Stephanie Christmas Traditions
Christmas is a special time of year that we spend with our families whether you believe in Jesus, Santa or anything else. It is a joyous time to celebrate and create lasting memories. Every family has their own unique set of family traditions and today I am sharing some of ours. Growing up, leading up to Christmas was advent and Christmas is the birth of Jesus. We attended Christmas Eve mass and either before or afterwards we remembered those that have passed. Whether that be looking around the Veteran Grave Markers for the Cemetery or elsewhere Christmas is the time family.
My husbands family celebrated Christmas Eve with a big family gathering and present exchange then on Christmas day just their own family for Santa gifts.
There was no Elf on the shelf, no Christmas Eve packages, and no countdowns to Christmas, etc. When we got married and had kids we decided to continue going to Christmas Eve mass and gifting the kids a Christmas Eve package of matching pjs and socks or slippers. We have since added in a countdown to Christmas which brings fun crafts and yearly activities into our home. I’ll share a few of our favorites below and links to what we have done. The kids still believe and love the idea of Santa which we continue so we put out cookies for him on Christmas Eve before they go to sleep. I love that we combined our families traditions and have incorporated new ones of our own. Continue reading below to see all the details!
Christmas Eve Package
Every year I put together a Christmas Eve package of matching pajamas and socks or slippers. The kids have loved getting new pjs and slippers every year especially since they wear them all year round and outgrow them! They also look forward to opening/receiving a gift on Christmas Eve after mass. I also love watching them wake up Christmas morning in their matching pjs and socks or slippers to open presents too! This year I added in some holiday mugs for the older kids to enjoy hot cocoa. Check out the photos of the sets and mugs that I got and below are links to where I got them . . . . .
Family PJs, Slippers & Mug
Adult PJs, Slippers & Mug
Holiday Mugs
Target
Flannel Pjs & Holiday Mugs – This flannel PJ set looked cozy and these festive holiday mugs were too cute to pass up. I love the seasonal mugs they put out each year and was able to get all the sizes in one place this year!
Walmart
Matching Slippers – This year I was able to find all the sizes (which is no easy task) in one place! The slippers had the cute Mama, Papa, Lil and Baby bear print on them too.
Amazon
My favorite online one stop shop! You can find all similar items here online if you are not near a retailer.
Christmas Countdown
Every year I put together a Christmas countdown. While the kids were smaller there were simpler crafts and more activities. As they’ve grown, we’ve kept a few staple items and added others that they have requested. You can print a FREE copy by clicking below!
Santa Cookies and Santa Letter
Another fun tradition for my kids has to write letters to Santa full of wishes and notes on how they have been good the past year. They love to bake and put out cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve before going to sleep. You can print a FREE copy of the one I have made this year by clicking below!
diy Christmas Ornaments
Check out my previous blog post for 5 easy DIY Christmas ornaments you can make! Every year my kids look forward to making a set of Christmas ornaments. This year with all of household goods in storage, we made a large batch of salt dough to cut out with cookie cutters and added twine with wooden beads for a budget friendly neutral look.
Gingerbread Houses
Another fun activity that we do each year is gingerbread cookies and houses. The cookies we bake from scratch and the gingerbread houses I prefer to pick up kits. Over the years they have been from all different places such as Target, Ikea, or Trader Joes.
Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas! Check out more holiday ideas and traditions below from some of my friends….
I especially enjoy the Christmas Eve presents are so memorable.
I love the idea! I didn’t do it this year because I needed those Christmas jammies before the holiday. Maybe next year! Happy holidays!
Wow here are some fun activity ideas. Loved the Gingerbread house activity.
Yes to your Christmas Eve package! Those came out adorable!!
I love that you and your husband combined traditions and then added your own! That’s a great relationship and marriage. Also, love the pjs and slippers! Definitely adding that to our traditions for next year. ❤
These are all so great! I love the christmas eve packages, that seems like a popular thing. i’m definitely going to have to try that next year. Also love the advent day of activities, definitely will be incorporating that next year! My daughter will love it, good way to keep her occupied.
I love those slippers! Super cute 😀