These are the things I want to do this year:
1) Actually put up Christmas Lights (unlike last year)
2) Decorate my whole house
3) Bake presents for neighbors
4) Create family holiday recipes
5) Donate to a food drive
6) Pick a Christmas Angel to buy presents for
7) Get all our holiday shopping done BEFORE Christmas Eve (unlike the past 5 years Braden I have been together)
8) Play Christmas music all day long
9) learn how to play at least one Christmas song on the piano with my kids
10) Go Christmas Caroling (my favorite thing because I can't sing) & have hot chocolate
11) Do Secret 12 days of Christmas
12) Go to Midnight Mass
13) Watch the Grinch movies with the kids
14) Read them a Christmas book every night
15) Make an advent calendar for the kids to play
16) Write letters to Santa
17) Make Santa cookies
18) Make gingerbread houses & people
19) Watch The Nutcraker
20) Have a Sugar Plum Fairy Tea Party with the girls
21) Get a real Christmas tree & decorate it with the kids
22) Get mini trees for the kids rooms
23) Do Christmas pictures
24) Send out Christmas cards BEFORE Christmas (are you seeing a pattern?)
25) and last but not least, ENJOY the season this year instead of stressing and missing out on the spirit of the holidays.
Heidi Swapp said on one of the Webshows "Traditions are made by Participation and Enthusiasm" so get up and just do all the fun things you want to do and you'll create your own family traditions!
This year I started something really fun with Nugget (I know your kids will go bananas doing it...maybe) that is a twist on "writing letters to Santa". I made up a bunch of postcards addressed to Santa that I would write what he wanted and he had to draw a picture so Santa knew what it looks like when he packs his sack of goodies. Then I printed out a bunch of "stamps" on mailing labels that I cut out and he has to put on the postcard before putting it in the mailbox. The mailbox? A red tin mini mailbox from the dollar spot at Target from Valentines day. We keep all the postcards at Dylan height in a stocking so when something strikes his fancy, we can sit down and write one up.
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Such cute holiday traditions! I am going to steal some of them, because I want to make the best of the holiday season. Oh and if you want to go see the Nutcracker, hit me up... My parents can get you guys tickets :)
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