The holiday season is upon us, a time brimming with warmth, joy, and cherished traditions. While some customs have been passed down through generations, there’s always room to create new moments that will become treasured memories for years to come. If you’re looking to infuse your celebrations with extra magic, here are 10 Christmas traditions to start this year.
10 Christmas Traditions To Start This Year
1. Advent Calendar Adventure
This one is an absolute must for our family! Each of us have our calendar to open every morning in December. Simply craft or purchase an advent calendar to countdown the days until Christmas. Each day, open a new door or pocket filled with a treat, a small gift, or a fun family activity. Amazon has many options for all price ranges!
2. Homemade Ornaments
Encourage creativity and bonding by hosting a homemade ornament exchange among family or friends. Each person crafts a unique decoration to exchange, adding personal touches to each other’s trees. Careful, this one could get messy!
3. Christmas Movie Night
We actually try to do this every evening during December. We rarely make it through an entire movie in one sitting, but we set aside an hour before bed. Snuggle up with blankets, hot cocoa, cookies, and a selection of classic holiday films for a cozy evening together. There is certainly no shortage of great Christmas movies to choose from!
4. Acts of Kindness
This one is certainly the most inspiring on our list of 10 Christmas traditions to start this year. Every year on Thanksgiving, one of my uncles would take us to a local Homeless shelter to help pass out food. Even as a kid, there was something special about giving back to others. Embrace the true spirit of the season by performing random acts of kindness throughout December. Whether it’s volunteering at a shelter, donating toys, or simply spreading joy with kind gestures, let the season be a time of giving.
5. Elf On The Shelf
You have more than likely heard of this tradition, but perhaps you have never given it a try. As someone who once thought it to be odd and downright creepy, I must now admit that I absolutely love this tradition now! Every night after the kids fall asleep we place the elf (we actually have two, one for each of our kids) in a different location. Sometimes we put small gifts or candies with them and sometimes we make the elves do silly things. Either way, it is a joy to watch our children excitedly hunt for their elf every morning!
6. Christmas Cookie Decorating
Why buy boring cookies from the store when you can create your own Christmas masterpieces? This is a great little tradition for the kids to express their own holiday cheer. Whip up batches of gingerbread cookies, sugar cookies, or other festive treats with your family. Get creative with decorating and enjoy the sweet aroma filling your home.
7. Christmas Decor Party
Every year on November first, we decorate our home for Christmas! We put on Christmas music, bake cookies, and spend the evening putting out all of our Christmas decor. You can even ramp up this tradition by inviting friends and other family members over to help out. either way, nothing says “Holiday Season” like two months of a decked out home!
8. Christmas Light Sightseeing
No list of the 10 Christmas traditions to start this year would be complete without this! One of my favorite memories as a kid was loading up in a van and riding around nearby neighborhoods to look at all the twinkling lights! With today’s gas prices this might seem less appealing, but that doesn’t stop us from treating our kids to a spectacle during the most wonderful time of the year! Just grab the family, maybe a few friends, and journey around town and treat your eyes to some Christmas spirit!
9. Write Letters To Santa
This is a tradition we usually coupled with Christmas light sightseeing. We would stop along the way at a local park that had a north pole mailbox. Or you can simply stay home and “send” them from your own mailbox. So, encourage your kids (and perhaps some festive adults) to write letters to Santa, expressing their wishes, gratitude, and holiday cheer. You can even save the letters as keepsakes.
10. Attend A Candlelight Service
If you are religious, perhaps attending a Christmas Eve candlelight church service is right up your alley. Usually churches have a special service on the night before Christmas that include music, a message, and candles! While not for everyone, this is certainly something that allows one to experience and understand the true meaning of Christmas.
Whether you adopt one or several of these 10 Christmas traditions to start this year, the most important aspect is to relish the time spent together, fostering love, laughter, and connection. Start these traditions this year and watch these 10 Christmas traditions weave their way into your family’s heart, making Christmas even more magical and unforgettable.
Do you have your own list of 10 Christmas traditions to start this year? What are some of your favorites? Let us know below!