How do YOU make the holidays magical?

[WitMom]

With a week to go until Christmas, I feel completely frazzled and worn out. I don't feel like we have done anything special to really enjoy or celebrate the season, and that makes me sad. I'm afraid my children will grow up and remember Christmas with a mom that always had one more thing to do and was tired and grumpy because of it. That is not what I want for them obviously. I want them to have magical memories of the season with lots of family times and love. So, how do I "give" them this? What are the things that you do that really "make" the season for you?

[brittone2]

Our Advent calendar has created a lot of fun memories. We focus a lot on experiences...and simple things. Play a board game, make a craft, shop as a family for Toys for Tots, go for a walk (w/ hot chocolate in hand) in a neighborhood nearby with tons of gorgeous lights, watch a Christmas movie as a family, etc. It has been a really fun tradition and it forces us to focus on having some family time each evening. Most of what we do only takes 1/2 hour to an hour a night.

One thing that we find magical is taking our kids to see Santa. One of my neighbors is a pastor, and his church hosts Santa. This guy is *amazing*. You book an appointment time, so it is 20 mins of one on one time w/ Santa...no rush like at the mall. They ask for info in advance, and I don't know if he reads all of the notes or wears an earbud, but he'll ask about our pets by name, talk about how my DS is a homeschooler and how he must be proud that he just learned to ride his 2 wheeled bike, etc. He already "knows" all about my kids. It really brings a lot of magic into things. They give you a photo or photos, no charge at all. The same Santa participates in some local program where on Christmas Eve, he volunteers to go into the home of terminally ill children in the area (at parent request obviously!) and they make sure the children "catch" him putting presents under the tree. Every time I think of that I get teary-eyed. He's a very magical guy :) DH and I were just saying we have no idea what we are going to do if we move out of state...this guy is so amazing and I know it will be hard to duplicate the experience elsewhere :)

[bnme]

Our Advent calendar has created a lot of fun memories. We focus a lot on experiences...and simple things. Play a board game, make a craft, shop as a family for Toys for Tots, go for a walk (w/ hot chocolate in hand) in a neighborhood nearby with tons of gorgeous lights, watch a Christmas movie as a family, etc. It has been a really fun tradition and it forces us to focus on having some family time each evening. Most of what we do only takes 1/2 hour to an hour a night.
:yeahthat:

We do lots of things like that, too. Not that I am not frazzled but doing fun stuff helps remind me to calm down and remember what is important. Other ideas are decorating a gingerbread house or baking cookies, a special holiday trip (we've done NYC and a Polar Express train ride), go see a local miniature train display, visit Santa (Our local fire dept has Santa come around on a fire truck and they have stops were he gets off to greet the children and you can give your Toys for Tots donation.), or attend a local tree lighting.

[brittone2]

Just back to say, I don't think you should feel like you *have* to do something every night if you are already feeling frazzled. Just pointing out that if it is a night where you can find 30 free minutes, you might be able to work in more quality family time than you think. But I don't think it is something you want to stress over if you are already stressed :hug:

[alexsmommy]

Setting aside time to do things with the kids in a non-pressured, relaxed manner. So we had a great time doing the gingerbread house, and I let go of all of my perfectionistic tendencies and preconceived notions and just let them go to town. We all had fun.
Trip to Macy's didn't go as planned and I let it go and focused on the kids having fun. We wound up leaving and going to a local mall after I let them make the call about that part. I think I had to learn to really seperate the things I feel I have "have" to do versus the things that are really just about fun memories for the kids. So I schedule making the treats we give away for a different solo baking session than the one where I make things for just the family to eat and I don't care how they look or if they taste the best and make those with the kids at their pace. Let's just say, Santa eats some funky looking cookies but they were made with love and fun.

[truly scrumptious]

So I schedule making the treats we give away for a different solo baking session than the one where I make things for just the family to eat and I don't care how they look or if they taste the best and make those with the kids at their pace. Let's just say, Santa eats some funky looking cookies but they were made with love and fun.

Awwwww :love5:

[WitMom]

Thanks for the replies everyone. We went to a little local farm last night, where Santa happened to be visiting. The girls got to visit with him, and then we took a "sleigh ride" through the forest. So, maybe it was a lawnmower pulling a wagon through a few trees, but they had fun.

I'm trying to just slooow down and take it in. I made the girls some quick and easy Christmas dresses, and they don't want to take them off. I'm trying to just focus on what they are enjoying, and if it is something like wearing these same dresses every day until Christmas, well, then, that's what we'll do.

I guess I just have to "make" the magic, and decide that whatever happens, it IS magical.

[ThreeofUs]

I'm trying to just slooow down and take it in. I made the girls some quick and easy Christmas dresses, and they don't want to take them off. I'm trying to just focus on what they are enjoying, and if it is something like wearing these same dresses every day until Christmas, well, then, that's what we'll do.

