Top Holiday Traditions to Celebrate with Friends and Family

The holiday spirit is kicking in. The bells start to jingle; malls begin to put up Christmas trees while Santa and his minions gear up for the festivities. The holiday season is an excellent time to spend with friends and family, celebrating holiday traditions.

It is everyone’s favorite holiday. Known as the season of giving, it is a time of reflection and sharing back the love.

Most people opt to spend this cherished time with friends and family who matter most. Some people prefer drinking the night away. Others prefer simple activities such as caroling in the streets.

There is no tailor-specific activity to carry out during the holiday season. However, this article will give you ideas on celebrating holiday traditions.

Create a Countdown Calendar

How exciting is it to see your little one light up with joy every morning? An advent calendar will help you deliver that. Most people prefer buying advent calendars, but making your own is much more fun. In addition, the process is easy and won’t take up much of your time.

Since you’ll be counting down to Christmas Eve, you need to acquire 24 bags and fill them with gifts of your choosing. The gifts could be candy, toys, or simple notes appreciating a person. This activity helps in spreading the festive cheer as the festive month begins.

Alternatively, you can decide to put up new Christmas ornaments on the Christmas tree every morning.

Christmas Eve Dinner

To some people, sharing a Christmas Eve dinner is representative of the holiday season. People attribute it to togetherness. There are special holiday meals they dine for some cultures, such as the Feast of the Seven Fishes.

It is a popular tradition by the Southern Italians that originated from Roman Catholicism as a mandate to keep off from meat on Christmas Eve.

This type of dinner only takes place during the holiday season.

Holiday Food Traditions

A standard item in most households during the festive season is food. So come together with your family and friends and organize a cookout. Have some of your family members bring over their unique dishes.

You can also opt to cook together, which helps in further spreading the cheer.

For some families, it is traditional to stick to a particular Christmas recipe. However, if you are unfamiliar with it, you can ask for help to keep the family food tradition alive.

You can opt to make a gingerbread house with your friends and family. It is pretty easy to make one, especially with the pre-made sets. In the absence of this, you can make use of graham crackers, icing, and candy.

Take Part in Neighborhood and Community Traditions

Instead of having so much cheer in your home, why not spread it around the neighborhood. A Christmas carol is an excellent idea of keeping alive the holiday mood. It is also an ideal time to test out your singing.

So grab some members of your extended family and go out on a stroll caroling. “The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear”- Buddy the Elf.

Another way to spread the cheer in your neighborhood is by distributing Christmas cookies. You can also participate in the neighborhood tradition of watching a local production of a holiday-themed show such as ‘the Nutcracker’ or ‘A Christmas Carol.’

Make Christmas Cards

Another significant way to spread cheer is through creating Christmas cards. You can involve your entire family and have it as a Christmas tradition.

You can browse the internet for resources on what to include in your Christmas card.

Hunt for a Christmas Tree

Tag your family and friends along for the Christmas tree hunt. You can make the experience more exciting by bringing hot chocolate. You can then share compelling stories as you hunt for the perfect tree for your home.

This activity will help get a ton of family photos and the proper tree selection. These activities are excellent tree farm traditions to start Christmas Eve.

Host a Christmas Party

A Christmas party is a great way to reconnect with your loved ones. You can volunteer to be the annual host or have it on a rotation basis. In addition, you can make the party more fun each year by introducing the concept of themes.

For example, have people dress up differently each year. You can also have a unique lineup of activities for the party to make it more enjoyable.

Bake Cookies for Santa

Baking cookies is one of the oldest and tastiest Christmas Holiday Traditions. This tradition is best enjoyed with toddlers whose belief in Santa hasn’t yet been compromised. You can make this tradition different each year by trying out new recipes and cookie decorations. Be sure to also leave out a snack for Rudolph the Reindeer.

Watch a Christmas Movie

A popular tradition among most families is watching Christmas movies. Christmas movie productions take place each year. This means you will always be spoilt for choice when choosing a film. You can decide to either stick with the classic movies or opt for a newly released one.

You can also make this a tradition for the family. Have everyone come in their pajamas and watch a movie together or read a Christmas story as you all down a cup of hot chocolate.

Host an Annual Game Night on Christmas Eve

Have people look forward to Christmas Eve with a set of game night activities. If your family members are competitive, this Christmas tradition suits you.

Have plenty of snacks, drinks, and games ready for the night. The winner takes all!

Attend a Christmas Church Service

Most churches will hold a mass to commemorate the start of Christmas as part of a community tradition. For religious folks, this is an excellent time to create a bond with family and friends.

Play Secret Santa

The holidays are all about spreading cheer. So what better way to spread joy than to play secret Santa? Have your group of family and friends pick out the secret Santa. You can then host a party where they get to exchange gifts.

It is a beautiful tradition because not only do you give a gift each year, but you also get to receive one.

Give Back to the Community

The holidays are a forgiving season. What better way to give than spend time and share a meal with the community. You can volunteer to help at a food bank or soup kitchen that provides meals to families in dire need.

Alternatively, you can invite your friends and family to cook out and later share the food with a disadvantaged group, such as the homeless.

It is also an excellent time to make donations. Go through your closet and take out some of the gently used clothes. Have your friends and family do this as well to increase the pool of clothes.

The holidays are an excellent time for appreciating service people such as firemen and police officers. You can make food or bake a set of cookies and deliver them to them.

Take a Hike

The holidays bring a lot of snow with them. So what better way to immerse yourself in the holiday than through a snow-filled activity? Invite your family for a hike or skiing. Outdoor activities help to foster a bond within the family. It also helps in getting some fresh air and decluttering your mind.

You can make it a tradition to have your family celebrate the holidays with an annual hike. But, as you celebrate the holiday season, always remember to stay safe.

Witness a Tree Lighting

The Rockefeller Center, a historical Landmark in New York City, annually paces a giant Christmas tree at its center. Then, as is tradition, people gather to carol on Christmas Eve and mark the beginning of the Christmas season.

This usually takes place a day after Thanksgiving.

If you don’t live in New York City, some states have local holiday light ceremonies you can be part of.

Take a Family Picture

A great way to capture the holiday frenzy is through a traditional Christmas photo with the family. You can introduce different themes or dree codes each year. You can also use this photo as your Christmas card.

You’ll be thankful for this activity since you’ll end up with a stack of cherished photos a few years down the line. So be sure to use a professional to capture the moment on Christmas morning.

Choose a Tree Topper

You can buy or make a tree topper for your Christmas tradition. Then, you can put up the topper once the clock strikes twelve on Christmas Eve.

The topper doesn’t necessarily have to be fancy. You can choose one of your most treasured items.

Keep the Holiday Traditions Alive

‘‘Tis the season to be jolly. Keeping up with holiday traditions helps to create an everlasting bond between family and friends.

In addition, the end-of-year holiday is an excellent opportunity to help people declutter their minds, be grateful for the year and make resolutions for the New Year.

Make this time memorable for your people by organizing at least one of the activities above.

For more resources on holiday traditions, you can check out our website.