Christmas is around the corner, and like most people, you probably want to spend it with your family. Take this opportunity to strengthen the bond you have with your loved ones during such a special holiday with activities you can all enjoy together. Some of these activities can be passive while others require more involvement from everyone.
Here are some ways to increase your family’s bonding this Christmas.
Create a family tree.
You can start out by creating a family tree to gather your family on paper and present it to your family in the living room. You can discover so many things with a family tree, like your heritage, if your family had any businesses, and even if they were famous. You can use an online family tree maker like Lucid Press, where you can easily automate your information and import images from your computer or Facebook. You can also choose a template, import files, edit your images, update your family’s information, and share your newly created family tree.
Decorate with Christmas lights.
Another thing you can do to bring your family together this season is to decorate your home with durable indoor and outdoor Christmas lights, string lights, wreaths, a Christmas tree, and icicle lights. You can decorate your roof shingles, hand railings, doors, bushes, gutters, and porch to lift your family’s Christmas spirit. Doing this as a family will increase the communication among you and your family and is a great opportunity to crack jokes at each other, tell family stories, and simply enjoy each other’s company.
Cook Christmas dishes together as a family.
This Christmas, don’t just order take-out for the family. Gather around the kitchen for some holiday cooking fun. Incorporate your family in the ingredient preparation, cooking process, and cleaning tasks. You can make a game out of it to see who makes the best dish or who dries the dishes the fastest. Turn a routine into a fun activity this Christmas season to bring your family together.
Do a gingerbread house contest.
Likewise, you can do all kinds of contests with your family. For instance, you can do a gingerbread house contest to see who makes the prettiest, best decorated, or most thematic gingerbread house. Your family will love adding treats and all sorts of decorations to their sweet houses as well as eating them together afterward. You can create fun prizes, too, like having their clothes washed for them for a month or choosing the meals for next weekend.
Watch a Christmas movie together.
You can also watch a Christmas movie together as a family. To make it even better, make yourself some popcorn with red and green chocolate pieces and sprinkles to commemorate the occasion. You can even use a projector to watch the movie on a bigger screen as if you were in a movie theater, which can instantly change your family’s mood to an even more festive one.
Do a Secret Santa.
If you want to change things up this Christmas, do a Secret Santa with your family so everyone’s gift-givers remain a mystery until the day they open their presents. This will also make your Christmas shopping easier as you will only have to buy a single present for the person you’re assigned. Set a price limit so no one goes overboard on their budgets and everyone can afford the gift, including your kids.
Create a family tradition.
Lastly, you can bond with your family by creating a long-lasting family tradition. For example, you could go on a dog-sledding ride every year, take pictures with the local mall Santa Claus, take a trip to the Caribbean to avoid the cold, or even bake your favorite Christmas cake with the whole family’s input.
All of these ideas are meant to help you become closer to your family while enjoying this festive season.
