Since there have recently been some pickle related antics among members of the House of Lime I thought I'd share a dilly of a tradition we have.
I'll be honest, this is not a tradition I grew up with but since being made aware of it, our family has embraced it enthusiastically. Many years ago, my mother-in-law gave us this pickle ornament for the tree. Pickles are symbols of good luck among the Pennsylvania Dutch (Germans) Cosima, is this the same back in Germany? Leave it to a bunch of Dutchies who love to eat to come up with a food as a symbol!
The tradition is to hide the pickle (yes, I know that sounds so very wrong) on the tree after the kiddies have gone to bed Christmas Eve. Whoever finds the pickle in the morning gets an extra gift to open. Now if that doesn't sound like a recipe for a disastrous altercation on Christmas morning I don't know what does! We've gotten around it though by letting the finder of the pickle be the opener of whatever gift is for the whole family. It's also quite amusing to see the kids come out and go straight to the tree and squint into the boughs searching for the pickle before they start trying to see whose name is on which package.
Ok, maybe you think it's weird but it sure beats using sauerkraut as tinsel!
25 comments:
if I left a pickle on my christmas tree the cats would not only climb up the tree to get it, they'd probably eat it, barf and then get the poops.lol
Sounds like fun and a great family tradition.
tc
I had an uncle that played 'find the pickle'... But it wasn't Christmas and once I figured out exactly what the 'pickle' was, I NEVER played it again.
That sounds like a hoot...except how do you actually HIDE the pickle in the tree? Do you attach with a string or does it sit in place on a branch?
I have never heard of that tradition. I didn't realize that Germans were pickle eaters. I love pickles. I like to slice tomatoes up and put pickle chips on top of them. That must be weird, because I've never heard of anyone else doing it.
Hurray!
Pickly post on my blog too!
Its sooo cuteee!!!
Yay for playing hide the Christmas pickle.
We plan to play that this year thanks to you, we love it!
Mr. Logo refuses to accept the moniker FITB but quite likes the pickle.
Lol... that tradition is new to me, but I will suggest it for this year's Christmas tree.
Lol... that tradition is new to me, but I will suggest it to my parents, who host our Christmas party. I am sure it will be a hit!
Lol... that tradition is new to me, but I will suggest it to my parents, who host our Christmas party. I am sure it will be a hit!
Lol... that tradition is new to me, but I will suggest it to my parents, who host our Christmas party. I am sure it will be a hit!
Crazy Dutch Bastards!
LOL!! Can you imagine the smell??? Sauerkraut is delicious but hanging on a tree??? LOL!!
When we lived in Germany, I don't remember the pickle but I do remember the Advent Calendars and putting my shoes at the end of the bed for St. Nicholas to put goodies in- And ohhhh what goodies they were! Thanks for the memory :)
The first thing to come to mind was a Jamaican tune from the 80's.
"PASS the Dutchie 'pon de lef' han' side...PASS the Dutchie 'Pon De Lef' han' Side..." Dutchie being a brand of cigar used for making (ahem) non-branded cigarettes. Where was I?
Pickle. Related. Antics.
Y'all play HIDE THE PICKLE Xmas eve? You and every other Mr and Mrs Claus. Cute tradition.
Weird as all fark, but cute. I'm reminded of Stan from South Park saying "Dude! WTF is wrong with German people?!?!" Anyways, uh...happy pickle hiding!
I have a pickle on my tree. We used to play Christmas Eve for a box of candy. We changed the rules recently. Any evening when two or more of the grandkids are here they play find the pickle. The winner gets - not much. Sometimes they get to pick which chair they sit in for dinner, sometimes they get to pick the evening movie or game, etc. They're young enough to be entertained easily.
Lol... that tradition is new to me, but I will suggest it to my parents, who host our Christmas party. I am sure it will be a success!
Yes, a recipe for disaster! My wife's favorite ornament is the pickle. Not knowing about this tradition, she hangs it in the most prominent spot on the entire tree -- smack in the middle.
Good story!
I'll take the pickle any day! Thanks for my pickle and I can't wait to do this with my family this year . I hope your week is going good !
We have a carrot ornament (quite phallic) that is that is the envy of all.
Okay, not really envied.
Ha! A pickle!!
Never heard about it - thanks for sharing as I love to learn about other Christmas traditions! Must be exciting for the kids as they even search before checking the package:-)
We have pickle hidden on our tree! We don't have any kids yet though to search for it. One year I had one of my friends try and find it and now she looks every year to find the pickle. I give her a cookie if she finds it : )
I don't come with from a family with this tradition but I have wanted to add it to mine when I have kids. I think it is a great idea!
that's a cool tradition.Weird, but cool. You just can't get pickled gherkins here, but they love them back in the UK.
LMAO... too much fun!
I've got your pickle right here ...
Thanks!
Growing up in an ALL GERMAN family...I know what the pickle is all about...and as for the sourkraut...I would rather die than eat the crap...EWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!
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