We love Christmas. It has always been my favorite Holiday. Not because of getting gifts, well not any more. I am sure my 5 year old self would argue that. But now that I am grown up more mature, I have developed a deep love for service and helping others. Christmas is a great time of year to show that to my kids and teach them more about giving and helping others. We have started a new tradition this year – and we are calling it the 12 Days of Christmas Surprises. Each day we pick a different family and leave something for them – from baked goods to a fun gift – and knock on the door and run. It is a fun way for them to play “Secret Santa” and it has really been an eye opening experience to think about others this Christmas instead of themselves. We got some great ideas to use for this from the Yahoo Style Under $5 Gift Guide.
Bring secret Santa is a big job, so we made is a family project. We made a list of names of people to take presents to starting on the 13 of December and doing one each night through Christmas Eve. You could honestly do this twice in the month from the 1-12 and then the 13-24. Here is a list of the fun ideas we have used and came up with:
- Baked Goods
- Homemade Cards
- Mason Jar Gifts
- Homemade Gifts
- Sewing something (like a bag and fill it with treats)
- Gloves
- Christmas Ornament
- Notebook and Pens
- Festive Baking Supplies
- Vase with flowers (get a holiday assortment with green and red flowers and pine cones)
- Drinking Glasses (champagne, wine, martini, and regular water glasses)
- Phone Decal Stickers
- Jewelry
- Pins and Buttons (perfect for purses, jackets, backpacks and more)
- Tote Bag with a book or other fun treasures inside
- Mugs filled with hot chocolate packets and candy canes
- Christmas Socks
- Christmas Sweater
- Candles
To get even more great Holiday Gift Ideas check out the Yahoo! Style Gift Guides. They have gift guides for everything you can think of – and they really are great inspiration. Let them do the hard work of coming up with great gift ideas, and take advantage of them by looking through them for ideas and inspiration. They have the latest and trendiest gifts ideas for everyone on your list. I challenge you to do secret Santa this year – it doesn’t have to be all 12 days – but to include your family and get a gift for a friend and leave it secretly for them to find. It is so much fun and great way to pay it forward.
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
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