Christmas Question.....

Starting the day after Thanksgiving, we unwrap and read a Christmas book. I collected them over the years from yard sales and clearance sales. We also usually get together with my sister to make ornaments. I also buy each of my girls an ornament. When they move out, they'll have a nice collection of ornaments for their own tree.

Get some Christmas craft kits at Hobby Lobby or Micheals to decorate the tree and house; a different craft each day.

I am not in your area but here are the things we do with our kids and now with kids / and grandkids

Starting before halloween
string the lights on the house and bushes before it gets cold outside.

on thanksgiving night we put the tree up and lights on
we go thru the sale papers and decide whether or not anything in the black friday sales are worth getting up at 4 or 5 am. (usually yes lol)
we make our plan of attack shopping wise.

friday morning we do the shopping and then gather to meet for breakfast at a local place. (my kids are all old enough to drive now so that part is easier as we all shop at the different stores in order to get the best deals)
after breakfast we all take a nap lol.

friday night we decorate the tree and watch a christmas movie

Saturday we do the rest of the holiday decorating throughout the house.
Get a calendar and make a list of the holiday movies you want to watch and designate a night each week to watch one. (we let the kids take turns picking them when they were little)

sunday we make gingerbread houses. this started out as one house we all worked on. as the kids got older we started putting 2 people to a house. we now have me and hubby, 4 kids (3 of them with spouses or significant others) and 3 grandchildren. it takes a couple of folding tables, a bottle of floor cleaner and a lot of extra frosting and candy lol. but it is one of the most fun nights of the year for us. we clear off the buffet and display then till new years. one year my side wall fell and it was dubbed the garage as a kid put a matchbox car up to it lol. last year my daughter bought the kids a tree made out of ginger bread to decorate.

we always go sledding, we always go to church to see the kids christmas pagent. midnight mass is a must. we let the kids help to pick the meals.
don't try to wrap daily it will make you nuts. find a place to hide stuff and do the wrapping all at once. that way you can see what you have purchased. if you wrap it you will forget it.

we always go to at least one local program at the theater. it is sometimes into chicago for a big show (we saw joseph and the technicolor dreamcoat 3 years in a row) we saw les mis, phantom of the opera and wicked. but just as much fun for the kids was a christmas carol, the nutcracker and the last 2 years in a row hubby took them to see the trans siberian orchestra. I went the first year but hated it so he went the next year with them without me.

when the kids were little we always went out to dinner on new years eve and then a movie as they got older we continued the tradition till they were dating.

then we did game night. our kids for the most part bring home the date and we played games and had snacks. best new years of my life happened when my boys were 17 and 18. I was in the middle of chemo for breast cancer. they got the food for snacks and got the movies and brought friends home. they stayed and watched movies and we celebrated just like always in the midst of my own nightmare. I drifted in and out but they woke me at midnight and they all stayed over. the next morning we have breakfast and then later a big meal.

your holidays can be as filled as you want but what really matters is the love your children will feel coming from you. good luck

Going out to look at Christmas lights and have hot chocolate; if there's ice skating nearby (some places have that just for the holidays); go see Santa and make a day of it! You could add a charitable component and spend one day near the holidays helping out at a homeless shelter or putting together donation gifts for Toys for Tots or local kids/people in need. We are still "trying on our traditions." We've had a lot of changes over the last few years with my mom dying, etc., so we're still trying to figure out how we want to do things. Our kids are really young -almost 2 and 4, and I think we've finally narrowed it to this:

Sunday before Christmas -get together with the family we used to spend Christmas with, but through death, marriages, etc. we don't anymore, so -see them then.

Christmas Eve -go to service at church and go look at lights in neighborhoods (we usually stake them out ahead of time) on the way home. Come home and open some gifts by the tree while eating homemade pizzas or hors d'ouvres and Christmas cookies, Mexican Christmas food or seafood.

