My husband and I talk a lot about the type of family culture we want to have in our home. A strong family culture often has meaningful traditions that your family takes part in year after year. If you have a family with young kids, here are 25 family Christmas traditions to choose from this holiday season!
This post may contain affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission when you click on the links at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products that I would use myself and hope that these resources are beneficial to you.
1. Decorate Gingerbread Houses: Fun Family Christmas Traditions
This is a tradition that we have enjoyed every year since my kids were born! Trader Joe’s has some cute, affordable gingerbread houses. If you don’t live close to a Trader Joe’s, most grocery stores carry them or you can order one online HERE.
2. Watch a Holiday Movie
Do you have a favorite Christmas movie? Perhaps make it a tradition to watch it or a new one each year! Make it extra special with cozy jammies, hot cocoa, and some of the cookies from your bake day!
3. Simplify Gift Giving with Four Gift Categories
In a society that often pushes more, more, more—opt for less with high-quality, thoughtful gifts. In our family, we each get something we want, something we need, something to wear, and something to read. We also do stockings with some smaller wants and needs! We also open our books on Christmas Eve and spend some time reading together as a family!
4. Use Daily Advent Cards: Meaningful Family Christmas Tradition
Last year, I purchased these advent cards. Each card has a Bible verse and tells the story of Advent and the events leading up to the birth of Christ. This year, we are planning on making these cards a part of our daily routine. I’m planning on also using this Advent book for families and having my kids color these special Advent ornaments.
Read this post to get more ideas for how to celebrate Advent with young children.
5. Attend a Christmas Eve Service
Every year, we attend a Christmas Eve service as a family. Last year, we went to the church I grew up in and got to attend the service with my grandparents, parents, aunts, and uncles. It was so special to celebrate the birth of Christ with my family. I loved singing Christmas hymns and carols, and my children loved holding and lighting the candles to celebrate.
Read this post for some sustainable Christmas Eve outfit ideas!
6. Visit a Christmas Tree Farm
There is nothing quite like a real Christmas tree. The smell, the feel, the experience. We used to get our tree from local hardware stores, but we recently started going to the Christmas tree farm that I went to as a kid.
Last year, we rode out to the tree lot on a tractor with my family and my parents and picked out a tree for our family. My husband sawed it down, and we decorated it at home later that evening.
7. Make Homemade Ornaments
There are so many DIY ornaments that you can make that are both affordable and sustainable! Salt dough ornaments, cranberry and popcorn garland, gingerbread ornaments. You could also make simple candy cane ornaments for a nostalgic touch. The list goes on and on!
8. Bake Cookies as a Family Christmas Tradition
Growing up, my grandma hosted a bake day every year, right after Thanksgiving. She had the tradition of making many of the same cookies and treats year after year. Try starting your own bake day! Maybe start with one to two treats and add some more in the years to come! Here are some cute Christmas cookie cutters to try.
9. Christmas Crafts
Last year, we hosted Christmas for my husband’s side of the family. My mother-in-law and I planned out some Christmas crafts for the kids. We went to Hobby Lobby and chose some simple crafts for the kids. My favorite, that I also did as a child, was making candy cane ornaments for the tree like THESE! We also make salt dough ornaments every year as a family.
10. Cookies to Neighbors
One way to spread holiday cheer is to bake cookies and deliver them to your neighbors or at a local hospital or nursing home! I recommend wrapping them up in little bags like this.
11. Look at Christmas Lights
As a kid, we used to drive around and look at Christmas lights while listening to Christmas carols. It is one of my favorite childhood memories! Now, we go to see the lights at a local botanical garden. It’s magical!
12. Wear Christmas Jammies
It’s nice to get new pajamas, and it sure is fun getting to open them on Christmas Eve! You could purchase Christmas jammies, versatile loungewear, or make your own!
This company has adorable, sustainable pajamas for the whole family!
Check out these easy pajama sewing patterns from Lowland Kids!
I wrote an article about how to sew Christmas pajamas for kids in this year’s edition of The Hillside Magazine: Handmade Holiday Gifts. This is a digital and print magazine that has over 100 pages packed with handmade holiday gifts to make for your loved ones this year! It’s available for purchase HERE from Dec. 1-13, 2023.
13. Christmas Library Book Haul
I read about this idea online and want to try it this year! Take your kids to pick out a collection of Christmas and winter holiday books. Cozy up with them at home or read them throughout the month of December!
Here is a book list of some Christmas books that children will love!
14. New Ornament for Your Kids Each Year
We started this when my son was born. Each year, we get a new ornament for our kids. When they were babies, we chose them, but now we allow them to pick their own! You could put them on your big tree or perhaps have a smaller tree for the kids like this one!
15. Serve a Special Dinner
If you have young children, hosting a big Christmas party might be a big undertaking. Instead, you could cook a special Christmas meal for your family and perhaps invite a few family members or close friends. Perhaps start the tradition of cooking a turkey, ham, or a family favorite dish!
16. Give Gifts to a Charity: Meaningful Family Christmas Traditions
Our local church partners with a foster care organization. We purchase gifts for an individual child each year. You could have your kids help shop for another child through a program such as this one or Angel Tree.
17. Make Reindeer Food and Look for Santa’s Sleigh
I used to do this tradition with my grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. As a kid, we made reindeer food out of sparkly sprinkles and oats. We sprinkled it on the lawn along with carrots and then drove around with our grandparents to look for Santa. When we came back, there were presents under the tree, the oats were gone, and the carrots had bites taken out of them! Whether you celebrate Santa or not, this is a fun tradition and the kids are sure to love it!
18. Use an Advent Calendar
Children love advent calendars to countdown to Christmas! You could purchase one like this that already has gifts inside, or you could buy a reusable one and fill it with little gifts yourself!
19. Ice Skating Date Night
There is something so magical about ice skating at Christmastime! If you have a local outdoor rink, it’s even more magical! This can be a little tricky with super young kids, but it does make for a romantic holiday date night!
20. Dance to Holiday Music
Turn up some holiday tunes and have a Christmas dance party! My kids absolutely love this tradition while we set up the Christmas tree. You’ll sure have some good laughs and make some special memories! You could even make your own playlist and add to it each year.
21. Play I Spy with Ornaments on the Christmas Tree
If you have toddlers or preschoolers, they may enjoy playing eye spy with the Christmas tree! It is a simple yet meaningful family Christmas tradition to try!
22. Christmas Tree Campout
Once you set up your Christmas tree, choose a night to have a campout in the living room! You could even combine this with the Christmas movie light. The kids are sure to love the magical atmosphere that comes from the twinkling lights.
23. Give Sibling Gifts for your Family Christmas Traditions
If you have multiple kids, you could give them a small allowance to purchase gifts for their siblings or encourage them to make their own! This is a special way to encourage sibling relationships in a positive way!
24. Christmas Pickle Tradition
This is a German-American Christmas tradition that my family has celebrated for generations. We hang a pickle ornament (nope, not a real one!) on the tree. The first person to find it gets to open the first present!
25. Countdown to Christmas Paper Chain
This is a simple activity that works on fine motor skills and that kids love! Simply cut strips of paper 1 inch wide by eight inches long. You could use traditional Christmas colors, patterned paper, or make it your own! Make the chain 25 links, and cut one off each day as you count down to Christmas!
Make Your Own Family Christmas Traditions
Do you do any of these family Christmas traditions? Are there any you would add to the list? Let me know in the comments below!
Leave a Reply