If you are anything like me, my bet is your hair is up in a messy bun, pom poms are scattered all over the floor and you are brainstorming ways to entertain your little ones with all the festive activities this time of year. As much as I would love to have had an activity planned out for each day of December, the truth is I couldn’t find the motivation. Probably because we have been planning activities and entertaining little ones at home (some even homeschooling their kids) since March and I think I’m a little burnt out. Can you relate?
Despite the burn out, I still wanted to make sure my kiddos had a few festive activities to get in the Christmas spirit. I chose activities strategically and went with the ones that I knew could be used on more than one occasion; I wanted the least amount of prep and planning for a whole month of fun! Some of these I thought of on my own and some I was inspired by some friends but none the less all are sure to entertain your little ones again and again this Holiday season. Now let’s get into the fun!
Hot Cocoa Sensory Bin
Inspired by: Allison Norman
This sensory bin activity was inspired by my friend on Instagram @allison_n_norman. I saw the hot cocoa sensory bin that she did, thought it was the cutest idea and had to make one of my own! I loved that this sensory bin was edible as I am always nervous my girls are going to eat something they aren’t suppose to. The intent of this sensory bin was for them to make a hot cocoa for themselves by filling their cup with the chocolate cheerios, topping it with marshmallows, caramel bites or peppermint and using the stir sticks to stir it up. They also enjoyed scooping the contents onto the floor and beating the cheerios with the stir sticks like a drum but those are things you have to learn to except with sensory play! My kids had so much fun with this activity and I have already been able to bring it out on multiple occasions and they like it just as much each time.
What You'll Need
Ikea Table (optional)
2 Bins
Chocolate Cheerios
Starbucks To Go Cups
Mini Marshmallows
Wooden Scoops/Containers
Stir Sticks Or Spoons
Candy Canes
Caramel Bites
Peppermint Sprinkles
DIY Felt Tree Decorating
This simple DIY is the perfect festive activity that you can pull out for your kids all month long. I got my inspiration from a decorative pink light up tree I bought for the girl’s room this year. The intent of this activity was for the kids to be able to decorate and un-decorate their tree using velcro. After some trial and error I learned that wool balls work a lot better than pom poms and although I intended for the tree to be pink, I couldn’t find a way to secure the pink felt to the green cutout so that it wouldn’t pull up while the kids were playing with it. With that being said, below you will find everything you need to make one of your own!
What You'll Need
The Steps
Step 1 – Place one side of the mini velcro dots scattered around the felt Christmas tree.
Step 2 – Place the opposite side of the mini velcro dots onto each of the wool balls and golden star.
Step 3 – Show your kids how to line up the velcro and they can decorate and redecorate again and again.
Step 4 – Store wool balls in a bag for next time!
Note: My son Brock is 3 and he caught on so quick and loves doing this activity. My twin girls are 1.5 and they spent the entire time picking off the velcro dots. With that in mind I definitely recommend this for kids ages 3 and up.
10 Days of Christmas Movies
Screen time aside, I think Christmas movies are the perfect way to get into the Holiday spirit. Some of my greatest memories as a kid are the movies I watched with my family during the Holidays. Movies can turn into super easy traditions that everybody loves. Pair a good Christmas movie with a festive drink like Hot Cocoa and your littles will be over the moon. I tried to keep our list as kid friendly as possible as all my kids are pre school age. We will attempt to watch a movie a night until Christmas and I can’t wait to see which ones my kids are really into this year!
Polar Express
Elf
The Grinch
The Santa Claus
Frosty the Snowman
Mickey’s Christmas Carol
Rudolph
Home Alone
A Christmas Story
Pom Pom Tree Drop
Inspired By: Susie Allison
For this activity I had bought a ton of pom poms that didn’t end up working well for my felt tree decorating activity and I really just wanted them to get used in some way. I remembered the Pom Pom Drop activity by @busytoddler and decided to use my empty wrapping paper rolls to make the same activity in the shape of a tree. Using a tree shape and hanging a stocking up to store the pom poms made this the perfect festive activity and the kids loved it equally as much! I did use command strips originally as it was more aesthetically pleasing but kids play rough so I ended up using painters tape and it held up so much better.
What You'll Need
2 Card Board Wrapping Paper Rolls
1 Card Board Paper Towel Roll
Pom Poms
Stocking or Bag to Store Pom Poms
Command Hook (Optional)
Command Stripes
If you are in the same boat as me, feeling a little burnt out from this year, I hope these simple activities that you can bring out again and again this month inspire you to get a little festive and push through. I know this year has been tough for most but we are finally in the final days of 2020 and I personally am clinging to the hope that 2021 will be a much better year!
I hope you and your family have an amazing Holiday season and I wish you all the best in the New Year. I appreciate all of your support this year, and as always, thank you so much for reading!
