11 Ways to make Christmas Eve magical

 Christmas is just around the corner, time seems to have flown by so fast. Are you ready for Christmas Eve? Have you made plans? If not here are some ideas on how to spend Christmas. These also feature ideas to do with kids and are quite adaptable if you don’t have children.

1.      Bake Cookies for Santa

2.      Track Santa

3.      Read a Christmas Classic

4.      Open a gift

5.      Christmas Scavenger Hunt

6.      Christmas Movie Marathon

7.      Prepare for Christmas Day

8.      Build a Gingerbread house

9.      Play Board Games

10. Create a Christmas Box

11. Leave Cookies out for Santa.

We have done many of these and even though my kid is older we still do some of these because it simply has become tradition. There is nothing better than freshly baked Cookies for Santa, we don’t want him to munch on old cookies when he comes by the house 😉

Tracking Santa is so much fun even I track Santa because it is absolutely adorable. There are many trackers out there now but the original and the one we still use is the NORAD Santa Tracker.  In my opinion, it is simply the best.

Reading a Christmas Classic is just a cozy way to spend the day. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is just such a massive part of Christmas that I believe it can’t be missed during the Christmas Season, whether you read the book or watch the movie I think one of the two just has to be present!

Opening a gift on Christmas Eve has become a recent tradition of ours, we let our kiddo pick a small gift that she can open. This way the excitement won’t keep her up all night, even though for mine it often still does. We of course know which gifts are what and won’t let her pick a big ticket item, that will be saved for Christmas morning.

A Christmas Scavenger hunt can be so much fun or even Christmas Bingo. Making a Bingo board or a list of things to find before going out on a walk, in the dark to look at Christmas lights is so much fun. Especially for smaller kids, trying to find Santas and Reindeer, Snowflakes and other things you would see on display during the holiday season, is not only fun but can make many memories.

Christmas Movie Marathon! There are so many great movies out to watch during the Holiday Season, but leaving some especially for Christmas Eve again builds so many memories and makes Christmas Eve extra cozy, especially when cuddled up in warm, soft blankets.

Preparing for Christmas day, if you are like me you like to prep some things the day before. I usually make my casseroles the day before just so I won’t have too much to do on Christmas day. I want to enjoy Christmas morning without stressing about food plus the oven will be in use most of the time for our ham. So prepping the day before is a good way to make sure you can enjoy opening gifts on Christmas Day.

Building a Gingerbread house is definitely a tradition we have, as I am typing this I am reminded that I still need to get one to build. If you are a baker you can also make the Gingerbread yourself but I did not inherit the baking genes so store-bought it is for me.

Playing Board games. We are big fans of board games and have a decent collection of them. Christmas time is all about spending time as a family and board games do just that. We love playing them and I am sure we will also play some on Christmas Eve.

Creating a Christmas Box. That is something new and I haven’t done that with my kiddo but it seems so much fun, adding some Christmas PJs, some hot cocoa mix, reindeer food, and other Christmas-inspired things in a box for the kids but this can easily be adjusted for adults and I can see how much fun it could be.

Leaving out Cookies for Santa. This is the time when the freshly baked cookies come in handy. You can set them out with some milk or like we do hot cocoa for Santa so he can have a snack when he stops by the house. This is also the time you can sprinkle some reindeer food outside so the reindeer have a snack as well.

This is your sign to leave the stress at the door and make Christmas a cozy experience for all. I know that if people come over for Christmas it can become stressful, try your best to prep beforehand so you don’t have to stress the day off. I often stress as well but I am trying to leave the stress behind this year and focus on family and making memories.