Christmas Eve Traditions for Families
Christmas Eve is a night that many children look forward to with great anticipation and excitement. They eagerly await the sound of jingle bells on the roof top and the smell of gingerbread cookies in the oven. Or maybe, with everyone crowded in the kitchen they bake Christmas cookies in the shape of trees, elves, reindeer or Santa.
There are many traditions that take place during the holidays and lots of fun things to do on Christmas Eve. Presents are usually distributed, as well as a big family meal. In some families, the oldest person in the family dresses up as Santa Claus and hands out presents to children before they go to bed. Other traditions include visiting churches at midnight to sing hymns and recall Jesus’s birth.
While Christmas decorations may start being put up around Thanksgiving, some people do it earlier and some families wait until Christmas Eve to decorate the house and tree. Other activities for Christmas Eve might be to string popcorn and cranberries for the tree or if they are really adventurous create a popcorn string by hand crocheting the pop corn balls.
Christmas Eve is a day for sharing, being grateful, and reflecting on the year that has past. The holiday season is a time for love, joy, peace and celebration. And many find that Christmas Eve is the culmination of these feelings. It’s a special night where family and friends get together to create memories that will last a lifetime.
There are no set traditions or expectations for what people do on this day. Some people stay awake until midnight on Christmas Eve and then go to bed after they have opened their gifts. Others open one present on Christmas Eve and wait with breathless anticipation to open the remaining gifts the next morning after Santa has visited the house and left his own specials gifts to be added to the others.
Some Christmas Eve traditions might include everyone gathering around and reading a Christmas story. At the end of the evening, once the merriment has died down, and before the children head off to bed they take part in this much-loved tradition! With the fire cracking in the fireplace, an old, well wore book is taken from the shelf and slowly opened. While sitting on a comfy sofa with a cup of hot chocolate, the story is begun and children listen in wonder at the magic of Christmas!
Other Christmas Eve ideas for families might be to enjoy this magical night and snuggle up on the couch and watch one of the many Christmas movies and TV shows made for the season. Some of these options are Love Actually, Elf, Home Alone, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and many more.
Family’s may gather together and sing their favorite Christmas songs. They may put on a record playing the musical score, a family member might play the piano or even everyone sings their favorite Christmas carol Acappella. It’s beautiful to the ears and heart, even if sung out of key.