Mike and I combined households fairly quickly, and we never really established what our ‘traditions’ would look like.
When it was just my kiddos and me, we had traditions for EVERYTHING. My grandma’s sugar cookie recipe for Easter and Halloween? Check. Christmas eve service at church and chinese takeout? You betcha. Spending DAYS prepping for Thanksgiving? Every year.
For each birthday, I would fill the person’s room with balloons and we would have birthday donuts for breakfast, and then they got to pick their favorite meal for me to make along with a homemade cake (or pie).
And every Christmas, we would make a new ornament for the tree, either at home or at the ceramic shop downtown.
Mike and I have slowly been incorporating our own traditions. For birthdays we try and do a trip or experience rather than presents.
He very much enjoys my mom’s old cheesecake recipe, so that has become our celebratory treat for special occasions.
Depending on when we have most or all of the kids is when we do a big holiday dinner with Mike’s family – this year it was Thanksgiving.
We played games and baked and cooked, and everyone enjoyed our time together.
Last year we made snowman presents, so everyone had just three gifts. I love simplifying the commercialization of Christmas. I realize our kids still enjoy gifts, but I try and focus on our time together and making memories.
This year we had the kids draw names so they can purchase gifts for each other, and they seem very excited about shopping for each other.
We hope to one day replace Christmas presents with a vacation.
Kids won’t remember what they got for Christmas two years ago, but they will remember driving around looking at Christmas lights while drinking hot chocolate.
They won’t remember the twenty minutes spent tearing wrapping paper, but they will remember making memories.
Here are some simple things you can start doing with your family right now to make the season more memorable!
- make cookies
- watch Christmas movies and have a special popcorn night
- drive around and look at Christmas lights and drink hot chocolate
- make ornaments
- get a tree together as a family
- visit Santa Claus (we had Santa come to our house last year and read the kids a story and hand out small gifts!)
- visit craft fairs
- make holiday cards
- Elf on the Shelf
- make gingerbread houses
- Secret Santa gift exchange
- a Christma pickle
- donate toys or gifts
- write letters to Santa
- Christmas pajamas
- attend Christmas Eve service
What are your holiday traditions? Please share some activities your family does together to celebrate the holidays. If you don’t have any yet, I challenge you to sit down with your spouse (and/or kids) and come up with some special traditions that everyone wants to do each year.
I am totally impressed with how you are managing your blended family! 🙂