It’s the holiday season! I love how the holidays make us feel joy and warmth even when it’s cold outside. In our home we celebrate Christmas, and I’m so happy that our little family has some traditions already! I hope some of these inspire you to add one or more to your list!
1. Get a Christmas tree
We buy our Christmas tree after Thanksgiving, and we like to decorate it as a family. We always buy real trees, since we believe it’s more sustainable, and better for our environment.
2. Send Christmas cards to our loved ones
This year we got a little better at it. We took the photos earlier, and we were prepared to have our cards printed out and sent. We worked with Nations Photo Lab. We got the cards printed on bamboo paper. I’m really happy with them! I always like to leave them blank and personalize each of them! By the way, it’s not too late! You can still get some printed and send them as New Year’s good wishes (just as we did last year!).
3. Make ornaments
I enjoy making sustainable ornaments for our Christmas tree. We usually make dried orange ones, like we did this year. Click HERE to see my blog post with instructions to my method. Salt dough ornaments are also so fun for the little ones! It’s like making cookies, and they can later paint them when dry.
4. Write letters to Santa
Even if Robbie doesn’t know how to write or read yet, we always write a letter to Santa where we either draw or paste cutouts of a toy my son would like. I don’t know about you, but our sons just get one present from Santa. We put the cards in envelopes and set them on the Christmas tree for some days before “mailing” them to the North Pole!
5. Decorate a gingerbread house
We’ve decorated a little house two years in a row, and I love the idea of making it one of our traditions. They’re so much fun! Robbie did a lot this time, and I can’t wait for next year when Antonio can join in the fun without trying to stuff his mouth with all the candy. Take a look at how we built our most recent one HERE!
6. Set up our Nativity
We got a little Nativity set that has been my husband’s for years. We teach Robbie and Antonio about it while we set it up, and along the way.
7. Advent calendar
This year having an advent calendar is really a game changer. Robbie gets a clearer idea about how far Christmas is! Last year we used one with Mexican candy. This year I didn’t have time to go over that, so I put together one using one of our letter boards.
8. Do volunteer work
We try to volunteer each year towards something that would be helpful for our community. This year my husband is helping out with a coat drive for a local organization.
9. Make Holiday cookies or dessert
Every year we make some Christmas cookies, but this year I got a little bit more creative with my favorite dessert. I made sourdough cinnamon rolls, and turned them into cute little Rudolphs!
10. Drive-in cinema
Thanks to COVID-19 we’ve been able to add this activity as a tradition. In Chicago you can go to ChiTown Movies. We’ve loved the experience, and you can get a gift card for someone as a present, and even find great discounts through Groupon!
There are other little tings that we try to squeeze in during this season. We go on walks around the neighborhood to see Christmas lights and décor. We also check out Christmas books from the library in addition to the ones we own. When it’s too cold out there we get in the car and we drive to see the lights. We also play Christmas songs in Spanish or English. And of course, we watch some Christmas classics on weekends, too.
I hope my list inspires you to add some to your list of traditions. I also hope that if you were thinking about one already, that you feel motivated to add it!
I wish you all a very merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!
♡ Michelle | con limón, please
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Some of my blogger friends also posted some really neat Holiday ideas and traditions. Check them out!
Memorable Christmas Traditions to start with Toddlers by Surabhi
Christmas Joy: My Favorite Memories, Celebrating Jesus, and Santa by Amy
Christmas Traditions Old and New by Nicole
5 Easy Holiday Traditions You Can Add To Your List by Alexa
Celebrating Nochebuena by Kimberly
Christmas Traditions by Stephanie
Host a Gingerbread House Contest by Alex
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