Christmas traditions for teenagers

[SHAR0N]

Please help me find some fun things / traditions to do with my teenagers ( 15, 17, 19) at Christmas. Obviously they are way too old for Santa / elves.

I have just escaped a long and controlling marriage and I want to make this year much more fun for my teens. Their father was always very difficult and holidays / festivals were stressful as we all walked on eggshells around him.

So now we have freedom to do exactly what we want and my mind is a blank! Apart from all the usual things like decorating the house ( which I and DD love to do , the DS are less keen but will help out ).

They are all quite plain eaters so wouldn’t spend ages doing fancy cooking. But they all LOVE sweets and chocolate.

They like music and outdoor activities.

We don’t have a lot of family now as most were on their father’s side so they don’t see them anymore ( it’s not that I’ve stopped them, their fathers family don’t want to see them). So there’s not an option to have large family parties etc .

I’m only just rebuilding some of my own friendships after years of being isolated by my Ex so I don’t have a wide circle of friends and only a very small family. And of course Covid hasn’t helped.

So please give me some ideas . I just want to make nice for them.

Very small family here, me & DD14. One of our favourites is nothing fancy ( or original) but has become a must do - Die Hard movie. Smuggled on the sofa, popcorn, reciting favourite lines. Just love it & the fact it's our own special tradition.

I’ve just remembered, one year I had a Christmas colour in tablecloth. Teens spent the most time colouring in

Some brilliant ideas on this thread!

@TheShoeLady I love the Bob Ross paint along!

My 2 DC love a North Pole Breakfast. It's a tradition that started with the mischievous elves, but something that they both want to continue now that they are older.

What they love the most is the slower pace and spending time together - you are enough 💛

The thing I most enjoyed about being a teenager was when I got to have a say in what was being planned and my ideas did what I would like to do being taken seriously. In an ideal world, for me, it would start with a family meeting round the table to decide what we are going to do.

A walk around the local area to see the Christmas decorations followed by cocoa and Christmas biscuits was usually my pick of the favourite activities.

Go out for a walk in a green area, take secateurs or sharp scissors and collect small amounts of ivy, holly etc, and make into an Xmas wreath or decoration. The scavenging and searching can be good fun.
You can get wreath frames quite cheaply, or simply keep winding ivy etc around its self to make a big circle, small wire twists are handy but you can add it any old ribbons, baubles etc to pull together.
Going from outside into indoor comfort, hot choc /mulled wine ( can make v low alcohol or alcohol free) cookies etc while you make

I can relate to the freedom after walking on eggshells. I would say ask about what would make the day a treat, so staying in pj’s all day and eating on the couch under blankets OR putting on their fancied clothes and dancing to loud music OR staying up all night for a movie marathon. Whatever would have been impossible a year ago. I’ve done various versions of these. Dancing in the living room for hours was amazing, not caring about table setting or matching cutlery or who had spent the most.

That is such a good idea @TheShoeLady!

Die Hard, tub of chocolates, blankets

Outing to local stately home that decorates for Christmas and does food

I’m liking the colour-in tablecloth though, might try to find one

Great ideas how about asking them to each pick an activity e.g. movie and popcorn etc to give them a little control ? You mentioned you were out of a controlled environment and maybe letting them learn healthy experience would be a nice Christmas tradition. Sweets for breakfast, hot choc and a moment to mark your hard work getting where you are. Enjoy

These are such lovely ideas.

Having been in your position OP with 3 teens, the first year of Christmas AD ( after Dickhead) was so 'free' it was amazing.

We went to Midnight Mass at the local church. We are not religious but it was lovely. We walked home together in the cold and knew it would all be ok.

( The bloody teens then charged around the house till 3am as they were so excited. I went to bed and put their stockings on their beds at 8am! )

@TheShoeLady

We did a Bob Ross paint along on Christmas Day last year. Bought cheap canvases and little table top easels from Amazon and had a selection of acrylic paints and brushes already, but somewhere like The Works would have all of them pretty cheap. Then spent a couple of hours watching an episode on the iPad while painting along. They loved it and we all created a fab wintry scene.