Christmas Day --get up for Santa, stockings and gifts; hang out watching the kids play and have brunch. Sometimes different family members drop by in the afternoon. My husband and I started a tradition (actually one I had from my single days) of going out on our own Christmas night. Not sure if that will happen this year, but I would like to start taking the boys to a Christmas movie that's out in the late afternoon/evening on Christmas Day.

***One tradition I can't wait to start --my aunt did this with her boys -every year, they would get a new 1000 + piece jigsaw puzzle, and on Christmas Day when things died down a little, they would start putting it together and work on it all during Christmas break from school.

I host a little toddler christmas party where we make crafts, read books, and have cookie decorating. It is super fun and the kids and parents really look forward to it. It can get pricey (I have a tendency to go overboard) but you could do it for any price range really, just plan carefully. You could even just do some things on your own with your kids. Oriental Trading Co has tons of cheap crafts that are really cute. Also, look for other community activities and figure out what you can make a yearly tradition. I'm sure there will be a ton of Santa's breakfasts, etc. in your area. I don't know if you buy a real tree or not, actually I don't know about how real trees would work in TX at all actually, ;) but if you do that's always a fun tradition to do that and decorate it and drink cocoa.

We like to go Christmas light looking.
Also, last year I got together with a group of friends and organized adopting another family for the holidays. We all got a few things, or gave money, and were able to give them a really great Christmas.
I also love to bake....YEAH CHRISTMAS COOKIES....
Up here we have a "Christmas Lane" that happens at our mall. They have "toy soldiers" that drum out Christmas music and fake snow that falls at the end. My boys love it.
L.

Hello D.,
Christmas has always been a big deal for me. We didn't do much about Santa except teach the children about his giving heart and spirit. We actually have put up 10 trees each with a different theme in the past years( each child has thier own small tree) and each child has there own Nativity set, plus now I have collected enough that each grandchild will get one as well when they go out on thier own. But got to admit this year we are only going to put a few tress up -the one with the beanie babies is the one the little ones like best - they decorate it and redecorate sometimes it several times a day!! We make a big thing of each night reading about trditions from other countries . We have made sure to look at pictures of past holidays as many of our family members have passed away and talk about them. We go to te cemetary and decorate the family sites and my children take a gift of cookies to the gardeners there. We have the best fun with doing the 12 days before Christmas for a family. We try and get a name of someone we don't know that is having a hard time, from friends. We put together a big box of some silly things, some needed items, and a disposable camera and money to have pic. developed with an album to record things for themselves. We wrap each item and then either deliver it our selves or have the person who told us make sure they get it. Then each day they can open one item and haveit to look forward to. This started when a family did it for us by leaving a big turkey with all the things needed for a meal and rang the doorbell and ran off, then when my husband was seriously ill someone mailed us money, we never knew who it was from so it was a way to express gradtitude to everyone just incase it was them. Now that my children are mostly on their own the younger child and grandchildren come help me get all the decorations for thier yard and relly do it up and put a nativity out for them. My son just reminded me of the thing that the family did with dad andthey still do to honor him. They picked one night to put together any thing that needed puttogether and he taught them how to doit, they watched John Wayne movies all day and night. It made for specail time and now they can put together anything!
Hope that at least one item will help you and Merry Christmas.

My dad always took us around to look at Christmas lights and I have done it with my kids to pass it on. I also buy the kids a new pair of pj's and we stay in them all day on Christmas the past two years we have stayed home but I had to compromise with my hubby and going to his family but we will still go in our pj's. I also made a Christmas count down ring and each ring had a different thing to do example help mom with a chore, sing a christams carol, make a christmas card for someone, make cookies etc. I also buy them a new ornament each year and just put it up so when they are grown up and have a family they have ornaments to start there Christmas together. You could go out and make a snowman go sledding then come in for some hot cocoa.

