Chrsitmas is sneaking up on us fast! And after Maxwell’s trick or treating performance, I am pretty excited about Chrsitmas. This will be his 3rd Christmas, but the first one where I feel like he will really understand the process. As a kid, my mom made a big deal out of Christmas and me and my 5 brothers and sisters loved it! We baked fudge for every neighbor and teacher in the land, Santa left crumbles of his cookies with extra fun thank you notes, and we loved our hand sewn advent calendar. I want to start Chrsitmas traditions with my family, so I polled everyone I know and came up with this giant list of 72 Christmas traditions!
72 Christmas traditions to start with your family this Year
I come back to this list year after year! I use it to make our holiday bucket list.
1. Christmas lights
Drive around town together and look at Christmas lights. Bring your Elf in a jar or vase if you have one!
2. Cookie decorating
Host an annual cookie decorating party for your family or neighborhood.
3. Read Christmas books
Gather all of the CHristmas books in one spot and read one everyday.
4. Gift wrapping competition
Organize best gift wrapping competitions with your crew (Here are tons of clever gift wrapping ideas!)
5. Holiday cookies
Baking Christmas cookies with the family or friends to give away. These reindeer cookies are 3 ingredients and so easy.
6. Matching PJs
Giving the kids matching pj’s and a book every year on Christmas Eve. Immediately following that, the kids put on the pajamas and the family reads the book together by the fire. Don’t forget to take a pajama picture!
7. Christmas carols
Singing a Christmas carol before opening gifts
8. Make a specific meal together
Making tamales or other specific heritage or ethnic foods with the family
9. Christmas morning beverages
Sipping mimosas and/or coffee cake on Christmas morning
10. Decorating gingerbread houses
Making and decorating gingerbread houses. If you’re using a kit, I always recommend using a hot glue gun instead of icing to stick the pieces together.
11. Baking and singing
Singing Christmas carols while baking sweets
12. White Elephant
“White Elephant” gift exchange with the family
13. Trip to the movies
Going to the movies on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day
14. Pizza decorating party
Hosting an annual Christmas tree making pizza party
15. Elf on the Shelf
Hate it or love it, I can tell you it is a tradition the kids don’t forget about!
16. Christmas tree decorating
Setting up the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving with Christmas music and hot chocolate
17. Opening Christmas gifts at midnight
While this might be a hard one to do with littles, it would be so fun with teenagers!
18. Stockings
Each family member fills another’s stocking
19. Themed Christmas trees
Decorating a themed Christmas tree
20. Family talent show
Organizing a family talent show
21. Christmas decorating
Decorating the whole house and tree all in one day, with Christmas cartoons and music in the background
22. Christmas book advent calendar
Doing a “25 books of Christmas” advent calendar: buying 25 books and everyday the kids unwrap one and the family reads it before bed
23. Advent calendars
Doing an advent calendar with the kids (Here are 25 DIY advent calendars to make together!)
24. Stray decorations
Hunting for the last Christmas decoration: every year, after the decorations are down, the kids go around the house to see if they can find a stray decoration
25. Watching Christmas movies while wrapping presents and drinking eggnog
26. Sipping hot chocolate by the lit fireplace curled up under a blanket, and watching the first Christmas movie of the seaso
2. Eating finger foods for Christmas Eve dinner
Chrsitmas is sneaking up on us fast! And after Maxwell’s trick or treating performance, I am pretty excited about Chrsitmas. This will be his 3rd Christmas, but the first one where I feel like he will really understand the process. As a kid, my mom made a big deal out of Christmas and me and my 5 brothers and sisters loved it! We baked fudge for every neighbor and teacher in the land, Santa left crumbles of his cookies with extra fun thank you notes, and we loved our hand sewn advent calendar. I want to start Chrsitmas traditions with my family, so I polled everyone I know and came up with this giant list of 72 Christmas traditions!
72 Christmas traditions to start with your family this Year
I come back to this list year after year! I use it to make our holiday bucket list.
1. Christmas lights
Drive around town together and look at Christmas lights. Bring your Elf in a jar or vase if you have one!
2. Cookie decorating
Host an annual cookie decorating party for your family or neighborhood.
3. Read Christmas books
Gather all of the CHristmas books in one spot and read one everyday.
4. Gift wrapping competition
Organize best gift wrapping competitions with your crew (Here are tons of clever gift wrapping ideas!)
5. Holiday cookies
Baking Christmas cookies with the family or friends to give away. These reindeer cookies are 3 ingredients and so easy.
6. Matching PJs
Giving the kids matching pj’s and a book every year on Christmas Eve. Immediately following that, the kids put on the pajamas and the family reads the book together by the fire. Don’t forget to take a pajama picture!
