I’m not sure if you’ve ever heard of celebrating “Christmas in July”, but I LOVE the idea for all of my kiddos at church during the summer because it gives them something special and “out of the ordinary” to look forward to! 🎄
And honestly, it doesn’t feel as “crammed” as it does during December…as much as we don’t want to admit how crammed December can be! 😉
(Heads up: 😊🌲 this page includes affiliate links. If you click and purchase on these links, I may receive a small commission as an Amazon Associate at no extra cost to you! I only recommended products that I absolutely LOVE myself! ❤️)
So…what do you DO during Christmas in July? Why, you simply remember WHY Jesus came as a babe in a manger…to be our Rescuer! ❤️ And then you find all SORTS of fun ways to keep Him at the center of your heart ALL YEAR LONG, not JUST during December! So, here are a few of my favorite things… 🎶 😊 🎄
*I will continue to update this post and add more creative items as they come! 😀
- Christmas in July craft day – making ornaments, wreaths, and other Christmas decorations
- Christmas in July movie night – watching classic Christmas movies
- Christmas in July baking day – making and decorating Christmas cookies and gingerbread houses
- Christmas in July carol singing – learning and performing Christmas carols
- Christmas in July story time – reading and discussing the story of the birth of Jesus (I posted MANY book ideas down below! I love them ALL!) ♥️ 😊
- Christmas in July service project – organizing a toy or food drive for a local charity
- Christmas in July themed games – playing holiday-themed games like “pin the tail on Mary and Joseph’s donkey” or a fun “cotton ball snowball toss”!
- Christmas in July costume party – dressing up as characters from the nativity (Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, cows, sheep, donkeys, camels, King Herod, 3 wise men, etc…)
- Christmas in July scavenger hunt – searching for hidden Christmas-themed items around the house or yard
- Christmas in July prayer time – reflecting on the true meaning of Christmas and offering prayers for those in need.
- Have a Christmas movie marathon
- Decorate your home with Christmas decorations (paper chains are always fun and a good “time filler” for the kiddos!)
- Host a Christmas in July party at your house or church, using the “Happy Birthday Jesus Cake” devotional that I created on Etsy! 🎂
14. Bake Christmas cookies and treats and then read “The Legend of the Christmas Cookie”.
15. Have a “Secret Nativity” gift exchange
16. Make homemade Christmas ornaments
17. Wear Christmas shirts and hats
18. Listen to Christmas music 🎶 🎄
19. Have a holiday-themed photo shoot
20. Make a Christmas-themed “hot or iced chocolate” or “apple cider smoothie”
21. Make homemade Christmas cards ahead of time for Christmas in December OR “thinking about you on ‘Christmas in July’ cards”
22. Have a festive outdoor BBQ or picnic with Christmas themed items
23. Go ice skating at an indoor rink (or at least roller skating!)
24. Volunteer at a local charity or food bank
25. Have a Christmas-themed craft night
26. Watch a fireworks display while singing “Joy to the World”! (Great during 4th of July!) 🎆
27. Donate to a Christmas in July charity drive
28. Have a Christmas-themed scavenger hunt (The Shepherd on the Search: Finding Christ in Christmas – Advent Activity Set with Nativity Keepsake Box)
OR (The Shepherd’s Treasure, which is a Christian type of “Elf on a Shelf”)
29. Go on a “holiday” lights tour (outdoor botanical gardens at night, or even go to Menards in the lights section!! 😂 💡)
30. Have a Christmas-themed game night with family and friends. I designed some special matching games for the kiddos at my church…(Homemade Isaiah 9:6 matching game for kids) OR (Homemade John 3:16 matching game)…OR you can play Pictionary or Guesstures with random Christmas items
31. Read The Giving Manger Book Set,
which comes with 3 wooden figures (Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus), as well as a small wooden manger with hay. Every time a child does something nice for someone else, (with a sincere heart ❤️ 😉) they get to put a piece of hay in the manger to lay the baby Jesus down in “a bed of hay, made out of Love”. My Wednesday night kiddos at church looked forward to this every week during the month of December, and we are doing it in July now, as well, and they couldn’t wait to share how they helped their siblings, friends, neighbors, parents, each week!! 🙌 💜
32. Make candy cane ornaments with pipe cleaners, and then read “The Legend of the Candy Cane.”
33. Print out any type of Christmas tree outline, and have the kids decorate it with colored glue dots, dot markers, or sparkle gem stickers…then read The Legend of the Christmas Tree.
34. Make a Jesus themed birthday cake! These were the homemade instructions and examples from when my mom did this every year when I was a child, so I created a special copy on Etsy! 🎂
35. Give a variety of Christmas coupons to your kids ANY time in July…these were created specifically for my kiddos at church on Etsy!
❤️ 📖 Some of my favorite Christmas Bible verses:
- Isaiah 9:6 – “For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
- Luke 2:10-11 – “But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.'”
- Matthew 1:23 – “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
- John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
- Galatians 4:4-5 – “But when the set time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.”