I guess I just have to "make" the magic, and decide that whatever happens, it IS magical.


I think you've nailed it. For me, it's really slowing myself down from my "must complete" lists, taking a full two minutes of deep breaths in the bathroom while DH watches the kids, and coming out ready to do things on my DS's timescale. It's hard to slow down. But that's when you find the best magic to be made!

Sounds like you had a wonderful night.

GL and have a great holiday season!

:hug:

[WatchingThemGrow]

One thing we did was ask a musical family down the street to come back to our house to sing Christmas Carols like they have in the past. We all loved it and they got to meet the baby, who they have not met in previous visits. Because it was so cold, they came inside and hung out. We don't have a ton of "to do" things because I undercommitted this year. LOVE it!

Hoping that for next year, we can pick names for gift giving among the cousins and be a little more thoughtful about it. I feel like "covering" everyone took a lot of energy.

[ChunkyNicksChunkyMom]

My son is really into artsy projects so he made trees and I made snowflakes that we put ALL over the windows. We try to find one art project to do together for each holiday and we love looking back at the pictures from the previous years.


http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a96/goodtastenomoney/IMG_8482_2.jpg

[jgenie]

CNCM - What a cutie!! (The decorations are nice too!) :)

[hillview]

Things I love:
Hot coco after going to play in the snow
Writting letters to santa and leaving out cookies and then answering the letters and eating the cookies
Making Christmas cookies
Setting up the nativity
Singing Christmas songs (the boys have been signing Jingle Bells -- super cute)
This year we got presents for children through a non-profit -- we will do this again -- love it!

I like this question. Helped me think :)
/hillary

[SnuggleBuggles]

It was fantastic to be snowed in yesterday because there was no errand running, just kicking back and hanging out together. :) We baked, we wrapped presents, played in the snow but basically just hung out together knowing there was no where else we needed to be. It was a much needed day during all the holiday craziness. I wish I could make that happen every year.

Beth

[Elilly]

I must say that this is the 1st year that I haven't been frazzled. This is due to our kiddos being older and me starting our shopping right after Halloween. That said, this year we:
baked and decorated cookies
went to a holiday concert
did the Lego (DS) and Playmobil (DD) advent calendars
did movie and hot chocolate night
went out to lunch after DD's Christmas Nativity play
made various Christmas crafts

Next year I'd like to do all of the above and go see the Nutcracker or go to the Purdue Christmas show.

It actually feels kind of weird to not be running around doing things in a panic, so in a way, it doesn't seem like it should be Christmas already.

[WitMom]

Susan- those are some pretty sophisticated snow flakes! You have an artist on your hands.

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I probably should have started sooner (famous last words), but we'll squeeze in some family stuff yet before Christmas, and I've decided if we have to, we'll bake and decorate cookies on the 28th (or 29th or 30th). What the heck...my girls don't have a concept of a calendar and dates yet!

[ChunkyNicksChunkyMom]

Susan- those are some pretty sophisticated snow flakes! You have an artist on your hands.

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I probably should have started sooner (famous last words), but we'll squeeze in some family stuff yet before Christmas, and I've decided if we have to, we'll bake and decorate cookies on the 28th (or 29th or 30th). What the heck...my girls don't have a concept of a calendar and dates yet!

He makes trees, I do flakes! Sounds like you ARE already doing great things! Merry Christmas!

[maestramommy]

I think you've hit it in saying just slow down. I find it ironic that one of the most blessed holidays (whether you're Christian or not) is always one of the most stressful. I don't have any answers, but we always go really EASY on the gift giving, and we don't do Santa. The kids are already getting multiple gifts when you fold in the ones from family, why do they need more than one from us? What's happy for them is when we actually spend time playing with them for extended periods. Yesterday Dh took the kids sledding in our front yard after nap. Arwyn came in after a while, but Dora stuck it out until I called them for dinner. Dh said later he's never seen her so thrilled, which really made him laugh because Dora's not a thrilled kind of kid. Now he wants to go sledding with them as much as possible this winter. I think the kids will remember that kind of "magical" more than they will remember any gifts we could possibly come up with.

[jenandahalf]

I personally don't remember any of my Christmases from earlier than about age 8, and even then the things I remember are my dad and I decorating the house together (bec it was the one day all year he would come home on time) and the fact that my grandma always used to travel up to stay with us. Because there were 6 kids in my house my parents always made more of a deal of birthdays than of Christmas esp when it came to gifts.

I don't think people need to do so much as they do at this time of year. We spend a Sunday afternoon doing the tree, we've made some practice Santa cookies here and there, went to our local winter wonderland another weekend. Other than that it has been pretty relaxed, I went out at 9pm on Saturday night to do the gift shopping and we spent an hour yesterday morning getting our holiday food shopping done. That's it for us. My daughter is just enjoying being home from school with her daddy and reading a few Christmas books. She's just as excited as any other kid is right now.