From Boozy Eggnog to Decorating Cookies, Here Are 13 Sweet Holiday Traditions From Our Editors You'll Want to Steal

"I like to kick off the holiday season by getting a tree and spending an evening decorating it while listening to Christmas music on vinyl and drinking eggnog with bourbon. My partner and I always start with the same record (Phil Spector's Christmas album) and the same song, 'Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)' by The Crystals. The first few seconds of that song just signal the holidays to us." — Nancy Einhart, SVP, executive editor

"This December will mark 25 years that I've been going on annual Christmas dates with my dad. When I was a kid, we used to go to the same restaurant and go shopping for gifts for the family — and I usually got something from the toy store. The tradition has adapted over the years, but the bones are still there: we get dressed up and go to dinner, we chat about the past and the future, and I still get an early Christmas gift. We're both busy with our own lives, and it's the one time of year I can count on that the two of us spend just with each other. It's been a really important tradition for us, and if my husband and I ever have a daughter, I'll encourage him to do it as well." — Maggie Panos, editor, Voices

"In early January, I have a regifting party, which is similar to a white elephant, except that you're required to bring a gift you didn't want to exchange it for a gift someone else didn't want. (Gift receipt items a plus!)" — Sabrina Eldredge, VP of product

"While Christmas Eve can typically be a large affair for some families, my family usually spends the evening together just the four of us. We go to Christmas Eve mass and then order pizza, something my family has been doing since before I was born. We help my mom with the baking (always chocolate chip cookies, magic bars, and mint brownies). My brother and I also open our gifts from my mom and dad that night and then open the ones from 'Santa' in the morning. We usually get a new pair of pajamas on Christmas Eve so we can wear them to sleep that night." — Amanda McKelvey, social media strategist

"I make five to seven types of cookies, and they are all special recipes I do not make any other time of the year. Some are family recipes from the 'old country,' as my mother likes to say. Ever since I can remember, I have decorated cutout Christmas cookies with icing, sprinkles, and red hots with friends. I helped my sister host a kegger in grad school where the party decorated and devoured over 300 cookies. I missed my early morning flight home due to all the revelry. Now, I decorate cookies with my girls and their friends." — Susi May, senior content director

"Ever since I was a little girl, my dad hosts a quiz for my sister and me on Christmas Eve. We set up shop in front of the fire, put on Christmas movies, and sip on hot chocolate while he quizzes us on things he's talked about all year (a random fact about space he mentioned, movie/TV trivia, nature questions, etc.). He puts so much effort into it and makes a board with categories, hands us envelopes with clues, and throws in trick rounds. When we were younger, we would play for prizes like lip gloss and candy, and now that we're older, we play for money! There are a ton of rules we've made over the years (you can steal someone's prize if they don't know the answer and you do), and now that we're both married, our husbands play as well. It's so much fun and the thing we all look forward to most every year, and I will definitely be passing the tradition along to my kids when my husband and I start a family!" — Caitlin Gallagher, editor, Voices

"For the last five years, my high school friends and I have been celebrating an early Christmas together. We get catered food, sip on mulled wine, and reminisce. It's always fun to get everyone together in the same room now that some of us live across the country or with significant others." — Amanda McKelvey, social media strategist

"I'm from Southern California, so I come from a seafood-loving family. Every year for Christmas, we do what we call a 'seafood symphony,' which is basically mass amounts of seafood. For appetizers, we have shrimp, sashimi, poke, oysters, clams, and crab cakes, and then for the main course we have lobster and other additional kinds of fish like salmon or halibut. Not sure how this all started, but that's my main holiday tradition." — Lauren Harano, editorial coordinator

"One tradition that we have in my family is baking snickerdoodle cookies on Christmas Eve. Then, on Christmas Day, we decorate them with frosting while watching the Christmas Day NBA games and A Christmas Story." — Brea Cubit, editorial assistant, Celebrity and Entertainment

"My mom has always been great about the little things, knowing how to turn something simple into something special. Each year, she arranges all the holiday cards we receive into a giant Christmas-tree formation on the kitchen door, starting with just a few of the cards sent earlier in the month. By the time the holidays roll around, pictures and notes from everyone closest to us hang within a strand of green garland she shapes like a Christmas tree along the edges of the door. I do the same thing in my own house now, and my son loves to point to all the pictures of the people he loves most." — Laura Meyers, senior editor, Trending and Viral Features

"Every December, my parents and their neighbors host a holiday cookie exchange. Everyone brings a platter of cookies, brownies, or another dessert, then we spend the afternoon tasting all the sweets. At the end, everyone makes a platter with a variety of cookies. Not only do you get to take home an amazing variety of treats, but you learn about each other's family traditions and recipes in the process. It's my favorite way to celebrate!" — Annalise Mantz, associate editor, Native Living

"My family celebrates Christmas Eve, or 'Noche Buena,' and every year, my grandfather and uncle roast an entire pig in something called a 'Caja China.' This tradition has been done since before I was born and is very common in the Cuban culture. We all dance, talk, and exchange gifts as the pig is roasting (it takes hours!), and my favorite part of the night is the first taste of the crispy skin — YUM! It brings the whole family together, and the holidays would not be the same without it!" — Charisandra Perez, assistant social and partnerships coordinator

"For Christmas, I make a kringle (a nut-filled coffee cake) that bakes while we open presents. We take turns opening presents, so unwrapping gifts can take a long time. The kringle is done by the time we are done and we get to feast." — Susi May, senior content director