Here are some very random tips regarding the holidays. I hope one is a true help to you as you navigate your busy schedules. My main goal this season is to do things that encourage relationships because love is what lasts. Spending time together is different for each family. Only you know how to do that best. My other goal is to do something to help someone who is hurting this holiday by making time to connect personally and give. Only you can make that happen in your own way.
Love baking Christmas cookies but want to cut down on the sugar overload this year? Did you know you can cut the amount of sugar in any baking recipe in half and not even notice a difference- except there are fewer calories and fewer sugar highs? I dare you to try it! Leave comments below, please. Including nutritious ingredients like nuts, real butter, and dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate will help them learn to like treats that have a few health benefits instead of just high doses of sugar and flour.
Be in your Christmas photos with your family. Put your camera down. Yes, step away from the camera or phone. You can set up your camera to take photos by itself at timed intervals. Read how to do it here http://www.clickinmoms.com/blog/how-to-photograph-your-christmas-morning-by-melissa-stottmann/ You can use the same method for other Christmas activities, like tree trimming, cookie baking, etc.
If you have children in your life, why not let them help decorate the tree? Even little ones can hang an ornament 
or two. They can only reach the low branches, so just allow the bottom part of your tree to be very random. The older ones can reach higher and do a more sophisticated job. If you’re a control freak, please ignore this idea or let the kids decorate a separate tree. Helping the children make ornaments to hang is a fun project for those who can put up with a temporary mess and who like crafts. Play Christmas music and let the kids share what they like about Christmas. Side note: Some families have an ornament made each year with that year’s family photo on it. Or they give separate ornaments to each child with that child’s photo on it for the purpose of giving the ornaments to the children as they marry and leave home. Your photographer can order these for you. Sorry, couldn’t help it. Thirty years of being a children’s photographer sneaks out sometimes!) Investing in a nativity set that children can handle is worth every penny. Kids love to arrange and re-arrange the figures, using their imaginations to recreate the story of Jesus’ birth. Think of it, a story about a baby, animals, a magical star, presents, mysterious visitors- all these elements catch a child’s fancy. Facilitating their imaginative play is our job as adults. Sources for nativity sets: https://www.christianbook.com/tales-of-glory-nativity-playset/pd/505386?event=ESRCG#CURR Great value set! Plastic for young children
http://www.burlingtoncoatfactory.com/burlingtoncoatfactory/Wooden-Nativity-Set-310784701.aspx?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&scid=scplp10278700&sc_intid=10278700&gclid=CKjP8rPW09ACFQuifgodbsYFag Figures tend to fall over. My husband glued small blocks on the back to make them steady.
Many families like to make gingerbread houses together. One of our daughter-in-law’s family has a competition with teams who make clever creations which are judged. Making Christmas cookies together makes sweet memories. Don’t underestimate what little ones can do. Let them try to cut out cookie shapes, decorate the cookies, package the cookies for gifts, and, of course, taste small quantities of the cookies. Hint: Protein helps balance the sugar high. Serve cheese, sliced leftover meat, nuts, milk, or yogurt (unsweetened) with the cookies. I have fond memories of my grandmother’s date bars but don’t know how to make them. You can help your older grandkids to start their own recipe notebook with your cookie recipes. A three ring binder with clear plastic sheet protectors is a practical way to preserve family recipes. Kids can draw their own art to slip into the front of the binder if it has a clear pocket on the cover. Costco sells these binders and plastic pages at reasonable prices. Getting kids started making their own recipe book is a great lifetime habit.
Reading special Christmas books to children adds to their enjoyment of the season. Years from now those books (and you!) will be remembered fondly. The Little House on the Prairie series have some Christmas chapters that give children a historical perspective of celebrations of yesteryear. And just may make them more appreciative of what they have! Here are some sources for classics to share with the children in your life:
Chinaberry.com carries excellent children’s books. You can’t go wrong sharing a high-quality book which is a lifetime investment. Even after children outgrow a book, they will fondly go back and look at it periodically and years later share it with their children. Grandparents could keep a small library of special books to share when grandchildren come to visit. Two books from Chinaberry that caught my eye: The Donkey’s Christmas Song Item#C35397; The Message of the Birds Item #C35082
https://www.christianbook.com has a cyber sale until December 5th. They carry meaningful books for children.
A trip to the library with children is a ‘twofer’- a fun outing and books to take home to enjoy for weeks. And it’s free. And it helps establish a good lifelong habit of using the library’s resources.