Sometimes, with information available at the tips of our fingers, it can be hard to keep things charmed and magical for our children all through the year. As Christmas is a time for children to be enchanted by the magic of Father Christmas, the flying reindeers and the toy making elves, here at Shepherds Friendly we have come up with some ideas to help keep Christmas alive.
Go Homemade
To keep Christmas alive this year, why don’t you take an afternoon to create all the different ornaments for your Christmas tree, yourselves! There are many options, such as reindeers made from toilet roll (they’re a lot cuter than they sound!), crochet snowflakes, origami stars or felt Santa’s! They are all cheap and easy to make, and will make your Christmas decorations look and feel more personal and magical. You might have a good laugh seeing what kind of creations you end up with as well! Have a look on Pinterest for instructions on how to make the ornaments.
Go Ice-skating
Wrapping up warm in a big scarf and hat while trying not to fall over for some reason always gets you in the Christmas mood! There is something quite magical about outdoor ice skating rinks, which usually pop up around Christmas. The cold air, the laughter and the little bit of unsteadiness are a great mix to help get you in the Christmas sprit. It’s such a lovely atmosphere seeing everyone enjoy themselves, and skating next to a giant Christmas tree while listening to winter favourites is bound to get even the biggest scrooge a little bit excited.
Do something for charity
As much as Christmas is about magic and excitement, nothing really makes you feel as good as helping your fellow man. Around Christmas, it is important to help your children understand that there are people less fortunate than them. Have a look through your old clothes and choose some to give to charity, buy some presents to donate to children’s home or create a food hamper for a family who can’t afford all the Christmas trimmings. You and your family will get the wonderful feeling of helping out someone in need, and you will really make someone else’s Christmas magical as well.
Get ready for Father Christmas!
With Smartphone Apps and websites there are now more ways than ever before for you to show your children Father Christmas is coming! You can download an app called “Parents Calling Santa” for £1.99 from the App Store, which will show an image on your phone of Father Christmas calling, and there is even a pre-recorded message from Santa for your children to listen to! There are also other websites that will send your child a personalised letter from Santa, as well as websites that will provide updates on how he and the elves are getting on with their preparations in the North Pole.
Signs Father Christmas has been
On Christmas morning, most children will be too excited to notice anything other than their presents under the tree. After the frenzy of opening, it might be nice to leave your daughter or son little clues, which have been left by Santa, to help them believe he was actually in your house.
You can drop a little bit of glitter on the front porch and tell the little ones it’s Santa’s magic dust, leave a half eaten carrot from Rudolph in the garden, leave a hand written Christmas card from Father Christmas (written in different handwriting to yours), or even hide a sleigh bell in the garden (which has fallen off Santa’s sleigh of course).
Christmas can be the most magical time of year. These tips will help to keep Christmas alive and may help your child keep the magic and enchantment of Christmas for a little bit longer, but it’s also important for them to understand that Christmas is a time for family, friends and helping out those less fortunate than you. Even if they eventually stop believing in Father Christmas, with those ideas in mind they will continue to find Christmas every bit as special as before.
If you have any more “Keeping Christmas Alive” tips, Tweet us your ideas at @ShepherdsFS. Happy Christmas!
