What I Put in My Kids’ December 1st Boxes

There’s something about December 1st that feels like the real beginning of Christmas. The decorations are up, the Christmas music is playing, and suddenly all of those traditions we’ve been waiting all year for can officially begin.

One of the ways we kick off the Christmas season in our house is with December 1st boxes for the kids. I fill them with a mix of cozy Christmas essentials, festive activities, and a few little surprises they can enjoy throughout the month. It’s not meant to be an early Christmas gift or another excuse to pile on a bunch of toys, in fact a lot of what goes inside is stuff I would have bought for the season anyways. Putting it all together in a special box just makes receiving it feel a little more magical.

And that’s really the whole point for me. The Christmas pajamas could simply appear in their drawers and the Christmas books could quietly make their way onto the shelf, but where is the fun in that?

So if you’re looking for ideas for your own December 1st tradition, here’s a peak inside exactly what I put in my kids’ December 1st boxes and why each item has earned a spot.

What is a December 1st box?

In our house a December 1st box is a box that our elves brings on the first of December full of things to help the kids celebrate Christmas and get them into the spirit. It’s where we gift them all the Christmas themed things that otherwise won’t really get enjoyed if wait until Christmas Day to gift them, like matching pajamas, socks, or various seasonal activities.

What I Put in My Kids’ December 1st Boxes

Matching Pajamas

Every year we get new matching Christmas pajamas as a family. When I was growing up me and my siblings often got these as a part of our Christmas Eve gift, but I like gifting them earlier in the season so everyone can more use of them throughout the month. I just make sure they are all washed and ready for us all to wear to bed on Christmas Eve!

A Christmas Ornament

Each child gets an ornament in their December 1st box related to something they were interested in this year, something they did or some kind of milestone from that year. My hope is that by the time they have their own homes and Christmas tress to decorate, they will also have a collection of ornaments that tell a story of their interests and how they changed over the years.

A Christmas Cup

This is an item I do not buy year after year for their boxes, I will buy them a cute Christmas travel mug or tumbler that is safe for hot liquids like hot chocolate, and as long as it is in good condition and still appropriate for their age I will put it away at the end of the season to add to their box again next year.

A Cozy Christmas Blanket

This is another item I will put away to reuse as long as it is still in good condition to gift again each year. This year however I think I will be buying my son a new one for the first time since I started this tradition as he’s started outgrow the size of his original blanket and I think a bigger one will be more enjoyable for him.

Christmas Socks

Each member of the family will get a few new pairs of fun Christmas socks to wear throughout the month. I would love for them to all be matching but I haven’t had luck so far finding perfectly matching ones for everyone!

Christmas Activities

I love to include plenty of Christmas activities for us to do together as a family. Often times these are age appropriate craft kits from the dollar store and maybe one or two more expensive kits, but you could also put together your own DIY craft kits if you chose! Someday I would love for this to be another advent style tradition with a craft for each day leading up until Christmas, but I am not that organized yet so we space a handful of crafts and activities out throughout the month.

Consumable Items

I like to include fun little things like stickers, temporary tattoos, new crayons and Christmas colouring book that they can enjoy and use up through the month of December. This stuff is in expensive and once it’s been enjoyed it won’t be adding clutter to my home.

Cozy Items

I also usually include a Christmas themed stuffed animal for each kid in their boxes and as needed I will include things like new slippers if they need them.

Christmas Clothes

If I buy them things like Christmas sweaters or other clothes aside from their pajamas I will include them in the box as well, but often they are with me and pick these items out for themselves so I don’t get the chance to pretend it’s from the elves!

Items for Christmas Events

If I know before December 1st of something they may need or want for an event or activity we will be attending, I will also include these items in their boxes. For example I like to get them light up necklaces or toys, glow sticks, or handwarmers for when we watch the annual Santa parade in our town.

Christmas Treats

I try not to go too heavy in this category because they receive so many treats and chocolates throughout the season already, but I will often include a few small chocolates, hot chocolate bombs, or candy canes in their boxes as well.

