The Christmas Pickle
When it comes to Christmas Family Traditions, my favorite would have to be finding The Christmas Pickle hidden in the Christmas Tree! Below you can read “The legend of the Christmas Pickle”
Oh the fun I remember searching with my siblings Christmas Morning… All three of us hoping to be the first to find that sneaky pickle and hand it to our Mother to get the special Present for doing so. Never anything to big or to fancy, Usually a pair of socks, a bag of candy, something simple like that.
BUT the best part… Being able to claim to the rest of the family, “I FOUND THE PICKLE!”
Our Mom still hides that pickle EVERY YEAR, and now my Son and nieces carry on this tradition! Though I will admit, it is hard for my myself, my sister, and our brother not to jump in and start searching, we let the kids have the fun!
The pickle search starts once the last gift has been opened! It usually does not take real long to find, it just depends on how old the children are and how sneaky it is hidden to blend in. (And let me tell you, as we got older, my mom REALLY buried it deep in the tree!)
If you would like to start this fun tradition in your family, you can find one at most Christmas Stores or you can also find a nice selection HERE on Amazon (Ad/Affiliate Link) (I have recently seen one at my local target store, but it was large and an odd color and had a Christmas hat on. It would not be to easy to hide that in a Christmas Tree and not be seen!)
There are many different rumors if this is German or where this “Tradition” came from, but honestly, that does not matter to me, it is now a tradition in my family and will hopefully continue in our family for generations to come!
The Legend of the Christmas Pickle
“A very old Christmas eve tradition in Germany was to hide a pickle [ornament] deep in the branches of the family Christmas Tree. The parents hung the pickle last after all the other ornaments were in place. In the morning they knew the most observant child would receive an extra gift from St. Nicholas. The first adult who finds the pickle traditionally gets good luck for the whole year.”
