The first one to find the pickle on the tree Christmas morning will receive something extra. Some families give a gift while others believe good luck will follow that person for the upcoming year.

There doesn’t seem to be a definitive origin for this tradition. Some believe it came over from Germany while others report it to have begun with an American soldier during the American Civil War. There are even some that feel it can be traced back to a Victorian Era tale about St. Nicholas saving two children from a pickle barrel.

Whatever story and tradition you follow, the holiday spirit is alive when the search begins.