Is it just me? Or, do you also find yourself a little disappointed at the end of the kids’ Christmas break each year? I always find myself longing for more planned activities and quality time spent together. This year, things will be different though because I have a game plan – a Christmas break game plan filled with family activities and input from all family members.
Making a List, Checking It Twice
I started by making a list. I asked each family member what activities he/she would like to do during the Christmas break and if there was anything special they hoped to accomplish. I jotted it all down as they talked.
- My husband’s list included seeing the new Star Wars movie and a couple projects around the house.
- My own list included visiting a couple of museums, baking cookies with the children and some family movie nights. (I hoped to watch the next Harry Potter movie and Home Alone.)
- Our teenager said that he just wants to hang out at home, eat pizza and maybe have a friend over.
- Our middle child wanted to play board games, invite a friend over and go swimming.
- Our youngest declared that she would like to go ice skating and make a snowman. Oh, and maybe go sledding.
Over dinner, I reviewed the list with everyone and explained that we would make sure to fit in at least one or two things from each person’s list but that we may not be able to do it all. Everyone agreed that was reasonable.
Making These Holiday Happenings Happen
To make sure these holiday happenings actually happen, we created a schedule. I filled in one or two activities for each weekday and posted the schedule up where everyone could see it. I had the children make their phone calls to invite friends over. And, we were off and running! For the first week of break, we scheduled all of the following family activities:
- Family movie night watching The Force Awakens (in preparation for watching the new Star Wars movie the following day)
- Watch The Last Jedi at the theater
- The teen invited a friend over to see The Last Jedi with us and then hang out.
- A board game night
- A home projects morning
- A trip to a museum
For New Year’s Eve, we have a family holiday tradition that involves eating pizza and watching the Home Alone movie together. For the second week of break, we have planned the following family activities:
- Swimming
- Making a snowman
- Play dates
- Baking cookies
- Board games
- Possibly ice skating
- Possibly another family movie night watching Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Yes, I have high hopes that this Christmas Break Game Plan may save me from my usual bout of after break disappointment.
What fun activities did you plan for your family’s Christmas break this year?
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