10 Tips for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day Activities

These ideas were suggested by tweeters at a PBS Kids Curious George-sponsored MomItForward Twitter Girls’ Night Out party:

1. Make simple ornaments out of recycled products. @NoFlashCards says making lid ornaments is one of her favorites. She’s also made advent calendars out of baby wipe lids. Similarly, after opening gifts, you can keep boxes and other material to build a spaceship or playhouse. Decorate with old wrapping paper.
2. Make thank you notes for gifts to relatives with your kids. Check out PBS’ card maker e-card ideas or SplitCoastStampers.com.
3. Write an annual letter to your child, maybe filled with observations about the past year and hopes for his or her future, suggests @PBSKids.
4. Make marshmallow snowmen, suggests @GoGrahamGo.
5. Have the kids make napkin holders. @GoGrahamGo posted a free printable DIY holder that you can personalize with your child’s face.
6. Make Santa pancakes Christmas morning. Here’s a Curious George version.
7. Play Grinch Christmas Bingo, suggested by @WonderForge.
8. Make treats. @MinkyMoo provides this recipe for Chocolate & Salted Caramel Mug Cake and @GoGrahamGo provides one for Great Grandma’s Potato Candy.
9. Take treats to neighbors. @RedRover raves about making four different kinds of Greek cookies and taking them around: Koulourikia, kourabiedes, baklava, and loukoumathes. She says, “They’ll change your world!”
10. Put together a shoe box for Operation Christmas Child.

What fun family activities do you do on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to celebrate the holidays?

Photo courtesy of Flickr.

Mark your calendar for Tuesday, November 15 and join us as we talk about holiday family traditions.

Party Topic

Join the CURIOUS GEORGE team from PBS KIDS and WGBH, as well as our panel of experts, as we discuss holiday family traditions. The party will be held on Tuesday, November 15 from 9-11 ET (8CT, 7MT, 6PT). Click here to see details about the giveaway and enter for a chance to win.

Party Details

• What: Girls’ Night Out (#gno) Twitter party (Click here to learn about #gno!)
• When: Tuesday, November 15 from 9-11 p.m. EST (8 CT, 7 MT, & 6 PT)
• Where: Party with us on our very own Custom Tweetgrid! (Use hashtags #gno and #CuriousGeorge)
• Topic: Holiday Family Traditions
• Who: Brand Panelist: @PBSKIDS @DorotheaGillim @WGBH_KIDS Community Panelists: @inkscrblr @c2cmom @7onashoestring @noflashcards, Moderators: @jylmomIF @Dadventurous @troypattee @MomItForward
• Party Favors: Click here to enter the giveaway.
• RSVP: Use Mr. Linky below (enter the twitter URL and your twitter ID (e.g., http://twitter.com/jylmomIF).

RT @MomItForward Join @PBSKIDS #CuriousGeorge #gno Twitter party 11/15 (9-11 ET) on holiday family traditions http://bit.ly/ud7AS1 PLS RT

Note: Mom It Forward accepts paid sponsorships for most #gno Twitter parties. During the parties, brand sponsors provide tips, techniques, expert advice, and information on party topics. Mom It Forward is grateful for the giveaway prizes, coupons, and discounts that sponsors also provide to the Mom It Forward community in conjunction with #gno Twitter parties.

This year, why not make some popcorn or hot cocoa, cuddle on the couch, and enjoy a series of Curious George movies with your family to kick off the holiday season? Spending this quiet time as a family might be all you need to truly enjoy the holidays…and who knows, this could even become a new holiday tradition!

PBS KIDS is featuring the broadcast premiere of the original Curious George movie on November 23, which will air as part of the CURIOUS GEORGE Holiday Spectacular.  A three-movie on-air event that is sure to be a new family tradition, the Holiday Spectacular kicks off with Curious George, featuring the voices of Will Ferrell, Drew Barrymore and Dick Van Dyke, as well as the music of Jack Johnson, followed by Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey and Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas. Encore presentations of the Holiday Spectacular will air on PBS KIDS throughout Thanksgiving weekend (check local listings).

So, grab some snacks, cuddle under a blanket, and share laughter and fun with your family during the holidays as you watch the adventures of CURIOUS GEORGE!

The Prizes

This week’s giveaway is all about holiday family traditions. Five lucky winners will receive a PBS KIDS CURIOUS GEORGE prize pack (ARV: $50).

Entry Requirements

For a chance to enter and win, please complete the following requirements and leave a separate comment for each on this post, including links to your original tweets.

1. Follow @PBSKIDS on Twitter.
2. Like the PBS KIDS Facebook page.
3. Answer the following question in the comment section below: What is your favorite family tradition?
4. Tweet the following:

• RT @MomItForward Join @PBSKIDS #CuriousGeorge #gno Twitter party 11/15 (9-11 ET) on holiday family traditions http://bit.ly/ud7AS1 PLS RT

• RT @MomItForward GIVEAWAY! Enter 4 a chance 2 win a #CuriousGeorge Prize Pack http://bit.ly/vFm5l8 (5 Winners) #gno PLS RT

Optional Entries

The following are extra entries that are completely optional and will earn you one extra entry for each completed item. Leave a separate comment on this post for each completed optional entry.

• Follow @momitforward on Twitter.
• Like Mom It Forward on Facebook: http://facebook.com/momitforward.

Terms and Conditions

Winners will be selected randomly through http://random.org. No purchase necessary to enter. Giveaway ends at 11:59 p.m. ET Wednesday, November 16. See all terms and conditions here. This giveaway is available to U.S. residents only. 

Prize

Three lucky winners will receive the following prizes in this PBS KIDS gift pack (retail value $100 each):

• Electric Company Backpack on wheels
• PBS Kids baseball hat
• Curious George plush
• PBS Kids T-shirt
• Steve Songs CD
• Music from Dinosaur Train
• Sesame Street Playground (Songs and videos from Around the World)
• Martha Speaks book
• Super Why book
• PBS Kids Color Foil book
• Super Why Hidden Word Puzzle
• PBS Kids USB port
• Sid The Science Kid Toy Microphone
• PBS Parents photo envelop

Entry Requirements

To enter for a chance to win, you are required to do the following three things. Make sure to leave a comment here linking to each one:

1. Check out the http://pbskidsgo.org/lunchlab site and leave a comment here about your or your child’s favorite part of the site.
2. Comment on the PBS Kids Healthy Eating for the Holidays Whrrl story and leave a comment here, letting us know you did so.
3. Retweet and/or post the following two messages on Facebook and Twitter and comment here, linking to your update/post:

GIVEAWAY! Enter 4 chance 2 win $100 gift pack from #pbskids (3 Winners!). http://bit.ly/3PlZta PLS RT

Visit http://pbskidsgo.org/lunchlab 4 gr8 healthy eating/cooking w/kids tips just in time 4 holiday cooking/baking! #pbskids PLS RT

Extra Entries

You can earn up to two extra entries this week. Leave a comment for each one on this post!

1. Follow @pbsparents on Twitter.
2. Become a fan of the PBS Kids Facebook page.

The Fine Print

No purchase necessary to enter. Winners will be selected randomly through http://random.org. PBS and Mom It Forward employees are ineligible to participate. All entries received after Wednesday, November 18 at midnight PT will not be considered. Entries that do not follow all of the entry requirements will not be considered. Winners will be notified and will have 24 hours to confirm receipt of the e-mail. If they do not reply within 24 hours, another winner will be selected. Open to participants in the US and Canada 18 years and older. One entry per person.