Reba McEntire Shares Her Unusual Christmas Tradition With Son Shelby

Every Christmas, it's important for Reba McEntire to spend time with her family, particularly her son, Shelby Blackstock. The country icon's favorite holiday memories include how excited Shelby would get opening presents as a kid.

"He would open gifts, and I would say, 'Shelby, who's that from?' and he would say, 'Uh, I don't know.' He was like, 3 years old," Reba shared in an interview. "And I'd say, 'Shelby, that's from Santa Claus.' And he'd say, 'Oh yeah, I forgot! He's a really good guy.'"

She continues, "So, watching the excitement of a child opening gifts, that's the best thing about Christmas. Opening presents and watching them. It's so much fun."

Now that Shelby is an adult, Reba has had to create some new holiday traditions, a few more unusual than others.

"Shelby and I, we used to always watch Christmas Vacation on Christmas Eve night. Now, we watch Elf and Nacho Libre," McEntire shares. "If you've never seen Nacho Libre, you're probably thinking, 'What on Earth?! That's not a Christmas movie,' but it's a lot of fun! We laugh a lot."

Nowadays, the best part of the holiday season for Reba is being able to relax more than normal. "We hang out at home a lot more," she explained. "And then, of course, after Christmas, we take off and go on vacation."

Shelby does not have kids of his own, but he does share two dogs with his girlfriend, Rissa Branch. McEntire shares Shelby with her ex-husband, Narvel Blackstock, who is also dad to Kelly Clarkson's husband, Brandon Blackstock.

After the holiday season, McEntire will enjoy a few months at home in 2020 before hitting the road for her headlining tour. The tour will kick off on March 20 at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana running through May 9 with a final show at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Tickets are available now.

Photo: Getty Images