Traditions are very important in this house. Coming from a rather large and tightly-knit family, the holidays have always been important and Christmas being the most important of them all. My grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, parents, other distant relatives and family friends would always get together for Christmas. There would always be a HUGE meal, Christmas carols by the piano, Midnight Mass, and as kids, we’d try to stay up and wait for Santa Claus to arrive!
I want my daughter to take part in Christmas traditions and have lasting childhood memories like I did.
Since we live hours away from my family in Toronto, Kingston and Montreal, we alternate years to drive down for the holidays. This way we spend Christmas one year with Hubby’s family and one year with my family.
Christmas traditions for my little family of three include:
- Christmas baking…and lots of it! This is something Little One and I enjoy doing together. I want her to remember the gifts of time and love, as well as experience over material/physical/tangible gifts. We bake for our loved ones and friends. We also bake for our Canada Post, Purolator and Muskoka Delivery people as a thank you for delivering our mail and parcels.
- Donating to charities close to our hearts. Donations to Sick Kids Hospital and Mount Sinai Hospital are always part of our holiday traditions (as well as throughout the year). We also support the Children’s Miracle Network and donate to our local food bank. Little One, at six years old, is very interested in donating food, clothing, shoes/boots, and toys to those who need them. She recognizes that she is able to help and give.
- Decorating the house and tree! Little One’s favourite tradition is probably decorating our Christmas tree. The look of wonder on her face when opening the box with all our favourite ornaments is incredible. It’s heartwarming to see the sparkle in her eyes and the big smiles when she sees ornaments she made as a toddler and the ornament we made with her footprint when she was a baby. Decorating the tree is definitely a special tradition.
- Church on Christmas is one of our favourite traditions. A reminder of the meaning of Christmas is always something we treasure.
- Journey to Bethlehem is another thing our family enjoys doing together. We missed two years, because Little One was little and it was right around her bedtime. We went this year and it was interesting to see Little One’s reaction and how she interpreted her Journey to Bethlehem experience. The event is put on locally on the Island and it is an experience I think all should have. It’s very well done and visitors are part of a family that journeys to Bethlehem, where they encounter Roman soldiers, beggars, Three Wise Men, angels, an inn keeper and his family, and finally, Mary and Joseph, with baby Jesus in a manger. The families headed on their journey to pay their taxes and to be included in the census. Little One was really “into” the role and was clutching onto her paper, lest the Roman soldiers request to see it! She was so cute!
- Advent calendar – Every year, Little One gets to open up a door in her advent calendar. She loves that each day it’s a different surprise behind the door! We love the KINDER Advent calendar.
Because it’s the Season of Giving, Little One wanted to give her bus driver this KINDER® Hollow Santa. She thought her school bus driver would love this KINDER Hollow Santa because it’s Santa, and well…it’s KINDER chocolate!!
Little One’s favourite KINDER Surprise treat is the GIANT KINDER SURPRISE!
Forgive the poor video job! Little One loves being in front of the camera, but Mommy doesn’t know how to take good videos!
Wishing everyone a Happy Holiday and a happy, healthy New Year.
What are some of your family’s holiday traditions?
DISCLOSURE: I’m a #KinderMom/Maman/Dad who is part of the KINDER® Canada influencer team; as part of my affiliation with KINDER® Canada, I am provided with special perks and products. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
We have our Christmas Traditions to as well. I bake fruit cakes for my adult children. I have also started sharing these cakes with my sisters.
I do a lot of knitting for personal gifts, such as: mittens, hats, slippers, sweaters and scarves.
We also like to have our family in to visit and for treats. I like to bake ‘Snowmen; for my grandchildren and great grandchildren. I love Christmas.
those desserts look so good
I grew up where the week leading up to Christmas was spent with Mom doing a ton of baking, yet I can’t recall them ever ‘going out’.. I guess Santa was smarter back then, he started early, and finished before school was out for the holidays. Christmas Eve was one spent with a roast/ham dinner, we would drive around town looking at lights and singing along to the christmas songs on the radio… then it was hot chocolate a christmas movie and 1 gift.
Ours is pretty much the same, minus the driving around as we just purchased a vehicle last week and waiting on some documents that won’t arrive before then.
But, we do hot chocolate and the movie.
Christmas day is spend with gifts at home and christmas dinner with guests over… next few days are spent visiting and dropping off presents.
Dang I wrote novel!
I love your “novel”, Darlene! 🙂 It makes me smile thinking back on all the Christmas celebrations we’ve had as a family. One day Little One will be able to look back on her holiday memories and I hope they are filled with wonder and magic even when she’s a grown up.
Our Christmas traditions are very similar to yours. We had the Kinder Advent calendars for the first time this year and my kids loved them!
That’s awesome, Heidi! So much fun!
You have some great traditions. On Christmas eve we always have appetizers for dinner. Christmas morning we open the gifts in our Pj’s and then have breakfast. My family is all spread out so we never seem to be able to all get together for Christmas. This year my hubby has to work Christmas Eve & Boxing Day so we are staying at home.
Judy, love opening gifts in our pjs! Great tradition!
we always open one present on Christmas Eve and its our jammies which we always where
Love that tradition, Chandra!!
We love Kinder products here. So yummy
They’re a fave here too!
Love these traditions. I’m sure LO will continue most of them if not all.
The video you took is great! My 2 year old loved it, so there’s that. I can’t wait to give my boys the big Kinder eggs too. They’ll be wowed by the size alone I’m sure.
Maya, that’s so cute! Your boys are AHHHH-DORABLE! xo
Those are really great traditions! Kris Kringle is one of ours.
Ohh! Kris Kringle! Victoria, when I think of the traditions we had growing up, I only hope that Little One has experiences like the ones I had. Traditions and family are so important.