As Christmas approaches, it's a great opportunity to gather with friends and family to get into the holiday spirit. The holiday season offers excellent opportunities for friends and family to gather and create memories that will last for years while celebrating the past year.

These celebrations help bring everyone together during Christmas and create a merry environment for all to enjoy.

Gather the Family for a Themed Photoshoot

Put on your favorite Christmas sweaters and gather the whole family for a holiday-themed photoshoot. You can send this out to friends and family as a Christmas card that can be cherished for years or display it in a frame on your mantle to document your family's growth through the years.

You can take a number of different photos, from playful shots to more traditional Christmas card photos, and have an online service print them on high-quality museum-quality stock with archival ink for the best Christmas pictures yet!.

Create Handmade Christmas Cards

Everyone can enjoy this activity, from young children to Grandparents, which is sure to get everyone into the holiday spirit. You can decorate these cards with hand-cut snowflakes, cardboard Christmas trees, or any festive adornment

Cotton balls make great reindeer tails, and if you make enough cards, you can deliver them in person to friends and family throughout December.

Pick a Tree at a Christmas Tree Farm

Outside of most cities are cut-your-own Christmas tree farms with festive items like cider, hay rides, and of course, Christmas trees! This is a great way to get the family together and have an interactive activity where you not only choose the perfect tree, but get to cut it down yourself.

These farms also often have fresh wreaths and garlands that are perfect for decorating your home, office, or any space to give it a festive feel. Cutting your own Christmas tree creates a lasting memory for the whole family and can become an annual tradition

Decorate Your Home

From Christmas lights to Christmas trees, wreaths, garlands, windows, candles, and yard displays, there are seemingly endless ways to decorate your home for Christmas.

Many of these decorations have traditions dating back to the seventeenth century and early colonial days of the United States and remain an enduring symbol of the true spirit of Christmas.

Another way to make the most of decorating your home is to create handmade yard decorations instead of purchasing them. These custom decorations bring the whole family together and spark festive creativity. It's also a great way for neighborhood communities to come together and have everyone decorate their home with festive adornments

Make Personalized Stockings

Making personalized stockings is another great activity for friends and family alike that allows for a creative spirit with a Christmas theme. You can purchase felt stockings from a craft store and use a hot glue gun to attach any decorations.

Cut out letters from sheets of felt to make a custom stocking for everyone in the family, including beloved pets who can get a little treat when they "open" their stocking on Christmas morning.

You can use these for years or have an annual tradition of making personalized stockings. Hang them from your mantle in the days leading up to Christmas to generate a festive feel.

A little tip: place an orange or other fruit in the toe of the stocking to help keep it in place on Christmas eve and fill it with trinkets and other stocking stuffers that are sure to delight on Christmas morning.

Make a Gingerbread House

Gingerbread houses are among the most iconic Christmas decorations and are a great activity for friends and family alike. Use a piping bag full of frosting to adorn your gingerbread house with gumdrop "lights" and create other decorations with small candies or your favorite Christmas treat.

Leftover gingerbread dough can be used to make gingerbread men, which can be brought to holiday parties and shared with everyone!

Watch Your Favorite Christmas Movies

With no shortage of titles available, watching Christmas movies is a tradition shared by many across the globe. From films made specifically to celebrate the holiday on television networks like Hallmark to classic movies like 'It's a Wonderful Life,' viewing Christmas movies as a family is a cozy way to spread holiday cheer.

Making Christmas fun is easy when you stream your favorite Christmas-themed movie. Or pick from a themed list and have friends and family watch the same film even if they are not in the same home together. This is a great way to engage virtually if holiday travel plans are not an option.

Take a Picture with Santa

Taking a photograph with Santa Claus is a time-honored tradition that creates priceless memories and cherished childhood photos. It's also a great way to share laughs when older generations show their own childhood photos that illustrate how times have changed.

There are many local opportunities in most towns and cities for taking a photograph with Santa, and you can explore fun options like a Christmas tree farm, local malls, Churches, and more!

View Christmas Lights

Another favorite Christmas tradition is driving or walking through local neighborhoods to view elaborate Christmas tree-lighting displays. While some communities host cohesive decorations to create a winter wonderland, others prefer to let their creativity shine and have residents go all out however they choose.

If you are walking to view Christmas lights, pack some hot cocoa or other warm, festive beverage of your choice to help keep everyone warm and really celebrate the spirit of the Holiday season.

If you're driving to look at Christmas lights, you can make a playlist of your favorite Christmas songs to help keep spirits high.

Make Festive Drinks Like Cider or Cocoa

Food and celebrations are central to every Christmas season, and gathering friends and family around a meal is often the best moment of the holiday. During these gatherings, you can have festive beverages available, like spiced apple cider or rich, homemade hot chocolate that everyone can enjoy!

Also, if you live in a colder climate, these warm beverages will warm you up and become an essential part of every Christmas celebration.

Hold a Christmas Themed Party

There are many types of themes related to Christmas that you can utilize for your next holiday gathering. Consider fun themes like an ugly sweater party with a photo booth where guests can commemorate the event with playful photoshoots.

Suppose your office is holding a holiday party. In that case, you can make it more festive by decorating with Christmas lights and have your coworkers exchange holiday cards with well wishes and thoughtful sentiments.

Christmas parties are one of the most popular gatherings of the year and bring friends and family together to celebrate the past year and look forward to what the new year holds.

Create a Handmade Wreath or Garland

Collect branches from your local Christmas tree lot to create handmade wreaths and garlands to decorate your home or as small gifts for friends and neighbors to help them celebrate the season.

You can add thoughtful bows, pine cones, ribbons, or other adornments to really bring your wreath to life and show your Christmas spirit.

Homemade garlands and wreaths are not only beautiful, but they bring a subtle pine scent to any space that truly evokes the holiday season.

This is also a great activity for bringing generations of family together as there are tasks suitable for every age

Go Ice Skating

Even if you don't live in a cold climate, you can go ice skating during the Christmas season to help celebrate. There are indoor ice skating rinks, and some shops even install temporary ice skating rinks for the whole family to enjoy, whether they are just learning or are experienced ice skaters who can show off their impressive skills.

Even if you choose not to hit the ice, it can be a joyful experience for young children to discover.

Host a Secret Santa Gift Exchange

Secret Santa gift exchanges are a fun way for friends, colleagues, and family to gather and celebrate the holiday season by giving each other small, playful gifts.

Secret Santa gift exchanges are especially popular in an office setting where coworkers can exchange small gifts that create a more personal connection with each other.

Create Memories that will Last a Lifetime

No matter how you choose to celebrate this holiday season, one thing is for sure. When your friends, family, and coworkers gather this Christmas, you'll create memories that will last for years and traditions that can be passed down for generations.

If you are looking to commemorate or celebrate this Christmas by decorating with something a bit less traditional than lights, or wooden cutouts of Rudolph, consider a vintage map or vintage wall art that has a sentimental attachment to your ancestry and personal history.

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From everyone on the Historic Prints team, we wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!