Get Prepared on Christmas Eve

The excitement of the season is all around and the big day is almost here. The kids are wound tighter than a top with anticipation. They have gotten their Santa Letters. They have even gotten Santa Calls. Now they are ready for a visit from the jolly ole elf. Christmas Eve is upon you.

Now kids love to help and leaving them out of the preparations for Santa's arrive would be cruel. Every child, from the youngest to the oldest, knows what the final thing to do before bed is. Feed Santa! Well Santa always has the same thing every year. He must have his milk and cookies, but what about those poor reindeer? What do they get? This is where the kids get to help.

Maybe leave them a little stocking. Those tiny little stockings can be bought by the dozen. You can let the kids help by using a little glitter glue pen to write their (the reindeer's) names on each stocking. Then, a little Christmas candy cane and all is set! Reindeer love candy canes. Perhaps a little gift for Donner and crew would be better. They deliver presents all night, they should get something too. A trip to the dollar store can net you a set of bells. Let the kids put a bell on a red ribbon for each of the reindeer and make little tags for them. Reindeer like presents too. Letting the kids help in all this lets them feel a part of the holiday. It also, though, helps them see the more altruistic side of Christmas and feel the joy of giving.

Maybe you want your kids to leave food for the reindeer rather than little gifts. After all, they are having a busy night and bound to get a little hungry. The easiest food to leave them is Reindeer Oats. Most likely you already have everything you need on hand. You just need some rolled oats (uncooked) and some red and green glitter. The kids just need to toss them together. You can explain to them that the glitter makes it sparkle and catch their eye. For added realism, have them (the kids) leave it out side where the reindeer are patiently waiting on the old elf to deliver his goodies. Another great favorite of reindeer, kids, and parents is Reindeer Munch. It's very easy to make and the leftovers will get snacked on for days. To make it you just need melting chocolate, white is more seasonal, and chex-type party mix. Melt the chocolate in a sauce pan then add enough mix to coat and use all the chocolate. Now spoon it out onto wax paper to cool and you are done. It sounds a little odd but taste great. The reindeer along with everybody else will love it!

These are great ways to add the whole family to the Christmas fun and to show them how important it is to give, not just receive. You can bet one of the first things your little ones will do in the morning is to make sure their gift or food were taken. You'll love the smile on their faces as they discover that the reindeer got their gift or candy. On a final note, make sure that Santa's Milk and cookies as well as what was left for the reindeer is gone in the morning. Keep that Christmas magic alive.

Make Christmas Eve a Magical Day Your Family

Create a magical Christmas Eve for your family by preparing the Twelve Hours of Christmas. It will inspire family togetherness and foster a feeling of the true Christmas Spirit in your home as you spend time together having lots of fun! You can adapt this activity for young or old. It will help you pass the time until Santa arrives!

Come up with 12 activities that take less than an hour to complete. These activities can include putting a holiday puzzle together, a treasure hunt, a Christmas Bingo game (which if you or one of your children are computer savy, you can make fairly easily), Christmas Charades game, enjoy a special snack together, etc...

You will need a bell to ring which will signal time for everyone to gather for the next activity. You ring the bell on the hour. Designate a room to meet in and then introduce the activity. If you like, start with a fun breakfast for Christmas Eve. A special lunch can be one of the hours as well. You could have the day's activities culminate with a visit from St. Nick himself and a family party with Grandpa and Grandma invited along with cousins, aunts and uncles. (This might take more than an hour but it could count as a couple of activities if you like.)

Plan and prepare all of this before Christmas Eve. If you want, you can put each child in charge of one of the activities. Really make it something special. With a little time and a lot of thought you can create a Christmas Eve that your whole family will enjoy. Make this a new tradition and don't be surprised if your family wants to continue the fun next year!

Christmas Eve Tradition

The night before Christmas has as many unique traditions as it does people who celebrate it. Marking the end of the Advent Season, Christmas Eve is on December 24th. Here is a look at some of the more popular and prevalent Christmas Eve traditions.

Deck the Halls!

Throughout Europe and in many last-minute American homes, too, families gather to set up their Christmas tree. They also hang garlands of evergreen boughs over the window and wreaths on the doors.

Bayberry Candles

Bayberry candles were first made by the colonists, who discovered that, even though they take longer to make, they burned longer and cleaner than traditional wax candles. Because these candles took so much effort to make, many families began saving them for special occasions. Thus was born the tradition of lighting bayberry candles on Christmas, and reciting the verse: "Bayberry candles burned to the socket, puts luck in the home, food in the larder, and gold in the pocket."

Feast of Seven Fishes

The Feast of Seven Fishes originated in southern Italy and is practiced today by many Italian American families.

In celebration of the birth of baby Jesus, many Roman Catholics do not eat meat on Christmas Eve. Instead, a feast of seafood and shellfish is prepared. Why seven different types of fishes? Tradition tells that it is because God took seven days to create the universe.

