25 Days of Christmas Cheer {Family Fun Activities Sure to Get You in the Holiday Spirit}

I love this time of year.  The weather in Houston is finally getting cooler {notice that I didn’t say cold, just cooler) and there is a sense of excitement and anticipation all around. My kids literally jump for joy right after Thanksgiving, and I can’t help but feel the same way. December for us is an over-abundance of quality family time and spreading Christmas cheer.  We love it! Here is a list of 25 days worth of fun activities that you can do with your family to get into the holiday spirit this year ::

  1. Decorate a gingerbread house with your kids! Its a wonderful way to use up the lingering Halloween candy. Here are some great gingerbread decorating tips.
  2. Buy fleece and make a fleece blanket to donate to a local shelter. I have a super easy no sew blanket tutorial that will have you wanting to make blankets for everyone this winter!
  3. Make scented Christmas play dough with the kids. Use this tried and true play dough recipe from another Houston Moms Blogger.  Add peppermint oil and choose a festive color of choice.  I promise you that this will be hours of fun.
  4. Go to the library or book store to get some Christmas books.  Take turns reading aloud and enjoying a good book together.
  5. Buy a pack of plain brown paper lunch bags and decorate them to donate.  You can adorn it with stickers, words of encouragement, and artwork.  You don’t have to fill them.  There are local churches and non profits that takes decorated bags so that they can fill them with lunches for kids in need.
  6. Do a nice deed for a family member today. It could be something as simple as emptying the dishwasher or making a bed.  Just a small act of kindness to show your family that you love them.
  7. Build a marshmallow snowman out of jumbo marshmallows, a couple of pretzel sticks, a candy corn nose and some chocolate chip buttons.  You can get fancy and give your snowman a mini Oreo hat and fruit leather scarf too.
  8.  Pop some popcorn and watch your favorite Christmas movie.  The movie Elf always gets me into the holiday spirit!
  9. Go ice-skating outdoors!  I took my kids to the rink at Discovery Green last Christmas and we had such a good time. The weather was cold, we drank hot chocolate, and the kids didn’t want to leave.
  10. Bake a box of brownies {or make it from scratch} and drop it off at your local fire station or police station.
  11. Brighten someone’s day by giving them a heartfelt compliment when they least expect it.
  12. Make fake snow and have a blast throwing snowballs or making a mini snowman. This will get messy so play outdoors.  I used a recipe that calls for shaving cream because I liked the texture of it.
  13. Have the kids compete in a Paint-Your-Own cookie contest to see who decorates the prettiest cookie.  The best part is getting to eat your masterpiece when you are all finished.
  14. Make s’mores in your fireplace.
  15. Many local food banks and shelters have an age requirement for volunteers so it can be difficult to find a place that allows young children.  Remember those paper bags that you decorated earlier in the month {day 5}?  Well, you can have your kids fill them with actual lunches for kids in need!  Different organizations have different requirements.  Some of the places that we have donated lunch baggies to are KidsMeal, Lunches of Love, and Casa de Esperanza.
  16. Plan an evening out and take the family to one of the many Christmas lights exhibits in Houston. {HMB has a great list of the top ones!}  My family has been to Zoo Lights, Festival of Lights, and Magical Winter Lights {this one is our FAVORITE because many of the exhibits are interactive}.
  17. Teach the kids the art of paper snowflake cutting and let them decorate the house with them.
  18. Make an ornament for your Christmas tree.  You can buy craft items from the craft store and make it from scratch, purchase a remade kit or let them make simpler ones with card stock and markers. It will be cute either way!
  19. Bake Grinch sugar cookies!  Use my favorite sugar cookie dough recipe as your base, omit the sprinkles and add green food coloring to the dough.  Top each cookie with one red heart sprinkle before you bake and viola! Grinch cookies that are adorable and delectable.
  20. Make a fun family Christmas video.  Let the kids use their imagination and don’t hesitate to partake in the fun.
  21. On December 21st there will be Christmas Caroling Sing-a-long in the Sugar Land Town Square from 6:30-8:30pm.  Bring some lawn chairs, a blanket, hot cocoa in a thermos and get ready to belt out some carols.  “The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!”-Elf
  22. Surprise the kids after they get into their PJs by taking them to see the neighborhood Christmas lights.  Sometimes we stay close to home and other times we drive across town to see the cool neighborhood lights.  This is one of my children’s favorite traditions.
  23. Make a small gift basket and have the kids make a Christmas card for a neighbor.  This is a wonderful way to meet your neighbors and to spread some cheer.
  24. Bake and decorate cookies for Santa.
  25. After the gifts are opened and the kids are busy with their new toys, cook a Christmas morning breakfast.  This is my favorite part of the holidays.  I love trying  new recipes and breakfast food just makes me so happy!

I hope that you got some ideas from my list, or that it inspired you to start your own list of fun activities to do with your family this holiday season.  One of my family’s traditions that I didn’t include in the list above is attending a Christmas service. This is a time for us to be together and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas.  Perhaps 25 days of stuff is too much and you just want to do a few of those things.  Whatever you choose, know that it will be wonderful because you are all together.  Sending you all the warmest holiday wishes from my family to yours.


Houston Moms Blog, 25 Days of Christmas Cheer {Family Fun Activities Sure to Get You in the Holiday Spirit!} #houstonmomsblog #houston #blogger #houstonblogger #christmascheer

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