Twelve Days of Christmas
celebrating a longer, less stressful, and more meaningful Christmas season
How do you usually feel on December 26? Disappointed by the end of a season? That's how we usually felt, until we realized that Christmas, traditionally speaking, was never meant to last only one day. "The Christmas Season" actually starts on Christmas Eve and lasts until Epiphany (The Feast of Three Kings on January 6).
For the past four years, our young family has celebrated Christmas as twelve days of gift-giving (one or two presents per day), reflection, feasting, creative activities and quality time--rather than as a single-morning binge followed by anticlimax. This has made Christmas a lot more fun for us. We no longer have to rush to make sure everyone's gifts are purchased and wrapped by December 24. Our children, meanwhile, instead of being inundated and overwhelmed by gifts, appreciate each present they receive for at least an entire day. We set aside special activities, readings, and prayers for each of these days as well, so that we can teach them, and teach ourselves, to marvel at the mystery of Christ's Incarnation.
We started this site because we wanted to invite others to try this practice as well, not only as a kind of protest against the commercialization of Christmas, but because we've simply found this manner of celebrating Christmas to be more joyful. We've put resources on this site to give you a vision of what this might look like. Feel free to try what looks like it would work for you, or else just be inspired by the idea of enjoying an entire Christmas season.
For the past four years, our young family has celebrated Christmas as twelve days of gift-giving (one or two presents per day), reflection, feasting, creative activities and quality time--rather than as a single-morning binge followed by anticlimax. This has made Christmas a lot more fun for us. We no longer have to rush to make sure everyone's gifts are purchased and wrapped by December 24. Our children, meanwhile, instead of being inundated and overwhelmed by gifts, appreciate each present they receive for at least an entire day. We set aside special activities, readings, and prayers for each of these days as well, so that we can teach them, and teach ourselves, to marvel at the mystery of Christ's Incarnation.
We started this site because we wanted to invite others to try this practice as well, not only as a kind of protest against the commercialization of Christmas, but because we've simply found this manner of celebrating Christmas to be more joyful. We've put resources on this site to give you a vision of what this might look like. Feel free to try what looks like it would work for you, or else just be inspired by the idea of enjoying an entire Christmas season.
BE INSPIRED TO
CELEBRATE 12 DAYS
instead of one
Read the prayers, reflections, carols, and more now
Click the images below to go to the corresponding day's page. Each page has gift ideas, activities, prayers, scripture reading, reflections
by Chris and Glencora Pipkin, as well as literary reading suggestions.
by Chris and Glencora Pipkin, as well as literary reading suggestions.
