The Little Touches that make your Christmas..

[FusionChefGeoff]

Not necessarily traditions but what are the very personal, thoughtful little extras for you at Christmas??

I've got some time off before the kids break up and would like to use it making this a Christmas that skips from beautiful moment to beautiful moment!!

I've already caved on Elf in the Shelf for the first time so that should bring joy

Kids and I will do create your own crackers with personalised gifts for each person (all ideas welcome)

We have gingerbread houses to build.

I have a bowl of Qualify Street by the door and from today anyone who delivers anything will be offered one. Will also have mince pies to hand out to visitors / anyone who stays a bit longer of course!

I have a Christmas Tea.

I'm having a go at making a wreath and a table centre using fresh foliage.

Any other ideas for those little bits of magic??

I thought of a couple more I've already got / sorted:

Christmas plates and cups for kids
J20 as 'special' Xmas drinks for kids

Our dinner is pretty normal and kept as low maintenance as possible but anything I could do to jazz it up somehow in advance would be good.

Cupcakes
Thank you notes
Smiles

Love the quality street for the deliveries.

We have a fabric advent calendar and mix it up with some chocolates and some activities such as visit Santa, make gingerbread men/mince pies, Christmas crafts, post letter to Santa, go for a walk/drive to see the Christmas lights etc.

We dried orange slices to make a garland, and also studded whole oranges with cloves. I don't know how old your children are but mine are young enough to play with a dolls house so I've got some festive dolls house decorations to give throughout advent - we made a tiny dolls wreath yesterday and I've got a little Christmas tree and some festive food for them. We're going to a panto and a Christmas play and we've been to wander around a few Christmas markets. We have a tradition of choosing a new decoration each year. I also have plans to try and make paperchains and Christmas cards. Lots of hot chocolate and mulled apple juice of course. I love Christmas!

@ByGrabtharsHammerWhatASavings ooooh DD has a dolls house so could combine that with an Elf moment if he visits and brings them a tree!!!

Making a bit 'more' out of activities is a good idea as we've got stuff booked / on a mental list... hmm I've kept an old beauty calendar with draws in I wonder if I've got 24 ideas in me!!!!!!!

I splurge on special wrapping paper for the presents from Santa and those ribbon, bow and bell kits so that the santa presents are really special :) Each child gets their own special design.

I'm going for paper chase this year and then I will wrap the stocking fillers in a mix of the fancy paper and colour matched tissue paper. I can't wait!!

Oh and of course the crafts and baking. My boy loves any kind of play dough so will make salt dough decorations, they both love baking but are a bit young so I have plans for simple but fun bake and decorate activities, I've told my youngest we will make a paper fireplace scene this year in the upstairs hallway and I'm very excited about that! I've also seen a recipe this year (on these threads) for mouldable fake snow which we will have a go at.

I have such fond nostalgic memories of Christmas crafts made at school and I really want to bring that home to my kids too. Apart from the planned fun my DC also love helping with the work based stuff, getting the house clean for Father Christmas, putting up the decorations etc.

I'm painfully excited now, I just can't wait to start tomorrow!

North Pole breakfast (Asda Christmas crumpets, Christmas jam and Sainsbury’s mince pie wheats)
Christmassy scented candle and toiletries
Sleep next to the Christmas tree (we do this the first night the dc break up from school)
Make gingerbread s’mores

My DC are 22 and 19 .
DD loves Christmas but I have to say DS is a bit Bah Humbug about it all (the little toad)

I have just put the Christmas shower curtain up, the Christmas looroll , the Christmas hand towels .
Christmas straws in the glass dispenser .

Their Dec 1st Hampers are ready to go in their rooms tomorrow ( I can do it steathily , they're still asleep when I leave for work)

We usually go for a Toby Carvery for DS birthday but they're a bit meh now . So a Big Breakfast out one morning instead .

Chocolate crispy cakes -with some sprinkles on them
Chocolate chip cookies
Nothing too fangled - I've made cupcakes in the past and we don't ever eat them

Track Santa

www.noradsanta.org/en-US/index.html#

Pantomime one day.
If you live near the sea they often have fancy dress swims around Christmas.
National trust visit to see the houses dressed up.
Christmas Parkrun.

One year we did the "bedtime book advent calendar" - wrap up 24 favourite bedtime books in Christmas wrapping paper, put a sticker with a number on each and mix them up in a special box.

Every night at bedtime one gets unwrapped and read then back on the bookshelf with it. Any Christmas books you happen to own put in an appearance as you get closer to Christmas. The Night Before Christmas (which I always read on Christmas Eve anyway) was number 24.

Only got the idea for this (from Mumsnet) when youngest DC was only just still young enough to appreciate it. I wish I had done it years before. Mind you it uses a huge amount of wrapping paper.

DS lifts DD to put the star on the tree. He is very tall and she is nowhere as small as she used to be!

Santa gifts are always in special paper and match stockings.

Tree presents are wrapped and tied with velvet ribbons.

Fresh foliage and flowers are a must.

Jeez 'one beautiful moment to beautiful moment'! I think you are going to exhaust yourself!
I love Christmas. The special moments I remember from childhood were the annual visit to a department store which had a cute animatronic village you walked through, and going off just me with my dad to find just the right tree. Driving around the Common to see all the trees adorned with lights. Christmas Mass. But most special moments weren't planned.
Just having us altogether with a joint activity all day - that was special. One year it was the unexpected and resounding success of Pictionary, which brought together a diverse collection of guests and family. Dad not getting called in to hospital (he was a doctor) was always a bonus.
Don't put too much pressure in yourself - you don't want the overriding memory of the season being you getting stressed and worked up in pursuit of the perfect Christmas.