Simple Holiday Traditions
Family traditions are part of what makes every family special. Your kids will reflect back to you what are existing traditions you may not realize your family has already. It’s in creating tradition that we connect with our family. It’s the simple holiday traditions that are memorable. Here are my top 10 holiday traditions.
1.Purchase a personalized ornament with the year on it for each child
Each year I add a new ornament to our kids’ collections. It’s a special reminder of the year gone by. I love that our kids will take these on to use on their family trees in the future.
2. An evening holiday walk to see Christmas decorations and sip hot cocoa
There’s nothing more fun that a walk to see the holiday lights in your neighborhood. Bring hot cocoa to keep warm.
3. Celebrate the 12 days of Christmas with 12 donations to local charities
Your holiday will be especially meaningful with donations to those who have little. Choose little ways you can contribute with either goods or funds.
4. Add Christmas songs to your Pandora channels
The music of the season brings a smile to our faces. Your music is always with you too!
5. Organize your Christmas cards by binding them together in a book
I love this small way to cherish the holiday cards we receive.
6. Purchase ready-made gingerbread houses to decorate and host a hot chocolate buffet
Assemble your gingerbread houses the day before so they are sturdy. Decorate and display for a week. Be sure to decorate your own too.
7. Host a holiday movie night and invite a family to join you
Whether it’s Charlie Brown Christmas or Christmas Vacation, all families have their favorite movie to watch every year.
8. Host a hot chocolate buffet and crazy Christmas sweater get together
Get crazy with hot chocolate mix ins like marshmellows, candy canes, cinnamon red hots and whipped cream for a hot chocolate buffet. Add in the crazy Christmas sweater phenomenon. It’s an evening full of laughter.
9. Gather up gently used family coats and bring the donations as a family
We all have coats, scarves and gloves we have not used in a while. Bring these as a family to donate to share the joy of giving.
10. Drop off treats for fire department, police station or other emergency responders in your community
We are supported by many in our community who keep us safe. Remember them this holiday season with homemade or store bought treats. It will bring joy to you and those you meet.
What are your holiday traditions? It takes just a few minutes of planning, a spot on your calendar and communication with your family to share the joy of holiday traditions.
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We have a lot of traditions up here. One of our favorites is the Christmas Eve present pass. Each person buys a unisex gift under $5 and wraps it. We sit around and read The Night Before Christmas and pass gifts to the right on the word “and.” It was a fun solution to the eagerness when the kids were little, and now it just makes everyone laugh.
Lovely! That is so special and so fun!
The idea to donate to 12 charities is brilliant! What an amazing way to celebrate the meaning of the season.
Great ideas! I like “Organize your Christmas cards by binding them together in a book”! That’s a neat idea. You could add several years to them and really make it a great keepsake. Nice job. Thanks for the inspiration.
@April – it’s truly about the meaning of the season
@Sabrina – our clients love these cards and this makes them a meaningful keepsake each year
Thanks for stopping by ladies!
Although we celebrate Chanukah, we do a “Secret Santa” gift exchange (lol). Each member of our growing family draws an anonymous name and has to buy just 1 gift for their special person. Sticking to the $$budget we assign makes it challenging, and guessing who the “gifter” is it makes it so fun!
@Nancy – what fun! Love this idea!
Love these ideas Ellen! This is a great time for us to introduce new traditions to Sam. Every year we do an Advent calendar. This year is my favorite. It’s so simple that I have a string with the dates and clothespins. Then I write a rhyming clue for him to read each morning to look for the gift hidden around the house. I loves it! I’m gonna have to put some of the above ideas to good use as well!
Great fun! I know that this is going to be a tradition he remembers!
A tradition that I attended today is the Mother’s Against Cancer luncheon. We raise funds for Texas Children’s Hospital children’s cancer research. It is a very special way to give back during this season.
I hope everyone has a time to do something special to give back this season.