Soon it will finally be here, the day that most children have been looking forward to for weeks: Christmas Eve. A day that, for us parents, ideally means having nerves of steel. Because the excitement that our children feel on this day bubbles up from them all the faster with every hour that they get closer to receiving the presents.
That's why they will be on December 24th. Also get up earlier than usual. They will be bored with their toys that day and anyway that is the time for most childrenmuchpass too slowly. They will jump around the apartment like little bouncy balls and ask every five minutes how much longer they have to wait.
In order to save your nerves and free the children from the “gift-giving tunnel”, you have to distract them.
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The most important rule for this:Leave the clock behind and just do it! What do we mean by that? Most people have a fixed routine on Christmas Eve and therefore fixed times: coffee is served at 3 p.m., but the gifts are not handed out until half past five - or something like that. The day can drag on quite a bit.
Try not to do everything exactly by the clock. And you will notice that not only your little ones, but also you will get through the day more relaxed. But what do you do on Christmas Day?
Decorate the tree together
After a hopefully quiet and extensive breakfast, the first item on the program on Christmas Day can be decorating the tree together. After the fairy lights, older children can hang up the fragile Christmas tree baubles while the little ones attach stars, bells or bows to the tree.
Little tip:Instead of expensive glass balls, you can also attach chocolate balls, Santa Clauses or bells to the tree. On the one hand, they don't break so quickly (and if they do, everyone has fun 'putting them away') and can also be hung on the tree by smaller children. If the Christmas tree ultimately needs to be cleaned, it's twice as much fun with edible Christmas tree decorations.
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Ice skating, swimming or outdoor fun
The morning of December 24th can be used extensively for working out. If you want or need to do a few things at home, it's best to send your partner swimming or ice skating with the children. Not only does time pass much more quickly for the children, but the additional exercise will hopefully ensure a quiet lunch break afterwards.
If you would rather avoid indoor activities with lots of people, you can also take your little one on a long walk. But going to the (adventure) playground can also provide enough exercise and fresh air. With older children who don't feel like going to the playground anymore, go for a (long) round of rollerblading or roller skating and spend as much time in the fresh air as possible.
Back at home, the little ones go into the bathtub to warm up after all the fun in the fresh air. And if you treat them to a delicious lunch afterwards, a quiet lunch break is guaranteed.
Tipp:Parents whose children are not fans of afternoon naps can turn on an audio book or radio play for their children and agree that there will be silence in the children's room until the story is over. This gives you enough time to relax a bit yourself.
Fairytale film in the (home) cinema
Is it part of your tradition to go to the cinema with the children on Christmas morning? Then it's best to choose a film directly on your cinema's homepage, reserve it or buy the tickets directly. This will easily give your partner three hours alone at home. Of course, you can all go to the cinema together if there's nothing more to do.
Thanks to various streaming services, you don't have to go to the cinema to watch the traditional Christmas film and possibly stress yourself out so that you can make it on time. You can also watch 'The Grinch', 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' and other Christmas classics at any time at home.
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But wait, you say, the children can't sit in the living room and watch a movie, so we have to decorate the tree and do a lot of things. They don't have to do that at all. The streaming services can also be started wonderfully on a tablet or laptop.
So make your children really comfortable in the room of your choice. Build a den, a cozy blanket bed or a mountain of pillows. The main thing is that your children like it. Add a small portion of (microwave) popcorn and the home cinema becomes a thousand times better than a trip to the (boring) cinema.
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A round of 'Don't be angry'
After the traditional coffee drinking on the afternoon of Christmas Eve, the children often become really restless. Because Santa Claus (or the Christ child) should really come soon. So just try to play a nice board or card game with everyone. This is fun and passes the time. Boredom can't arise either.
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Visit to church
Most communities only have limited places for their Christmas masses and sometimes require advance registration. Depending on the community, attending mass on Christmas Eve is also possible without restrictions. The best thing to do is to find out from your municipality whether there are any restrictions or other rules for visiting.
If you don't want to go to church on Christmas Eve, but also don't want to miss out on the service, you can take part in many other ways. On the one hand, TV stations broadcast Christmas masses on December 24th in the morning and afternoon. In the evenings you can also listen to the radio. In addition, there are some trade fairs that are broadcast via live stream on the Internet.
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Walk with sweet surprises
Even families who don't go to church often go outside before giving out presents. However, such a walk sounds anything but tempting to the excited children. So you can make this a little more fun.
In small, unobserved moments, you can place a small chocolate ball or a small chocolate Santa Claus on the side of the path for the children to find.
With the story that perhaps Santa Claus lost the candy on his gift route, your children will want to keep running along full of enthusiasm. Because who knows, maybe you'll find more sweets or even catch a glimpse of Santa Claus in his sleigh. After all, it must have just flown over your heads.
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