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ABOUT2. Cut Your Own Christmas Tree
If you live near a Christmas tree farm, try cutting down your own tree each year. You can also make a tradition out of picking the perfect Christmas tree at a local tree lot.
3. Decorate the Tree as a Family
Crank up some holiday tunes and decorate the tree together as a family. The kids can take turns putting the star on top each year.
4. Make a Tree Ring Ornament
If you get a real tree, ask the vendor to slice off a little ring of the trunk to take home. Have everyone sign and date the ring, and watch the handwriting grow up with the kids over the years.
5. Display Holiday Cards
Save up all the holiday cards you receive. Open them as a family and then string them up over your doorways, make a collage out of them, or display them in another fun way.
6. Hang Mistletoe
Hang mistletoe over a door and give out kisses to anyone who lingers underneath.
7. Put a Small Tree in the Kids’ Rooms
Put up a small Christmas tree in each child’s room and maybe Santa will leave a special item under their little tree.
8. Decorate the Car
Why shouldn’t your vehicle get some holiday love, too? Decorate it to look like a reindeer with a Rudolph nose and antlers, put a wreath on the front, or try some magnetic Christmas lights.
9. Buy Special Ornaments Each Year
Every year, our kids receive a special ornament that represents the character or fad they’re into that year or a special place we’ve visited. The tree becomes a memory of their joys and passions from years past.
10. Make DIY Christmas Ornaments
You can also have each child make an ornament each year to add to the tree. See our list of 25 DIY ornaments for kids of all ages, which includes our easy salt dough handprint ornaments.
11. Hang Stockings
Hang the same stockings on the mantle, stairway, or other fun place each year—including a stocking for any pets you might own—for Santa to fill.
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Start a tradition of making adorable little reindeer cookies! Photo by Meghan Rose
Christmas Traditions: Holiday Activities and Outings
12. Bake Christmas Cookies
Baking cookies is one of the most beloved Christmas traditions for so many families. Here are the 10 best Christmas cookie recipes to bake with kids.
13. Throw a Cookie Party
Invite family and friends over to nosh on those homemade cookies and drink eggnog. Mommy Poppins managing editor Meghan Rose does this with her tribe and even sends guests home with enough eggnog for a morning latte, plus extra slabs of her trademark gingerbread. Email her if you’d like to see her secret family recipe! You an can also do a cookie swap, where everyone brings a batch and trades cookies to take home.
14. Do Community Service
Many churches, schools, and nursing homes post wish lists for individuals and families in need. Make a tradition of picking one (or two) names and shopping as a family with the goal of making someone else’s season a little brighter.
15. Rock Around the Christmas Tree
Crank up the Christmas music and have a holiday dance party! Here are our 50 favorite Christmas songs for kids.
16. Re-purpose Holiday Cards
Looking for Christmas traditions that will also help the planet? Check out our list of 15 creative ways to recycle holiday cards, like turning them into bookmarks.
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Elves tend to get stuck in places and need help getting out! Photo by Ally Noel
17. Do Elf on the Shelf
Try some of our 50 fun Elf on the Shelf ideas. Your kids will love finding where their elf is hiding each day!
18. Take a Special Train Ride
Many places have Polar Express train rides or other special Christmas trains to enjoy during the holiday season.
19. Do Holiday Crafts
Organize a family craft night with holiday crafts and hot cocoa. Invite friends to join you if you want to make an evening of it. See our whopping list of 101 Christmas crafts and games for kids.
20. Take a Picture with Santa
Whether your kids are babies or teens, head to the mall or other spot to take an annual photo with Santa.
21. Watch Christmas Movies or Specials
Pull on your holiday jammies, pass out popcorn and hot cocoa, and have a Christmas movie marathon. Get some ideas on our list of holiday movies to watch with kids.
22. Make Homemade Holiday Cards
Have the kids make extra-special cards for grandparents, aunts, uncles, or teachers. Try our easy handmade thumbprint holiday cards.
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Matching holiday PJs make for a cozy-feeling holiday card—and one of the cutest Christmas traditions.
23. Do a Themed Holiday Photo Card
We know a family that has used the same little red wagon in every holiday photo card from infancy through the teen years and beyond. Another family recreates a Beatles album cover each year! Our list of the best family Christmas card photo ideas should give you some inspiration.
24. Write Letters to Santa
Have your kids pen their Christmas wishes to Santa and mail them to the North Pole.
25. Attend a Tree Lighting Ceremony
Pack up some hot chocolate and cookies, grab your scarves, and take the kids to a local tree lighting ceremony.
