12 Family Traditions to Start This Christmas Season

I love the Christmas season. It is a season of giving, joy, and spending time with the people you love. It is a time of making memories and starting new and lasting family traditions.

To me, the very best thing about Christmas is reflecting on its true meaning. When you stop and think about it, the Savior of the world was born. Through Him we receive everlasting life. That alone is something to be overjoyed about.

Christmas Memories

I often think of years past and how awesome Christmas felt when I was a child. I remember walking through my neighborhood with friends, bundled up in our coats and scarves as we went caroling house to house.

Every year my family gathered together, and those memories remain with me even now. Christmas Eve always meant dinner at my grandparents’ home with all my aunts, uncles, and cousins. I remember snow on the ground and colorful lights decorating each home. Just thinking about it makes me long for those sweet, simple times.

After Christmas Eve dinner we attended church. Seeing the candles lit and hearing everyone sing Christmas hymns celebrating the birth of Jesus was so powerful to me as a little girl. The love that filled each pew is something I will never forget. Those memories are treasures, and I always wanted to give my own children the same warmth and sense of wonder.

There is something beautiful about family traditions. The ones I’ve carried with me are only a few of many, but they remain my favorites. If you're looking to start a few new traditions this year, I’ve written down 12 simple and meaningful ideas you may want to try.

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12 Family Traditions You Can Start This Christmas Season

Christmas Movie Night

Spend each night the week before Christmas watching your favorite Christmas movies. Make popcorn and hot chocolate, snuggle under a warm blanket, and simply enjoy being together.

Build a Ginger Bread House Together

My sons are 20 and 13, and we still build a gingerbread house every year. The best part is not the decorating, it’s the time spent together. You can find ginger bread kits almost everywhere.

Bake & Decorate Christmas Cookies

Every year my kids ask, “When is cookie baking day, Mom?”

We bake a variety of cookies every year, but sugar cookies are our favorite. Everyone sits down and decorates together.

(Click here for the recipes that I use for my cookies and icing.)

Buy a Special Stuffed Animal Each Year

Buying a special stuffed animal every Christmas is especially meaningful if you have a baby or toddler. Every year since their first Christmas, I’ve bought my kids a special stuffed animal - reindeer for my oldest, and bears for my youngest.

They proudly display their collection every December.

Here are the boys' stuffed animals - cozy on my shelves...

Yearly Christmas reindeer stuffed animals

Yearly Christmas bears stuffed animals

Decorate Your House Together

Kids may resist this, but giving each child a room or area to decorate makes it fun. Let them put their own personality into it!

Christmas Morning Breakfast

When my kids were younger, opening gifts Christmas morning was the first thing on the agenda. Now that they are older, the first thing we do is eat a nice breakfast. It’s the same menu every year. Breakfast casserole, bagels and fruit. The breakfast casserole is a family favorite and so easy to make. (Click here for my recipe.)

Buy a Yearly Ornament

Each year we buy an ornament that reflects something meaningful from that year. Decorating the tree becomes a walk down memory lane.

Use a Different Wrapping Paper for Each Family Member

It may sound silly, but my kids love this. Each family member gets a special wrapping paper theme, and they try to guess which one is theirs. It makes Christmas morning fun and personal.

Set Goals for the Upcoming Year

During the Christmas season my husband, my boys and I write down what we'd like to do during the upcoming year. We seal them in an envelope and on New Year’s Eve, we read our goals and plans and talk about what we met and what we learned.

(Click here if you'd like a copy of the form we use.)

Create a Blessing Jar

This is one of my personal favorites. Every time one of us feels blessed or thankful, we write the blessing down and put it in the blessing jar. On New Year’s Day we read each blessing out loud and thank God for the blessing that He gave to us. It is a great way to start the New Year with a grateful heart.

Buy Gifts for Children in Need

Teach kids the joy of giving. Many stores have Toys for Tots boxes, and local charities always need help. It’s a beautiful way to reflect the heart of Jesus.

Take a Christmas Vacation

You don’t have to travel every year, but sometimes a Christmas getaway is refreshing. Last year we spent Christmas in a cabin in the Tennessee mountains - just us, our boys, and our two dogs. It was peaceful, quiet, and so memorable.

Bonus Tradition: Read the Real Story of Christmas

Nothing is more important than remembering why we celebrate Christmas. The birth of Jesus is the greatest gift we have ever received.

Christmas Blessing

I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas filled with special Christmas family traditions. May your home be filled with joy, peace, and memories that last a lifetime.

Blessings,

Amy