Creative Country Christmas Traditions

Ranchers and farmers spend much of the year isolated by distance, weather and the constant work their lifestyle requires. The holiday season is during the slowest part of the year, though-after haying, harvest and weaning, but before calving and planting, so rural folks often have a little extra time to spend with their family, friends and neighbors doing holiday activities and forging their own holiday traditions..

The following are some creative country Christmas traditions. These ideas were either gathered from my acquaintances or inspired by my own family's traditions.

Christmas Quilt Blocks
If you come from a family of quilters or have a quilting group, why not combine your various quilting talents on one Christmas quilt each year? Each member could design and sew a quilt block (or more than one, depending on the size of the group).Your group could set up guidelines for the blocks, governing the colors or the designs. Or perhaps everyone could have free rein with the design and fabrics.

Once the quilt is assembled, the group could hold a drawing to decide who gets that year's quilt. If this is made a yearly Christmas tradition, eventually everyone in the family or group will receive a one-of-a-kind holiday quilt. Another option would be to donate the quilt to a holiday charity auction, a great way to make a holiday tradition out of giving. A local group of quilting ladies makes a quilt every fall to donate to their church's holiday auction. The proceeds go to local needy families. Their beautiful handiwork is looked forward each year by fellow church members. It makes a lovely holiday tradition.

Christmas Tree Hunt
I was raised in the rural Northwest, where Christmas tree farms abound. Although mostly surrounded by Ponderosa pines, we could even find a small Douglas fir on our own property if we searched hard enough. Now living on the prairie, trees, especially conifers, are so few and far between that it would nearly be a crime to chop one down for Christmas. And Christmas tree farms? Unheard of in our part of the state.

We do, however, live within a less than a half-day's drive of the
Black Hills
National Forest. For a nominal fee, the U.S. Forest Service provides Christmas tree permits to those intrepid souls who like to find and cut their own Christmas tree.

Each year on the first Saturday of December, a nearby friend and her husband pack up their three children in their pickup and head out for the Hills very early in the morning. When they arrive at their chosen destination within the

Black Hills
National Forest

, they bundle up and spend a few hours tromping through the snow, taking time out to warm up with thermoses of coffee, hot chocolate and chili. At the end of the day, they come home with their perfect Christmas tree.

Cowboy Santa
Although most of us were past the point of believing in Santa Claus, I will always remember the thrill of Santa Claus arriving at our fifth-grade Christmas party on horseback, wearing a cowboy hat trimmed in garland instead of the requisite hat. Instead of sleigh bells, his arrival was heralded by the jingle of the silver spurs adorning his black cowboy boots.

The cowboy Santa was actually our teacher's husband, whom we all knew, but it was magic nonetheless.

Santa has since been exiled from public schools, but you might consider roping a family member into Santa duty for your country Christmas party. The arrival of Santa on horseback will be a Christmas tradition little ones will never forget.

Hay Bale Décor
While spending very much money on outdoor Christmas decorations is out of the questions for most cash-strapped farm families, with a little ingenuity, items found around the farm or ranch will make charming decorations.
A neighbor of ours sets out a round hay bale in November. He cut a turkey head and feathers out of scrap wood, which he sticks into the hay. Come December, the bale is transformed into Rudolph with a red beachball for a nose, wood cutouts for the eyes and ears, and tree branches for the antler. I cannot help but smile every time I drive by their place.

Christmas Tree Bonfire
Every year following Christmas, real Christmas trees quickly deteriorate to dried-out fire hazards. Why not take advantage of their flammability by throwing a Christmas tree bonfire? Each New Year's Day, my best childhood friend's parents would have a bonfire, inviting friends and neighbors to bring their Christmas trees. This party was always a low-key gathering, allowing guests to unwind from their hectic holidays.

Of course, fire restrictions are much more stringent these days, so check with your local fire department for your county's burning laws before planning a bonfire of your own.

Christmas traditions are such an integral part of the holiday season. Always including their family, neighbors and friends and using the resources at their disposal, rural folks have managed to create their own creative country holiday traditions.