Christmas is a time of the year to gather around the Christmas tree, spending time with loved ones and handing out presents.

Many people have different traditions on how they celebrate.

In this story, five students will share their Christmas traditions.

Mariah Ash, Sophomore

Traditions 

Sophomore Mariah Ash goes to her grandma’s on Christmas Day at 3 p.m.  to make cookies from scratch with grandma.

She also helps her grandma wrap all the presents for the family, which are opened after dinner.

“My grandma is a very important person in my life,” Ash said.

Food 

The Ash family has a big family dinner with ham, mashed potatoes, and corn.

The  strawberry Jell-O is a childhood favorite for everyone in the Ash family.

Presents

The family, consisting of four grandchildren and four children, sits around the Christmas tree and passes around presents.

“My favorite thing to receive is clothes and shoes,” Ash said. ” I love receiving shoes the most.”

Shane Howard, Freshman

Traditions 

Freshman Shane Howard enjoys the simple pleasures of having Christmas.

“In my family, we sleep till at least 10 (a.m.) because we are not morning people,” Howard said.

After getting up and starting the day, the family eats breakfast of cereal and toast.

Then the family — Shane, his dad, and brother, plus his grandma and uncle that show up for the day — goes and sits around the Christmas tree.

They pass around presents and enjoy the day as a family.

Food

They enjoy roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, and carrots after opening presents.

“My grandma makes the chicken, and it is really good, ” Howard said.

Presents

Howard isn’t hard to make happy on Christmas morning.

All he wants is money.

His uncle likes to play tricks on him by putting the money in bunches of little boxes inside a great big huge box, causing Howard to have to dig for it.

“I like money because I can ensure I get exactly what I want,” Howard said. ” Besides, who doesn’t want money?”

Kyle Palka, Junior

Traditions

Junior Kyle Palka’s family heads over to his grandma and papa’s house for dinner that includes Palka’s parents, aunts, and uncles, as well as his cousins. The holidays are one of the few times all the grandchildren get to sit around and mess around with one another.

“Me and my cousins get along really well,” Palka said.” We are all so different. It’s never a dull moment.”

The whole family picks a place to sit and the whole deal begins.

His grandma hands out all her presents, then each of the aunts and uncles take their turns. With 20 people, it takes awhile to distribute the presents.

“My favorite times of opening presents is while we are waiting for our turn. We pull pranks on Grandma and stick wrapping paper to her ceiling and random parts of her living room that she doesn’t realize it’s there,” Palka said. “And it’s there till August.”

Food

There is a variety of food from ham and mashed potatoes, to all kinds of bread.

“It is always a feast when the whole family gets together,” Palka said.

Presents

Money and gift cards are the only things that Palka has on his list.

“You can never go wrong with money,” Palka said. “But gift cards are cool too because I’m designated to one store.”

Kallynda McKeown, Senior

Traditions 

Senior Kallynda McKeown enjoys hanging out with her family.

“My mom personalizes a stocking for each kid every year and stuffs them with peanuts,” McKeown said. “It’s pretty cool.”

When it comes to opening presents, the smallest children end up opening their presents first, then the older children follow.

“Slowly but surely, all members unwrap and enjoy,” McKeown said.

Food

There is a variety of food served on the McKeown’s dining room table like warm slow-roasted ham, homemade macaroni and cheese, greenbeans with bacon, and a cheese ball.

For desert, they have pistachio pudding and a birthday cake celebrating Jesus’ birth because the McKeown’s family are Christians.

Presents

Like every other teen, McKeown desperately wants the newest phone.

She added that to her list.

But the thing that McKeown desperately wants, more than anything, is to be able to talk to her sister again.

“Right now, me and my sister aren’t on the best of terms,” McKeown said. “But one day I hope we can fix our problems so I can see her. I miss her terribly.”

Marcelles Keaton, Junior

Traditions 

For junior Marcelles Keaton, celebrating Christmas with family and good food is nice.

“My mom starts the Christmas season off by sending our Christmas cards out to family and relatives,” Keaton said.

Then on Christmas morning the fun starts.

The Keaton children wake up to the house smelling like pancakes and eggs, which their mother cooks.

After eating their breakfast, they open presents.

The Keatons always start with their smaller presents and work their way up.

Then after the presents have all been unwrapped, lunch is on.

Food

Most families have ham, but the Keaton family has duck or goose depending on how hunting season went.

The side dishes to top their mystery meat is mashed potatoes and green beans.

Cherry pie with whipped cream and sugar cookies are the tasty ending of the meal.

Presents

The only thing on Keaton’s list is that he wants a new dog.

He already has two but wants another to add to the family.

“I’m a huge dog person, and  I just can’t seem to say no when I see a dog who needs a loving home,” Keaton said. “After all, it’s just one more dog. I don’t see why not. “