12 Days of Christmas: DC Family Fun Bucket List for Winter Break

One of my true loves is Christmas DC family fun in the month of December. The holiday lights are aglow, window displays beckon, and DC family fun festivities abound all over town. 

This year, that comes as we continue to try to navigate the ongoing pandemic. But even as we enter another strange holiday season, there is plenty of Christmas fun in DC. And for my family, that means an extended celebration of the twelve days of Christmas.

The idea of twelve days of Christmas dates back long before the well-known carol. Traditionally, for the Christian church the Christmas season started (yes, started!) on December 25. It lasted until the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6, the day that celebrates the arrival of the Magi.

Really, Dec. 25 should be the start, not the end of the festivities.

Whether you are celebrating the 12 days of Christmas or just looking for a festive way to pass the days of winter break, we’ve got you covered! Here’s your winter break bucket-list, 12 fun ideas to see you through until January.

Of course, please also check out our Guide to Family-Friendly Events in December, Guide to Light Displays, and where to take photos with Santa. 

Winter Break Bucket-List: 12 Days of Christmas Fun

1. Have visions of Sugarplums. Clara’s Christmas Eve adventures return! The  Washington Ballet’s Nutcracker is back at the Warner Theatre through Dec. 30. This production is uniquely DC, set amidst cherry blossoms with a leaping George Washington Nutcracker. Or, for a shorter take on the classic tale, try the Puppet Co.‘s marionette production at Glen Echo Park, running through Jan. 2.
2. Walk in a winter wonderland. Maryland and Virginia’s parks have some great outdoor light displays, open through the new year.  And DC has neighborhood holiday lights on retail main streets throughout the city. Check here for the neighborhood map and a scavenger hunt! Or be enchanted at Nationals stadium, where a massive holiday light maze covers the entire baseball field.
3. The lights are on for towering trees.  My family loves to visit the decorated trees outside the Capitol and White House. At the White House ellipse, each state and territory has its decorations on small trees in the pathway of peace, with the large national tree in the middle. The Capitol Christmas Tree is always stunning, with lights and handmade ornaments. This year it comes from California.
4. Skate through the holiday.  Lace-up some ice skates, sing Christmas tunes, and have Christmas family fun at one of D.C.’s charming outdoor ice-skating rinks. The ice rink at the National Gallery Sculpture Gardens is particularly picturesque, set amidst sculptures, stately buildings and encircled by a string of white lights. Check our guide for more information on indoor and outdoor skating rinks.
5. Go chuffing down the tracks at the Botanic Gardens. The U.S. Botanic Gardens usually has some of the most magical decorations in the city. The building is still closed to the public, but they set up their charming annual train display outside. Now you can see the trains chugging across wooden train trestles.
6. Make it a colonial Christmas. Take a special Christmas tour at George Washington’s home, Mt. Vernon. Show your children that once upon a time, children were happy to get even one piece of candy as the sum total of their Christmas gifts. And you can visit Aladdin the camel, in residence until Jan. 6.

Christmas DC family fun at home

7. Spread out those gifts. If you have a lot of gifts for your children, consider spreading out the fun of opening them over multiple days. When my children were younger, I noticed they wanted to immediately play with the gift whenever they opened it. At first, I tried to redirect them to the next gift. But I decided to use this to my advantage. I let them play with the gift and hid others to reappear later. Nowadays, my kids are eager to get their loot on Dec. 25, but we still wait to open a few gifts.

8. Celebrate Boxing Day. The second day of Christmas, Dec. 26, is known as “Boxing Day” and is a public holiday in the United Kingdom. It can be a day to box up gifts for service employees. This might be a great opportunity to leave thank-you notes or treats for the postal carriers and package delivery people who have kept us going these past two years. When you are done spreading cheer, take a modern spin on Boxing Day and create a fort, puppet stage, pirate ship, or some art out of all those delivery boxes from your holiday ordering spree.

9. Don’t burn out on baking cookies. It is always the right time to bake cookies. I like to let my children browse the Washington Post food section for a recipe they are excited about. Full disclosure: my kids are more interested in eating the cookies than in executing the recipe, but they get a little better at helping every year.

10. Decorate a Christmas tree for the birds. Cover a pine cone with bird seed or hang some dried fruit to make an outdoor ornament that can feed the birds (or, let’s be honest, the squirrels). Your kids might enjoy sharing the Christmas cheer with wildlife and watching animals enjoy the snacks.

11. Make a King Cake. We make a king cake every year for January 6th, which is Three Kings Day, Epiphany, or Dia de Los Reyes. We hide a small plastic baby (or a dry bean if we can’t find a baby) inside the cake. Whoever finds the baby is the king or queen of the celebration.

12. Throw a family 12th Night or Epiphany Party. The twelfth night of Christmas, January 5th, was traditionally a night for revels. And in many countries, the biggest celebration of the season is on January 6th. I am determined to celebrate this year, even if we can’t have a party with guests. For instance, we might have a “last night of Christmas” celebration with our family. We can eat some favorite foods, crank up those cozy holiday tunes one more time, or have a Mariah Carey dance party. William Shakespeare writes in his play “Twelfth Night”: “If music be the food of love, play on.” The world is uncertain, but our kids are still ready to play on and on and on.