There will be many things advertised in the paper and on the news as the time approaches. You can ride the train from Grapevine to FtWorth. There is the Ice display at the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine. There are numerous Malls with Christmas decorations to look at during the season. There is a Train display at the Galeria that my children have always enjoyed. Decorating your home, making Christmas cookies to share with friends and neighbors. Make a gift for your children's teachers. Making Gingerbread Houses. I found a kit the past 2 years that has 5 little houses. There are 5 in our family, so everyone gets their own house and it does not take up the entire table or buffet. Driving around looking at Christmas Lights while listening to Christmas music. Christmas programs at local churches. Christmas Eve Services and a new pair of PJ's for all day Christmas for pictures. We eat snack food, stay in our new PJ's and play with our presents all day long. We welcome anyone to stop by, but advise them that we will be in our PJ's. We have some family here, but do not always get to see them at Christmas, so we had friends come over before and on Christmas to help us celebrate. I am sure that you will make it a wonderful time for your children. The main thing that young children want is to spend time with mom and dad.

When the kids were younger, we would make our own Christmas cards for family and friends.

Many charities have trees with tags, so you can purchase a gift for a needy person. We choose a tag that is for a girl the same age range as my daughters and go shopping together.

My mother started this tradition and I continue it with my girls. On Christmas Eve we open one present, it's new pajamas.

We make ornaments from applesauce and cinnamon (recipe here http://www.handmadecountry.com/ezine/cinnamon.html)
I also have about 5 of the neighbors over and we decorate cookies out front, I set up folding tables and have all the decorations ready.
Our newspaper also list the really cool decorated houses so we pile up the kids and the neighbor kids and drive to all of hem (I usually make a mapquest map to keep it better organized)
We ahve the grand canyon railway and they do the Polar Express but I know a lto of areas do this so check yours, we have odne it every year on ,my daughters birthday (Dec 17th) and it makes it really special.
We also have many bonfires with the neighbors out onfront of our decorated houses and we do smores and stuff. We have the "lights and sounds" so we listen to Christmas music the whole time we are outside.
We also do the angel tree at the mall (where you pick and ornament and it has a gift you buy for an underprivilaged kid).
Hope this helps and if I think of any others I will let you know.

Wrapping gifts, sneaking them into their hiding places. Signing & addressing cards to go out in the mail. Planning Christmas dinner menu, helping in the kitchen. Decorating the tree & house. Reading a traditional Christmas story(s). Family photos.

We have a neighborhood nearby that does huge light and holiday displays, it's called Christmas Card Lane (I think). We always make it a point of one day driving out and driving the whole neighborhood and looking at all the displays. We turn on just our running lights and since there are sooo many other cars there we're all putting along at 5 miles an hour with our running lights on driving around this neighborhood. When we go out to run our errands (we're horrible last minute shoppers etc) we go out of our way to take different routes to and from places to see the lights all the houses put up. The kids pull out all the old Rankin Bass specials DVDs and they seem to always be on. We watch The Nightmare Before Christmas while decorating the tree. We spend as much time as humanly possible at Disneyland during the holidays as well-we have annual passes (one of the reasons for the previous movie-our all time favorite ride during the holidays is when they decorate the Haunted Mansion with Jack!) Xmas eve the kids have to completely clean off the area around and on the living room table, and the living room in general (it's always full of schoolwork and toys since we're home schoolers) and we leave out our reusable bags. Santa doesn't wrap presents in paper or only does one or 2 special ones. We have these wonderful huge felt reusable holiday drawstring bags instead. Michaels carries them. Presents don't get left under the tree, they get left on and up against the table in the living room.
We're rather non-traditionalists but we have a ton of fun and spend a lot of time together as a family.

On Christmas day, after we're done opening presents, we watch as many Christmas movies as possible, that we've either got on DVD or have DVRed. Rudolf the Red Nosed Raindeer, Charlie Brown Christmas, Frosty the Snowman, Love Actually (ok, that last one is for when the kids are in bed, but it's still my favorite!). We stay in pjs all day and play with new toys while watching. It's very nice.