7. Christmas carols
Singing a Christmas carol before opening gifts
8. Make a specific meal together
Making tamales or other specific heritage or ethnic foods with the family
9. Christmas morning beverages
Sipping mimosas and/or coffee cake on Christmas morning
10. Decorating gingerbread houses
Making and decorating gingerbread houses. If you’re using a kit, I always recommend using a hot glue gun instead of icing to stick the pieces together.
11. Baking and singing
Singing Christmas carols while baking sweets
12. White Elephant
“White Elephant” gift exchange with the family
13. Trip to the movies
Going to the movies on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day
14. Pizza decorating party
Hosting an annual Christmas tree making pizza party
15. Elf on the Shelf
Hate it or love it, I can tell you it is a tradition the kids don’t forget about!
16. Christmas tree decorating
Setting up the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving with Christmas music and hot chocolate
17. Opening Christmas gifts at midnight
While this might be a hard one to do with littles, it would be so fun with teenagers!
18. Stockings
Each family member fills another’s stocking
19. Themed Christmas trees
Decorating a themed Christmas tree
20. Family talent show
Organizing a family talent show
21. Christmas decorating
Decorating the whole house and tree all in one day, with Christmas cartoons and music in the background
22. Christmas book advent calendar
Doing a “25 books of Christmas” advent calendar: buying 25 books and everyday the kids unwrap one and the family reads it before bed
23. Advent calendars
Doing an advent calendar with the kids (Here are 25 DIY advent calendars to make together!)
24. Stray decorations
Hunting for the last Christmas decoration: every year, after the decorations are down, the kids go around the house to see if they can find a stray decoration
25. Christmas movies
Watching Christmas movies while wrapping presents and drinking eggnog
26. Texas snowball fight
Homemade Texas Snowball fights: throwing marshmallows at each other!
27. Random acts of kindness
Random Acts of Kindness game among the family leading up to Christmas
28. Chrsitmas Eve meal
Eating finger foods for Christmas Eve dinner
29. Attending a candlelight Christmas Eve service
30. Ice skating
Going ice skating every year
31. Making DIY ornaments
Making handmade ornaments (Here’s a fun ornament idea for toddlers!)
32. Cleaning house on Chrsitmas Eve
Cleaning the house on Christmas Eve, so Santa doesn’t see a messy house
33. Christmas play
Putting together an annual family Christmas play
34. Board games
Playing board games or do a puzzle with the family after Christmas dinner
35. Present timing
Opening only one present or only the stockings on Christmas Eve
36. Texas snowball fight
Homemade Texas Snowball fights: throwing marshmallows at each other!
37. Random Acts of Kindness game among the family leading up to Christmas
38. Baking a cake with a goody inside, whoever gets it, gets the “Christmas luck” for the year!
39. Hosting a Christmas dress up contest (Andy and I have some great Christmas dress up ideas!)
40. Thriftmas- finding a $3 or less gift for a family member
41. Taking part in living nativity scenes or Christmas parades
42. Enjoying the quiet by the Christmas tree and fire
43. Having grand kids spend the night on Christmas Eve, because Santa visits there first!
44. Putting together a box of our favorite things and leaving them for a family in need- Ding Dong Ditch style!
45. Sleeping under the Christmas tree as a family, the night before Christmas Eve
46. Making a hot chocolate bar for Christmas Eve
47. Making a calendar or family year book
48. Each family member chooses a Christmas ornament to symbolize their year, and sign the bottom of it with their name and date.
49. Taking Santa pictures the day after Thanksgiving
50. Making a Christmas wreath with friends for y’alls front doors
51. Hosting a Christmas Eve penny auction
52. Attending local light parades and light shows
53. Christmas gift scavenger hunt with clues and hints on where to find the gifts (This can make the smallest gifts so fun!)
54. Making handmade cards for friends and family
55. Taking kids to the toy store, picking out a toy and donating it to Toys for Tots or an Angle Tree
56. Hosting an ornament exchange party
57. Decorating the outside of your house with neighbors (How to make a snowman scene on your window.)
58. Ugly sweater party
Hosting an ugly Christmas sweater party (32 clever ugly sweater party ideas here.)
59. Birthday cake
Eating cake on Christmas Eve for Jesus’ birthday
60. Christmas Eve Santa food
Setting out special food for Santa and his reindeer on Christmas Eve
61. Addressing cards
Here’s a tradition to start that will save you time! Get the fam on board and have everyone write Christmas card addresses creatively.
62. Christmas Eve box
Putting together a Christmas Eve box complete with new pajamas, snacks, hot chocolate packets, and a Christmas book or movie
63. CHristmas pancakes
Make a festive breakfast complete with Santa Claus pancakes.
64. Getting texts and videos from Santa
I’ve used POrtable north Pole to show the kids personalized videos from Santa Claus.
