This is the perfect time of year to enjoy family traditions with your loved ones. One tradition of my family is to do a Christmas countdown.
But, we don’t have a traditional paper chain counting down the days. Or an Advent calendar where you open a little door or box each day. Owen, my child with Pica, would eat those things right up.
So instead, at the end of each November, I wrap up 24 Christmas themed books and movies. Throughout the time between December 1st-December 24th, the kids unwrap one each night. To avoid any fights, I let the child who’s day it is open the present.
If it’s a book, we snuggle on the couch and read it. If it’s a movie, we let the kids make beds on the living room floor and we have a movie night.
The kids love this family Christmas tradition! And I love spending intentional time with them each evening in what can be a very busy time of the year.
Tricks I’ve Learned to Make Our Christmas Countdown More Manageable
Not every evening is suitable for a movie night. And some Christmas stories are pretty long.
So, I learned a couple of things over the past few years to make this more manageable. Here are a few of the things we do:
- Put a date on each present so it can be opened on an appropriate night (ie movies are for Fridays or Tuesdays, short books are for Wednesdays and Sundays…)
- Think about who will be opening each gift (The kids each have a day of the week, and on their day they open the present. I have younger kids open the board books, one of my girly-girls open the ones about the Nutcracker, and so on.)
- Have a rule of no phones allowed (when we read/watch our Christmas countdown materials, the focus is on family time.)
- Only purchase one or two new items a year
- Check out books from the library if more are needed and there isn’t room in the budget (the first few years, about half of our countdown gifts came from the library. This year, none of them are.)
How The Christmas Countdown with Books & Movies Works
Every evening, one present is unwrapped. The child who’s day it is does the honors.
Once opened, we snuggle on the couch and read the book or watch the movie. Popcorn is usually involved on movie nights!
What I Love About this Tradition
I love that we reuse the same presents. I don’t have to buy 24 additional presents each year (that’d blow the budget!)
Additionally, I love that we end this tradition on Christmas Day by unwrapping the Bible. Daddy reads the Christmas story from the books of Matthew and Luke, and the family starts Christmas morning by focusing on the true meaning of Christmas.
What Are We Unwrapping to Countdown to Christmas in 2020?
Here are a few of the items we’ll be unwrapping in our Christmas Countdown. I can’t wait to get started!
Movies:
The Home Alone Collection. This is always the first gift in our countdown. Then on December 1st, we have a Home Alone marathon. Last year I stayed up through three of the four! It’s such a fun secondary tradition that we enjoy.
Christmas with a Capital C
Some friends gave us this movie several years ago, and we really enjoy watching it during December. The song with the same name is in there. 😀
A Charlie Brown Christmas
It’s a classic. We love when Linus recites from the Bible.
Charlie Brown’s Christmas Tales
This one has a few different short Christmas movies on it.
I’ll Be Home for Christmas
This was one of my favorites from my teen years (because JTT! :D) and I was excited to find it on DVD last year. A spoiled college student tries to get home for Christmas in order to get a fancy car from his Dad. But, all sorts of things stand in his way. Eventually, he discovers something even better than the car…
Some of Our Favorite Christmas Books
There are several books wrapped up and waiting for the kids to unwrap. Here are a few of our favorites, plus a peek at the new ones we’ll be opening this year…
The Story of Baby Jesus
This rhyming book is a cute one. We enjoy the Alice in Bibleland series.
The 12 Days of Christmas: The Story Behind a Favorite Christmas Song
We enjoy singing this song, and this book explores the meaning behind each item.
The Nutcracker
The classic ballet looks beautiful in these pictures! This year, we’ll likely watch the movie version where Macaulay Culkin in it as well.
The Berenstain Bears’ Old Fashioned Christmas
So many fun songs and traditions are explored in this fun book!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
This Dr. Suess classic helps the kids realize that’s there is more to Christmas than all of the decorations, gifts, and food. It really can’t be cancelled.
New Books for 2020
Here are the three new books I purchased for our countdown this year. I’m looking forward to sharing them with the kids!
Little Blue Truck’s Christmas
My little boys really enjoy the other books in the Little Blue Truck series, so this will be a fun addition.
Christmas in the Trenches
This shares the historical story of the German and British troops joining together to sing Silent Night on Christmas Eve during World War I.
God Gave Us Christmas
Little Cub wonders who made Christmas, so her mom helps her to learn more about this special holiday.
Do You Have a Christmas Countdown Tradition?
I’d love to hear what special tradition you use to countdown the days until Christmas! Please share in the comments.
This post was first published in 2018. It’s been updated and refreshed.
