Montrealmom.com
  • Being Mom
    • Planning /Pregnant
    • Mom of Infant
    • Mom of Toddler
    • Mom of Schoolage Child
    • Mom Of Teen
    • Mom of Twins or More
  • Life
    • Time Management
    • Work & Entrepreneurship
    • Family & Relationships
    • Childcare & Education
    • Money
    • Me.
  • Fun
    • Event Calendar
    • Crafts & Activities at Home
    • Organized Activities
    • Outings
    • Holidays & Celebrations
    • Disney Fun
  • Food
    • Recipes
      • All
      • Baby Food Recipes
      • Beef
      • Beverages
      • Breads
      • Desserts
      • Eggs & Dairy
      • Fish
      • Pasta
      • Poultry
      • Salads
      • Sauces & Dressings
      • Sides
      • Snacks
      • Soups
      • Vegetarian
    • Menu Planning
    • Nutrition
    • Entertaining
  • Lifestyle
    • Health & Safety
    • Home & Garden
    • Holidays & Celebrations
    • Weight Watchers
    • Shopping
    • Fashion & Beauty
    • DIY
    • Living Green
    • Montreal
  • Travel
    • Family
    • Travel Tips
    • Disney
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Entertainment
    • Apps & Tech
    • Automotive
    • Products & Services
    • Toys
  • Directory
    • Activity Centers
    • Caterering / Pret À Manger
    • Classes
    • Home Services
    • Parties and Related Services
    • Photographers
    • Professional Services
    • Services
    • Services for Mom
  • Work with Us
  • About
    • About Us
    • In the Media
  • Contact

Montrealmom.com

  • Being Mom
    • Planning /Pregnant
    • Mom of Infant
    • Mom of Toddler
    • Mom of Schoolage Child
    • Mom Of Teen
    • Mom of Twins or More
  • Life
    • Time Management
    • Work & Entrepreneurship
    • Family & Relationships
    • Childcare & Education
    • Money
    • Me.
  • Fun
    • Event Calendar
    • Crafts & Activities at Home
    • Organized Activities
    • Outings
    • Holidays & Celebrations
    • Disney Fun
  • Food
    • Recipes
      • All
      • Baby Food Recipes
      • Beef
      • Beverages
      • Breads
      • Desserts
      • Eggs & Dairy
      • Fish
      • Pasta
      • Poultry
      • Salads
      • Sauces & Dressings
      • Sides
      • Snacks
      • Soups
      • Vegetarian
    • Menu Planning
    • Nutrition
    • Entertaining
  • Lifestyle
    • Health & Safety
    • Home & Garden
    • Holidays & Celebrations
    • Weight Watchers
    • Shopping
    • Fashion & Beauty
    • DIY
    • Living Green
    • Montreal
  • Travel
    • Family
    • Travel Tips
    • Disney
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Entertainment
    • Apps & Tech
    • Automotive
    • Products & Services
    • Toys
  • Directory
    • Activity Centers
    • Caterering / Pret À Manger
    • Classes
    • Home Services
    • Parties and Related Services
    • Photographers
    • Professional Services
    • Services
    • Services for Mom
  • Work with Us
  • About
    • About Us
    • In the Media
  • Contact
Holidays & CelebrationsMe.Thoughts

Confessions of a Christmas-Loving Jew

written by Tanya Toledano

For the entire month, my radio has been tuned to 92.9 FM because I cannot get enough Christmas music.  I just love it.

My eldest daughter is right there with me, by the way, and that she & I enjoy carpool karaoke-Christmas style 😉

For me, when Christmas music is playing and it’s storming outside, I just see beauty.  It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… The traffic is manageable, and while Baby, it’s cold outside,  the dark and cold early evenings are simply a sign of the long-awaited winter break. Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

I could listen to Walking in a Winter Wonderland on loop and not get sick of it.  At this time of year, hardly a day goes by where I don’t catch myself singing or humming it to myself at some point.

