Family Christmas Activity Ideas from Family Christmas Online^TM

This page will eventually contain links to family activities that help you celebrate Christmas without adding (much) more work or financial expense to your burden.

That said, we are also going to include a "Family Christmas Trips" page that discusses day trips, overnight trips, and vacation trips that you can make with your family during the Christmas season. Click here to see the first trip we recommend.

In the meantime, here are some family activity ideas for helping your family focus on the Biblical meaning of Christmas. These were all provided (or at least suggested) by Bible professor Dr. David Mappes and his wife Karin, from Cedarville, Ohio:

• Read Luke 2 aloud. have the children put on a play about the Christmas story. You may have to help them with props and such. Make sure there is a part for everyone.

• Kindergarten age children can memorize Luke 2:1-11 and recite it to the family on Christmas Eve.

• Let young children help decorate a cake for Jesus' birthday. Have each one tell their vision of the Christmas story, then sing Christmas carols such as "Away in a Manger."

• If you have moveable figures with your nativity scene, have the older children read Luke 2 while the younger ones place the appropriate figures in at the right times.

• Make a Christmas mobile with all the various characters in the Christmas story.

• Take turns in selecting or making one special Christmas ornament per year.

• Help the children to make an acrostic from the word "Christmas," such as C is for the cows that grazed nearby; H is for the hay in the stable, and so on. Try other words such as "King," "Messiah," "Shepherd," and "Angel."

• Give out secret gifts to neighbors and friends.

• Sing Christmas carols every night in December. (Note: Our Family Christmas Music pages have many examples, including words, music, and tunes that you can download.)

Also, if you like music and or pageantry, consider attending:

• A Boar's Head festival. This is a recreation of a renaissance-era Christmas celebration with roots that go back to Celtic traditions.
• A "Handel's Messiah Sing-a-Long" - under professional leadership, you, a bunch of professionals, and a whole lot of other amateurs sing your heart out in a live production of Handel's Messiah.
• Christmas concerts at your local high school and or university - these are usually free, and always more interesting than watching television.

If you've been reading our pages, you know that we have big things planned, and a lot on our plate, so keep checking back. And contact us with any questions or suggestions you have in the meantime.

Paul and Shelia Race www.familychristmasonline.com