Christmas morning is, without a doubt, the highlight of the festive period. Whether you are a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or just a friend, seeing a child’s smiling face on Christmas morning has to be one of life’s highlights. So is watching their apprehension turn into relief when they realize that Santa has been and not forgotten them!
Here at Yuletide Wishes, we always say that children are the VIPs at Christmas time. We believe that you should try and make Christmas as magical for them as possible. Give them experiences rather than gifts, and they’ll have something to treasure forever (and not just for a few hours!). If Christmas morning is about more than just opening presents, then you’ll already be creating magical memories for them.
If you want some ideas about making this an experience that they will remember forever, then read on!
1. Leave some small gifts or stocking at the foot of their beds.
It is no secret that children wake up early, and they wake up excited on Christmas morning! Having something they can open without your permission will help the magic start early for them. They may want to open the gifts on their own, or they may want to rush into your room and open them together. Either way, this will ease the urge for them to run straight downstairs. It’ll give you a bit more time to relax in bed before the main unwrapping frenzy begins!
2. Paper some doors!
Imagine waking up on Christmas morning and finding that you can’t get out of your bedroom (or into the living room) because someone has papered over the doors! The only way to get through is to burst through like you are a superstar running out on stage. You can use anything from leftover wrapping paper, old newspaper, or some thin, festive crepe paper. What you use is less important than how much fun your children have when jumping through it.
3. Leave some evidence so they can see that Santa has been.
Even though a massive pile of presents is a pretty good sign, leaving some other evidence will get them excited. If you leave treats for Santa and his reindeer, then make sure to add teeth marks and sprinkle some crumbs around. Leaving some footprints at the foot of your Christmas tree is also a great idea. Use either fake snow, baking soda, or flour to create them. Your children will love seeing where he has walked and comparing the size of his feet with theirs.
4. Take a photo of Santa delivering presents.
While not everyone has a spare Santa suit lying around, this can be a lot of fun for those who do. You can either take a photo or record a short video clip. Although videos can be a lot more fun, images tend to be easier to make and more convincing. Whatever you choose, you want to try and make it look as if you have caught Santa in the act. You don’t want him smiling at the camera and pulling muscle poses. Instead, he should be placing presents under the tree or walking back towards the fireplace. If your Santa is not that convincing or your outfit has seen better days, try and get creative. You can reveal very little (his backside emerging from the fireplace?), and you can still convince them that it is him. If you don’t have a big red suit, then there are websites where you can superimpose a photo of Santa in a room in your house.
5. Grow a candy cane plant
You may not realize this, but candy canes are grown, not made. Being special festive treats, they also only grow after dark on Christmas Eve. Prepare a pot of soil or sand and get your children to plant some candy cane seeds. We find that small sweets such as M&Ms work well as seeds. Sprinkle some glitter on them, and they should be ready by the time they wake up on Christmas morning. Your children will be full of wonder when they wake up to find their special treats just waiting to be eaten! Just don’t forget to add the candy canes before you go to bed!
6. Find some reindeer dust in the garden
Now we all know that reindeer cannot fly. Even Santa’s reindeer cannot fly without some help that involves a little bit of magic. On Christmas Eve, one of Santa’s elves will sprinkle some magical reindeer dust on them. This dust will give them the ability to fly for a few hours. The effects will gradually wear off, so Santa always carries some on his sleigh. If the reindeer begins to descend while in flight, he will use some more to keep them flying through the night.
Children love going outside and finding some of this magical reindeer dust in their garden. They are usually disappointed to find its ability to make them fly has worn off by the time they find it! Glitter is excellent for this as it has, in children’s eyes, a magical quality to it. You don’t need massive amounts, just some small patches sprinkled around where they can find it. One year, we also left a Christmas bell in the garden, which we said must have fallen from Santa’s sleigh.
7. Eat a Christmas breakfast.
Eating a festive breakfast helps stop your children from binging too much on sweets and treats throughout the day. What you eat is up to you, although we suggest making it something that you only eat on this special day. Try not to be too strict with the treats; this is Christmas day after all. If your children want a warm mug of hot chocolate to drink alongside their breakfast, why not let them? We try and make it unique by having something we only ever use for our breakfast on Christmas morning. For us, it is a set of festive plates that we use every year, but it can be as simple as a tablecloth or even the songs you listen to as you eat.
8. A letter from Santa Claus
This should be a special letter from Santa that they can read before open their presents. If you can, try not to write it on regular writing paper. The same goes for the ink you use, try and be as creative as you can. You’ll probably have as much fun creating it as they get when reading it! We like to use old looking, thick paper, bright red ink, and plenty of glitter. We also have a special wax seal that we use to stamp the back of the envelope. This seal helps prove that it has come from Santa. You might also want to singe the edge of the letter carefully. The letter will have got burnt a little as it went down the chimney with Santa. If you don’t have a chimney, you can leave the note covered in crumbs on the plate where you left Santa his festive snacks.
9. Hide some presents and leave riddles or a map from Santa where to find them
Rather than leaving all your children’s presents in a big pile under the Christmas tree, why not make them work a little to find some? We like to use either riddles or a treasure map. Gifts can be hidden in your house, garden, or even in the streets surrounding your home. Knowing there are still presents out there to unwrap, your children will be very keen to play the game. If they receive a letter from Santa on Christmas morning, then the riddles or map can be included with that. Think of it as a festive challenge set by Santa Clause himself! Another idea is to use some helium-filled balloons. Each one has a child’s name on it and a riddle or map to help them find their secret gift.
10. Take a Christmas walk
Taking a stroll is a great way to burn off some of that excitement and energy. Don’t forget to wrap up nice and warm and wear your Christmas jumpers! We like to take a flask of something warming to drink as well as some festive nibbles. Then, all we do is wander through our neighborhood as a family. If your children have new bikes, scooters, or any other suitable toy, let them bring it along. It gets everyone out of the house, and you get to greet any neighbors you see along the way.
We hope you have enjoyed our ten ideas for making Christmas morning extra special. We aim to inspire you and to get you thinking about experiences rather than gift-giving. If you have any suggestions, then why not leave a comment below and share your idea?