I caught Mommy kissing Santa Claus always gives me a chuckle and while I think it’s intended to do the same, I feel like I should be remotely horrified at Grandma got run over by a reindeer.

I won’t say that the Little Drummer Boy floats my boat, but I am SO happy to be Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree, while there are chestnuts roasting on an open fire in my toaster oven. You’ll often hear me humming I’ll be home for Christmas…if only in my dreams.

Do they know it’s Christmas? by Band Aid evokes goosebumps & tears and throws me back a few decades, remembering We are the World and artists coming together for a cause.

Of course, there have been times where I catch myself belting out a more religiously-inclined song …”Oh come let us adore….!” and, well… let’s just say I catch myself 😉

I obviously realize that there is a religious aspect to Christmas, and I’d be a fool not to realize that there is also a commercial side. To be honest, it’s neither of these aspects that attract me, even though some would argue that the whole decorating thing is very commercial (and that DOES attract me).

It’s just the SPIRIT of the holiday. I can’t help but love it.

As a child, every year we’d celebrate Christmas at the home of my Mom’s best friend, whom I referred to and thought of as my Aunt.  The tree was magic, as was the turkey. Even though there were always gifts, I remember calm as opposed to giddy excitement.  I do remember, however, a certain excitement to see the tree or to help decorate it.

I can’t say that today I’d go so far as getting a hanukah bush (although they are actually commercially available) For me, I see the Christmas traditions as part of the magic of Christmas, while Hanukkah traditions are part of the magic of Hanukkah…and believe me there’s plenty of magic there, too! Those of you who follow regularly know that I just did a segment on Breakfast Television about Planning the Perfect Hanukkah Party.

If we were celebrating Christmas, I am completely the type who would be checking out the latest decorating trends, but still need to maintain the traditional. I’m pretty sure that I would have a tree outside, in addition to the one inside and likely one at my office as well.

There would be ornaments… and special dishes… and linens – Oh my!

No doubt that I would keep adding to the collection of ornaments every year…milestone ornaments, kid-made ornaments, and of course Disney ornaments.

My lights would still be white, though…with maybe some blue 😉

What do I mean by ‘still’?  Well, although I see no “Hanukkah bush” in our near future, Hanukkah is, after all,  the festival of lights, so isn’t it natural that we have mini-lights strung up in the window? ( Some have dreidel & menorah shapes, but we have the simple white mini lights as well!)

On the business of how far I might go to Deck the Halls, let’s just say that over the years, I have managed to find enough decorations to fill storage bins: 3 for Hanukkah, another 2 for Passover, a smaller one for Purim , oh and 2 more biggies for Sukkoth of course!

Now, given that the availability of Hanukkah decorations is limited compared to anything Christmas-themed, can you imagine how many bins I would have if we celebrated Christmas?!? I would need a whole Christmas room! I’m pretty sure my hubby is REALLY happy that I only love Christmas ‘from afar’, and that we don’t actually celebrate it LOL!

Make no mistake though: Hanukkah still gives us plenty of opportunity to celebrate ‘over-the-top’ , complete with *only* 3 bins full of decorations, traditional potato latkes, chocolate coins & dreidel-playing as well as our own family traditions  of Hanukkah Bingo, Latke Poutine, Nutella-filled Sufganiyot (doughnuts) and Samosas (Yes, samosas!  I decided one year that these counted as deep-fried potato & well, now we do it EVERY YEAR!)…and yes, of course we have Hanukkah music as well 😉

I LOVE Hanukkah traditions but that doesn’t mean that I can’t still be a Christmas-Loving Jew 🙂

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Eid, Diwali or any other holiday(s), at whatever time of year you celebrate, I wish you and your loved ones lots of love, light & laughter this (and every) holiday season. Appreciate your special traditions, and if you are so inclined, appreciate the traditions of others as well 🙂 Sing, eat, be merry and enjoy!

