What family Christmas traditions do you do each year?

[MarineBlue33]

We have dc aged 4 and 9 and I want to add some traditions that are done each year.
So we do putting carrots and mince pies out still for Santa and his reindeer as one I can think of.
Would love to add more so hoping to get ideas here.

Children Xmas appeal in shopping centres. You choose a gift yourself and put it in the box to donate to a child for Christmas. Been doing this since I was a teenager and now I do it with dd6. It gives her a chance to think about those less fortunate than her.

Thanks, Stompy!! 😙

We buy our tree from the same farm every year. First weekend of Dec and decorate it to Christmas tunes. Kids give up halfway through. And I rearrange all the decorations after they go to bed. 🙊

We also go to the supermarket and do a small trolley of stuff for the Foodbank which we drop in the box by the front door. It's not supposed to sound sanctimonious. Just trying to teach the kids something more.

Just reading these is making me feel festive.
@MummyJ12 that ham with guineas sounds delicious

We have a Disney Christmas songs CD we listen to when we put the tree up. Stick it in the car too when we have a drive round town looking at everyone’s lights and decorations, take a tub of Quality Street with us

We buy christmas ornaments that record the year. So we buy one from anyplace we go on holidays. Skates for the year they learned to skate, a tiny piano the year ds started piano, a "we stayed home" ornament for last year. Decorating the tree is an absolute trip down memory lane for us.

So many lovely traditions. Mine include

New Xmas decoration every year
Mince pies and Xmas songs to decorate the house
Letter writing to Santa
Baking Xmas cookies
Lots of Xmas candles
New pjs on Xmas Eve
Xmas Eve box with new book, bath bomb, hot chocolate out of his Xmas mug
Quality street under the tree
Seafood sushi and fizz on Xmas Eve
Xmas quizzes and games on Boxing Day
Ham, chips and pickles on Boxing Day

@MarineBlue33

Just reading these is making me feel festive. *@MummyJ12* that ham with guineas sounds delicious

I’d recommend it! It smells and tastes amazing! I bake it, most of the time in the Guinness then the last half hour I take it out, stud it with the cloves and glaze it with some of the Guinness and brown sugar. Don’t tell my family I told you!

We do a Swedish Christmas dinner on the 24th, presents too now the children are teens, church on Christmas morning. Champagne and smoked salmon open faced sandwiches in the early afternoon to keep everyone happy while I cook. Then Christmas dinner at 6, with crackers first. We have turkey, stuffing, gravy, roast potatoes or mashed potatoes, carrots, sprouts, bread sauce and cranberry sauce and finally Christmas pudding with hard sauce. Very traditional!

We have a Christmas tree party, so every year when the tree goes up it's an event with party food, Christmas tunes and fizz.
We do new pjs, bath bombs and a new book on Christmas eve. I don't bother with a Christmas eve box just the pjs etc get laid on their beds.
We visit santa every year in the grotto in the shopping centre and go out for lunch.
We visit the Christmas Market at least once.
Panto in between Christmas and New year.
We have a Christmas eve hot tub party with festive drinks and snacks, candles etc. A steak dinner on Christmas eve too.
If we are at home on Xmas day we go for a walk in the woods.

Our traditions include:
A new decoration each year, the children pick one each and DP and I choose one.
A walk most evenings to look at the Christmas lights
The towns Christmas light switch on.
Visit to ‘Christmas street’ which is a street nearby that has the best Christmas lights, all of the houses join in and it’s so over the top but they donate all of the money to charity.
Santa visit
Christmas Eve box - new pjs, books, a teddy.
Leaving Santa, milk, cookie and a carrot for Rudolph.

I've remembered another tradition. Every year, after Christmas Dinner, an extra present appears magically under the Christmas tree addressed to the whole family (normally around the time I have to excuse myself for a quick trip to the loo). It is always a new board game, which we then can play together.