have active grandparents on either side of my family, I truly miss "that" part of holiday traditions. But, I can say that I am a pretty decent cook and a terrible baker! But it balances out at the holidays since I cook and thanks to my sisters,my daughter has been taught to bake! We get to be together and so I can scrap that!
    hey deb-just posted a LO on my blog about this too with Lynne!
    KateB

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  17. Loved her layout !
    I dont think I have really a tradition I'm looking forward in creating my own with Lucas.

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  18. Hi Crystal. Beautiful work.

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  19. What a great idea Crystal! I too have many recipes that I make that have come down through the family. I'm quite new to scrapping and haven't thought of doing layouts on this subject. It would be perfect for this Christmas season and some time spent with my girls. Thank you so much for the inspiration! Merry Christmas!...Nancy

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  20. Such beautiful memories you have...thanks for sharing

    butterflygirl #3700

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  21. The girlies in my family used to all get together and make cookies/candy too. hmmm, I'm getting hungry!

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  22. I love reading about everyone's traditions. It is such a great time of year to remember family and the past. :) Thanks so much for all the wonderful comments. And thank-you Debby for having me here on the blog today. I was honored to be asked!

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  23. Acquiring your grandmother's recipes is a blessing. You and your children will enjoy those for many years.
    I enjoyed your layout and admire all your work. LindaC

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  24. It was neat to read everyone else's traditions! We always have Christmas Eve with family, that was really big when I was little and now that I have 2 girls it's very important for them too!

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  25. We would always make a TON of cookies together... Each person would make a specific kind each year. Of course, my sister's green corn flake wreaths would be the first to go...

    We also used to decorate the house together as a family after church on the first Sunday in December - a tradition I still share with my family...

    I commemorated all of our traditions in a little mini book - the 25 days of Xmas... each day has either a favorite memory or tradition. I love to read it to my daughters each night after opening the advent calendar!

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  26. Marianne Brinkley12:27 PM

    How fun to have gotten to have some of your grandmother's recipes to keep the traditions going! I have one recipe that I do that was my husband's greatgrandmother's and it is so special to him that I learned how to make it! Love your work! You are oh so talented!

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  27. Now that I can leave my "real identity" (I changed my password and just remembered that!), I would like to say again that I appreciate you sharing your story about the recipes handed down through your family. I think that will be so great when your children are making them some day too!

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  28. Crystal is wonderful. I have had hte pleasure of meeting her at cha as well and she is a super star. thanks for sharing crystal! and thanks for posting debby!

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