How this simple, unique, and positive Christmas tradition started
When my pre-school aged daughter started asking why our family didn’t have a visiting elf like other kids, I knew we should probably start something – but “What?” was the real question. As a busy working mom of small children, time was limited. Our hurried mornings and short evenings didn’t need to be more complicated. And whatever month-long holiday tradition we were going to commit to had to be easy! I didn’t want the upkeep to take away any of the joy from the original intention. Plus there’s always been a part of me that likes to be different. I knew our tradition had to manageable; but mostly, I wanted to do something unique, something that was positive, and something that would be special to us!
In December of 2013, the original Jingle Bell Jar™ was born!
The idea came about after talking to a dear friend about childhood traditions. She said her family used to collect bells for Santa to take on Christmas Eve and the neighbor would secretly come by to shake the bells later in the night so they would think Santa was outside. I absolutely loved the notion and decided to do something similar with my own family! I started collecting jingle bells from all sorts of places; from craft stores to antique shops and eventually had 24 unique bells. That December, I hid one each night for my daughter to find the next morning with a letter from her special Jingle Bell Elves saying that Santa would add them to his sleigh if she collected them all. I also created the original Jingle Bell Jar for my daughter to store them in, along with more elf notes and a story as well. I had so much fun that year hiding bells for the first time! Not only was this tradition easy to maintain, but it was also rewarding to watch her eyes light up every morning when she found her bell! As we got closer to Christmas, she would ask us to dump out all the bells on the family room floor for her to look at. There was a sense of pride that we could see in her as she gazed over all the bells she had collected.
Nowadays, both of our children (ages 5 & 8) search for a “Believe Bell” hidden each night in December, filling our family jar in anticipation of Santa’s arrival. The magic and wonder are still very much alive as they search for bells each day – only the bells have gotten more challenging to find as my kids have gotten older! On Christmas Eve, my children set out their jar full of bells next to a plate of cookies for Santa with a sense of accomplishment. They know that Santa will be filled with joy when he discovers the bells and will be reminded of their kindness as the bells jingle all through the night on his sleigh.
So that’s the basic story of how this tradition started! It’s been on my heart for a couple years to find a way to package our tradition and make it available for other families to enjoy. I’m so thankful to have been able to take that leap of faith this past year with the love and support of family! I’ll be sharing more in future posts of how we were able to do this while still keeping the magic alive for my children. Hint – they think we’re on a special mission from the Jingle Bell Elves.
In doing my initial research, I learned there’s a lot of debate around kids Christmas traditions – way more than I originally thought. But what I mostly learned is that we can all choose to be as involved or not involved as we wish – with any tradition! The rules can be re-written. Every family has to do what’s right for them regardless of what the child next door is doing or what the conversations are at school. If it doesn’t bring you joy, then it won’t bring your children joy either. The Jingle Bell Jar became a simple and fun way to create small but joyous moments for our family. It may not be for everyone but my wish is that it will inspire you to bring simple moments of joy to your holidays however that looks. Whether it’s moving an elf, moving a Shepard, hiding a bell, or hugging a reindeer, I hope that we all choose to do what’s best for our families in whatever season of life we’re in!