One of our traditions that I love is going to the Christmas Parade every year. We spend the night downtown on Friday night and then go to the parade on Saturday morning. It's always the first Saturday in December. My oldest in now 13 and we've been doing it since she was a baby. My girls love it. If you do, I'd recommend purchasing the bleacher seats for the parade, makes life much easier and more comfortable. All the proceeds from the parade benefit the Children's Medical Center of Dallas. Great way to kick-off the holiday season.

Santas Village in Richardson is AWESOME! My dad has taken us there since I was a kid and I try to go every year with my kids. The crowds have gotten heavier since I was a child but it's still so worth going and your kids will LOVE it. They also have a BIG tree lighting that is really pretty but it's only one day out of the year, you'll have to google it because I can't remeber the date.

There's a small ice skating rink located in the shopping center of Firewheel Mall next to the Fridays Restaurant. It's not real ice but feels just like it, you just don't have the freezing cold mess all over yourself or your kids. We took our kids there last year for the first time and they had a blast. They ended up ditching the ice skates and sliding around everywhere on their socks, it was a lot of fun.

You can get them to help you bake and decorate Christmas cookies, take them around town to look at the decorations and lights on houses, and the Garland Bass Pro Shop has really cute Xmas crafts and activities for kids to do and a FREE picture with Santa, it's a great setting there too, very beautiful.

Well, if I think of some more I'll let you know, hope you have a great holiday!

Here are things I have done when I was a kid, or things I have started to do with my own baby:
Make ginger bread houses
EGGNOG! (My fav!!!!)
Let your kids make a new ornament (edible or not) for the tree each yr
Pictures with Santa Clause
"Fake" Snow parks (if your state doesn't have snow)
Decorated the house
Bake Cookies
Write letters to Santa
Find neighborhoods full of christmas lights
Donate jackets/toys to needy children (usually i find the stations in the malls)
We also had a family tradition of getting the whole family together on Christmas eve for dinner somewhere (usually a buffet).
Those just the basic traditions. I was also thinking of adopting a solider for christmas this year. I am sure you guys will have a blast!

I love reading the responses to this question. I love the Christmas season! I think you can pretty much do anything to make it special/fun as long as you don't go overboard and have too much planned. As a kid, I loved looking at Christmas lights so I still do that each year with my kids. We have found a few neighborhoods that we love visiting each year just for the lights. Plus we are always on the lookout for new lights to see.

My kids always enjoyed going to different malls to see how they were decorated and just do window shopping. Also, North Park Mall has had the same Santa for many years and he is great! His beard is real and if you have your children's pictures taken with him year after year, you will be surprised as you look back on them as to how good they make your feel! North Park also has a huge train exhibit that children and their parent's love. Holiday in the Park at Six Flags has always been my favorite to do with the older kids and my girlfriends. There are several neighborhoods that are famous for their Christmas deocrations and the whole family can be together and enjoy the evening out. Many Churches put on special Christmas programs that the whole family can enjoy. Our favorite "tradition" is to look through all the photos taken that year! Then, we sit together and look through all of the old albums too. The family oriented events are the best because you are building traditions for your own family and these things they will take with them when they are grown! Enjoy!

We take a night to go out and look at Christmas lights, we have a special dinner on Christmas eve that is entirely different from our Christmas dinner (we grill out and the kids get to help Daddy), the kids get to open one gift on Christmas eve, we go to local Christmas events-we have a local town that has a street that everyone decorates their homes, the churches on that street have live nativities and other activities, there are carolers in the street, etc., we go out and pick out the tree together and decorate it together.

Edit-Kristy V reminded me-we also pick 2 children since we have 2 kiddies in the family and buy gifts for those kids. My son's school has an angel tree type program. My son was so happy and excited to go pick out gifts for another little boy. And it taught them the importance of giving and helping out someone else.

We always went to the Santa at Northpark. He would come down the chimney and tell stories before children sat on his lap.

Horse carriage ride through Highland Park with hot cocoa. A lot of places have carriage rides now, Watters Creek has one as well.

Christmas Day, we have always gone to the movies.

My daughter and I always made the applesauce/cinnamon ornaments. I still have some of them and she'll be 16 in Dec.

Enjoy