Re: collections. DH and I collected ornaments as we traveled and each year they appear on our tree. And we each had special ornaments from before our marriage. And those were also put on the tree. It's a really big tree. Fat.
At a Christmas store in TN one vacation trip, we found a pickle ornament. It was supposed to be an old German custom to hide the pickle somewhere in the tree. The person who found the pickle got an extra gift. We started with money as the gift, but it evolved into a jar of Grandpa's pickles. Everyone really likes to get into the act and looks forward to getting that jar of pickles. Here's an article on the pickle custom.
http://german.about.com/library/blgermyth11.htm
Games: We do a Chinese Christmas Gift Exchange. This was started in 2002 when our combined families were present for a Christmas gathering. And it has been going since that time. Here is an explanation of the game.
http://www.amazing-christmas-ideas.c...-exchange.html
I also have a collection of New England Fishing Village houses from Department 56. They've not been displayed in several years as the cat loves to walk through the display and has broken several smaller pieces. Maybe they will find their way out this year.