5 Ways To Get More Out of Christmas This Year

Dec 1, 2019 | Christmas

This post is part of our Making Christmas More series. See what else we have in store for Christmas 2019

This year’s Christmas theme is “Making Christmas More.” When we say this, a lot of things pop into our minds. You might think of the lights and songs and presents. You might think of family and time together. You might think about snow…but probably not in Texas.

None of those things are bad, but we want to give you five ways you can be more intentional with your time together to get more meaning out of Christmas this year.

1. BAKE OR MAKE SOMETHING FOR YOUR NEIGHBORS.

We spend more and more time in our jobs and our homes as time goes on. Not everybody knows their neighbors well (or at all). Consider baking or making something with your family to give to your neighbors. Your family will get to have a unique and memorable time together while blessing those around you.

2. GIFT OPENING DAY

Our family has two big days during the Christmas season: The first is Gift Opening Day, and the second is Christmas Day. Gift Opening Day is celebrated on any day before Christmas, and it’s the family day on which we open gifts, play games, light candles, and sing carols. The meal is a highlight, consisting of food from different cultures — food we’ve never made or possibly tasted.

Having Gift Opening Day encourages us to have our special time as a family together so we can be okay with sharing Christmas Day with others, whether it be through visiting relatives and friends or service to our community.

3. A SEASON OF STORIES

One year, my family found books about Christmas in local thrift shops and garage sales. We searched for books that told the Christmas story from different perspectives and demonstrated the true spirit of the season. We wrapped each book individually and starting on Dec. 1, the kids selected one book each night. We unwrapped the book and read it together as a family. This tradition allowed us to wind down each evening with a focus on Christ and the celebration of His birth.

4. Stockings Filled With Love

After my grandmother died, my mother hung up a stocking at Christmas to help our family honor her life. We put in love notes and cherished memories of her. After my father died, I did this same activity with my kids to help them with their grief. The very young had a concrete activity to do, and my older children were able to work through their feelings of loss.

5. THE GIVING STOCKING

Each year, we put cash in a stocking for our children, but they know the money is not for them, but to do something for somebody else. While it doesn’t totally change their worldview, it helps our kids realize that Christmas isn’t just about them and their presents. Taking toys that they bought with the money in the envelope to a children’s hospital or taking clothes to a donation center is a memory our family cherishes.

So what about you? What ideas do you have for Making Christmas More this year? Leave a comment on our FACEBOOK PAGE to let us know

Visit our Christmas 2019 Page