65. Family game tradition
Opening a new family game on Christmas Eve and playing it together
66. Drawing names
Each family member drawing one name and buying that person a special gift
67. Family pictures
Taking a family picture each year to use to send Christmas cards
68. Sending Christmas cards
Sending Christmas cards (Here are ours for 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016)
69. Reindeer food
Sprinkling reindeer food outside for Santa’s reindeer
70. Santa pictures
Visiting and taking pictures with Mr. and Mrs. Claus at your local mall
71. Christmas Bingo
Play Bingo to see who opens the first gift.
72. Cutting down a Christmas tree
Wether you take a trip to the CHristmas tree farm or a hike up the mountain to cut down a tree, this is a family tradition everyone will love.
73. Displaying holiday cards
Sending, collecting and displaying Christmas cards is one of my favorite family traditions! We always make a book with the snail mail cards too.
Do you have any awesome Christmas traditions to add to the list? Leave them in the comments!
29. Attending a candlelight Christmas Eve service
30. Going ice skating every year
31. Making handmade ornaments (Here’s a fun ornament idea for toddlers!)
32. Cleaning the house on Christmas Eve, so Santa doesn’t see a messy house
33. Putting together an annual family Christmas play
34. Playing board games with the family after Christmas dinner
35. Opening only one present or only the stockings on Christmas Eve
38. Baking a cake with a goody inside, whoever gets it, gets the “Christmas luck” for the year!
39. Hosting a Christmas dress up contest (Andy and I have some great Christmas dress up ideas!)
40. Thriftmas- finding a $3 or less gift for a family member
41. Taking part in living nativity scenes or Christmas parades
42. Enjoying the quiet by the Christmas tree and fire
43. Having grand kids spend the night on Christmas Eve, because Santa visits there first!
44. Putting together a box of our favorite things and leaving them for a family in need- Ding Dong Ditch style!
45. Sleeping under the Christmas tree as a family, the night before Christmas Eve
46. Making a hot chocolate bar for Christmas Eve
47. Making a calendar or family year book
48. Each family member chooses a Christmas ornament to symbolize their year, and sign the bottom of it with their name and date.
49. Taking Santa pictures the day after Thanksgiving
50. Making a Christmas wreath with friends for y’alls front doors
51. Hosting a Christmas Eve penny auction
52. Attending local light parades and light shows
53. Christmas gift scavenger hunt with clues and hints on where to find the gifts (This can make the smallest gifts so fun!)
54. Making handmade cards for friends and family
55. Taking kids to the toy store, picking out a toy and donating it to Toys for Tots or an Angle Tree
56. Hosting an ornament exchange party
57. Decorating the outside of your house with neighbors (How to make a snowman scene on your window.)
58. Ugly sweater party
Hosting an ugly Christmas sweater party (32 clever ugly sweater party ideas here.)
59. Birthday cake
Eating cake on Christmas Eve for Jesus’ birthday
60. Christmas Eve Santa food
Setting out special food for Santa and his reindeer on Christmas Eve
61. Addressing cards
Here’s a tradition to start that will save you time! Get the fam on board and have everyone write Christmas card addresses creatively.
62. Christmas Eve box
Putting together a Christmas Eve box complete with new pajamas, snacks, hot chocolate packets, and a Christmas book or movie
63. CHristmas pancakes
Make a festive breakfast complete with Santa Claus pancakes.
64. Getting texts and videos from Santa
I’ve used POrtable north Pole to show the kids personalized videos from Santa Claus.
65. Family game tradition
Opening a new family game on Christmas Eve and playing it together
66. Drawing names
Each family member drawing one name and buying that person a special gift
67. Family pictures
Taking a family picture each year to use to send Christmas cards
68. Sending Christmas cards
Sending Christmas cards (Here are ours for 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016)
69. Reindeer food
Sprinkling reindeer food outside for Santa’s reindeer
70. Santa pictures
Visiting and taking pictures with Mr. and Mrs. Claus at your local mall
71. Christmas Bingo
Play Bingo to see who opens the first gift.
72. Cutting down a Christmas tree
Wether you take a trip to the CHristmas tree farm or a hike up the mountain to cut down a tree, this is a family tradition everyone will love.
73. Displaying holiday cards
Sending, collecting and displaying Christmas cards is one of my favorite family traditions! We always make a book with the snail mail cards too.
Do you have any awesome Christmas traditions to add to the list? Leave them in the comments!
Comments & Reviews
I love these ideas! There are some I think my daily would enjoy and we might incorporate. Thanks!
My kids each get their own mini tree to put in their rooms and use as a night light each night (until I go to bed and then we switch on their regular night lights and turn off the tree). We buy them an ornament each year and that’s where they like to display their tree with all of their ornaments. We also host weekly holiday movie nights with themed snacks or drinks– green cookies and punch on Grinch night, santa hat brownies and hot cocoa on The Santa Clause night, etc.
I love that idea of letting each kiddo have their very own special tree! And holiday nights…. FUN!!!