Ideas for new Christmas traditions for families with young children

I still have some traditions from childhood that I keep, but I am also on the lookout for new traditions to adopt. I am believe that the more traditions you have, the better. It seems like we keep adding a few new ones every year. Here are some traditions that we have tried and loved....

Advent calendar

We have our chocolate calendar, and we also do an activity calendar, as I have written about before.On top of this we have also started a new tradition of reading a chapter in our advent calendar book every evening. The book we have been reading is a great norwegian book that was published last year, and I cannot praise it enough. It has got everything a good Christmas story needs: It is scary, it is funny, it is magical, It has the most beautiful illustrations I have ever seen, it is very christmassy, the children can relate to it, and it is also very sad. The book I am talking about is "The snow sister" by Maja Lunde. I really hope it will be published in english soon.

The elf on the shelf

This is the third year the elf is back, and I must say it is getting a bit hard to think of new pranks for the mischievous elf every day. If you decide to try this, make sure not to set the bar to high, or you will be exhausted by the time Christmas comes around. The door for the elf appears a little while before december with a letter, which the children always reply to.

Spa day

No not for the children, but I figure if you have young children, you probably need a day to relax before Christmas. So put the day in the calendar now - and prioritize taking some time to yourself. Even if it is just an evening of relaxing in front of Netflix alone, having a bath, or get a babysitter and go to the cinema or a restaurant with some friends. Christmas is not only for the children, and they will like Christmas more if their parents are happy.

Baking with the family

Baking and cooking before Christmas can be stressful, but we have started inviting people around and we do a baking workshop. It is so much more fun when you are more people and you make a night of it.

The ugly sweater day

Pick out the ugliest sweaters you can find, and make sure the whole family wears them for a whole day. It sets the mood for the day, and everybody acts a bit more silly. 

Treasure hunt

The last activity in our advent calendar is always a treasure hunt.  I write clues which I distribute throughout the house, and a gift for each of them at the end of the hunt. If you need some clues, I have lots of them here.

Christmas skate party

Last year we started a new tradition which I hope we can repeat this year. We went skating the day before Christmas. We have built a skating rink in our garden, and we put on Christmas music and went skating. It is my best memory from last Christmas. It was just perfect.

The night before Christmas boxes

The night before Christmas the kids gets a box each with stuff to create a cosy evening. The whole family change into our pajamas and cuddle up in our beanbag chairs in front of the TV. We even bring in our duvets.