Have we got a Christmas traditions thread yet?

[storminabuttercup]

I know I could read previous years ones but I want a shiny new one!

Christmas traditions here are elf on a shelf, started last year but DS didn't really 'get it'

He's 4 now so looking for new traditions.

What are yours?

Is new traditions an oxymoron?

Ok if we are being pedantic. I would like to hear about your traditions so I can try them with my family in the hope that they come tradition for us.

That better?

I don't get the elf on the shelf - it seems like too much mess to clear up the next day? Or have I missed the point??

I've just bought this having seen it on here.

Other things we do are:

Craft box stays out on the kitchen table and kids can help themselves and make whatever christmassy think they want to. Last year we made reindeer out of toilet rolls and sticks amongst other things.

Make our own christmas cards and then just post out however many we have, whenever they're ready.

Thanks for this thread. My Mum is not into Christmas - one mini tree and a Yule log and that was about it as a kid. Dd is 2.5 now so looking forward to building traditions in our family. Last year we made and sprinkled 'reindeer food' which she enjoyed, and had Christmas Eve pajamas.

Achey - our elf is very well behaved...

Like - Christmas starts getting good now, I hope you can give your child the Christmases that you missed! You are in the right place there will be lovely ideas

Getting in our own holly and ivy. The DC can come or not as they choose, and help (or not) put it up once we get it home.

What does your elf do Storm? Do the kids know it's not real?

I'll see how the letters go down this year and may get an elf next year.

I would love good craft ideas if anyone has any? Also does anyone have a traditional christmas eve meal?

My DC used to like to make home made paper chains, snow flakes, angels and stained glass windows. They are all very simple and easy for little ones to make.

We usually have roast gammon on Christmas Eve, to have cold gammon on Boxing Day.

Brilliant thread! We always put the tree up on the 1st (or as close to it as possible). Once the house is full of Christmas (tat) joy we watch our first Christmas film. We try and do a family activity every weekend and in December that involves making Christmas cards and other crafts and a visit to see santa. On Christmas eve we have our family hamper. Contents include Christmas jumpers (usually the same ones as last year) new pj's for us all, a Christmas film, a cookie mix (to make cookies for santa) some carrots (for rudolph) and tickets for an activity - this year it is for our local panto. Christmas eve night I always like to sit with a glass of red, Christmas lights twinkling away, Christmas music on, surrounded by a small pile of presents all ready for the next day. It us my favourite bit.

DH and I always watch Elf followed by Scrooged on Christmas Eve. This year is our first with our DD, she'll be 9.5 months at Christmas, so we're thinking about long term traditions for her

Oh I love our EOTS, he's a massive part of our Christmas. We have the North Pole breakfast on the 1st December. DC get a gift from him and I decorate the table, we have a Christmassy breakfast with snowman pancakes, reindeer candy corn, Christmas tree waffles, eggnog for us and pink milk with chocolate flutes for DC, Heston's popping candy, stollen 'snow bites', brownie Santa hats etc. It's a really exciting morning because DH and I put the tree and all the decorations up the night before so the DC come down and have such a wonderful surprise . EOTS also leaves them Christmas Eve hampers so he's a real good elf in our house, he doesn't make a particular mess or do anything awful.

We have a different activity to do every day. So Christmas crafts, movies, Christmassy days out, picking holly and Ivy and pine cones etc. I also bake something Christmas related every day. Crafts wise we have a 'holiday tree' which gets decorated for Chinese New Year, valentines, Easter, halloween, Christmas and becomes a wishing tree for New Years. So DC make hanging decorations for it, Pinterest is fab for ideas! Also do paper plate santas, handprint reindeers, salt dough tree decorations, paper snowflakes, popcorn garlands etc.

DH and I have a lovely evening together in December sipping eggnog and mulled wine wrapping the presents.

We watch a different Christmas movie every day between the 1st and 24th.

We all have Christmas duvets, DC have the Belle and Boo wall stickers behind their bed and we have fairy lights behind ours.

We all have Christmas jumpers we wear throughout December.

Christmas Eve is my absolute favourite . Breakfast is Santa Claus pancakes. DC watch frosty the snowman while I tidy up and finish off any bits that need doing in the morning. For lunch we have paella, salad and crusty bread. Then we bake a snowman cake and Santa's cookies! Then go for a family walk to the park. When we return EOTS has gone back to the North Pole and left the Christmas Eve hampers behind which they open and they're allowed a chocolate coin and to eat a tree chocolate. We light a candle carousel with a different candle for anyone we feels need it before dinner. Dinner is a huge buffet/tapas type thang- naice cheeses, veggie versions of deli meats, crackers, breadsticks, nuts, dried fruit, olives, homemade hummus selection, veggie sausage rolls and scotch eggs, coconut macaroons. We have the snowman cake we made earlier in the day too.
We watch polar express in our new pjs that were in the hamper with naice hot chocolate, cream, marshmallows and chocolate flutes. Afterwards we light paper lanterns up the drive way, watch NORAD for a bit, leave Santa his milk, the cookies we made him and some reindeer food out, read the night before Christmas the it's DC bedtime. DH and I eat booja booja icecream.

