10 Ways to Spend Some Quality Family Time This December
By: Wendy Miller
Tags: Relationships, Family, Christmas, Parenting, Holidays

This year has ensured that we’ve spent plenty of time with our families. We’ve had months of nothing but time together. So much time, in fact, that we might even be getting a little sick of seeing nothing but each other’s faces.

So now that it’s the holiday season, you might be feeling a little burnt out. And yet this is the time of year when we usually spend time with family. We look forward to the holidays, the parties, the traditions and fun stuff we only do this time of year.

But after so much togetherness this year, what else can we do? How can we spend some quality time together without it feeling like just another day in this long year?

Try these ideas out. (This post does contain some affiliate links)

Play some games together

You’ve probably exhausted your usually supply of games, but there are a ton of winter-themed games that you could break out now for a new twist on game night. From Push-A-Brick Penguin Stacking Blocks for toddlers to The Santa Claus Game where your kids play Santa to this inflatable Christmas tree ring toss game, there are all kinds of holiday and winter games that your kids will love exploring while waiting for Santa’s arrival.

Grab several games and make it a game night (or afternoon). If games aren’t your thing, consider some holiday-themed puzzles instead.

Photo by Cara Grobbelaar on Unsplash

Bake & decorate cookies

Mixing up dough, cutting out shapes, icing and then adding sprinkles and other decorations to cookies a great way to pass at least a couple of hours together. Choose a family favorite recipe or a brand-new one and enjoy some laughs as you make a mess and some delicious memories.

If baking is not your strong suit, consider purchasing premade cookies and decorating those instead. You’ll still get most of the same fun out of it with less of a burnt cookie smell.

Do some holiday-themed crafts

There are lots of holiday-themed crafts you can do from making simple paper garlands to creating your own ornaments. I particularly like this Ornament Craft Kit that comes with six wood slices, assorted paints and brushes, yarn, instructions, and an idea sheet. Another favorite is this Embroidered Ornament Kit that’s perfect for beginners with everything you need to embroider your own Christmas wreath ornament.

Got enough ornaments? Try this Watercolor Christmas Tree that comes pre-outlined so all you need to do is paint between the lines. This one can be fun for everyone — even the messiest water color from a little one will make a great memory someday.

Take a drive to look at Christmas lights

This has always been one of my favorite traditions with my kids. All you need to do is hop in the car (with some hot cocoa if it’s cold!) and drive around local neighborhoods. Enjoy the beauty of all the decorations people have put so much time and effort into putting up.

Crank up some holiday tunes to really get into the spirit of things. Have a family contest and decide who has the best decorations in town or in a particular neighborhood. It’s up to you if you want to knock on their door and offer them a candy cane as a prize for winning!

Photo by Andy Holmes on Unsplash

Sit outside and enjoy your own Christmas lights

We spend hours decorating but how much time do we spend really enjoying our own decorations? Take a few minutes to step outside after dark and enjoy the fruits of your own Christmas labor. Sit on a swing, a bench, the grass, or lean against your car and simply take in the decorations you worked so hard to put up.

I did this with my own kids just a week or so ago. I left my phone inside, pulled on a sweater, and sat on our backyard swing with my boys. We played a few songs and just enjoyed breathing in the crisp, cold air while we looked at the pretty lights they’d strung up with their grandfather. It was beautiful, relaxing, and a great way to spend a few minutes with the family.

Don’t forget the Christmas music!

Wrap some gifts together

Obviously, this one requires a little thinking and planning ahead so you’re not wrapping each other’s gifts in front of each other. But if you buy gifts for grandparents, cousins, other extended family, friends, neighbors, or teachers, wrapping some gifts together can be a nice way to spend some time together.

You can lend each other a hand with holding paper and gifts in place so you can tape them, while laughing about memories of Christmases past and sipping some hot cocoa. This is also a great way to let little ones help out with the wrapping without it ending in a total mess.

Take some new family photos

Whether this is when you usually take family photos or not, have some fun with some photos now. Head outside for some snowy pics if you live in a cold place, or set up in front of the Christmas tree if you’re someplace warmer.

Don’t worry about getting those “perfect” poses, either. Have fun with it! Make silly faces, set the timer to catch you mid-snowball fight, and see what else you can come up with to just have fun with it. You just might find that you get the perfect Christmas card photo by letting go and just taking random photos.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Create & send the family Christmas card

There are tons of places to order Christmas cards and while you can often order them with pre-printed signatures, taking the time to sign them yourself can be a fun way to spend some time together as a family. Take a couple of hours to choose the right family photo, or the favorite pre-printed cover, come up with a heartfelt message, and then sign and send the cards as a family.

Little ones will love putting on stamps and dumping cards into the open mouth of the big mailbox at the post office. If they can’t quite write yet, consider letting them use a crayon or marker to draw a symbol to indicate their signature.

Have a family party

There may not be as many parties this year but who says you can’t have a family party at home? Whip up everyone’s favorite party snacks, mix up some yummy party drinks, and play some party games with the people you live with every day. Crank up the music and dance around the living room.

If your family tends to be more lowkey and not into parties, grab the same snacks and drinks and settle in with a couple of good Christmas movies instead.

Have a hot cocoa tasting

Hot cocoa is much more than just hot chocolate milk. It comes in a variety of flavors including caramel and peppermint. So try having a hot cocoa tasting to see which flavors you like best. You can order a pack like this 12-flavor pack, mix up all 12, and then divide it up among everyone. Like a wine-tasting, you can even create a scorecard to score flavor, texture, and whatever else comes to mind.

Just because you’ve already spent a lot of time together this year doesn’t mean you can’t still have some quality family time this Christmas. You just need to try something new or put a holiday twist on an everyday activity.

Wendy Miller is a Single Mom Coach & meditation teacher. She helps moms use mindfulness and meditation to create the life they really want. She lives in Florida with her two sons, where she homeschools while solo parenting, while surrounded by what feels like a zooful of animals.

You can follow her on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. You can also sign up for her newsletter for exclusive tips and goodies.

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