26. Go Camping Indoors
Camp out in the living room in front of the Christmas tree one night.
27. See The Nutcracker
See a different version of The Nutcracker every year, whether it’s a local production or on DVR.
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Seeing holiday lights is one of those Christmas traditions the whole family will love. Photo by Rosalind Muggeridge
28. Look at Christmas Lights
Pile the family in the car with some hot cocoa and drive around to enjoy the neighborhood Christmas lights. Or, attend a Christmas light show or holiday lights drive-thru at a local zoo, botanic garden, park, or other place.
29. Make Gingerbread Houses
Decorating gingerbread houses is one of those Christmas traditions kids will never outgrow. Pro tip (learned the hard way): Buy a kit with a pre-built house to avoid collapses! Make sure to buy extra candy for snacking.
30. Open an Advent Calendar
Give your kids an advent calendar to open each year. Some calendars are traditional, parsing out pieces of the Christmas story or the Nativity scene each day. Others offer a little trinket, chocolate, or a puzzle piece every day. Check out our list of Lego, Star Wars, and more awesome advent calendars.
31. Tell a New Christmas Joke Each Day
Our list of 25 Christmas jokes for kids and holiday riddles will take you from December 1 all the way through Christmas day!
32. Visit a Holiday Market
Shop, snack, and enjoy the holiday sights and sounds at a local holiday market.
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The children will soon be nestled all snug in their beds!
Holiday Traditions for Christmas Eve
33. Read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas
Read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas before bed on Christmas Eve.
34. Open One Gift Each
Let the kids open one present each on Christmas Eve from a sibling, family member, or their Christmas elf.
35. Matching Holiday Pajamas
Wear matching holiday PJs to prepare for Santa’s visit. It’s one of the cutest Christmas traditions for families!
36. Make Wishes for the New Year
As a family, write down one big holiday wish and store it in a special little sack under the tree. Maybe it’s for more together time, or to visit someplace special this summer. Read the old wishes every year, too.
37. Have a Special Christmas Eve Dinner
Go out for dinner someplace special on Christmas Eve, or order takeout and enjoy it in front of the fireplace. One Mommy Poppins reader cooks up a variety of frozen finger foods on Christmas Eve, like pigs in a blanket and mozzarella sticks. Her kids delight in eating them in front of the TV while they watch a holiday movie.
38. Track Santa
NORAD, Google, and Dualverse all have Santa trackers so kids can look up the big guy’s location and see how close he is to your house. Learn all about how to track Santa.
39. Give a Book, Get a Book
Try a new tradition from another culture such as “Jolabokaflóð,” an Icelandic Christmas Eve tradition. Everyone gets a book that the rest of the family picks out for them and then the family curls up and reads together before bed.
40. Make Reindeer Food
Make some reindeer food like oats and sprinkles, and put a couple of teaspoons outside for the reindeer to enjoy.
Holiday Traditions for Christmas Day
41. Shoot a First-Look Video
Have one parent stand next to the tree and record the kids’ first look at their presents every year.
42. Hide a Christmas Pickle Ornament On the Tree
The person who finds it first will be rewarded with a special prize: opening the first present.
43. Have a Special Christmas Breakfast
Have the same special favorites each year for Christmas breakfast. Mommy Poppins contributor Jennifer Marino Walters makes monkey bread that her family looks forward to eating on Christmas morning each year. Email her for the recipe. You can also serve homemade cinnamon rolls, pancakes, with holiday sprinkles, or anything else your family loves.
44. Go Ice Skating
If the festivities are done early, take the kids to a local ice skating rink. Many of them are open on Christmas Day
45. Use Kid-Made Place Cards
If you host a Christmas meal (or if your host is okay with you doing it), let the kids make place cards for everyone at the table. It could be as simple as a paper snowflake with the guest’s name written in the center. Grandparents will especially love getting something homemade from the kids.
46. Do a Secret Santa Gift Exchange
If you have a large extended family, organize a Secret Santa gift exchange. Everyone will have fun trying to guess who their Secret Santa was!
47. Play Some Christmas Games
Entertain the whole crew with some fun Christmas games. See our list of Christmas games for the whole family.
48. Take a Family Picture
Take an annual selfie portrait of the family in front of the tree in your Christmas jammies—or in your holiday finest.
49. Go to Church
Go to a religious service on Christmas Day or Christmas Eve if your family observes the religious part of the holiday.
50. Set Up A Hot Chocolate Bar
End Christmas by setting up a hot chocolate bar—or making hot chocolate bombs—and enjoying it by the tree.
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