Family holiday traditions come in many shapes and sizes. Some are passed down for generations, others begin unexpectedly. Our little family of four started a Christmas tradition of our own a couple of years ago based on a desire to feel “more” on Christmas Day.
During our first couple of years living in Raleigh without immediate family nearby, Christmas Day ended up feeling a bit unfulfilled. We love the holiday season and try to make the days leading up to Christmas Day as merry and bright as possible: hosting Christmas parties, making gingerbread houses, going Christmas caroling, baking cookies… However, the grand finale of waking up on Christmas morning to a pile of gifts left under the tree simply wasn’t working for us. As soon as gifts were opened, our Christmas felt about the same as any other day. All the anticipation and holiday spirit built up over the previous 24 days lead us to a day that didn’t feel very magical in the end.
This prompted my husband and I to consider the holiday memories and traditions we wanted to pass down to our children. We came to the realization that we wanted more than anticipating gifts on Christmas morning. We wanted Christmas Day to stand out for different reasons. There was nothing truly keeping us home during the holidays, so we became enamored with the idea of “the gift of adventure” at Christmas. Instead of opening gifts, new experiences and family togetherness would be the driving force of our anticipation, in the form of taking a family trip to somewhere new. Our tradition was born!
Our first year, we experienced the wonders of New York City at Christmas time!
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Last year, we had a blast at Busch Gardens’ Christmastown and exploring Williamsburg, VA.
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This year we’re heading somewhere “warm” (at the request of our two children) to bask in the sun at Tradewinds Grand Island Resort in St. Pete Beach, FL.
We are grateful that our kids have embraced our tradition and don’t seem bummed at all about missing out on gifts or the magical visit from Santa. They love taking part of the trip planning process and joyfully telling their friends all about our travel plans. The days leading up to our trip are full of wonderful holiday activities with loved ones and creating holiday magic for others. I personally love that there is something so unique and exciting for us to look forward to on Christmas Day. We also maintain elements of surprise for our kids with special activities and unexpected treats during our trip. Overall, making this choice for our family has been extremely rewarding in so many ways.
As our kids get older and life goes on, it’s possible that our annual Christmas trip doesn’t last forever, but I’m grateful for the memories we’ve made so far and can only hope for many more to come!
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