Do you have a family tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation?  Not necessarily Christmas or any other holiday, just a tradition?

Mine is the Hinds hanky.  My great grandmother took a piece of white linen and hand embroidered it with a boarder of pink and green, and a single rose bud in the middle.  She gave this hanky to her daughter (my grandmother) to carry on her wedding day as her "something new".

My grandmother had four daughters, each of whom carried this hanky on their wedding day as "something old".

From those four daughters, there were six granddaughters, each of who carried this hanky as "something old".  The oldest Hinds woman, the matriarch, is the one responsible for keeping the hanky to be passed to the next bride. 

As the oldest granddaughter, both of my daughters have carried the hanky, and the daughters of my cousins will do the same - let's see, I have ten cousins, and between them, they have eight daughters, none getting married yet.

The hanky is given to the next bride of the Hinds family to be carried, then the hanky goes back into the possession of the oldest Hinds woman, the matriarch, who keeps it safe for the next Hinds bride. 

As the matriarch (God, I hate that), I am the one responsible to pass it down to the next Hinds bride. but it's a lovely, yet unusual tradition that I think keeps us in touch with our ancestors.

Got a tradition you would like to share?

Sandy

I'm sure it is partly because I had 13 siblings......but in my family we picked Kris Kringles. Each of the 14 kids put their name in a hat and we each picked a name at the beginning of Advent. (the 4 weeks leading up to Christmas.) You were supposed to pray for your KK, leave goofy notes and gifts on the piano, candy bars etc., all done in secret until Christmas Morning when we revealed our KK's and exchanged presents.

50 years later (for me, longer for the older siblings!!!)we're still doing it, and our folks piano is still the drop off point for the notes and the little gifts. Our kids have started a secondary KK tradition with all their cousins!

Joe

I wish we did. :-/  My family has been so fractured growing up, that the only thing that really remains the same (that "I" have continued"), is baking cut-out cookies for the kids to decorate and opening gifts Christmas morning. 

I will say that my husbands cousins wife and I began a NEW tradition this year, and that is to bake cookies together.  We might add one person into our circle a year until it becomes a big shindig though.

That Mellissa, is how ALL great traditions start!!! [smiley=hug.gif]

Joe