Nothing compares to the magic of Christmas! Kids are counting down waiting for Santa's arrival. We have some parenting tips and tricks to make this season even more magical for your kids.
Setting the stage for magic to happen organically.
Milk and Cookies are Santa's favorite, right? This year make it a fun night of making homemade cookies and how about an amazingly easy gingerbread cookie recipe? I have always wanted to make homemade gingerbread men but thought it was too hard. That was until I stumbled upon a foolproof recipe for making the most delicious, soft and chewy gingerbread cookies on Taste Better From Scratch website. Don't have a gingerbread man cookie cutter? Use anything you have on hand! This dough is perfect for any cookie cutter. Plus those moments in the kitchen are pure magic!
Get Santa's Stocking Tips.
Santa is the best person to ask when you are looking to add something fun to your kid's stockings this year. We sat down to ask Santa what are some of his favorite non-candy stuffers he has done for kids all over the world. Here are over 50 non-candy of Santa's favorite non-candy stocking stuffers!
Magical Reindeer Food.
Make it easy for Santa's Sleigh to find your home by making magical reindeer food. Fill a snack-sized baggie with the following ingredients:
In a bowl mix 1/2 cup oatmeal, 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons of glitter (or go ahead and shake it out until it's as sparkly as you'd like to help lights up your yard in the moonlight. Optional: Add some holiday baking sprinkles, the reindeer love them! Then print out the Magic Reindeer Food Printable and attach it to your reindeer food and staple to the top.
Then on Christmas Eve night have your kids sprinkle teh Magic Reindeer Food in your yard before bed. 
Track Santa's Sleigh.
Countdown to Christmas and track Santa's sleigh on a map! This Santa Tracker app is free to download and use! It creates so much excitement for the kids on Christmas Eve! There are a ton of options in the app store! Santa Tracker, Where is Santa Lite, NORAD tracks Santa and there is even one for your desktop computer with fun holiday games from Google here.
Snap a picture of Santa in your Living Room.
Did you know you can catch a glimpse of Santa leaving presents under your tree on Christmas Eve? Yep, it's true! Santa CAN BE PHOTOGRAPHED and kids everywhere are so excited to actually get it on camera! Parents have to download the app Catch Santa Clause in my house and for FREE you can show your kids a picture of Santa in their living room. Santa says this app is for PARENT's EYES ONLY! Kids can't learn the secret to catching Santa on camera until they are older! Do you have a wireless camera in your house? Check to see if they have a secret Santa setting for Christmas Eve! Several have the option to catch Santa in the act!
Keep them guessing which gifts are theirs.
A friend of mine has a great Christmas tradition we may actually start this year! Instead of name tags on wrapped gifts under the tree, she selects one roll of wrapping paper for each person in the house. Then she wraps all the gifts for the same person in one type of wrapping paper. When the kids wake up, they don't know which gift is theirs until they open their stockings. On Christmas Eve, she places a piece of their presents wrapping paper at the bottom of their stocking, and only then they find out which gifts under the tree are theirs. So fun!
I hope you have the best holiday season, creating magical moments for your kids! ♥
