Picture this — snow falling outside, a fire crackling inside, your preschooler all cozy in a holiday onesie, and you enjoying carols over your speakers. You look away from your kiddo to admire your floor-to-ceiling Christmas tree. You look at your kiddo again. They’re playing with their fingers and toes. You sigh. Is there an activity they can do that spells holiday fun but also keeps them engaged constructively? Better yet, is there an activity they can do with you that spells holiday fun but also keeps them engaged constructively?
We just might have an idea or 10…
Have a holiday costume party
Why should costume parties be limited to Halloween alone? What if you want to dress like a human Christmas present? What if your toddler wants to spend Christmas Day looking like the Grinch? What if your partner makes a terrific Rudolph? We say go for it! Oh, and invite friends & relatives to join the madness because the more the folks, the merrier the Christmas!
Kidd Hack: Fashion a makeshift ramp and enjoy your Christmassiest at-home fashion show yet!
Craft a couple of gnome buddies
What could be better than finding a holiday-themed activity that’s cute and fun? How about finding a holiday-themed activity where your kid gets to DIY new friends! Making these
printable gnomes is a simple but engrossing activity — simple because all you have to do is print & cut while your child rolls & sticks, engrossing because the colors are vibrant and the beards are brilliant!
Kidd Hack: Turn your gnome buddies into tree ornaments (and if you do,
send us a pic!).
Play a game of Jingle Bell Toss
What’s the holiday season without some holiday games? Games are arguably the most fun way to spend the holidays when you have kids at home. That said, things can get chaotic if the games being played are too complex or elaborate.
Jingle Bell Toss is neither and requires minimum effort from you and your little one. Just grab some cups, bells, cardboard and glue, and watch your child’s eyes light up with every jingling bell toss!
Kidd Hack: Enjoy a game of Bauble Toss! Use vessels or buckets instead of cups, and toss tree ornaments into them. Perfect for little hands, don’t you think?
Create some holiday jar lights
Old jars & bottles are no strangers to the world of Christmas decorations. They’re easy to transform into pretty things, and this
tutorial proves it. The brainchildren of
Kelly Sell, these holiday jar lights require just a few minutes to create and even fewer materials. Oh, and you can cut ANY holiday motif into them!
Kidd Hack: Get your kiddo to pack the jars with scraps of shiny paper instead of pom poms so your lights shine brighter!
Decorate a human Christmas tree!
Who doesn’t love decorating Christmas trees? The tinsel, the ornaments, the lights! Now, imagine all of these on a person!! It makes for a hilarious game, and it can be played in teams or performed as a pageant. Whichever way you choose to enjoy this activity, it’s sure to spawn some hilariously shareable content.
Kidd Hack: Plan a family photo shoot where you’re all dressed like trees of varying shapes and sizes!
Fashion holiday puppets out of paper bags
Bring out the paper bags! It’s time to craft some holiday pals!! You’ve GOT to love the versatility of paper bags and how they lend themselves to countless crafts. Popular among these are puppets.
The Chirping Moms has a couple of fun tutorials for paper bag reindeer and elves, but you can also get creative and craft Santa, snowmen, gingerbread people, and more.
Kidd Hack: Enjoy caroling with your kid
and the puppets. Don’t forget to give the latter some cute voices!
Enjoy a game of Fill the Christmas Tree
Welcome to the activity that is as simple as it looks. All it takes to play a game of Fill the Christmas Tree is some duct tape in the shape of a tree and some objects (preferably big blocks) to fill up the shape. You make the tree shape; your kiddo will fill it up! It’s a cozy way for them to work on their fine motor skills.
Kidd Hack: It’s Christmastime. Swap out the blocks for tree ornaments and holiday baubles!
Make a printable popup card
Let’s make a little something for those special someones you won’t be able to spend Christmas with this year. It could be Grandma, a favorite uncle, or an old friend. Our
printable holiday card is the perfect indoor winter activity for a preschooler because they get to make something for someone else AND that something is a card that pops!
Kidd Hack: We’ve got a
video tutorial for you! Good luck!
Build a Don’t Ring the Bells obstacle course
An obstacle course sounds like a bit much for preschoolers, doesn’t it? Well, not if you build it the way Christie from
Childhood 101 does. Christie brings together a mix of everyday objects and jingling bells to create a play area that’s simple to put together, safe, and fun. You can make the activity more Christmassy by sprinkling your obstacle course with tinsel, Christmas wreaths, bows, tree ornaments, lights and more.
Kidd Hack: Make it snowy! Take your obstacle course outside if your kids are a bit older and up for a challenge!
Whip up some hot chocolate together
Ah, the joy of a steaming cup of hot chocolate on a snowy winter day! There’s no better weather for it. We know it’s a holiday favorite, so we went ahead and created an easy peasy hot chocolate recipe we’re certain your little chocolate lover can recreate. Get it
here.
Kidd Hack: Experiment with flavors. Stir some peanut butter in, top your mugs with Oreo bits, add a dash of cinnamon — let your toddler pick the new addition.
Oh, and whatever you do this Christmas weekend, make it a weekend to remember. Happy holidays!
