Traditions worth doing....

We have several traditions in our family, but two are really fun, precious and memorable in our household.  The first is the BEST way hand down to get your kids IN bed and STAY in bed Christmas eve!  Challenge me...but I warn you, my kids are pro's at getting out of bed excuses.  All the way down to using the potty on the OTHER side of the house!

Anyhow back to Christmas...I guess I should put a disclaimer, that they still need to "believe"...I mean who doesn't?

So when you are all ready to snuggle down with your hubby and you want those hyper excited lil ones in their beds, the best way....is....get this...pj's!

So what happens in our house, is shortly before bedtime we usually hear a knock, thump or some other sort of noise outside.  When someone goes to check there is a package on the doorstep.

On it in a pretty Santa looking envelope holder is this "poem".  Then the children listen intently as this poem is recited...

I made it up myself and I am pretty proud of it..  It is cute if I do say so myself.

 

Now some years, most of them, I am that cheesy mom who makes her whole family wear matching jammies.  However this year, I just got ones that everyone would love.  Yes daddy is included.  This below picture would have been adorable, but see my then sweet 2 year old throwing a mega Christmas sized tantrum.  Ahhh what a memorable picture.  :)

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Happy Birthday Jesus!

Now on to the sweetest tradition.  One that brings the day right back around to the Reason for the Season....

We just started this last year and the girls LOVED it, still talk about it, and it really brought home, after opening all those presents, WHY we were here in the first place.

It is Jesus's birthday cake.  We "make" the whole thing in the morning and have it for a late breakfast!

So here goes, this is how you make a cake for Jesus:

You will need:
12 Red candles
An angel
A star 
Greenery (or at least green frosting)
Chocolate cake (prepared round)
White frosting
Lighter (for the candles)

First you want to have it all out on the table, and just chat a bit about birthdays.
Then you want to tell the story of Jesus’ birth either in your own words or with a story book. For older children have them read it from the Bible (Luke 1-2).

As you put the cake together explain all of this:

Round Cake – The shape of the cake is round with no end, showing that God’s love is never
ending. He loved us so much that he sent his only Son to die for our sins (John 3:16).

Chocolate (dark) Cake - Before knowing Jesus, our hearts are dark, kind of like this cake, and we couldn’t get into heaven with our hearts so full of sin (Romans 3:23).

White frosting – (While frosting the cake, talk about the meaning of the white frosting.)
God did a wonderful thing when he sent his Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. Now all the
darkness is covered up, and Jesus washes our sins white as snow. We are pure white in the
sight of God. When we ask Jesus to forgive all the bad things we’ve done, we are white
like this frosting (Romans 6:23).

 

Angel Decoration – (Place the angel decoration on the cake or have a child do it.) The
angel reminds us of the good tidings that were brought to the shepherds that night. It
also reminds us we can be like the angel sharing the "good news" to others (Luke 2:10).

Star – (Place the star decoration on the cake or have a child do it.) The star reminds us of
the star in Bethlehem and how the wisemen followed it and worshiped the Lord Jesus. It
reminds us that we should worship and follow Him everyday. We can do this by praying,
reading our Bibles, and going to church.

12 Red Candles – (Place the candles on the cake.) The red color reminds us of Jesus’ blood
that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins. Because He died and rose again, we can
have eternal life and go to heaven if we believe (Romans 5:8).


Evergreens – (Place evergreens around the cake.) Evergreens around the cake remind us
of something living and growing. If we have accepted Jesus into our hearts, we are going
to grow and get to know Him more. How can we grow to know Him better? By praying,
going to church, reading our Bibles, and sharing Him with others—(John 15:5 or 2 Peter
3:18).

 

Light the Candles – ( As you light the candles, say…) Jesus can shine in our hearts if we
just ask Him to be our Savior. The 12 candles remind us to let His light shine every month
of the year, not just at Christmas time (Matthew 5:16).

End by singing Happy Birthday Baby Jesus

And lastly......have CAKE for breakfast!  YUM!