Memorable Family Christmas Traditions To Start This Year

Kelly R. said:  Christmas morning is the perfect opportunity to enjoy an indulgent and leisurely breakfast after all of the gifts have been opened! One of my favorite family Christmas traditions is to have a make-ahead Christmas breakfast ready to go the night before, so I just have to finish it off in the morning.

Shila said:  Some family Christmas traditions involve baking the same go-to holiday cookie recipes year after year, while others (like mine) always like to tackle a few new recipes. My kids get to each decide one recipe. Christmas cookies make great homemade gifts, too.

Shila said:  In anticipation of Christmas, many are fond of choosing a new Advent calendar or filling their own DIY version. As each day leading up to Christmas passes, kids receive a new little treat or gift.

Shila said:  It's so fun to drive around on a December night checking out the best Christmas lights around town. Some households and neighborhoods collectively join to make their street even brighter and sync their blinking lights to festive music. Fill up a thermos with hot cocoa or cider, tune into some Christmas music, and enjoy a safe and merry drive around town. These are fun and free family Christmas traditions to enjoy!

Kristy Pepping said:  Holidays are about receiving a lot of the time, but we have tried to combat this with our kids by making it one of our family Christmas traditions to volunteer together. There are so many ways to give back whether donating your time wrapping and delivering gifts, serving holiday meals, or even volunteering virtually from home.

Shila said:  Like many families, one of our favorite Christmas traditions is leaving milk and cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve. When the kids wake on Christmas morning, they love to discover Santa's crumbs!

Now that she is in on the secret, it is the sole responsibility of my oldest to eat the cookie and chug the milk. This way both kids still "participate" in the magic of Santa!

Alexandra F. said:  The U.S. Postal Service can help make Christmas even more magical by sending your kids a response to their letter to Santa, complete with a North Pole postmark!

Simply include a personalized letter from Santa along with your child’s letter and a self-addressed, stamped envelope and mail them to the address below. Complete instructions are available at the USPS website, but letters should be sent by December 2 to get a response before Christmas!

NORTH POLE POSTMARK

POSTMASTER

4141 POSTMARK DR

ANCHORAGE AK 99530-9998

Shila said:  Parents, get some matching pajamas for your whole crew to wear for the coziest Christmas tradition!

Shila said:  It's fun to go big for family movie night around Christmas! Select from many favorite family Christmas movies, bring plentiful snacks and seasonal treats like hot chocolate or egg nog, and cuddle up together for an epic holiday-themed movie night.

My family does this every year and we love it. The best part of the ambiance for us is turning the house lights off while keeping only the tree lights on for that colorful, magical glow.

Shila said:  Some parents love it and some don't, but there's no question that the Elf on the Shelf Christmas tradition is a big hit with kids. The Elf hides in a new spot each morning for kids to discover throughout the house. One day he could be sitting on top of the bookshelf, or the next day in a shoe! How does he move around? Is the Elf magic? Kids of all ages love to discover the funny Elf antics every morning.

Kristy Pepping said:  Every year, one of our family Christmas traditions is to make a holiday playlist. We all have favorite Christmas albums and songs that we like to compile and play throughout the month of December. It's especially fun for listening while decorating the tree or baking cookies to get everyone into the holiday spirit!

Shila said:  Secret Santa gift exchange is a fun tradition among family and friends around the holiday season. This is also one of the best Christmas traditions for families who are larger in quantity, as it limits holiday shopping to just one person in the group. My husband's family of 7 (plus kids) particularly benefits from this the most!

Start by putting everybody's name in a hat for random draw. In secret, you are then responsible for his or her Christmas gift. All season, you'll be wondering who your sender is too! Names are revealed in person on Christmas or in the gift's card.

Kelly R. said:  My kids love decorating gingerbread houses, and it's pretty easy to find nice kits in the stores these days if you prefer not to DIY the whole thing!

Shila said:  A white elephant gift exchange is one of the most low-key Christmas traditions for families and friends. The idea is to exchange quirky gifts within a general price limit (like $15-$20). Come to the party with the gift wrapped and place all gifts in a pile. In random order, participants get to select and open a gift, and it's hilarious to watch the laughter that unfolds.