We have a lot of traditions we've built up over the years but that's the main ones I can remember for now... I can't wait!

Oh yeah and the DC have a lot of Christmas books to read throughout December, just remembered that one! And Christmas pjs is a part of their gifts from EOTS on the first!

Oh yeah and the DC have a lot of Christmas books to read throughout December, just remembered that one! And Christmas pjs is a part of their gifts from EOTS on the first!

Poolomoomon - happy sigh. I think I have found my Christmas kindred spirit!

Christmas Traditions evolve so yes, there are new ones arriving as some get discarded.

My DC will be 15 and 12.6 by Christmas.

We do a day out (this year we're going to the Harry Potter Experience. I love Hogwarts at Christmas. Many years ago we went to Alnwick Castle but we couldn't go into the Main Hall. So much is CGI anyway)

We have our Traditional £2 jar that we open and I cash up. We get 25% each and the only condition is , it must be spent on our shopping day.

DS bought a game for his X-Box and some points, DD bought clothes (usually the jar yields £200-£250 so we get £50-£60 each)

DD and I go to the ballet or similar (this year, The Little Matchgirl)

We dress up for dinner. We have dinner when it's dark with candles on the table. Then we sit down to Dr Who.

They have their Christmas Eve Hampers and Stockings, but the contents have changed over the years as they've got older.

We go out to a Toby Carvery in December (DS birthday, he chooses)

Loving all these!
Thank you Chottie for the crafts - I'd forgotten about stained glass ones - great idea!

Loki and Poo - I too can't get enough of Christmas eve - I just love it!!!!

A lot of ours have tailed off as DS has got older (he's 10 now) but others have evolved.
We still leave Father Christmas a mince pie and milk and a carrot for Rudolph, despite DS being "in the know" now.
We go out on Christmas Eve and mooch about town soaking up the atmosphere. Last year DS and I went ice skating but we may stop for a drink somewhere, drop in on friends or eat out.
We had a Christmas Eve hamper last year which was nice and I would like to do again this year.
Christmas Day always involves a trip to church and the pub (usually in that order!)
The dogs have Christmas bandanas they only wear when we go out to the pub over the Christmas Eve- Boxing Day period :)

Ooh lovely ideas

Yay a tradition thread. Posting on these is a tradition for me :o

We only really have 'new' traditions too, our DCs are young and neither of us had any good memories of our own childhood Christmases let alone traditions to continue! Everyone's got to start somewhere and thanks to MN I have loads of things to try out :)

Will be back later, I need cheering up today and this thread might do the trick!

When me and my siblings were children we spent Christmas Eve day time at our grandparents with my Dads side of the family. This changed 4 years ago and now me and one of my sisters alternate the day at our homes. Its nice to spoil my grandparents who always made Christmas Eve so magical and wonderful for us, it was always my favourite part of Christmas.

I'm making an advent calendar with supplies from local craft shop and putting activities in each draw. This is new: kids are 6 and almost 4. It will be filled with crafts, movie nights, books, a trip to Build a Bear for the Christmas teddies, a trip to Santa, ice skating on the local outdoor rink, and hoping that the council put on their huge snow globe for family photos.

We're doing Christmas Eve boxes for the first time too. DVD book pyjamas fluffy socks Disney mug naice hot chocolate naice biscuits.

I love these threads as most of my traditions have been stolen from Mumsnet!

On the 1st December our Elf on the Shelf arrives with new Christmas book and DVD, advent calendars, Christmas countdown ornament and dc's Christmas fleece blankets.

Try to do a Christmas activity every day - visiting Santa, making decorations, decorating tree etc.

Last year we made sweets for neighbours, dc put on their Santa hats and delivered them - that was really lovely and dd still talks about it.

On Christmas Eve we will get up, prep dinner and have a wee dance to some cheesy music. We will go out for a walk in the woods and on our return, the elf will have left dc's a hamper. There will be new pjs, bubble bath, toothbrushes, chocolate Santa and their Santa sack. We then put jars with battery tea lights out on the drive to guide Santa to the house. Dc's will leave out a drink and biscuit for Santa and we will read The Night Before Christmas - last year dd was so excited that she wouldn't let me finish as she had to go to sleep!

Then dh and I will put out presents, cover living room door with paper and make Santa footprints in the hall.

I think I get more excited than the dc's!

It's our second Christmas with our DD although the first she was only 5 weeks old so I'm loving reading your traditions. Would love to make some new traditions for our family! I love Christmas!!!!

I think I'm going to do the Christmas Eve hamper this year. Only problem being DS grows so quick I normally let him have the PJs when the tree goes up.
I'm thinking of things to keep him happy during the days as I'm prepping for a little gathering. Mighnt make cookies for Santa too as he's been asking to bake gingerbread men.