Christmas is a wonderful time to create memories, traditions and acts of caring. It is also a challenge, sometimes, to remain peaceful and calm during this busy season and to keep Jesus as the focus of Christmas. Following are some ideas for this season of Advent (as we wait for the birth of The Christ Child). It is my hope that one or two ideas may have meaning for you … as you seek to enjoy your family and friends while keeping CHRIST as the center of your Christmas. Amidst the lights, bells and bows, may we just strive to keep HIM the reason for this season. And, may we all remember that our attention, love and presence with our loved ones is always, very simply, the very best present we can give …
• have a family devotional with a candle lighting each week of Advent … take turns reading the devotional entries and lighting that week’s candle …
• make or purchase an Advent calendar … open a “door” each day before Christmas … each day could offer a Promise (a gift!) from our Lord …
• create a family “Advent-ure” game … children look for the small, decorated box each day of Advent … carefully hidden somewhere in the house … each day the box holds a fact or scripture about Jesus … as well as a few piece of candy or an IOU to see a movie, etc.
• bring out the family Nativity scene … have the stable visitors (the shepherd, the 3 wisemen) begin their journey in a distant location of your home … and have the children move the figures a bit closer to the Nativity each day … Jesus and the stable visitors and the angel arrive on Christmas morning …
• invite small children to draw their interpretation of the Nativity to illustrate your Christmas
card …
• turn your Christmas upside down and join the “Advent Conspiracy” by concentrating on compassion rather than consumption … http://www.adventconspiracy.org (worship fully, spend less, give more, love all) …
• buy gifts at a church Christmas Alternative Market focusing on gifts thatsupport meaningful projects and ministries …
• share a Christmas family devotional each night around the Christmas tree … soft Christmas music and candles … everyone in their pj’s …
• visit a local Christmas tree farm and cut down your own tree … take a picnic and enjoy the day … slice off a piece of the trunk for each family member as a Christmas keepsake … and date it …
• encourage family members to write a note of what they want to do for Jesus the following year as their gift to Jesus (be more kind to brother, etc.) … explain that the notes do not have to be shared …
• hide a large, spike-like nail (together as a family) at the base of your Christmas tree as a reminder of the sacrifice Jesus made for us …
• pray for each person as you wrap their gift …
• have a family “caroling” night around the Christmas tree … serving popcorn, hot chocolate and
candy canes …
• have a family slumber party under the Christmas Tree … read family favorite Christmas books …
• consider giving an “experience” as your Christmas gift …a day playing board games with a elderly family member, a trip to a museum or to the zoo with a young child or neighbor friend …
• pray for families as you receive their Christmas greeting card …
• take Christmas crafts to a local apartment complex to share with the children there …
• invite friends for a cookie decorating party … take plates of cookies to elderly neighbors or church members who may not get out during the holidays …
• consider giving a gift to a charity or to an organization in honor of someone instead of giving a present … make it a tradition between adult sibling or between all adults … (donation could be symbolized by giving a small ornament such a bike ornament for a donation given to a bike project for children) … or give a “family gift” to other families … (donation towards an Africa water well; donation for chickens for a family in Haiti; socks, shoes or a sweater for someone at the shelter for the homeless) …
• send anonymous family “thank you notes” to other families for special gestures they have offered to others in serving the church or community … leave the note with a candy cane at their front door … ring the bell and run …
• take a plate of goodies to the church staff who will be serving at many services Christmas Eve …
• buy a small, tabletop, artificial tree … attach miniature trinkets or bows … take the tree to a nearby nursing home or family service center… invite other families to join you … or make placemats for those who are bedridden during the holidays …
• celebrate the “Twelve Days of Christmas” by sharing 12 random acts of kindness, anonymously, as a family …
• bring canned goods to the local food pantry during the holiday season … or find a family “service project of good will” to share during the holidays …
• locate a family whose children might have a very lean Christmas and take the money you would have spend on each other to purchase gifts for their children and family …
• make “heat and serve” dinners in microwave disposable containers for elderly neighbors … deliver with cooking instructions and sign the card from “Santa and his reindeers” …
• give something you love to someone who has admired that item in the past … or pass along a family heirloom to an adult child or grandchild …
• babysit for parents who seldom get a “couple night” … tell them it is your Christmas gift to
them … share a Christmas movie and popcorn with the children or decorate a gingerbread house or Christmas cookies … or create a “hot chocolate bar” (crushed peppermint, whip cream, and chocolate kisses for topping the hot chocolate) …
• pack a Christmas gift box, or goodies for the New Year, as a family … for someone serving in the military … (toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, mouthwash, hand wipes, hand sanitizer, shampoo, deodorant, sun screen, medicated lip balm with SPF 15, comb, first aid kit, cotton swabs, shower soap, gum, foot powder, ponytail holders, hard candy, current movie or music CD, devotional, travel Bible, Kool Aid, coffee, tea bags, hot cider, movie popcorn, protein bars, foot warmers, sunflower seeds, etc.) … add a note from your family and perhaps, your photograph and prayer for them …
• prepare a small gift box for each family member … include a note that says, “what I love about you …” (place the note that holds your special words inside the box as your gift to them …perhaps each family member could do this ... a family yearly Christmas tradition?)
