“Christmas Eve gumbo with a side of homemade chicken fingers (for me, who’s picky). To this day, we still have both!” — Amanda Turner
“My grandfather frying oysters and proudly sitting them between the divinity candy, the fruit rocks and the ham and cornbread dressing.” – Tracey Cannizzo
“Christmas Eve, my grandmother would bring her Bible and read us the Christmas story every year. We would all make coffee or hot chocolate and drive to look at the Christmas lights on Sollie Road (you know the one!) followed by dessert back at the house, which was a white poinsettia cake. We would also always bring a red poinsettia to the hostess’ house.” – Morgan Taylor Dixon
“‘Jazz Gloria’ directed by the Powells at the St. Paul’s Christmas concert.” — Mary Catherine Nall
“Having two options of what to wear for Christmas ready! You never know if it will be hot or cold weather!” – Rebekah Webb
“St. Ignatius Christmas Eve Mass, beef tender, hot buttered shrimp and Chrissys.” — Mary Shannon Lewis Hocutt
“Baking Christmas rock cookies with my mother and Granny, the best! I still bake these today and try to enlist the help of my daughter and granddaughters! This year I do believe they’ll join me! (in our Red Land Cotton Christmas aprons!) And Santa Claus would always come to my parents house on Christmas Eve for our one last wish. They continued this tradition with our children. Both parents are gone now but we have continued the Santa Claus visit on Christmas Eve with our grandchildren… so so special. — Connie Sumlin Martin
“Attending candlelight Christmas Eve service.” — Sally Searcey
Downtown Fairhope
“Downtown Fairhope’s lighting of the trees!” — Marissa Thetford
“Christmas Eve gathering at my parents’ house. Everyone having a glass with a verse from the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” and you had to sing whatever your glass’ verse was. Then we all joined in with the entire song at the end. It was always such a hoot. Inevitably someone wouldn’t realize it was their turn for their verse and we’d all die laughing. The best though was listening to my dad with his Greek accent sing his verse. Oh how I wish I had recorded that voice.” – Georgia Roussos
“Heavenly Hash from the nuns at the Visitation Shop!” – Andrea MacDonald Milham
“Christmas Eve in the early 60s, before the closure of Brookley Air Force Base caused so many families to move away from Mobile, my father’s family gathered at my grandparents’ house in Spring Hill, about 40 aunts and uncles and cousins — everybody. We kids ran around outside in the chilly, dark playing tag before being called inside for food. As everyone stood in silence, my white-haired grandfather always said a blessing starting with ‘Gracious Lord, look down upon us…’ Later the kids searched out their one gift, previously arranged by the aunts drawing lots, under an icicle-strewn tree. Then came the homemade eggnog in two big cut-glass punchbowls, one for the kids, and one well-spiked with bourbon by my grandmother. Each year there were the same jokes: ‘Mmm, I think there’s more nog than egg in mine.’ When we managed to sneak a little taste from the grownups’ bowl, we thought it tasted awful.” – Frank Daugherty
“Duck gumbo served in the fancy china.” —Alexandra West
“Gumbo and ham sandwiches after Christmas Eve Mass. — Barbara Gibbs
Magic Christmas in Lights at Bellingrath Gardens
“The lights at Bellingrath Gardens and throughout historic Mobile, especially the one street where everyone participated. – April S.
“It’s not Christmas without the Irvine clan for Christmas Eve Lunch!” — Robbie Lynn Irvine
“Watching ‘A Christmas Story’ with friends and family.” – Susan Rouillier
