6 Sibling Christmas Traditions: For Kids to Delight in the Excitement of the Holidays Together 

When I have grown old and my children are adults with their own babies, what I want most for them is an unbreakable bond they have with each other.

Who knows what the future holds and if they live across the country from one another, but I dream of them making plans to spend time together at the holidays and share in some of the same traditions we had as a family when they were little, with their own families and of course, together as brother and sister. This is also why I make sure my kids have their own Sibling Christmas Traditions; for their excitement of the holidays to help cement them together for the years a.

While some days it feels like all my three  kids do is bicker, I love to catch the little moments when they think I’m not watching and I see as they help each other, run to comfort the other when they’re hurt or have fallen, and of course, delight in the holidays together. These sweet magical moments is the glue that will bond them to one another when distance and time weave in and out of their sibling bonds.

There is nothing more meaningful than to give children family traditions, but also their own brother and sister traditions to cherish for a lifetime.

 

Sibling Christmas Traditions: For Kids To Delight in the Excitement of the Holidays Together

Siblings Buy Gifts For Each Other

This tradition is one my kids talk about all year long and once we decorate our tree, ask a million times when is it time to go Christmas Shopping for their brother and sister. They love it so much!

Each year, we give the kids each a certain amount of money to go shopping for their siblings. It’s usually $10 per child, but this is completely up to you and your budget. Mom or Dad will take each child to a store of their choice to scout out the special presents and what’s special is not only the time you get one-on-one with your kid during the busy holiday season, but you see how intimately your child knows their siblings and seeing the amount of thought they take to plan for the perfect gift.

Once we get home, they wrap the present, create a card and set it under the tree. The best part is when it’s time to open presents, how excited each child gets when their gift is opened and you can see the pride beaming from their faces at making their brother or sister happy with a well-thought out gift.

You can also let your kids go in together on planning and buying, or making a gift for Mom and Dad. Of course, any gift from your kids and from the heart is the best kind!

 

Christmas Camp Out

My kids get to pick a non-school night in December to set up their sleeping bags, pillows, hundreds of stuffed animals and sleep in the living room with the Christmas tree lights on. We might watch one of their favorite Christmas movies like The Grinch, eat popcorn, have hot chocolate and read a Christmas story before they settle to bed too.

See more ideas on making this Christmas Campout memorable at The Dating Divas

Night Before Christmas Box

Create a Night Before Christmas Box for all the kids to open up at once, or one for each child. The box can have new Christmas pajamas to wear to bed, a Santa hat, socks or slippers, a Christmas book to read before bedtime, hot chocolate and some sort of note.

You can snag free printable for your Night Before Christmas Box from Oh My Creative

 

Magic Reindeer Food

This recipe is easy to make, but what’s hard to capture is the delight little kids get from Magic Reindeer Food.

Mix together oats, seeds, festive holiday sugar crystals or cooking decoration toppings and sprinkle it your yard for Santa’s Reindeer to eat on Christmas Eve. (Stay away from actual glitter or potentially toxic non-food items which can be harmful to critters if they eat it.)

As an added magic trick – pop open a glow stick and sprinkle the glowing liquid over your lawn and tell the kids to look outside and see how the magic reindeer food sparkles and glows in the dark!

Snag a free printable & recipe for Magic Reindeer Food from Savvy Mom.

Christmas Eve Sleep Over

I used to do this as a kid and this is something we’ve passed along to our kids, a Christmas Eve Bunk Over. This is where all the kids can pick a bedroom to bunk in together for the night. This may mean squeezing into one bed or throwing a couple sleeping bags on the floor, but the excitement is definitely tangible when all the kids are together in one room and when they wake up together on Christmas morning.

I love hearing the excited whispers of “I think I just heard a reindeer on the roof,” or “we have to go to bed so Santa can come tonight.”

Kindness Elves to Spread Kindness

Kindness Elves are a fun alternative to “Elf on the Shelf” that focuses on doing kind things for someone every day leading up to Christmas. You need to order these Kindness Elves one early so it ships on time and you can set up acts of kindness for your kids to do together such as baking cookies for a neighbor, raking leaves in someone’s yard, collecting canned food for a local food bank, donating used toys to a shelter, writing kind notes to hand out, etc.

 

Traditions are important for families because they create unity. Traditions contribute to healthy family dynamics and building a positive home for children to have a sense of belonging and identity.

What are some of your favorite sibling traditions you do with your own siblings or with your kids?

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