Religious Services / Midnight Mass

Many Roman Catholics and Anglicans celebrate Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. In Spanish-speaking areas, the Midnight Mass is called Misa del Gallo ("Rooster's Mass"). In Lutheran churches, German and Scandinavian traditions are often practices, such as nativity plays, called "Krippenspiele", and midnight candlelight services. Other Protestant churches also have nativity plays and candlelight services, but usually hold them earlier in the evening. Many Methodist churches celebrate Holy Communion in a solemn service lit only by the candles of the Lord's Table.

In Eastern Christian, the traditional Julian calendar is followed, in which Christmas falls 13 days after the modern Gregorian calendar. A Nativity feast is held, often in the church, followed by an all-night vigil.

Caroling

An old European custom of singing Christmas songs throughout the village is still commonly practiced in the United States. Carolers, groups of friends or church-goers, will go from door to door, entertaining neighbors with traditional songs and hymns. Residents often give the carolers hot cocoa in return.

Santa Claus

For many families, Christmas Eve also marks the late-night arrival of Santa Claus. Children leave out milk and cookies before they go to bed, for Santa and his reindeer to enjoy. In some families, children open one present before they go to bed -- often a pair of Christmas pajamas. Other families save all the gifts to be opened on Christmas morning.

Christmas History

The history of Christmas dates back over 4000 years. Many of our Christmas traditions were celebrated centuries before the Christ child was born. The 12 days of Christmas, the bright fires, the yule log, the giving of gifts, carnivals(parades) with floats, carolers who sing while going from house to house, the holiday feasts, and the church processions can all be traced back to the early Mesopotamians.

Many of these traditions began with the Mesopotamian celebration of New Years. The Mesopotamians believed in many gods, and as their chief god - Marduk. Each year as winter arrived it was believed that Marduk would do battle with the monsters of chaos. To assist Marduk in his struggle the Mesopotamians held a festival for the New Year. This was Zagmuk, the New Year's festival that lasted for 12 days.

The Mesopotamian king would return to the temple of Marduk and swear his faithfulness to the god. The traditions called for the king to die at the end of the year and to return with Marduk to battle at his side.

To spare their king, the Mesopotamians used the idea of a "mock" king. A criminal was chosen and dressed in royal clothes. He was given all the respect and privileges of a real king. At the end of the celebration the "mock" king was stripped of the royal clothes and slain, sparing the life of the real king.

The Persians and the Babylonians celebrated a similar festival called the Sacaea. Part of that celebration included the exchanging of places, the slaves would become the masters and the masters were to obey.

Early Europeans believed in evil spirits, witches, ghosts and trolls. As the Winter Solstice approached, with its long cold nights and short days, many people feared the sun would not return. Special rituals and celebrations were held to welcome back the sun.

In Scandinavia during the winter months the sun would disappear for many days. After thirty-five days scouts would be sent to the mountain tops to look for the return of the sun. When the first light was seen the scouts would return with the good news. A great festival would be held, called the Yuletide, and a special feast would be served around a fire burning with the Yule log. Great bonfires would also be lit to celebrate the return of the sun. In some areas people would tie apples to branches of trees to remind themselves that spring and summer would return.

The ancient Greeks held a festival similar to that of the Zagmuk/Sacaea festivals to assist their god Kronos who would battle the god Zeus and his Titans.

The Roman's celebrated their god Saturn. Their festival was called Saturnalia which began the middle of December and ended January 1st. With cries of "Jo Saturnalia!" the celebration would include masquerades in the streets, big festive meals, visiting friends, and the exchange of good-luck gifts called Strenae (lucky fruits).

The Romans decked their halls with garlands of laurel and green trees lit with candles. Again the masters and slaves would exchange places

"Jo Saturnalia!" was a fun and festive time for the Romans, but the Christians though it an abomination to honor the pagan god. The early Christians wanted to keep the birthday of their Christ child a solemn and religious holiday, not one of cheer and merriment as was the pagan Saturnalia.

But as Christianity spread they were alarmed by the continuing celebration of pagan customs and Saturnalia among their converts. At first the Church forbid this kind of celebration. But it was to no avail. Eventually it was decided that the celebration would be tamed and made into a celebration fit for the Christian Son of God.

Some legends claim that the Christian "Christmas" celebration was invented to compete against the pagan celebrations of December. The 25th was not only sacred to the Romans but also the Persians whose religion Mithraism was one of Christianity's main rivals at that time. The Church eventually was successful in taking the merriment, lights, and gifts from the Saturanilia festival and bringing them to the celebration of Christmas.

The exact day of the Christ child's birth has never been pinpointed. Traditions say that it has been celebrated since the year 98 AD. In 137 AD the Bishop of Rome ordered the birthday of the Christ Child celebrated as a solemn feast. In 350 AD another Bishop of Rome, Julius I, choose December 25th as the observance of Christmas.