Games & Puzzles

Every year the elves bring a new board game and Christmas puzzle, not for each child individually, but for all of us to enjoy together as a family. I love this as fun way to grow our collections in a way that also adds a little whimsy to the Christmas season.

Christmas Books

We actually don’t include new books in each kids box, but we actually have a separate box that the elves bring on December 1st with 24 wrapped and numbered books from the “North Pole Library”. We reuse most of these books year after aside from adding a new book or two to keep the collection age appropriate as they grow up.

What I Don’t Put in Our December 1st Boxes

It’s important to me that the December 1st box continues to be something that is about the Christmas spirit and kicking off the season rather than another occasion to pile on toys that I’m going to trip on later. I don’t include anything that isn’t Christmas specific, so that means no generic toys, activities, or clothing. I also won’t fill it a bunch of cheap Christmas themed tiny toys and trinkets that will be forgotten about or broken before Christmas arrives. I try to very intentional about choosing things that will last for several years, that will actually be used and enjoyed throughout the season, and consumable things that won’t be cluttering up the play room for weeks to come.

How I Put Our December 1st Boxes Together

In previous years when it was just my son, I used a wooden crate that I painted to look like a special delivery from the North Pole that contained all of his “December 1st” items as well as 24 wrapped Christmas books that make up our Christmas advent. This year the wooden crate is going to only contain the books and each child will have their own box to hold their items. There will be a few shared items between the kids, like a new board game for us to play as a family and a new Christmas puzzle, so those items will also go into the wooden crate for them open together. I do wrap a handful of the items for their boxes simply so they can have the satisfaction of opening something, but for the most part I just try to arrange the items so they look cute, and then I will sit their elves, a long with a note the elves have written, in front of each box.

Our December 1st Tradition

Because our boxes are brought by our elves, they will get set out on the evening before December 1st after the kids are in bed. When the kids wake up on December 1st they are able to look at their box and unwrap whatever is in it. The activities that I add to the boxes we save to do them as a family on other day throughout the month, but other items like stuffed animals, colouring books, and new crayons they can start enjoying right away. Typically we will spend that day doing Christmas puzzles, playing whatever new game the elves may have brought, and enjoying a few Christmas treats before everyone wears their matching pajamas to bed and we read whichever book came first in our Christmas books advent.

Starting your own December 1st Box Tradition

The best part about a December 1st box is that there really aren’t any rules. It can be as simple or elaborate as you want, and you can fill it with whatever makes the start of December feels special for your family.

Start by thinking what you already love doing together during the Christmas season. If you always have a Christmas movie night, add new pajamas and a holiday snack. If your kids love crafts, tuck in a Christmas activity or ornament kit. If you read Christmas stories together, add a new book, or use the box to kick off a new tradition for the month.

You also don’t need to buy everything new each year. Christmas pajamas that still fit, favourite holiday books, reusable mugs, or other seasonal items can absolutely make another appearance. The magic is bringing them out together and marking the beginning of the season, not in how much you spend.

Choose a box, basket, or even a gift bag that reuse each year, fill it with a few things your kids will be excited about, and bring it out on December 1st. Over time it becomes less about what’s actually inside the box and more about what it means: Christmas is officially here.

Our December 1st boxes have become one of my favourite ways to start the Christmas season. They’re not complicated, and they don’t need to be filled with expensive gifts. They’re simply a fun little way to turn an ordinary day on the calendar into something my kids can look forward to every year.

For us, opening the boxes means the Christmas pajamas come out, the holiday activities begin, and we officially get to settle into all of those little traditions that make December feel like December. And I think that’s what I love most about traditions like this. The things inside the box will change as my kids grow, but the memory of opening it at the beginning of every Christmas season gets to grow right along with them.

If you’re thinking about starting a December 1st box tradition of your own, don’t worry about making it Pinterest perfect or filling it with dozens of things. Start with a box, add a few things your family will genuinely enjoy, and make it yours. Because years from now they won’t remember every single thig that was inside, but they just might remember how exciting it felt when that box appeared and Christmas officially began.