Christmas Ideas

Fun Christmas activities for kids

What's your favorite holiday memory? Most of us think back to our childhood. It's funny how you can't remember those gifts you begged Santa for, but you can remember all the good times you spent as a family.

Try these tiny ideas with lots of cheer:

• Put holiday or encouragement cards in your children's mittens or sneak a special treat in their hats.
• Help kids show their appreciation to the special people in their lives by purchasing photo-frame ornaments as gifts. Personalize each frame by inserting a photo of the child with the gift recipient.
• As you trim the tree, recall the history of each special ornament. Hold up your youngest to put the star on top.
• Ask school-age children to read holiday cards or gift tags.
• Play a game. Put a variety of everyday, easy-to-identify objects in a Christmas stocking. Each player gets a turn at digging into the stocking to feel what's inside. No peeking. Whoever can name the most objects inside wins.
• Ask the teens or tweens to recall their earliest holiday memories and share some of yours.
• Take a walk after dark to see the neighbors' decorations.
• Work on a holiday-themed puzzle together.
• Involve your children in a charity. Sponsor a family and shop for gifts for them.
• Make holiday treats and/or decorations to take to nursing home residents.

Lots of parents worry about making the holidays special when they're on a tight budget. Just remember it's the little things you do every year that come to mean "Christmas" for your children.

What will you keepsake this year? See Keepsake Ornaments that will help you capture the memories, or see all Christmas cards and Christmas gifts.