My family and a few of our friends play this tradition every year. The best gift I received was a hot/cold color-changing Bob Ross coffee mug. :)

Shila said:  Many botanic gardens and conservatories welcome guests 365 days a year, including on Christmas! Step out on Christmas morning to enjoy a family nature walk. It'll be more quiet and peaceful than usual. Throughout the holiday season, too, some botanic gardens are known for putting on holiday light shows and decorating winter wonderland themes. Check your local spots for dates and times.

Shila said:  Head to the theatre to catch a live Christmas show, concert, or musical. There are so many wonderful holiday productions! My family's favorites have been at Radio City to see the Rockettes in NYC, and the Nutcracker in Chicago. Smaller scale productions that are just as amazing are often held at high schools, local dance studios, and community halls. This is an awesome experience based gift for kids, or something special to enjoy with grandparents too.

Shila said:  This easy DIY Christmas craft can be set up in minutes and it leads to many moments of daily fun leading up to the 25th! Draw a Santa face with a blank beard. Every day, your child gets to glue a cotton ball to his beard signifying one day closer to Christmas.

Kate Wille Murray said:  This year we decided to sing carols to a few neighbors and ended up walking around our whole, small neighborhood and sang songs! Kids enjoyed it and it was nice to see people in the winter! Just bundle up (if needed) and enjoy!!

Vanessa M. said:  We do a Christmas cookie exchange with my extended family. It's fun to get together to swap (and eat!) cookies, and watch our favorite Christmas movies.

Lisa R said:  We already have a lot of toys, many of which don't get used simply because they're jumbled up with other toys. This year we invented a story where Santa's elves will pick up broken toys and toys that we don't want anymore in the month before Christmas and either fix them and bring them back, or use the parts to make toys for other children. My daughter was super excited to leave her toys by the front door and see them "disappear". It was a great way to get her to really go through her toys and even find some missing pieces on her own. Best of all, some the old toys that reappeared with new batteries on Christmas were just as exciting as the new stuff.

Sarah Calamita said:  While many do an Advent Calendar, we do a paper advent chain. We use red and green paper and hang it in the kitchen. There's a fun Christmas activity on each link. (ie. Drive around and look at lights, make Christmas cookies, go to a Living Nativity, Zoo Lights, drink hot cocoa by the fire, watch Polar Express, make homemade Christmas cards, etc). The kids will have so much fun every morning checking what is on the chain (and also forces parents to plan and space their fun holiday activities out!)

LovliQueen said:  I am starting a new family tradition this year. I am hiding a pickle ornament in the home. Whoever finds it will get $20. I can't wait to see my 2 sons ages 9 & 20 scrabble for the ornament!

Courtney O'Gara said:  We use leftover wrapping paper from previous years to decorate each bedroom door. The kids love it and we even add a bow to make it look like a present! It makes the view from our foyer look so festive when you can see all the “wrapped” doors from the front door!

Sharon Hagenmueller D... said:  We bake a cake on Christmas Eve to celebrate Baby Jesus birth. We sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. You can celebrate as your family typically celebrates a family birthday.

Shila said:  When my kids were early readers, I started a family Christmas tradition that still remains today...to borrow at least 12 Christmas books from the library and read one aloud every night leading up to the 25th. Every year I'll try to include a couple new releases, but most long-standing Christmas book classics remain strong in the mix.

Shila said:  A symbol of love, hang mistletoe anywhere in your home during the holiday season. When two people find themselves underneath it, they are encouraged to embrace in a warm hug or peck a kiss! Families who celebrate often hang the mistletoe in the main foyer, but my family traditionally hangs mistletoe above the kids' beds. This makes for extra-special seasonal goodnights at bedtime.

Kelly R. said:  Thanks to technology, there are so many different ways to talk to Santa via call, text, video message and more! Have fun trying these out with your kids and making some unique Christmas memories!

Kelly R. said:  Our Christmas Eve tradition is takeout Chinese for dinner every year, and we order ridiculously early to beat the crowds! I know many families have traditions that involve cooking elaborate meals at home, but we love to keep it simple on Christmas Eve. I'd love to hear about other parents' Christmas Eve dinner traditions in the comments.

Kelly R. said:  We add one new Christmas ornament to our collection every year, inspired by something that took place for our family...a vacation, a milestone, COVID! I have loved gradually filling our tree with ornaments that are meaningful to us, instead of random generic ones. Talking about all of our ornaments as we bring them out to decorate our tree is one of my favorite family Christmas traditions each year.