Help Your Toddlers Get in the Holiday Spirit With These Fun Activities to Do at Home

I can’t stress the importance of holiday cookies enough. December is not the time for diets – it’s the time of sugary, sprinkle-y, chocolatey, ooey-gooey goodness that makes the whole house smell like warmth and melted butter. Whether you go for store=bought peel-and-bakes or creating your one homemade recipe, I promise you that your toddlers will not be able to tell the difference. Baking them together will be just as much fun as eating them!

Yes, this is time-consuming. Yes, your toddlers will want to eat all the decorations. Yes, it won’t look like the amazing creations you see on Pinterest. But gingerbread houses are a classic holiday activity for a reason – it’s just so dang fun! Let your kids get messy, be creative, and have a good time. The memories will be so worth it.

Craft time is golden in my house, and themed crafts are even better. This can be anything from coloring in a Hanukkah or Christmas coloring book, making your own ornaments, or stringing together popcorn. One of my favorite things to do is create a decoration, using my toddler’s feet or hands. You can find all sorts of cute inspiration on Instagram.

Christmas-themed pajamas are awesome! Especially when they come in matching sizes for the entire family. Dress up in your PJs and take your own photos at home (I recommend using lots of holiday lights in the background).

From The Christmas Chronicles 2 to Elf, there’s plenty of holiday movies to watch on Netflix and other streaming services this year. Cozy up with a blanket and some delicious snacks, and turn off all the lights except the Christmas tree to make it extra festive.

Watching your toddler ooh and aah over Christmas lights is somehow even more magical than the lights themselves. Bundle up and go for a walk or a short drive around your neighborhood to see all the colorful twinkling lights up close. Repeat as often as you want until January!

This one might seem obvious, but it’s super important to get your kids involved in decorating for the holidays. It’s just so much fun for them! Let them hang nonbreakable ornaments on the tree or, let them decide where certain signs are going to go. They’ll feel proud of themselves, and it will start a wonderful tradition (you’re definitely going to want their help when they’re older, so might as well start now!).

It’s not the holidays if you don’t read holiday-themed books, right? Gather your littles around for The Night Before Christmas, The Polar Express, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, or a religious text (we always read the nativity story in the Bible). It’s a fun way to get them excited about the season.

Every year, my mom would pull out stuffed Santas, reindeers, and other holiday-themed toys that she stored with our Christmas decorations. I loved playing with those seasonal toys every year, and now my kids do, too! You don’t have to go crazy, but it’s fun to get a few holiday-themed toys to let your kids hold and play with, since they aren’t allowed near the breakable decorations.

Sure, Elf on the Shelf can get complicated, but what better year to really make this game fun? From funny quarantine jokes to silly mischief, this is sure to entertain your toddlers (and give them motivation to be on their best behavior for Santa).

Singing and dancing on Christmas Eve is one of my favorite holiday traditions. Turn on your favorite Christmas station and have an impromptu dance party with your kids – they will love it!

A big part of the holiday season is connecting with family members, which can feel impossible during the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, make it a point to video chat all your family members (even those twice-removed cousins and that crazy uncle). Make it fun by letting your toddler take the phone for a tour of your holiday décor, or encouraging your toddler to model his or her favorite holiday PJs.

The best way to teach your little one about the joys of giving is to model that behavior yourself. You could play Santa and deliver toys to a family in need, give to Toys for Tots, drop money in a Salvation Army bin, bring gifts to a pediatric hospital, or sign up to shop for a kid at Operation Christmas Child or the Angel Tree. The possibilities are endless!

Wrapping presents isn’t a competition – they don’t have to be perfect! Let your toddler in on the fun by enlisting his or her help wrapping gifts this year. Their little fingers can hold the paper in place while you tape, or they can be in charge of picking out what paper to use. It’s fun and efficient at the same time.

Writing letters to Santa is a time-honored holiday tradition – one that definitely can be done from home! Let your toddler scribble all over a piece of paper, or he or she can dictate to you what they want to say to Santa, then you can let them sign their name or draw pictures. Then, put it in an envelope and “mail” it to the North Pole. (I highly recommend sneaking out to later collect and keep it as a special memory.) Besides, taking pictures with Santa is overrated – your toddler probably would have screamed the whole time anyway!