PPS-SF Staff Winter Holidays, Traditions, and Foods
The winter season is host to a variety of holidays, traditions, and delicious foods, let’s take a quick look at some of the fun things PPS-SF staff have going on in December and how they are going virtual this year.
Hayin, Interim Executive Director
What Hayin Celebrates: Mom's birthday (12/25)
Tell us a little bit about your holiday, tradition, or food: My mom is a Christmas baby, and growing up it was always a complicated affair. My family had a jewelry/gift store and so the holiday season was always our busiest and Mom would be working the longest hours and days. And, our family was very involved in our church, especially with holiday music performances, so there were also a lot of rehearsals and practicing that we had to be ferried to/from. And then Christmas Eve and Christmas! It often left no time to celebrate Mom and her birthday. We eventually started the tradition of celebrating Christmas in the morning and then celebrating her birthday at night, complete with a birthday cake and birthday presents (wrapped in non-holiday paper).
How are you going virtual? We are lucky that my parents live close by so we'll still be celebrating her birthday in person, BUT, unlike in years past, we will probably "zoom-in" extended family. We haven't ever done that, but since it is now part of how we connect, it will be a great excuse to celebrate with family across the country.
Favorite thing to cook: I have been making a fig-challah during the holidays for the last few years... it's so good and methodically relaxing to make https://smittenkitchen.com/2012/09/fig-olive-oil-and-sea-salt-challah/
Kate’s husband and kids during Christmas morning.
Image Credit: Kate Moore
Kate, Assistant Director for Operations
Tell us a little bit about your holiday, tradition, or food: I am British and my children were born in the UK so we retain all the traditions we brought with us when we emigrated to the US in 2013. For our family, Christmas is a time for enormous anticipation, list-making, secret gift-buying, and hiding wrapped presents until the morning of December 25. As a child, I would wake up as early as 5 am (sometimes earlier) to see what had been left by my bed in a ‘stocking’ (more likely a pillowcase) to keep me occupied until a more reasonable hour. My kids have kept this tradition up and I have always delighted in the excitable noises that emanated from their rooms early in the morning. The rest of Christmas Day is filled with more gift-giving around the tree and a roast dinner—timed traditionally to coincide with the Queen’s speech (a bit like the State of the Union) that happens at 3 pm.
How are you going virtual? This year, like many other families, we won’t be traveling and only sharing the day with others via video calls. These habits and traditions will really help us feel connected to our families and our roots, and we are all—even the teenagers in my house—grateful for that this year!
Jessi, Communications and Development Coordinator
Tell us a little bit about your holiday, tradition, or food: My family is Polish-American, and a tradition we have centers around this bread wafer called opłatek, which we use to celebrate Christmas. When my extended family comes together, each person gets their wafer, you then go to every individual family member, break off a piece, give it to them, and wish them something for the next year. Then that same person does that for you. I really like this tradition because it’s a chance for me to have one-on-one time with family members I don’t always get to see. This year we are still figuring out exactly how we are going to implement this virtually, but I already purchased opłatek so I can do this with my current housemates.
Favorite thing to cook: A couple of years ago my friend and I tried our hand at Ponche de Ron, also known as Rum Eggnog. She is well experienced with flan, but neither of us had tried this recipe before, thankfully it turned out well https://www.dominicancooking.com/905-ponche-de-ron-rum-eggnog.html
Lia’s husband and kids say “Timber!”
Image Credit: Lia McLoughlin
Lia, Enrollment Coach
Tell us a little bit about your holiday, tradition, or food: Our family has many holiday traditions including caroling, making ornaments, baking cookies to give to neighbors, but if you ask my kids what their favorite holiday tradition is, they'd say it's throwing the Christmas tree out the dining room window. We always put our tree in the bay window of our dining room and it's usually so dry and shedding needles by the end of the holiday season, so we just open the window and toss the tree from the 2nd floor down onto the driveway below. The kids (and husband) get giddy with excitement shouting "Timber!" every, single, time.