Stop on in for the craziness that is the Kanipe family Christmas! Unlike most folks who have a handful of members present to celebrate the holidays, the Kanipes make sure to do it in style with nearly 40 members coming together to celebrate one goal: Spending time with family.
Christmas is a time everyone to gather and celebrate with those you love. The Kanipe family takes this time to not only celebrate the birth of Jesus, but to also bake, lay games, and enjoy each others company. Since my family if from the middle of North Carolina, there are many traditions that may seem different or strange to you. Come along for the ride and enjoy the Kanipe Family Christmas!
The History
The Kanipe family has a large celebration on Christmas Eve, unlike many other families that gather on Christmas day. When asked why we celebrate on Christmas eve, one member of the family stated, “We have always chosen Christmas eve. That’s just what we have done for years. It helps allow everybody do other things on Christmas day and still be able to get together.” When asked the same question, another member of the family stated, “all the brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews get together so each person can be at home on Christmas day to spend time with their personal family. It’s been that way since I could remember.”
For as long as I can remember, the our family Christmas has always been held at my Aunt Donna’s house. I never understood why, was it because it was a central location? Was it because she had the biggest home? Was it for some other reason? It ended up being all those reasons! Many of the family lives within walking distance of each other, so having the celebration at Donna’s made the most sense in relation to distance. Although my uncle has a slightly larger house, the set up at Donnas allows for more guests and more space to sit down and hang out.
Who comes to visit?
There are 4 generations of family and some family friends that come together spend some quality time. Let us see if we can break this down some! We have the grandparents, their children along with their spouses, all of the grandchildren and now the greatgrandbabies!
Get Involved with the Celebration
When and Where: December 24th at 10pm, with the party starting around 2pm, at Aunt Donnas House
Come on by the house and follow around one of the main members of the family to see behind the scenes while getting ready for the Christmas party! Those in attendance will learn how we set things up, how different foods are made, run around to different houses to help, and gets gifts situated!
The day starts with getting all the different foods ready. To see how different things are made, we will stop by Mama Becky’s house to see how Aunt Tracy and Mama Beck make the turkey, the pinto beans, the potato salad, and anything else they plan to make. Then we will run down to Papa Jerry’s house to see how Mama Debbie makes the ham and the red velvet cake. Following that, we can stop into Uncle Barry’s house to see how the monkey bread, broccoli casserole and anything else Aunt Jodie plans to bring. Second to last, we will talk with my mom Jenny to see what all she has planned to cook for the meal. Lastly, we will stop in with Aunt Donna to see how she sets up for the party and what all she cooks.
The Meal
Due to the large amount of people who attend our family Christmas, there is a large variety of foods that show up. Instead of one member of the family cooking the entire meal, the entire family pitches in to bring an entire meal together. From the main course to the sides and even more of the deserts, there is so much food, you would not know what to do with! Let us see if we can bring to light all the different kinds of foods that come out!
The Main Dish
Like many other Christmas Celebrations, turkey and ham are the stars of the show at the Kanipe Family Christmas. Who brings these dishes one might ask? Mama Becky always brings the turkey. Why? I asked a family member and they stated, “Cause it’s the best. It’s not dry. We have always elected her to do it.” and because of this it has become tradition. The ham is made by Mama Debbie. When I asked why Debbie always makes it, another member of the family stated, “That’s their favorite when they go home with leftovers. And she has always cooked it.”
The Sides
Similar to the typical Christmas celebration, there are some stereotypical sides that show up, along with many sides that are different. Some of the sides that are traditional are:
- Mashed potatoes
- Corn
- Green beans
- Mac and cheese
- Stuffing
- Gravy
- Bread rolls
Some other sides that tend to show up at our celebration that might be different from your stereotypical side options and potentially seen as southern are:
- Potato salad
- Pasta salad
- Deviled eggs
- Broccoli casserole
- Chicken and dumplings
- Collard greens
- Pinto beans
- Cream cheese corn
Deserts
My favorite part of the meal! There are so many different deserts brought to the Kanipe Family Christmas, from cakes to cookies, one can never have to many deserts! Below is a list of some that may make an appearance:
- Monkey bread
- Chocolate chip cookies
- Rice crispy treats
- Red velvet cake
- Raspberry cheese cake
- Peanut butter fudge
- Butter scotch tort
- Pumpkin pie
- Smores cake
- Brownies
Drinks
Like many other meals, drinks are an important part of any meal. Here are just a few that tend to show up for the Kanipe Christmas Party:
- Sweet Tea
- Unsweet Tea
- Sundrop
- Diet Sundrop
- Cheerwine
- Dr Pepper
- Sprite
- Sangria
- Wine
- Beer
- Water
Favorites
One member of the family said that they absolutely must have Tracy’s potato salad but will steer clear of the greens. Another member of the family stated that the must have for them is Suzie’s rolls, but they turn their nose up to the casseroles and deviled eggs. My personal favorites are the rolls and the turkey, but I turn the other direction with most of the vegetables. I also eat a little bit of everything when it comes to the deserts.
The Meaning Behind the Celebration
Whoever comes to our family celebration, whether it being as a friend or a new partner that is joining the family, it is easy to see how things go. You can easily see the meal, and how things were prepared. Bernard L. Herman (2019:4) says, “We eat, therefore we are. Terroir is experience and motion, embodiment and immediacy, custom and invention, destiny and storytelling.” Spending time at the Kanipe Family Christmas helps spread one family’s traditions and bring people together.
Jones writes (1988: 242), “People experience food directly and in interaction with selected others. Compelling influences, then, would seem to be found in the qualities that make eating unique and that inhere in specific situations of food preparation, service, and consumption.” This is even more true around the holidays because they are a time for families come together and go out of their way to do above and beyond for those around them, from making a specific food simply because one person absolutely loves it to dressing up to show your family that the event means something to you.
Santino (1994:xvi) states that “Each of the customs and symbols found in holidays, and related rituals, festivals, and celebrations, has its own story, its own folklore.” Every family has its own way of doing things. From the way they decorate to what they cook, it is their own folklore and it is100% theirs. Many things can cross over, but nobody does it identically to another.
Sources
Bernard L. Herman. 2019. Selections from A South You Never Ate. Chapel Hill, NC: U. of North Carolina Press.
Michael Owen Jones. 1988. “Afterword: Discovering the Symbolism of Food Customs and Events.” We Gather Together: Food and Festivals in American Life, Theodore and Lin C. Humphrey, eds., 235-245. Ann Arbor, MI: U. of Michigan Press.
Jack Santino. 1994. “Introduction,” “Holidays in America: Ritual, Festival, and Celebration,” and “Homemade Holidays: Making Symbols, Making Meaning.” All Around the Year, xiii-46. Urbana, IL: U. of Illinois Press.
