Christmas spirit is in the air. Almost everyone has a holiday tradition, whether it’s a set dinner or gifts on Christmas Eve.

Alexa Avendt, a senior at Milford High School, does elf on the shelf for her brother every year and has fun with it because it makes her brother happy.

“I love doing elf on the shelf for my brother every year because it gets him and myself in the Christmas spirit. I love seeing my brother so excited to find the elf,” explained Avendt.

Avendt explained how she and her family celebrate Christmas. “[We] open gifts that include pajamas on Christmas Eve. My younger brother and I always sleep in the same room on Christmas Eve and wake up very early.”

“My brother usually wakes me up at 5 a.m., but my parents try to put a time limit of when to actually get up so that they can get some sleep,” said Avendt.

Avendt’s whole family comes over and eats dinner that is just like Thanksgiving and makes homemade cookies.

In general, many families do the same things every year during the holidays; some go to grandparents’ houses, or aunt’s and uncle’s houses for Christmas.

They may even have the same dinner every year that may include ham, mashed potatoes, corn, and so on.

Lauren Alarie, a senior at Milford High School, says that every Christmas Eve a Christmas present is placed in her room so that right when she wakes up she can open her very first present.

“On Christmas Eve, we all open one present each and we all pretend that we don’t know what it is, but we all know that it is matching pajamas, which we then have to take pictures all together in front of the Christmas tree,” explained Alarie.  And later she will go to 5 o’clock mass.

For a typical holiday, people will open their Christmas presents on Christmas morning, and spend the day with their family. This is the time when families really come together.

Christmas is one of those holidays that many enjoy, not just from the presents, but the whole family coming together at once and in many cases, some families only get to see each other once a year, which may be Christmas.

For instance, Emily Lowe, senior at Milford High School, explains her family Christmas tradition.

Lowe’s cousins come over on Christmas Eve to her house from her mom’s side of the family, and spend the whole day making delicious food and cookies.

Then, near dawn, they pass out all the presents and after they are done opening them, the family will go home.

“The next morning is Christmas, so my family will open presents in the morning and then make a nice breakfast called sausage strata. Later, we will head to my father’s side of the family over to my aunt’s house, and open presents,” explained Lowe.

Not all Christmas Traditions are the same; they may be similar, but everyone has a unique Christmas.

Christmas is the most popular holiday with families coming together and exchanging presents and having a tasty dinner.Many people have holiday traditions, such as sending out a family Christmas card, picking out a real Christmas tree with their family or even decorating outside of their home with decorative lights.

The family may get together to make a gingerbread house or make homemade cookies. Whatever your tradition, make the best of time with family this year.