Which holiday traditions do you happily ignore?

When I got married 12 years ago, I dreamed of cooking entire Christmas dinners from scratch. And then I realized I'd never be able to duplicate my late mother's yams or my mother-in-law's dressing. So I make only what I can master: a turkey, sweet-potato pudding, greens, and lots of desserts. I leave the other dishes to my guests. And if they don't want to bring anything, we just fill up on chocolate cake.

This tip comes from Real Simple reader GAYLE WILLIAMS, Greenburgh, New York