We like to go big for holidays in our house. I’ve struggled before with holiday burnout though, I try to go way too big (without enough planning) and then end up just wanting to go home (and crawl into bed). This year I made a plan! I planned a few really over the top fun days and then I sprinkled the rest with really easy and manageable fun like crafts, whipping up a treat, or watching a Christmas movie. I tried to keep them all on the generic side so that you can easily translate them to whatever works best for your family. I’ve shares some tips and instructions on some of the items below! Happy December, friends!
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DIY Snow Globes: You can find tutorials for these all over Pinterest. I found some plastic globes with screw on lids at Michaels super cheap. Linking them here.
Nativity story-time: This is something we did last year and the kids thought it was so fun! Basically you re-create the nativity story (the story of the birth of Jesus) with your family. Depending on your kid’s age you can make it as simple or as detailed as you want. We have the Little People nativity and the kids love using it to play with on the daily but it’s perfect for our nativity story time! Linking it here.
Make reindeer food: This is essentially a Christmas themed version or Muddy Buddies. Add in holiday sprinkles, M&Ms, pretzels, marshmallows, whatever fun you want really!
Watch a Christmas movie outside: Why is it way more fun for kids to do things outside? I don’t know, but whether its eating, peeing, or watching a Christmas movie, if given the option my kids will always choose to outside. We have one of the Cinemood projectors that make it super easy! Bonus points for hot cocoa, s’mores, and a fire pit!
Polar Express day: We went to a Polar Express train ride last year and my kids loved it! This year they weren’t able to host it due to the restrictions in our state, so we’re doing our own version at home! We’ll read the book, create out own tickets, and then wear our robes to watch the movie with hot chocolate!
Have a Christmas dance party: Our family has “dance parties” at least once a week, it’s kind of its own family tradition. This one will be only Christmas songs allowed and Christmas PJs only!
Make salt dough ornaments: Who doesn’t love DIY ornaments that are actually pretty to look at? Yep, I said it!I love sentimental ornaments but sometimes they are just ugly. Here’s a link to the recipe!
Build a snowman inside: Obviously if you have access to real snow, go ahead and make a real snow man. For us, it’s no such luck so we are going to be using some re-purposed boxes (Lord knows this time of year we all have about 100) to paint some snowmen features and then stack them up!
FaceTime Christmas Caroling: My kids have been wanting to go caroling since they saw it in a holiday movie earlier this season. Since the current cultural regulations are not really pro showing up on peoples doorsteps, we’re going to be calling friends and family to sing Christmas songs!
Make Santa Pancakes: This is easy peasy, make regular pancakes, add some sliced strawberries for the hat, whipped cream for the beard and hat fluff, and some chocolate chips for eyes.
Make reindeer cinnamon rolls: We already did some Christmas Tree cinnamon rolls (click here to see), so later we’re going to try some reindeer ones! Bacon for antlers, a cherry for the nose, and some eyeball sprinkles, perfect!
