The 10 Days of Christmas

A New Holiday Tradition

I feel like I learn something every Christmas about my family and what works best for us during the holidays.

Our first Christmas together we wanted to have Christmas morning together at home so we planned all other family gatherings on the days before Christmas. This was good in theory, but we had so much going on in the days and week before Christmas day that when it came, after all the presents were opened, we were exhausted, depleted, and drained.

Our second year we decided to do something different. Christmas morning with our extended family and not do a lot in the days before Christmas. This was much more enjoyable and sweet and we weren't left so drained.

In the following years we have always been with our extended family on Christmas morning but opened gifts with our kids before leaving for our family's house to celebrate with them.

Last year, I decided to try something different. Instead of waiting till Christmas morning, having the kids open all there gifts then put them aside to go open more gifts at our family's house, I wanted to change it up. I decided to buy them lots of fun little crafty gifts. I counted how many gifts I had (lots of the gifts I bought second hand and all but one gift was small) and I had 10. So began a new holiday tradition.

10 Day of Christmas.

Each day of the 10 Days of Christmas my kids got to open one gift, starting with the smallest and working up to the largest which was opened Christmas Eve. 

It was fantastic! It started the day of Christmas Break and my girls (baby was too small at the time to participate) eagerly picked up their first gift and opened it up. It was a dollar gift scratch draw kit I'd got at Walmart and they loved it! They immediately set to work scratching their drawings into the magnets till they were complete.

Some from this year: Shrinky dinks ornaments, scratch-it art, and bead ornament making kits.

The following days went just like that. One gift opened and played with for an hour or two in the morning. It was wonderful and I loved it as much as they did. I got to watch them truly enjoy and experience each gift to the fullest.

On Christmas day we went over to our family's house without a rush and had a wonderful time.

What are some of your holiday traditions and how have they grown and changed with your family?

Much love,

-Joy