Our Christmas Eve Traditions

The tree is trimmed, the gifts are wrapped, and the cookies are baked-- we're eagerly awaiting the arrival of Christmas! As we count down to the merriest day of the year, we asked the terrain team to share some of their traditions for a cozy Christmas Eve. Read on for all the ways we're celebrating with family and friends this season. 

“My family is very close, so all of us gather at my parents’ house on Christmas Eve to sleep over, even now that my brothers and I are older. We stay awake until midnight, bake a massive amount of chocolate chip cookies—with hot chocolate, of course—and listen to Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas album on repeat. We’re all musicians and I love to sing, so my brothers and I record a Christmas song every year and perform it for my parents. Lots of happy tears always follow!” – Katie H., Product Photographer

"Every year since I was a kid, we’ve illuminated the same giant evergreen tree in my neighborhood. These days, the tree is so tall that the bucket truck we hire to string the lights can’t reach the top! On Christmas Eve, our whole neighborhood lines the road with candlelit milk jugs. Since I’m from a small town, a lot of people come every year and drive through our neighborhood to see the Christmas Eve lights.” – Kait C., Jr. Print Designer

“On Christmas Eve, my dad’s entire family gathers for dinner—I have 22 cousins and 12 second cousins! It’s a huge, boisterous group and everyone brings a dish or drink to share. My mom and aunts make three hams, and we gather around the tree for a Pollyanna gift exchange. When dessert is served, my uncle always reads The Night Before Christmas to all the little (and big!) kids. At the end of the night, we go back to my parents’ house and open our new Christmas PJ’s.” – Diane S., Events Manager

“Every year, my parents host Christmas, so my mom, aunts, cousins and I all help out with cooking 12 different Christmas dishes. We make a lot of traditional Polish recipes—my favorite to make is sauerkraut and mushroom pierogi! When we set the table, we leave one spot open to show that if anyone came to our home with nowhere to eat dinner, we would be ready to welcome them.”  – Paula O., Merchandise Assistant

“Christmas Eve is my favorite night to drive around and look at holiday lights. On the way from our friend’s annual Christmas Eve party to family dinner at home, we take the scenic route through glowing neighborhoods. I love to see the Christmas trees and folks gathered inside each window we pass. Later in the evening, my husband and I always drink port and reflect on a Christmas Eve years ago, when we got engaged at midnight!” –  Melissa B., Field Visual Director

“Growing up in Massachusetts, my family’s tradition was to go out on Christmas Eve, just as it got dark, to select the BIGGEST tree at our local nursery-- we had high ceilings. That night, we would invite all the neighbors over for an open house and everyone would get roped into getting the tree in place. It was like a barn raising! Years later, we found out that my mom would remove all the decorations and lights after we went to bed and redo everything (she was a perfectionist!). – Karen C., Greengoods Buyer

“Karen C. and I are neighbors, so every year we get together for drinks on Christmas Eve along with my wife and mother-in-law, Karen’s husband, and another couple. We spin the She & Him Christmas album over and over and eat a lot of food. ‘Devils on Horseback’ have been served for three years running—so that might be a tradition now, too!” – Chris D., Greengoods Buyer