How to Make the Holidays Truly Magical for Kids

We’ve all felt the pressure to attend every holiday movie, try every sweet goodie, and pile up all of our presents under the tree. Yet many parents find that it’s not the gifts their kids remember. Children most enjoy the traditions, the time spent together and the moments of connection with family, friends, and even complete strangers.

“My kids can’t recall what was under the tree two years ago,” says Debbie Wolfe a mom in Toronto. “But they often talk about our annual trip to see the decorated shop windows downtown, or the refugee family we invited for Christmas dinner that year.”

Here are five other ideas for memorable, magical holidays:

1. Start a holiday tradition: Try sledding on Christmas Eve, making the cookies your grandmother made, or watching a holiday classic every weekend in December.
2. Open your heart: Invite a less fortunate family for a meal, or get your kids to send a gift to a family in a developing country. This can be done on the web site called World Vision Gifts.
3. Take in music: Whether it’s free holiday music at your city hall, or Christmas carols at a nearby church, the sounds of the season have a wonderful way of lifting spirits.
4. Set up mailboxes: Tape large envelopes to bedroom doors and drop in notes of fun and encouragement. Invite kids to cookie baking in the kitchen that afternoon, or count down the days until Christmas.
5. Let the lights shine: Brighten those dark December nights with candles at dinner time. Or let them sleep by the Christmas tree one night, with the lights twinkling.