A Less-Is-More Christmas Season – It’s counterintuitive to do less, but doing less leaves more room for family, simple traditions, and the true spirit of Christmas.
Does your December look like this?
A calendar packed with holiday concerts and parties. Boxes of decorations that need dusted and displayed. A formidable to-do list of card making and cookie baking and merry making.
Somehow, every year, you wonder if all your efforts are adding to the season…or detracting from it.
Five years ago, our family’s perspective shifted forever when we decided to leave my husband’s chiropractic practice of seven years and go back to school. We sold the beautiful home we’d built and packed our remaining belongings into ten suitcases, moving our family of six to a tiny island in the Caribbean ocean.
It was during our first Christmas on the island that we learned a life changing lesson:
You don’t do more to invite the spirit of Christmas into your life—you do less.
We borrowed a small tree and decorated it with handmade ornaments. Our holiday decor consisted of nothing more than paper snowflakes and hand-drawn artwork from the kids.
There weren’t a lot of presents. We simply couldn’t bring a lot of things home with us, and shopping on the island was limited. As a mother, I worried that this Christmas would be disappointing for our kids; it just wasn’t what we were used to.
But Christmas morning was quiet and unhurried, and while the kids didn’t get a lot, they appreciated the small gifts they did receive. We were able to reminisce about our favorite Christmas memories and fit in a Skype call with our extended family.
We spent the rest of the day playing at the beach as a family.
It was simple and quiet and nothing fancy, but that Christmas will have a special place in my heart forever.
In the year prior to our move, I’d been dealing with some worrisome health concerns. I had been struggling to find more balance in my life. It was during that Christmas of fewer presents and fewer to-do’s that I found more room to breathe, more room to invite the Savior into our celebrations and feel of His love.
Since we moved back to the States, I’ve tried so hard to hang on to that special little Christmas and do LESS each year, but it can be so hard!
So often it feels like filling the season with festive activities and Pinterest-worthy projects will create the kind of memories we want our children to keep for a lifetime.
It’s counterintuitive to do less, but doing less leaves more room for family, simple traditions, and Christ.
A Simpler Holiday Season
Because I genuinely want you to find more awe and wonder (and less stress and overwhelm!) this December, I wrote a 12-day email course designed specifically for busy moms: 12 Days to a Simpler Holiday Season.
I would LOVE to have you join our community of women who are dedicated to re-making the holidays this year.
Let’s learn together, plan together, and support each other.
And let’s design a holiday season unlike any we’ve had since becoming moms.
As a family, we find Christ in Christmas as we snuggle on the couch reading our favorite Christmas books by the light of the Christmas tree. We find Christ in Christmas as we read the Christmas story or work on our favorite nativity puzzle throughout the month of December.
For us, Christ is in the simplest traditions and quiet moments we enjoy together.
MORE SIMPLE CHRISTMAS INSPIRATION
Thinking Beyond Toys: Alternative Gifts for the Holiday Season
Simple Christmas Gift Tags from Children’s Art
50 Photos to Take this Christmas
Printable advent Calendar Countdown Tags
DIY Children’s Sharpie Art Ornaments
50 Fabulous Christmas Books for Kids
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Oh I love this, Rebecca! Such important wisdom. I adore that you had Santa hats for the kids on the beach! And that sandcastle – snowman? Too cute and fun! These photos are perfect for this post.
Yes! We just started a kitchen/dining room remodel and my house is currently in messy disarray. I’m not sure what it will mean for a Christmas tree or when I’ll be able to decorate. But I love this perspective of doing less so we can truly enjoy what is the most significant. I saw a video (an IKEA advertisement, I believe) and the premise was basically that kids are more desirous of time with their parents than elaborate gifts. Just like you said, reading together, making memories with hot chocolate and simple gifts will go a long way.
Thank you for this reminder Rebecca! I’m starting to get excited for Christmas and dreaming about way too many activities, and I think you’re so right that less is more.
Love this theme! Less is best!
I love the idea of doing less—we get so wrapped up in so many unimportant things that the real meaning of the season is forgotten!
Beautiful post. I like how you gently invite us as readers to embrace memories and simplicity instead of making a list or pushing guilt, etc.
Hope your holidays continue to be blessed and simple.
You are so right, Rebecca! A Christmas that is stuffed with too many things isn’t fun to celebrate. My husband and I keep things simple by not going overboard with decorating and gifts, but instead focusing on the time we can spend visiting family and being an encouragement to them. Family is way more important than stuff!
I love your less is more Christmas. I’ve done posts in the past on a minimalist Christmas. If I revisit that this year, I may share your article.
