December Bucket List Ideas: 5 Festive Christmas Ideas to Try in 2022

There is something about the magic of Christmas coming alive again when you have kids. You get to relive all of those special Christmas moments from your childhood that seemed like magic when you were younger.

So much of the Christmas fun comes from passing on your favorite traditions you experienced in your childhood as well as creating some of your own for your family!

I compiled a December bucket list filled with festive traditions leading up to Christmas that I plan to do with my family this Holiday season.

I hope this Christmas bucket list sparks some ideas you could start with your family to make your Christmas extra special this year!

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1. Happy Birthday Jesus Cake

One of my favorite childhood memories on Christmas morning was when my mom would make a Happy Birthday Jesus Cake. After the excitement of opening presents, we would gather around a birthday cake and sing happy birthday to Jesus!

When there is so much excitement of gifts and family around, it’s often challenging to remember the true meaning of Christmas. This tradition is a wonderful reminder to children and adults why this day is truly so special!

Click the link below to check out some Jesus Birthday Cake ideas.

Check it out

2. St. Nicholas Shoes

When I was teaching elementary school, one of my favorite memories was celebrating St. Nicholas Day with our students.

If you haven’t heard of this tradition, it is the cutest!

What you do is you have your kids place their shoes outside of their bedroom (we did it outside of the classroom when I was teaching) the eve of St. Nicholas Day.

Once your child falls asleep, you fill their shoes with candy canes, chocolate, and other treats. My students use to LOVE this, and I can’t wait to try it with my kids this year!

St. Nicholas Day this year is Tuesday, December 6th.

Linked below is history and traditions of St. Nicholas day and different ways to celebrate with your family below.

St Nicholas Day

3. See the Nutcracker Ballet

I’ll never forget when my parents took me to the Nutcracker as a little girl. I still remember it to this day!

This is something we plan on taking our kiddos to this year, and I can’t wait for them to experience it. We plan on dressing up and getting a special dinner beforehand then heading to the play. It will be a magical night for us!

I hope you get to try this out with your family sometime. Whether it’s a small local play or a big city event, your kids will be so excited to go! This is a must for all children to experience at least once during their childhood!

4. DIY Advent Calendars

Advent calendars are such a fun way to get your kids excited for Christmas. If you’ve never seen one before, it basically is a countdown board until Christmas that you start on December first.

I’ve never done this before but this year I want to create my own. Next week, I’m going to do a reel on my Facebook and Instagram on my DIY Advent Calendar so hopefully you get it chance to watch it.

Here is an awesome link with a bunch of DIY ideas for advent calendars. Click the link below to check them out!

DIY Advent Calendars

5. Sip Eggnog by the Fire + Board Games

Is there any other time of year you get to drink egg nog? Nope! While play board games? Definitely not!

I cannot wait to do this with my family on a cold snowy night leading up to Christmas. I’m picturing Christmas jammies, fuzzy socks, boardgames, eggnog, and the fire place crackling.

My kids have been loving Jenga lately so this will probably be our game on choice. It is like a blast from the past to play this!

Hope you and your family get to have a night like this leading up to Christmas.