Family traditions are one of those things that promote bonding and togetherness and really helps create feelings of family and belonging. This is a great time of year to have family traditions, both old and new.

I thought I would share with you some of the things that our family does. Some of our traditions have changed over the years as our family has grown, others have stayed the same, and some new ones have been added.

This is the third Christmas that we will have Mercy and Des with us, and it has been really fun for me to hear them telling Ben, “We always do (fill in the blank) at Christmas time.”

So, here are some of the things...big and small… that we enjoy over the holidays.

An advent calendar- It seems like such a small thing, but my kids love it. We get only one calendar, and take turns on who gets the chocolate every morning. Usually I buy the calendar at the grocery store for a couple of dollars, but this year a sweet friend sent us one in the mail. Every morning at breakfast we do the “official countdown” and then open a door and see what the picture/chocolate is.

Kids being Santa- This one is a lot of work, but is also a lot of fun. We started it a few years ago to help the kids “think” about each other at the holidays. Every year we take each of the kids (no babies or toddlers) to our dollar store and let them buy one present for every member of the family (not including themselves). Then after all the shopping is done, we go home and one by one they come back in my room and help me wrap their gifts. They get their own bag to put their gifts in, and then on Christmas Eve, we all sit around the tree and each kid gets a chance to give out their gifts.

They are the first presents we give every year, and just about the only gifts that they get to open on Christmas Eve. We figured the first year we did it that dollar store stuff might easily get “lost in the shuffle” on Christmas morning, but on Christmas Eve, it is a big deal! The kids love getting to shop for everybody, and it is sometimes really touching and sometimes really hilarious to see what they choose for everyone. They really enjoy the chance to get into the spirit of giving, and honestly, some of those dollar store presents have been favorites…one year Shane carried his sword from one of his siblings all throughout Christmas day, after sleeping with it on Christmas Eve.

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