• consider each family member receiving only three gifts … just as Jesus received …
• place sidewalk luminaries along your curb Christmas Eve (paper bags, sand, candles) … lighting the way to Bethlehem for the Holy Family … fill the bags Christmas Day while listening to (and singing!) Christmas music …
• give a surprise gift basket of wrapped treats to toll booth workers on Christmas Eve …
• go Christmas caroling as a family … in the neighborhood or in a nursing home …
• take Christmas treats to a business who must work on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day … the local gas service station, fire station, etc.
• enjoy the neighborhood Christmas lights in the car together with popcorn, hot chocolate and Christmas music … or bundle up and tour the neighborhood on a Christmas walk …
• create your own family Christmas pageant each Christmas Eve … children can dress as Mary, Joseph, a shepherd, an angel, the Three Wise Men … have a doll in a basket for Jesus with stuffed animals surrounding the manger … invite an adult or child to read the Christmas story from the Bible …
• leave a note for Santa … along with cookies and milk … and find Santa’s reply on Christmas
morning … fun to save these letters each year …
• complete your family Christmas Eve celebration with lighted candles while singing, “Silent Night”…
• buy matching socks to wear to bed Christmas Eve … (or matching pajamas!) …
• encourage all family members (except Mom and Dad who have the camera) to enter the “Christmas Tree room” with their eyes closed on Christmas morning … (have special Christmas music playing, candles lighted) … fun to compare the “entrance” pictures year after year (sometimes Santa leave a “sign” in front of each child’s gift so that everyone knows which gift is his/her “Santa” gift … or family members can leave the same name-labeled duffle bag each year for Santa’s special gift ) …
• share your favorite Christmas breakfast around the Christmas tree on Christmas morning (with Christmas music and candlelight)… perhaps a breakfast casserole, various fruits and yummy breads or rolls … wear jingle bell necklaces (from the Polar Express story!) …
• bake a birthday cake for Jesus … and sing “Happy Birthday” to Jesus …
• share your memories of the previous year while enjoying Christmas dinner together …
• write a note, as a family, and tuck it away in the boxes when you pack the Christmas
decorations ... speak of the events of the past year and your family prayers for the New Year … read your letter next year, together, when you re-open the Christmas decorations … reflect upon how God has answered your prayers during the past year … give thanks for His faithfulness …
Please leave YOUR ideas for making Christmas memories and traditions … you can leave your thoughts below as a “comment” … what do YOU do before Christmas, on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? … what are your special activities, menus, games, outings? … what are YOUR favorite childhood memories? Please share with us!
blessings as you and yours celebrate God’s Gift …
for life's moments, Karen
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3 comments:
What wonderful ideas for a truly special Christmas!!
Thank you for sharing! Momo
What wonderful, sweet thoughts and ideas. Thank you for sharing ! I can't wait to share some of these with my grandchildren.
Thanks for this wonderful list of things to do to celebrate Christmas!
One of our favorite traditions is something we call "Our Blessing Dinner".
We choose an evening to go shopping for our Angel Tree recipients and then after we buy Christmas gifts for those in need, we go as a family to dinner. While at dinner we have one rule: The only conversations we can have are about our blessings -- no run down of the day, no complaining -- nothing but blessings.
I have to admit, even though I suggested this to Brody on our first Christmas (it's our longest tradition!), I thought it would be silly.
However, we have always left those "Blessing Dinners" highter than any drug could promise and with absolutely full hearts.
We don't realize how conditioned we have become to complaining or focusing only on problems. This has been a wonderful way to "reset" my heart and realize just how much I have to be thankful for.
As I said, Brody and I started this tradition the first year we were married. It became an easy event to fold the kids into, as well. And when you tell your kids they may only speak blessings at dinner, you will reap an extra blessing of knowing more of their precious hearts.
It's my favorite Christmas tradition!
Love to you,
Julie
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