A few years ago we started giving the kids only 4 gifts, one from each category (need, read, want, wear). It was an adjustment but it was a good one. Then a couple years ago we got tired of giving “stuff” and wanted to give memories instead, so now the kids receive a family vacation as their only gift (other than one from Santa and filled stockings). We don’t always travel at Christmas but I can tell you, the kids have never been more excited come Christmas morning. Memories last a lot longer than anything else they could ask for.
I love the idea of the 4 gifts! How come I have never heard of it before? I really like the vacation idea too, but with buying a house this year I think that it is a great idea for next year!
Your post spoke right to my heart! I love the idea of a less-is-more Christmas. Every year I stress and stress about the holidays when we should really be focusing on why we have Christmas. This year we are going to be decorating less, buying less and focusing more on God and family.
This year we want to do a less is more Christmas. We want to focus on family and time spent together instead of the hustle and bustle of the season. Your post mirrors our thoughts exactly. Thanks.
Thank you so much for sharing this. Each year, we wonder if our kids really understand the true meaning of Christmas. This reminds me of those plans and to not get carried away shopping this holiday season. Somehow, it will be perfect just the way it is. God and family are what Christmas means to me and what I want to teach my children. I love the idea of handmade tags and sharpie ornaments and will totally be lifting that idea. Thank you.
Love this. I love trips with my kids way more than a bunch of “stuff”all over my house.
Oh, this is so good! We’ve had a lot going on in our family lately, having recently moved coast-to-coast, and possibly facing another surgery on my 5yo’s broken arm, so this year more than ever I want to keep things simple and meaningful during the Christmas season. Thanks for providing some food for thought + inspiration, it’s just what I needed to hear today.
I’m doing the wave for you. By myself. At my desk. But that’s okay, because it deserves the wave! I just blogged about this very thing- simplifying Christmas so we don’t MISS Christmas. We tend to want to do everything, and then make everything a tradition. Really, we–and our kids–are longing to have enough margin to do things together without looking at the clock, and maybe even make eye contact with each other! What my family and I are now doing is choosing (as a family) the few things we really want to do, doing those few things right, and enjoying the freedom of “no” to everything else! Have a great, meaningful Christmas, my friend!
Thank you for this. My heart needed this message right now. I’ve been struggling because this year we are forced to do less not just choose less. I’ve been feeling some angst over that, but your words have helped me remember truth. Christmas is what we make if it, not what we buy.
For the last several years, we have rented a beach house for a week that is big enough for our whole family. All of us only live about 25 miles away. It might sound stupid, but some of the family still has to work during this time. If I had it at my home, the kids, grandkids, and great grandkids would only come for a few hours, eat, open gifts, doze off, and go home. We take turns providing the evening meals, having a low country boil as our celebration meal. The grandkids all think their Pop is the best at breakfasts, like pancakes, waffles, and bacon and eggs. (I mix the batters, but he gets the credit) Each family has their “area” and there is one area set off for video games for the teens. We have a puzzle table always set up, legos to do, and there is a big 5 foot square table with booth seating and we play game after game of dominoes, cards, board games, etc… We still get the grandkids a little something, but have fun with the others. We are together way more than we would be staying at home and these have been the best memories for all of us. Last year, my daughter-in-law was battling colon cancer and spend most of her time in bed in the next room. She was able to hear us and loved it. I’m happy to say she is cancer free this year and look forward to her joining us at the game table. This has really been a blessing to us and I feel so lucky to be able to do it again. Hearing your 22 year old grandson and your 8 year old grandson singing Christmas carols while they are putting legos together is the what it’s all about.
Love this post, especially as our family story is mirroring yours a bit this year.
We just left a stressful life behind, sold our house, packed a suitcase each and will be spending Christmas at the beach this year in another country.
I have been wondering how it will feel to all of us who are used to snow, hot cocoa and heavy, yummy winter foods to be celebrating with sand, smoothies and mangos and you just gave me a little glimpse that it will be wonderful~ Thank you!!!
Oh Summer, you will come away with so many amazing memories! Life will be so different….but embrace it. We learned so much during our time on the island that stayed with us long after we left.
These ideas are wonderful! I have wondered how this season can be simplified, so it can be more focused on the true meaning of the season- birth of a Savior, Jesus Christ! I really like the idea of having the children decorate an ornament with a sharpie. It makes me think of a new family and how these ornaments can be added on each year. Each year each child receives one ornament to decorate with a favorite memory of the year. Then as ornaments are added each year the children can see the many wonderful memories they are adding to their family.
I love how successful your Christmas was, simply. I am afraid that too often I have given my children more than they want out of fear, rather than love. I am afraid they will be disappointed if I only get them what they want or need, and instead shower them with things that do not appeal to them. Later, they feel guilty getting rid of things no one wanted in the first place.
Not too late this year. I will return unnecessary, unwanted items for a more joyful Christmas morning.
Great comments we have a Christmas like you have descrbed, and have added acts of charity to the season hoping to continue those actions through the year