Each family has its unique way of marking Christmas. Whether it’s gathering in the kitchen to prepare and enjoy delicious meals, coming together to bake seasonal treats, or bonding over festive games and music, we all have different traditions we look forward to this time of the year. For many, these rituals help foster a deeper connection with loved ones and create lasting memories.

In this special feature, we share some of the beloved Christmas traditions from our Observer Online family. From quality bonding activities to meaningful gatherings, here’s how our readers lift their spirits during the holiday season.

Antoinette: I love spending time with my family at Christmas and our tradition is to bake. My grandmother always waits until we are all home for the holidays to start baking Christmas cakes so if it is even Christmas Eve that we all make it home that is when we start baking. It is a great time for our family because we tell stories and reminisce on Christmases past while we mix and bake, and once we are done we dress in our warm pyjamas and watch movies.

Shannon- On Christmas only, we all gather together (myself, my mom, my sister and now my cousin) and have dinner as a family. We get really dressed up in formal attire and it is the one time out of the entire year that you are required to use a knife and fork at dinner. This is a tradition for us as we do not eat together or eat in a formal setting on a regular basis. We do self-serve, drink wine and eat all different types of meats during this time. I think the togetherness of it all is why I enjoy it so much. On New Year’s Eve, we open the trunk of the car and put out blankets, food etc. and watch movies or share jokes. Once it hits 12:00 pm, we then do our fireworks that we have. This is my favourite tradition (this year will be three years of doing it).

KJ: My birthday is the end of November so it was always used to mark the end of the normal year. So extended family (all the kids, cousins, aunts etc.) would come over on the day after my birthday to put up decorations, hang out and listen to Christmas carols turned up all the way as we sing and dance. But the last year we did it was the Christmas before my sisters died and now Christmas really doesn’t feel the same.

Toni-Ann: Every year my mom would cook a lot of food and people would come from the community with their plates and collect Christmas dinner and cake. Big nine night pot vibe. May her soul RIP.

Ally: Every Christmas, my family gathers at my grandma’s house for dinner. We cook together during the day while listening to Christmas music. In the evening, we say a thorough prayer, thanking God for all we have achieved in the year and pray for continued blessings in the year to come. Then finally in the night, we gather for our annual Christmas themed games night where we split into teams and compete in different categories. We end the night eating cake and drinking sorrel.