And as we enter 2017, I wish us all a year of health, happiness, prosperity and last, but certainly not least, PEACE ON EARTH.

Tanya

Confessions of a Christmas-Loving Jew was last modified: December 23rd, 2016 by Tanya Toledano
ChristmasChristmas musicChristmas-Loving-JewHanukkahJewishTraditions
2 comments
2
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Tanya Toledano

previous post
Encouraging Little Girls to DREAM BIG This Holiday Season :)
next post
Share your #MagieMTL moments

You may also like

Share your #MagieMTL moments

December 28, 2016

My Unintentional Happiness Project

February 4, 2013

Two Years Old Today!

January 18, 2012

Celebrating 25…lbs, That Is! #WellnessWednesday

June 28, 2017

#WellWishes this Holiday Season

December 16, 2014

Why I ‘Rewrote’ the Passover Haggadah

March 29, 2012

Angels in the Snow

December 17, 2012

Proud to be Canadian

June 30, 2011

Encouraging Little Girls to DREAM BIG This Holiday Season :)

December 23, 2016

Brisket with Caramelized Onions

September 6, 2012

2 comments

Wanda Malfara December 23, 2016 at 2:48 pm

I’m just grinning from ear to ear.!! xoxo Love your happy spirit!

Reply
Neal Caminsky December 23, 2016 at 8:00 pm

My boys are decorating a Christmas tree tomorrow. And getting presents from “Santa”. And eating turkey. So yeah, it’s Chrismukkah here too. 🙂

Reply

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent Posts

  • GIVEAWAY: Enter for Your Chance to WIN One of Fifteen Family Packs of Four Passes to See the Montreal Advance Screening of Marvel Studios’ ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’

  • GIVEAWAY: Enter for a Chance to WIN One of Ten Family Packs of Four Passes to See the Montreal Advance Screening of Disney’s Strange World!

  • NEW! Pre-K Program in the West Island at Inventor STEM School!

  • It Took Me Over Two Years To Let My Guard Down…and Less Than Two Days to Test Positive.

  • GIVEAWAY: ENTER for a Chance to WIN One of Five FAMILY PACKS OF FOUR PASSES to See the Montreal Advance Screening of Disney and Pixar’s ‘Lightyear’ !

Subscribe to our Newsletter

  • #GIVEAWAYALERT Who would like to see the Montreal Advance Screening of Marvel Studios’ 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quant… https://t.co/lzjoGC9Ohk

    01-Feb-2023

    Reply Retweet Favorite
  • Must share that I LOVE @TommyBahama -and that it’s available online in #Canada 💗 Not only are the dresses the BEST…… https://t.co/mHrgGKHFIc

    12-Dec-2022

    Reply Retweet Favorite
  • #GIVEAWAYALERT ENTER for a chance to WIN one of 10 FAMILY PACKS OF FOUR PASSES to see the Montreal Advance Screenin… https://t.co/FRs4UGrUqU

    08-Nov-2022

    Reply Retweet Favorite
  • Still looking for a Pre-K program with an enriching and educational experience in a half-day format? You'll be thri… https://t.co/xyrdoJ4SGd

    15-Aug-2022

    Reply Retweet Favorite
  • #GIVEAWAYAlert Who would like to see the Montreal Advance Screening of Disney and Pixar's 'Lightyear'?!? ENTER… https://t.co/riTuuYJQgM

    07-Jun-2022

    Reply Retweet Favorite
team-teluspg-mom-badge

Archives

Categories

LATEST FROM INSTAGRAM

Follow on Instagram

AS SEEN ON TV

Subscribe to montrealmomTV on YouTube to be the first to see Tanya's latest videos.
  • Our Family’s Experience with the Ford Expedition

Subscribe to our Newsletter

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Youtube
  • Periscope
Footer Logo

© 2016 montrealmom.com. All rights reserved  |  Powered by Red Dream Studios


Back To Top
We use cookies on our website to give you the best experience on our website. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT