Unwrapping a Christmas children's book each day as a advent to Christmas is a tradition we started last year and loved! I also love to find activities to do with the girls each day leading up to Christmas, and try to theme it to the book where possible. It's a lot of fun to plan and a lot of fun to do with the kids!
Tuesday, December 1
Book to unwrap: C is for Christmas
Activity: Make Countdown Chain/Decorate
Movies: Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and Olaf’s Frozen Adventure
C is for Christmas is a cute little book with gorgeous and intricate illustrations. It goes through and names different Christmas things for each letter of the alphabet. I love the book, and it's focus on Christ. The broad amount of Christmas covered in it seemed perfect for our first official day of Christmas. I try to do the countdown chain and decorations as early as possible so we can have them up for all of December.
The movies aren’t really themed with this activity, they just seemed like good ones to start off the season with. I know the kids will be excited to watch them!
Wednesday, December 2
Book to unwrap: Corduroy’s Christmas Surprise
Activity: Write a Letter to Santa
Movie: Santa Claus is Coming to Town, White Christmas
I want to get their letters written early this year; last year, we waited until the middle of December and Parker surprised me with what she asked for in her letter. This Corduroy book isn’t necessarily my favorite Christmas book, but it is cute and the kids like it. It has a strong emphasis on Corduroy’s letter to Santa, so it felt appropriate with this activity.
I wanted to do a “Santa” movie, and Santa Claus is Coming to Town is one of my favorites. If we have time during the day, I’ll also watch White Christmas with the girls. It probably won’t hold their interest the whole time, but I think they’ll like singing and dancing in it.
Thursday, December 3
Book to unwrap: Llama, Llama, Jingle Bells
Activity: Kids make paper ornaments and decorate the kid tree upstairs
Movie: Llama, Llama Christmas episodes, Riding Free: Spirit of Christmas
We have a mini artificial tree that I am planning on letting the girls decorate this year upstairs. We’ll make the ornaments out of paper and let them play with the tree as much as they want during the season. This book is more of a generic Christmas book, but it's cute and we love the Llama Llama books.
I actually really like the Llama Llama show as well. It’s cute, the kids like it, and there aren’t any problem parts for me. My kids also love the Netflix show Spirit: Riding Free, which isn’t necessarily my favorite, but I also don’t have a problem with it. The Christmas episode is pretty cute.
Friday, December 4
Book to unwrap: The Mismatched Nativity
Activity: Set up Nativity
Movie: Disney’s a Christmas Carol (Movie Night), Muppets Christmas Carol
My mom gave me this book with the matching Nativity a few years ago and we love it. It has a cute story about Christlike service that ties in with the nativity. Our nativity is already pretty well loved, but that way, I don't mind the kids playing with it and leaving it down where they can get to it. When we get a piano, I want to get a nicer nativity to set up away from little hands, but we’re a few years away from that probably.
I haven’t actually seen Disney’s a Christmas Carol and thought we could try it out. Because Friday's are Family Movie Night, I wanted to pick a movie I thought Ben might enjoy. He doesn’t love watching the same Christmas movies every year like I do, so I tried to pick new movies that we haven’t seen yet. I’m hoping it keeps the girls’ interest. If we have time earlier in the day, I’ll have the girls watch the Muppets one.
Saturday, December 5
Book to unwrap: Little Blue Truck’s Christmas
Activity: Put up tree and decorate
Movie: Swan Princess Christmas; Beauty and the Beast Enchanted Christmas; Miracle on 34th Street (new)
This is a family activity, so I wanted to do it on a day when Ben didn’t have work. This is always a fun and (with three little kids) exhausting part of Christmas.
Little Blue Truck delivers trees to all his friends and the last page has little bulbs that light up. We actually owned this one the last few years, but last year, Rylee ripped it and ruined the spine. I was so sad not to have it anymore and wanted to get it again!
I picked the movies because Saturday mornings are usually pretty relaxed around our house and the kids often watch a movie or two after breakfast. Since those first are ones that Ben and I don’t really have an interest in watching, this seemed like a good time for them to watch them. I’m the one who wants to watch Miracle on 34th (I love both versions), we’ll see how well it holds the girls’ interest.
Sunday, December 6
Book to unwrap: Christmas in the Manger; My First Story of Christmas; One Baby Jesus
Activity: Make Christmas Cards
Movie: The Nativity; Wise Men Seek Him Still; The Christ Child
These cards are the ones we give out to neighbors with the different cookies we make throughout the month. I like to keep them simple, but theme them around Christ if I can. Sunday then seems the perfect day to make them, and I try to do books and movies that fit that theme.
Christmas in the Manger is a cute board book that steps through the different parts of Christ’s birth. My First Story depicts the story in the Americas, from the Book of Mormon. One Baby Jesus is the Twelve Days of Christmas, but nativity themed.
The shows are short ones put out by the Church of Jesus Christ depicting the birth of Christ, and I love them.
Monday, December 7
Book to unwrap: How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Activity: Help a family in need
Movie: How the Grinch Stole Christmas (cartoon); The Grinch
Last year, we decided to stop exchanging names with my in-laws and use the money instead to help a local family in need. I love having the kids involved in each step, and make sure they know that we are using money that would have been used for gifts (some of those for them) to help someone who needs more.
If we know what the kids in the family are interested in, we have our kids pick out toys for them. We also put together a basket with fruits and bread, and put money in the basket for the parents. Then we all (including the children), drop off the basket and gifts and run away.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas and its message feel very appropriate for this activity. I love the original cartoon, though I am not a fan of the live action movie, so we don’t watch that one. Last year, we watched the Netflix animated movie The Grinch and enjoyed it. The kids liked it more than I did, but I am okay watching it again this year.
Tuesday, December 8
Book to unwrap: Harold at the North Pole; Snowmen at Christmas
Activity: Make paper snowflakes
Movie: Arthur’s Perfect Christmas; Bob’s Broken Sleigh; Super Hero Adventures Frost Fight
This is one of Ashtyn’s favorite activities, and after we make the paper snowflakes, we hang them up on the kids’ room ceilings, which they love. I chose our two Christmas books that focus on snow. I also chose some shows that have to do with snow. We’ve never seen Bob’s Broken Sleigh, so we’re trying it this year. We also have never seen the Super Hero one, though the kids do love super heroes. The Arthur one is a movie that I have a lot of nostalgia for, and in it, Arthur wanting snow on Christmas is a big part of the movie.
Wednesday, December 9
Book to unwrap: The Christmas Wish
Activity: Visit Santa
Movie: A Year Without a Santa Claus
This is a cute story about a girl who wants to find Santa so she can be his helper. It’s a darling story with beautiful illustrations. I don’t know yet when (or even if) we will have the chance to visit Santa, so I might need to switch this day with another. We normally have plenty of opportunities where we live, but we might need to find something else to do with everything going on.
Thursday, December 10
Book to unwrap: The Polar Express
Activity: Pajama and hot cocoa party
Movie: The Polar Express
This is one of my favorite books. I don’t love the movie (I am not a fan of children’s books being turned into full length movies), but I also don’t mind it. And it’s really fun to watch it in pajamas and drink hot cocoa while we watch it.
Friday, December 11
Book to unwrap: The Gingerbread Man
Activity: Make Gingerbread Cookies
Movie: The Gingerbread Man (on YouTube), 48 Christmas Wishes, Noelle
Our kids love this book and the animated reading of it on YouTube as well. We have a great recipe for gingerbread cookies with icing. We'll make some and decorate them together, then give away most to neighbors. I have to admit, I don’t actually even like gingerbread, but it’s such a fun tradition, we keep doing it every year.
For movie night, we’ll try one of the movies, both of which we haven’t seen before.
Saturday, December 12
Book to unwrap: You are my Miracle
Activity: Make Gingerbread Houses
Movie: Elf; Miracle on 34th Street (old)
Making a gingerbread house is a tradition from my own childhood that I love. My mother always made homemade gingerbread for the house, and has a great frosting recipe. I’ve done that before as well, but it is a lot of work and ends with just one house instead of a house for each child. We’ve also tried the kits that come already cut, but didn’t like them either. Our favorite way is to use graham crackers, though I still make the frosting since it works so well as glue.
The book is a bit of a stretch, but it’s a Christmas book that I really like, and they do make a gingerbread house in the book. The movies are more random. The kids loved Elf last year, so I thought it would be a good one for Saturday morning. I would also love to watch Miracle on 34th street with them, if it holds their interest.
Sunday, December 13
Book to unwrap: A Birthday Party for Jesus
Activity: Party/gifts for Jesus
Movie: A Christmas Carol (2003 cartoon); Christmas Lights
This is a simple tradition--we have a treat with a candle, sing happy birthday to Jesus, and then write down a gift for Him--something we will do in the next year to be more like Him. The book is a cute book about animals celebrating Christ’s birth, and one young animal trying to figure out what he would give to Jesus.
The Christmas Carol cartoon is one that I think the girls will like. There’s also a show on Amazon Prime that is simply Christmas lights and I’m curious about whether my girls will like it or not.
Monday, December 14
Book to unwrap: Mouse’s Christmas Gift
Activity: Make gifts for extended family
Movie: How the Toys Saved Christmas
When Ashtyn was four, she was determined to make books for every extended member of our family. Last year, I talked her into making gifts for less members, and I think we can continue that this year. If Parker wants to make any, I can help her as well. She already knows what she wants to make for everyone.
Mouse’s Christmas Book is a story about a mouse who thinks he’s too small to make a difference, but he overcomes this to bring a community together to celebrate Christ’s birth. The feeling of the book fits nicely into making gifts for others.
I don’t remember what the movie is like, but I have a distinct memory of watching it at my cousins house as a child and I’m really interested in what it’s like.
Tuesday, December 15
Book to unwrap: A Christmas Wish
Activity: Christmas playdough
Movie: Klaus
A Christmas Wish is a Peter Rabbit Christmas story about anticipating Santa. It doesn’t connect with the activity other than generic Christmas. The kids will love the playdough, which I have recipes for on Pinterest (flavors like peppermint and gingerbread).
We watched Klaus last year and really liked it.
Wednesday, December 16
Book to unwrap: Merry Christmas, Little Pookie
Activity: Make cookies for neighbors
Movie: A Very Merry Pooh Year; Winnie the Pooh and Christmas, Too; Christmas in New York; The Snowman
This is the biggest, most exhausting activity I have planned every year, but I also love it. I like to make three or four different kinds of cookies in the morning (Snickerdoodle, chocolate chip cookies with Christmas M&M's, Chocolate chip cookies dyed red with white chocolate chips, and Kiss cookies with sprinkles). In the afternoon or evening, we deliver them. I have lots of movies planned to keep the kids distracted while I finish making cookies, or we might want to just collapse and rest at the end of the day.
Thursday, December 17
Book to unwrap: Clifford’s Christmas Presents
Activity: Christmas Crafts
Movie: Franklin’s Magic Christmas Special; Tom and Jerry Nutcracker Tale
This activity is a simple one that the kids will really enjoy. We just make Christmas items out of colored paper. We’ll probably hang them up on the stairs or in their rooms. The Clifford book is a board one that the kids really enjoy, with lots of lift and flaps. It’s not my favorite Christmas book, but we’ll keep it as long as the kids continue to enjoy it.
The Franklin movie is one that we stumbled across on YouTube last year and that the kids loved to watch over and over. The Tom and Jerry is one we haven’t tried before, but we’ve watched some other Tom and Jerry this year and the kids enjoyed it.
Friday, December 18
Book to unwrap: The Legend of the Candy Cane
Activity: Candy Cane Party (make paper candy canes, eat candy canes, make candy cane cookies, read the book)
Movie: A Charlie Brown Christmas (Movie Night); The Legend of the Christmas Witch
Our candy cane party consists of eating candy canes while we read the book, making paper candy cakes, and making butter cookies that are shaped like candy canes while we watch the movies. They can also put some candy canes on our tree and we might do a candy cane science experiment.
The Legend of the Candy Cane book is a beautiful one. It tells the story of how the first candy cane was made, and connects the candy cane with the symbolism of Christ. We like to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas for movie night each year, but it’s fairly short, so I want to also try The Legend of the Christmas Witch, one that we haven’t seen before.
Saturday, December 19
Book to unwrap: The Broken Ornament
Activity: Make ornaments as a family
Movie: All I want for Christmas is You (Mariah Carrey); Home Alone
The first year Ben and I were married, we had very little money for even gifts, much less things like ornaments. That year, my mom gave me ornaments my grandma and great grandmother had made (and even her old mini artificial tree) and we started our tradition of each making an ornament. It's a tradition we’ve continued it with our kids and we all love it.
The Broken Ornament is a story about a boy who learns patience and to think about the feelings of others. It fits really well with an ornament activity. Home Alone is a classic, and we’ve never seen the Mariah Carrey one.
Sunday, December 20
Book to unwrap: Away in a Manger; The Little Drummer Boy
Activity: Caroling at the Rec Center
Movie: The Little Drummer Boy; Christmas Oranges
I have always loved caroling, but it’s something we’ve never done as a family. I’m hoping to talk some of my husband’s extended family into doing this with us, which is why I’ve planned it for a Sunday. If we can't go out somewhere due to Covid, we can sing the songs in the living room.
Away in a Manger is simply the song put to pictures, but they are beautiful. It seemed fitting on a day when we will be singing Christmas songs. The Little Drummer Boy is based on the song and the story seems very appropriate for when we are gifting music to others.
Christmas Oranges is simply a movie that I want to try during the season, though I’m not sure we’ll watch it this day. It simply seemed like a good one to watch on a Sunday.
Monday, December 21
Book to unwrap: The Nutcracker
Activity: Look at Lights
Movie: The Nutcracker Prince; Barbie Nutcracker; Nutcracker Ballet
Looking at lights is our main activity for the day--because is it really Christmas if you don’t go look at Christmas lights? Because it is a school day, we’ll probably do a different activity in the morning and then as a family, go out and look at lights together.
The movies and books are simply ones that the girls really like. Parker especially likes everything to do with The Nutcracker.
Tuesday, December 22
Book to unwrap: The Gift of the Magi
Activity: Make sibling gifts
Movie: Mickey Mouse (Once Upon a Christmas; Twice Upon a Christmas; Pluto’s Christmas Tree; Mickey’s Christmas Carol)
This is a tradition that I got from my aunt, to have my kids make a present for each other each year. The gift of the magi is one of my favorite Christmas stories and fits well with this activity. We also really love the Christmas Mickey Mouse movies, and one of them even has a version of the gift of the magi.
Wednesday, December 23
Book to unwrap: Christmas Cookie Day
Activity: Make sugar cookies
Movie: If You Give a Mouse a Christmas Cookie; Barbie’s Perfect Christmas
We make sugar cookies three times a year--Valentine’s Day, Halloween, and Christmas. When cousins are in town, we try to do this with them, though this year we probably won’t be able to. The kids always have fun making and decorating the cookies, and we try to give away most of them so that we don’t end up eating too many, though we save some to leave for Santa. We'll also make homemade Oreos with red and green frosting, because those are Santa's favorite cookies.
The book is a book board, depicting a mother bear and her son as they go through the process of making sugar cookies. It fits perfectly.
If You Give a Mouse a Christmas Cookie is a cute show and fits well with the Christmas cookie making. Barbie’s Perfect Christmas is one that we haven’t watched before, but the girls have grown to love the Barbie shows this past year, so it’s one I want to let them watch.
Thursday, December 24
Book to unwrap: A Christmas Dress for Ellen, The Night Before Christmas
Activity: Christmas coloring pages
Movie: Repeats of favorite movies
Christmas Eve! I chose The Night Before Christmas because it seems appropriate for Christmas Eve and coloring pages as the activity because I know I will be busy preparing things for our evening traditions and coloring pages are something they can do semi-independently. For movies, we’ll watch the movies they want to rewatch (which will probably include Rudolph and Frosty, but I’ll let them pick).
I also have A Christmas Dress for Ellen because it is my favorite Christmas book. I want to read it to the kids before bed on Christmas Eve.
So that's my plan! We will see how it goes in real life. I'm really excited to do this, I think the kids will have a blast with it and that it will really bring the Christmas spirit into our home. What are your favorite Christmas traditions?
My YouTube video talking more about it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOIbRj9fFGc
