Alan Jackson Family Christmas Traditions Continue

Alan Jackson loves the holidays and relishes the time he gets to spend making memories with his loved ones in what he notes is a "pretty standard, lovely Christmas."

"Christmas is pretty traditional," the married father of three daughters explains. "We don't let anybody open any presents until Christmas morning, after Santa Claus comes. We don't let them get up on their own and take off. Everybody has to wait and kind of get situated and maybe have a cup of coffee; then we start all of the regular Christmas morning activities, opening presents, taking pictures and video. I try to keep Christmas music going in the background. I like to turn that on before I let them come down to the tree and everything."

Alan also makes sure his family focuses on more than just the gifts. "[I] always try to remember Jesus' birthday and just the whole thing and have a wonderful big meal, almost like Thanksgiving four weeks later," he notes. "We have the same ... turkey, dressing, all the same kind of things. Sometimes we have family members in Tennessee and sometimes just us or friends. We always go home to Georgia prior to that."

This year, Alan has a unique Christmas gift to offer: Seasons of Sweetbriar – A Photographic Collection of Home is a new coffee table book of photos from his former Nashville home. Proceeds from the book's sale benefit the Colon Cancer Alliance's Blue Note Fund, a cause important to the singer-songwriter since his wife, Denise, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2010. A limited number of the books are available and can be purchased here.

Article by Gayle Thompson from The Boot