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Holidays are a great time to take a step back from the hustle and bustle of daily life to spend time with family and friends! Many people have traditions--both longstanding and newly created--that remind us of the spirit of the Christmas season. To help get us excited for the holidays, we asked our Casa Christmas authors to share their favorite Christmas traditions (or things they can't live without during the season)! Keep reading to see what they said...  Linda Broday featured in Longing for a Cowboy Christmas The candlelight service on Christmas Eve puts joy and thankfulness in my heart and I look forward to it each year. There’s something very moving about sitting in a church lit only by candles, singing Christmas hymns. The service brings such a sense of peace. Margaret Brownley featured in Longing for a Cowboy Christmas A favorite family tradition began by accident. When the children were small, I habitually bought Christmas presents throughout the year and hid them. The problem was, some presents were invariably forgotten until after Christmas. One gloomy January, while organizing my closet, I found a set of cars I’d intended Santa to leave under the tree. Not knowing how else to handle it, I entered the room where the boys were playing and announced, “Look what Santa left on the roof.” This was a big hit and every year after that, Santa always left something on the roof. The funny thing is that no one ever thought to ask what Mommy had been doing on the roof. Anna Schmidt featured in Longing for a Cowboy Christmas I can't live without the traditions from my childhood—my family was very into giving to others especially those who might not be blessed with family at that time of year so I love finding ways to shop and wrap and give to others. Rosanne Bittner featured in Longing for a Cowboy Christmas Something I can’t live without in the Christmas season is, of course, having my 3 grandsons over on Christmas Eve. They love my apple pie! Amy Sandas featured in Longing for a Cowboy Christmas I can't live without cozy socks. I'm not much for slippers, but my feet are always cold so I love to warm them up with thick, super-soft socks. Jennie Marts author of Wish Upon a Cowboy I love the holidays, especially Christmas time. I love the lights and the music and the family time and having my living room bathed in the magical lights of the tree. We attend the Christmas Eve candlelight service at our church every year, and I love belting out the carols and standing shoulder to shoulder with my family as we lift our candles in the darkened sanctuary and sing Silent Night. I'm a Christmas baby so I love getting a special day a few days before Christmas just to hang out with my family--we go out to eat and to the movies and I make them play board games with me without complaining. And I adore creating holiday traditions that I make my family do every year, whether they want to or not--haha. Some of them have turned into true traditions, and one of my favorites is inviting the grandma's to our house on Dec 23rd to make the Christmas cookies. I have two sons who didn't always want to hang out in the kitchen, but on this day, they spend hours creating dozens of different kinds of cookies and spending time with me and their grandmothers. We have done this since they were young and often had the great grandmothers in attendance as well. It changes some years, but our staples are Peanut Butter Blossoms, Marshmallow bark, Caramel pretzels, sugar cookies, eggnog creme puffs, and our own Marts family cookie that we created. It's messy and at times crazy with all the people and dogs underfoot, but it's always fun and funny and full of love, and I wouldn't skip this tradition for anything. And this year will be extra special because we get to add our new daughter-in-law to the day. Kim Redford author of Cowboy Firefighter Christmas Kiss “If Blaze knew you were going to ride him, he’d have saddled himself,” my thirteen-year-old cousin recently said to me. I scoffed at the idea, so he simply added, “I’ve heard of stranger things.” No way to argue with that logic, so I accepted the compliment…and next time Blaze was all saddled and ready for our holiday trail ride at a beautiful local lake. We followed winding paths around fragrant cedar trees and green holly bushes while we listened to the melodies of birds, the chatter of fussy squirrels, and the murmur of our voices. As sunlight faded, we returned to our camp and gathered around the fire to roast marshmallows and sing songs in celebration of the season. Lucy Gilmore author of Puppy Christmas I hate, hate, hate being cold, so winter can be a tough time for me. I’d stay inside all day, every day if I could. However, I also have two very large, very active Akitas who adore everything about the snow, so that’s not really a choice. One of my favorite traditions is taking the two of them to a nearby hiking spot as soon as we get fresh snow (which, to be fair, is most days). The cold matters a lot less the moment I see them prancing around and throwing the snow to each other. They’d probably love it if we moved to the Arctic year-round. (Sorry, dogs. That will never happen.) Terry Spear author of Silver Town Wolf: Home for the Holidays Decorating for the holidays--a Christmas tree. I feel I'm in my own Christmas story, my home is now a holiday scene. It's warm and the Christmas lights make it cheery and special mementos handed down from our family or that I've picked up in special places or from friends and family are brought out and cherished all over again. June Faver author of Cowboy Christmas Homecoming I am a foodie. Raised by a family of foodies. We show we love you with food. One of my favorite memories as a child was waking up on Christmas morning and inhaling the wonderful aroma of my grandmother's spicy muffins. She would get up early to make them every year and the recipe is a family favorite for my children and their children. In keeping with the Christmas spirit of giving, I will share this easy recipe with you. Hope you enjoy them.
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