- Micah 5:2 – “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me One who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”
- 1 John 4:9-10 – “This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
- Luke 2:14 – “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests.”
- Isaiah 7:14 – “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and will call Him Immanuel.”
- 1 Timothy 1:15 – “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.”
Christmas craft ideas:
- Handmade Christmas cards
- DIY Christmas ornaments
- Pinecone wreath
- Paper snowflakes
- Mason jar snow globes
- Hand-painted holiday mugs
- Festive holiday garland
- DIY Christmas stockings
- Holiday-themed candle holders
- Personalized Christmas tree decorations
- Reindeer handprint art
- Christmas-themed paper chains
- Homemade gingerbread house
- DIY advent calendar
- Hand-sewn Christmas stockings (and then read “The Legend of the Stocking”)
- Christmas-themed felt crafts
- Upcycled sweater stockings
- Holiday-themed painted rocks
- Handmade holiday centerpieces
- DIY Christmas tree skirt (and then read “The Legend of the Christmas Tree”
Christian books to read with the family: 📚 🎄
- “Unwrapping the Greatest Gift: A Family Celebration of Christmas” by Ann Voskamp…this is an amazing advent book, with beautiful devotions for the entire family, daily scripture readings, discussion questions, advent activities, and amazing illustrations!
2. “Unwrapping the Names of Jesus for kids” by Author Asheritah Ciuciu, who shows readers the Bread of Life through the feeding of the five thousand, the Light of the World when the little girl is afraid of the dark, and the Resurrection and the Life through the raising of Lazarus.
3. “The Biggest Story Bible Storybook”, takes us from the beginning of time to the very end, emphasizing God’s Big plan in the story of His Son, Jesus!
4. “The Jesus Storybook Bible” talks about our Rescuer in every one of the 25 chapters!
5. “The Jesus Storybook Bible Advent Activity Book” is a great new resource to go along with the Jesus Storybook Bible, but can be used on its own! It has 112 pages of crafts, songs, recipes and activities to celebrate Advent!
6. “The Advent Storybook: 25 Bible Stories Showing Why Jesus Came”
7. “The Shepherd on the Search”…discover finding the Joy of finding Christ in Christmas!
8. Jesus Calling: The Story of Christmas (picture book): God’s Plan for the Nativity from Creation to Christ!
9. Jesus Calling for Christmas, Padded Hardcover, with Full Scriptures: Seasonal Devotions for Christmas for adults.
10. Jesus Calling Bible Storybook for kids…256 pages of how we can hear God’s Voice calling to us in every story of the Bible.
11. The Tale of Three Trees…even though this might be considered more of an Easter story, it starts with a tree being used for a manger, and then a tree being used for the very purpose Jesus came…to die!
12. “Emmanuel: An Invitation to Prepare Him Room at Christmas and Always” one of my favorite adult Christian authors, Ruth Chou Simons, is a Pastor’s wife, speaker, author, artist and momma of 6 boys!!! Wow!!
❤️ 🎶 🎄 A list of Christian Christmas songs:
- O Holy Night
- Silent Night
- Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
- Joy to the World
- O Come, All Ye Faithful
- What Child is This?
- Angels We Have Heard on High
- The First Noel
- Go Tell It on the Mountain
- O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
💚 🍪 A list of some fun Christmas items to bake:
- Gingerbread cookies
- Sugar cookies with festive icing
- Peppermint bark
- Christmas tree brownies
- Chocolate-dipped pretzels
- Candy cane marshmallow pops
- Snowball cookies
- Eggnog cheesecake bars
- Cinnamon roll Christmas tree
- Reindeer rice krispie treats
💜 A list of some fun Christmas games to play with the family:
- Christmas Charades – Players act out Christmas-related words or phrases while others guess what they are acting out.
- Nativity Scene Scavenger Hunt – Hide small nativity figures around the house or yard and have players search for them.
- Christmas Carol Pictionary – Players draw and guess Christmas carols in a Pictionary-style game.
- Christmas Trivia – Test players’ knowledge of Christmas traditions, history, and biblical events related to Christmas.
- Christmas Bingo – Create bingo cards with Christmas-related images or words and play a festive game of bingo.
- Christmas Story Relay – Divide players into teams and have them relay the story of Jesus’ birth, passing the narration from one player to the next.
- Pin the Star on the Christmas Tree – A Christmas-themed variation of the classic “Pin the Tail on the Donkey” game.
- Christmas-themed Scavenger Hunt – Create a list of Christmas-related items for players to find around the house or neighborhood.
- Christmas-themed Memory Game – Create pairs of cards with Christmas images or symbols and play a memory matching game.
- Christmas Family Feud – Create a Christmas-themed version of the popular game show “Family Feud” with holiday-related survey questions.
- Christmas Puzzles – Put a Christmas puzzle together as a family, while slowing down the pace for a while!
🎄 ❤️ I hope and pray this gives you a few more creative Christmas ideas (for July OR December) of how to celebrate Jesus’ birth (AND death and resurrection), my friends, and joyfully pass it on!
