Preparing for Santa Claus’ Arrival and Other Holiday Traditions

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.

Each year, after my birthday on October 25th, I start the unofficial two-month countdown to Christmas. I make lists, I check them twice and the store turnover to Christmas decor always puts me in a delightful mood. With two little misters, the holidays are always extra-special for us, especially with the excited anticipation of Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. I love enhancing the Christmas spirit with fun excitement and Christmas gifts. #NorthpoleFun #CollectiveBias

The best part is that Walmart carries the full line of Hallmark gifts from the Northpole this season so you can get all of your holiday shopping done in one fell swoop. Charlie and I made a trek to the “North Pole” ourselves and couldn’t believe all the magic they were already creating within the aisles! We wanted to buy one of everything!

Santa Claus is a long-standing part of our family traditions. From the time I was a little girl, “Santa” (my dad) would visit our family’s Christmas Eve celebration. The realistic suit, jovial smile and bright red cheeks always captured our attention and I was delighted once the tradition carried on with my boys.

The anticipation for the Man in Red has only grown through the years and I thought I’d share a bit about our Christmas traditions and favorite ways to prepare for his arrival. This year, Hallmark has released a line of Northpole gifts and toys that can help bring your Santa preparations to the next level and enhance the anticipation as the countdown to Christmas continues.

1. Do You Want to Build a Snowman?

It’s often said that Christmas isn’t Christmas without snow. As a Chicagoan who survived Snowmaggedon of 2013-2014. I have to agree that snow makes (and sometimes completely covers!) the holiday. Once the first snowfall comes, the boys eagerly wait at the windows to collect the first snowflakes on their tongues and roll out the first snowball. Until that weather hits, we’re content with a few snowball wars indoors with the Hallmark Northpole Magic Snowballs. They are nice and dry, fluffy so not likely to leave a mark and create a beautiful glow. For extra special fun, we love tossing these around in the dark – see where they land with the beautiful light!

If the snow doesn’t fall outside, bring some snow inside for a little Christmas fun! Add in the Avalauncher  (complete with fake snowballs) for a little friendly competition!

2. That’s a Wrap – Book Advent Calendar

Each year, we add new Christmas books to our collection. The boys LOVE nighttime stories with daddy and so to start the excitement of the season, we wrap allof our Christmas books individually as a way to have a physical advent calendar to count down the days to Christmas! Each book is wrapped and then labeled with a number. We let them unwrap a book for some holiday reading each night and it helps to build the excitement, uses something we already have in our decorative Christmas tubs and creates the anticipation we’re looking for.

The boys also love receiving “presents” each day and the cost to us is minimal since we reuse the same books each year! We end with Twas the Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve and then fall asleep to visions of sugar plums. This year, we’ll add the Once Upon A Northpole Christmas storybook from Hallmark gifts. The book which tells the story of….also includes a Find me, Santa Snowflake that can help light the way for Santa to find you on Christmas Eve.

3. Ornamental Traditions

One of my favorite parts of the season is decorating the Christmas tree. Each year, my mother-in-law buys us a personalized ornament and I love pulling them out each year to see our collection as a whole. The one above was the Christmas right before Jack arrived. Ornaments are a great way to add decoration and sentiment to the holiday season. I love collecting and decorating slowly while either watching a Christmas movie or sipping a big batch of hot cocoa.

This would also be the perfect time to add on your Find Me, Santa Snowflake from the storybook above so that your family can light the night and give Santa a little help in finding just the right house. Personalize the ornament for an extra special holiday touch.

Our first Christmas as expectant parents is beautifully documented in this ornament. Tree trimming is a beloved family tradition that I cannot wait to participate in this upcoming season!

Building our traditions each year always makes this season extra special for our family. I love carrying out traditions from my childhood and experiencing them with my boys. What holiday traditions will Hallmark gifts help to enhance this year?