Christmas may come and go, but the memories of waking up on Christmas morning stays with children for years.

The Christmas season is not merely about giving and receiving gifts; Christmas is about participating in family traditions and celebrating culture.

“Christmas was always special to me growing up because of how much effort my parents put into it. They always made sure to teach me and my brother the true meaning of Christmas and to focus on things other than the gifts. My favorite Christmas tradition I do is making Julklapps for my family. A Julklapp is a Swedish tradition where you wrap a small trinket in as many layers as possible. Then on Christmas morning, you throw the huge gift at the person. Me and my family have been making them for each other for years now,” freshman Olivia Rockey said.

For the McCauley family, Christmas is a time to create new memories and take new adventures.

“My favorite Christmas tradition is all of my siblings and I opened up the last gift under the tree, and it starts a scavenger hunt around the house or even Greenwood. And after, we get all of the clues it reveals a gift for the family or a trip that we will take. It’s so special to me because we all get together and have a great time as a family. The most memorable Christmas was when we found out we were going to Hawaii and celebrated it there. Christmas has always been special to me because of all of the core memories that we get to share and it always just ends the year in a great way,” junior Seth McCauley said.

Many lasting memories can be looked back on with a smile, even if they seem silly at the time.

“The most memorable Christmas would have been when I was three. I had gotten a new train set, and our elf was on it, but when I went to go look at it, I accidentally touched or knocked her off and I remembered getting really scared. So now looking back at it I laugh,” freshman Nolan Stivers said.

The excitement and anticipation of Christmas morning is something that children wait for all year long. Even as teenagers, Christmas morning still sparks joy in people’s hearts.

“My favorite tradition is waking up my family early to open gifts. Being the youngest I was always excited about Christmas and still I still wake everyone up to this day. My sister especially made Christmas special for me as she would be the only one to get out of bed and come downstairs with me to check if Santa came and got us presents,” senior Cooper Smith said.

Traditions with family can seem insignificant when a person is young, but as they get older, they become increasingly sentimental.

“My favorite traditions we have are after going downstairs and opening all the gifts, we go to my grandma’s house and spend time with my family. My grandma always gave the best gifts, and it was nice seeing her and the rest of my family. I could always look forward to it, and we would always have fun decorating the tree and telling stories together,” freshman Trever Capien said.