The Beauty of Doing Christmas the Same Way Every Year

Inside: You know traditions are what make holidays…holidays. But adding a bunch of custom-created family rituals feels like just one more thing to do. Good news. This isn’t about reinventing the wheel. It’s about making simple, classic things fit into your everyday life. Remember, planning and execution should always be separate. Let’s plan.

Why This Matters

These days, there’s a lot of pressure to make every year bigger and better. New decorations, new themes, new everything. But that constant need to “top” the year before just makes you tired.

A homemaker’s job isn’t to outdo last year. It’s to keep the things that make home feel like home.

You’re Not Starting From Scratch

Most traditions already exist….you just haven’t named them yet.

Maybe you eat the same breakfast every Christmas morning. Maybe you always watch the same movie or drive around to look at lights. You’re already halfway there.

You don’t need to invent anything new or make a big plan. Just notice what already feels good and keep doing it. That’s all a tradition really is, something worth repeating.

Think Like a Church, Not a Cruise Director

Okay, let’s say your family is new and you’re a young homemaker and you really are starting from scratch. Exciting. All you need is a plan, not a production.

Think about how a church handles Christmas. The songs, the candles, the decorations….they don’t reinvent everything every year. It’s decided ahead of time. There’s a rhythm, and everyone just follows it.

Your home can work the same way. Instead of scrambling to come up with new ideas every December, create your own simple “Christmas plan.” Keep notes from year to year : what meals you make, what decorations you use, what traditions matter most. Then, when the season rolls around, you’re ready. You just open the plan and get started.

Keep It Simple (No, Really.)

The best traditions don’t exhaust the homemaker.

If something leaves you tired, snappy, or dreading it next year, it’s not a tradition worth keeping. The things that last are the ones that fit easily into real life.

Read the same story every Christmas Eve. Hang stockings on December 1st. Light a candle each Sunday of Advent. These small things are what your family will remember — not how much you did, but how it felt to be together.

The goal isn’t more activity. It’s more meaning.

How to Start (A Simple Tradition Plan)

You don’t need a big system. Just a plan you can actually use.

• Next year, pull it out and get started.
  No guessing, no reinventing. Just open your plan and go.
• Write down what you already do every year.
  Start with what’s already working — the meals, the movies, the little routines that make the season feel right.
• Choose one or two new things that sound doable.
  Not ten. Not a full Pinterest board. Just one or two small things that add meaning without adding stress.
• Keep notes and supplies together.
  A “Christmas binder” or a labeled box works fine. Write down what you liked, what you didn’t, and tuck in recipes or photos if you want.

What I Do Every Year

First things I do not do: take my kids to Santa, go to any type of light-viewing activity, go to any craft fairs or festivals, find new small towns to explore, try new recipes, research new card-making companies, do any exterior lights, or plan a weekend getaway. There’s nothing wrong with those things but they aren’t our traditions.

You can’t do everything, so stop trying.

1. Light a candle and add greenery to the house on Sundays during Advent
2. Go to our town’s Christmas parade the first Saturday of December
3. Set up Christmas tree the second week of December and a garland on my mantle
4. Switch out my wall art
5. Put up a front door wreath
6. My husband sets up windowsill candles, wreaths, and an outdoor garland
7. Send Christmas cards
8. Make popcorn and cranberry garlands for the birds, make pomanders (my oldest daughter now directs this for the others)
9. Wrap presents the last school day before Winter Break
10. Make cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve-Eve
11. Go a family friend’s house for brunch on Christmas Eve
12. Go to midnight Mass
13. Make prime rib, mashed potatoes, soft rolls, Brussels sprouts, glazed carrots, and chocolate Bundt cake.

That’s it! That is IT. I bake our snacks and desserts as usual and pick out festive flavors if I so choose. No big deal either way.

The Beauty of Doing It Again

None of this is groundbreaking…and that’s the point.

Good traditions aren’t clever or new. They’re simple, steady, and familiar.

The real magic comes from doing the same small things, year after year, until they become part of who your family is. You don’t need to chase ideas or start fresh every season. Just execute.