Omg I LOVE this idea.

@SHAR0N We always used to go to the cinema as a family every Christmas Eve, until I was into my 20s. There will usually be a Christmas film on, or if not we just watched whatever :)

I’m a single parent of 2 teens, Christmas has been so much better since ex left 🤣. We keep thing pretty low key.

We start Christmas shopping in October half term with a trip away to a city (couple nights in a travel lodge), decorations go up first weekend of December, we usually go and see some Christmas lights either a national trust type place of Longleat. Christmas Eve we get a take away (usually dominoes) and watch a Christmas film together. Christmas morning is just me and the DC’s, posh breakfast and slowly open presents, then we visit family in the afternoon. Boxing day we go to to the coast and have fish and chips after a walk along the beach.

Hire a hot tub. I can't recommend this more highly. It is a fantastic treat.

Also Christmas bedding at the start of December to make the most of it.

I love all these ideas so much , especially the Bob Ross paint along . Coincidentally one of the kids is a big Bob Ross fan and we have paints already. I’ll look out for easels.

They all like home based stuff and I want to do new things so it marks a new start IYSWIM. They will see their father sometime over Christmas and he will go crazy spending a lot of money on gifts - because he has plenty and he will want to impress them. Since he left he’s seen then very little but he sends them pocket money.

I can’t and don’t want to “ compete” like this. I want it to be fun and love filled. And without the stress and drama of previous years.

Yes, we've had a colour in tablecloth for years, it's tatty now but we still get it out and do a bit. Mine also quite like getting the Hama beads out at Christmas. And we track Santa on Christmas Eve through the NORAD tracker. They deliver local Christmas cards for us too.

Well done for getting out OP. I had a similar environment growing up (my dad was also very violent), so I have spent a lot of time concentrating on Christmas traditions (my Mum would be regularly beaten up every Christmas Eve). I do lots of the above, Christmas Eve we have cheese board and soup - last year we all rated the cheeses and for some reason my 4 dc (9-14) though that Was the best memory We play board games Christmas Eve, go to the local square in the morning after presents have opened and meet neighbours for a glass of bubbly). We also have a secret Santa with a £5 limit between the 6 of us. Have been doing it since dc were very small. Also gingerbread houses - flying tiger usually have small ones. I love what Christmas has become at our house and I put a lot of effort into it as I was always unable to enjoy it - as you say, it was always like walking around on eggshells.

Off to google colour-in Christmas table cloth

I’m trying to remember where I got it @imip
Your Christmas sounds lovely. I’m so sorry for what you went through.

The paint along is genius!

What about a s'mores & games night/afternoon?
Gingerbread houses as others have said - doesn't have to houses though we made a huge castle last year
Indoor snowball fight? We use some wee fabric balls I made but you could make Pom poms from chunky yarn very quickly - it's so much fun!

My friends family used to have a game night on the evening , and a few weeks before it everyone would pull a name out and had to buy a full outfit for that person from the charity shop - as outrageous as possible for under £15 or £20 . Always seemed so fun

Ooh, the paint along looks brilliant! Added to the list of Christmas activities!

OP - you say they're not fussed about food, if you're not either then I'd do a buffet all together. Plenty of pigs in blankets etc but not necessarily a dinner (can't believe I'm suggesting no Xmas dinner but it seems appropriate here).

Games day - pick a couple of favourites and have nuts and chocolates out. We like ticket to ride.

We do "breakfast" for Christmas Eve dinner. Usually waffles/ pancakes with choose your own toppings. DC think it's really a treat and we usually just have small breakfast on Christmas Day itself to save room for Christmas dinner.

What about a Christmas walk at some point followed by hot chocolate/ mulled wine at the pub after if you want to get out of the house.

I imagine that no matter what you do, this Christmas will be amazing for your DC.

Also @SHAR0N your kids are the right age to realise that money and shiny presents are a different thing from love and attention. We make paper chains from the recycling, I pretend it’s boho chic but it looks exactly like we’ve strung up cardboard and old letters. I also cannot recommend a lie-in strongly enough. Everyone looks at me weird but none of us are up before 10 on Christmas Day.