+ BY KELLEN CROSS & BENJAMIN BECKER

1. Christmas stories and hot chocolate

Spending time with your family is a must on Christmas eve. Most people watch movies as a family, or they read a classic like A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Add a cup of hot chocolate for the perfect touch.

2. Pajamas

No one is ever too old to put on their pajamas Christmas Eve. Gathering around the Christmas tree maybe your family lets you open one present or you stay up late watching as many Christmas movies as you can. Perhaps your parents are divorced and the struggle of going from house to house is ahead of you.

3. Going to Church

While some are slipping into their pj’s others are pulling their belt through that last loop, that will not fit until after New Year’s. Reciting verses, Christmas hymns, and being surrounded by the glow of a candlelight communion is tradition for many families.

4. Slumber party

We all know that dreaded feeling when your family has been over at your house all break and the only thing you want is some peace. Rewind. Before all that you were staying up late with your cousins and nephews playing video games or doing each other’s makeup. Sharing beds and making forts that overthrow what your basement used to be.

5. Secret Santa

You may have participated in some form of a “secret santa” this year. Although after time your identity will soon be relieved. Switch it up this holiday season and pay for someone else’s meal, or as they wait in a checkout line simply say, “This one is on me.”