What fun traditions are you starting with your LO(s) on Christmas?

yourmysunshine · December 2011

We'll let DS open one present on Christmas Eve (Christmas PJ's), put out cookies for santa, and put out reindeer food. We'll read Christmas stories leading up to Christmas Day. We will give him a big gift from Santa, already put together and sitting out when he gets up Christmas Morning.

What all are you doing?

DTNZ4Ever · December 2011

We are doing Elf on the Shelf. On Xmas eve the elf writes DS a message saying goodbye and see you next year. Reindeer food. We read and watch movies about Xmas all through the month. DS gets an annual ornament. Every Xmas morning we do a family pic in front of the tree. We started doing a pj Christmas with my parents. It is typically on eve but this year it is on the day.

ryry1977 · December 2011

We put up our tree very early (my birthday/Nov 8th)....my guilty pleasure.

St Nicks night the kids put out their stockings with a list of what they are wanting that year. St Nick comes and takes the list and leaves wrapped presents in the stockings. These are small and usually Christmas items like Christmas DVS, Christmas socks/undies, small toys, ect. Also our elf on the shelf 'Peanut' arrives.

On Christmas Eve at 6pm we open all the presents under the tree (from us and my parents/family). This is an old German tradition that my moms family has followed and we will continue it. We leave cookies and a beer out for Santa before bedtime.

Christmas morning Santa leaves wrapped piles of presents around the room. One pile for each child. He places their stocking on or leaning on the pile, also filled with wrapped small presents and candies. Dad and Mom get a stocking full of gifts as well...but that is all. Santa usually goes overboard. DS is getting way too much this year. Good thing next year he will have a sister for Santa to also shop for!

Our tree comes down on the 12th day off Christmas, Jan 6th.

k.linn · December 2011

We do Christopher Pop-in-Kins (Elf on the shelf variation), put out milk and cookies and carrots for the reindeer, get new Christmas PJs on Christmas Eve, and buy an ornament for her each year and a family ornament (kiddos will take their ornaments with them when they move out). We also go on a carriage ride through a local park that has a huge light display, and a fancy dinner with the grandparents the week before. (I was nervous about that last one, but it's been a family tradition forever, and DD did SO awesome this year and was really well-behaved throughout the whole meal, so we'll try to keep it up!)

PandaMom06 · December 2011

Tonight DD and I are making cookies for Santa. We also let her open one present on Christmas Eve. Wake up early on Christmas and open the rest! Then off to the In-Laws like normal.

StatlerWaldorf · December 2011

We are doing the one present (pjs) thing too. We made cookies for Santa. We went caroling in a Christmas village thing. DD was too young to sing for the most part, but she had a blast using a tambourine. We drove around to look at Christmas lights. I wanted to go to the lights at the zoo, but DD got sick on the day we were going to go.

dragon_chica · December 2011

Ever since DD was 3 mos we took her to Christmas in the Park in our city. I grew up going to Christmas in the Park so I wanted to share this with her and now with DS. Every year we've taken a photo in front of the same display and have been placing the photos in a 5-picture frame. Other traditions I want to start maybe next year when she's older is reading "Elf on the Shelf" and baking more with her. We tried gingerbread men this year so maybe that'll be our tradition. Next year I'll go further than that and have her decorate the gingerbread men.

brownmouse · December 2011

We have a lot of Christmas tradition between both our family's(DH is Jewish, but they celebrated Christmas too) so it was a bit of a compromise taking some of each and blending it into our own.

We put the tree up the day after Thanksgiving, and decorate it and the house with all of my Christmas decor(the tree has all coordinating type ornaments). DH's family always got the tree and decorated Christmas Eve, so we compromised, in I could have the tree and the matchy ornaments all month, but Christmas Eve, we put all the family ornaments on (And then the tree looks like a box of crayons barfed on it. Haha!)

We always go see Christmas lights at the zoo and around town a few days before, and drink hot cocoa in the car.

Christmas Eve we see Santa downtown(like the mall santa), and get a picture. After nap time, we bake cookies for Santa, and later we order Pizza and put all the family ornaments on the tree. Growing up, we always had gifts from family under the tree all month, and got to pick one to open Christmas Eve. This bothered DH, so we put one gift for each of us(always new jammies even for DH and I) under the tree and open them on Christmas Eve. We put on our new jammies, sit with hot cocoa and watch the 70's claymation Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Then we out out cookies and Milk(though I like that someone said a beer, even Santa deserves a beer!),carrots for the reindeer, and donuts for the elves(decorated cheerios) and head to bed.

After the kiddo is in bed, we put out all the presents we got her, along with Santa's in a velvet "Santa Bag" in the fireplace, and fill her stocking with lots of fun little things. DH wants to wrap the stocking stuffers, but we're not doing that this year. DH and I get each other one or two small things for our stockings, but nothing fancy.

In the morning,we'll wake her up(or she'll wake us up) and we'll all go out together and see what Santa brought. I plan to have the camera all set up right where the hallway leads into the living room so I can get good shots of her first reaction, since this is the first year she 'gets' Santa.

We open ONE present(Usually the biggest/Best one) and our stockings, and then we have breakfast. This year we're doing a stack of green pancakes from bigger to smaller making a Christmas tree. Another idea are red-velvet pancakes. Then after coffee and breakfast we open the rest of the presents.

Then we always take the dogs to the dog park because they deserve a Christmas treat too.

ashleybrynne32 · December 2011

Elf on the shelf

Every year on Dec 1, we bring out her "Christmas blanket" to sleep with until the big day... Even at two she recognizes it.

We take her on a Christmas hayride to see the lights/ Santa which we want to continue!

Vegas928 · December 2011

Elf on the Shelf, for sure. He wakes up every morning saying "Maple? Maple, are you?" (his way of saying "where are you") and searches for him. (Maple is our Elf's name) I like the idea of writing a letter from the Elf on the last night, so I wrote one today and will leave it tonight.. along with the new pajamas that are from Maple.

We go look at lights multiple times in the weeks before Christmas, and right before DS goes to bed on Christmas Eve, while listening to Christmas music of course.

Disneygeek77 · December 2011

We also do the Elf on a Shelf. DD named her's JingleBelle Rock and we told her that if she is a good girl, Santa will give Jinglebelle Rock a candy to put in the advent calendar. So every day when DH gets home he takes her to the advent calendar too get her candy.

Several nights we drive around and look at lights. There are a few cool ones around here that are synchronized to music.

We see Santa at BAss Pro Shops since they give out a free picture and have a wonderful Christmas Village display.

My SIL sends the kids about three letters from Santa with official looking paper and envelopes

On Christmas Eve we read "Twas the Night before Christmas" and then we set out milk and cookies for Santa and then we throw out carrots and oats in the front yard for the reindeer.

Christmas morning we read the nativity story and open our gifts. Santa stuffs our stockings and gives one big gift. That gift is wrapped in special wrapping paper that looks kinda like the wrapping paper in Polar Express.

For breakfast we eat Ebelschivers ( danish pancakes) and bacon.

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What fun traditions are you starting with your LO(s) on Christmas?

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