It’s time for a new Christmas tradition with a movie night at your house that the whole family will love! Grab your maple syrup, candy corn, and watch Elf! Make it the most festive Holiday Season with your kids by planning an Elf movie holiday family night with fun food and festive drink ideas.
“The Best Way To Spread Christmas Cheer Is Singing Loud For All to Hear!”
Where are all my “Elf” fans out there?!?
I mean, it’s not really Christmas until you watch a few holiday movies, and Elf is always on my family’s must-see list!
Seriously, Will Ferrell is one of my faves, and Elf just might top the list as one of my favorite Christmas movies becuase it’s just so darn funny!
Just watching it, puts me in the holiday spirit! The first time I watched it, I knew it was going to be an instant holiday classic!
**Funny Side Note** – My hubby played in one of Will Ferrell’s golf charity events here in San Diego and got to meet him!
Pretty sweet, huh??
Luckily he left Santa’s sack and the elves at home that day!
“Buddy” with a group of golfing elves!
So of course Elf has to be one of our Holiday-themed “Dinner & a Movie” family features!
When I tell my friends that I’ve been planning these themed dinners at my house to get my family in the Christmas Spirit, many of them get a look of terror on their faces because most of us moms have difficulty just getting hot food on the table let alone create a thematic meal based on a holiday movie.
Honestly, I feel the same way, especially if I go on Pinterest and see all of the amazing, over-the-top ideas, I start to feel a bit overwhelmed.
But here’s the deal…your kids will love WHATEVER you plan and create, even if it’s something super simple….they will just be excited that it’s something different and festive, so don’t get “Pinterest Paralysis”…just do what you can and don’t get too caught up in the details of it being perfect!
The most important part is spending quality time with your family, which is the true meaning of Christmas!
Seriously, make some spaghetti, and voila’..it’s an “Elf” dinner!
K.I.S.S. – Keep It Simple, Sister!!
To help you bring some elf magic to your house, I’ll share exactly what I did to plan our special night!
Also, you can turn any of these great ideas into a party with friends, neighbors, or extended family…a movie night is always a huge hit with kids and adults of any age!
1. Breakfast – Before the Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
First, we started our day with some Elf cereal for breakfast that I found at my local grocery store…a total win for the theme, but not so much a win in the health category…
but hey, you gotta live a little sometimes!
Let’s be honest, Santa’s elves live off of nothing but sugar, so one bowl a junkie cereal is much better than that!
2. Lunch – Prior to the Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
For lunch, I was hoping to make these cute Buddy the Elf Sandwiches (idea & photo from Party Pinching), but it just didn’t come together…I guess there’s always next year! I love how she added that cute sign!
In case you are wanting to make these adorable Buddy Beef & Cheese Sammies, you can find the directions here at this blog post by Party Pinching.
3. Activities for Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
Before we started the evening activities we each figured out our “Elf Name” and decided we should call each other our new name for the remainder of the night which was pretty funny and silly…
this Elf Name Generator came from Diddles and Dumplings, but there are hundreds of variations online, you can use!
“Jolly Snowflake” here at your service!
4. Dinner for Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
Dinner was super simple…we really couldn’t stomach the true elves’ meal of spaghetti, candy, candy canes, and maple syrup…yuck!
Elf four main food groups: candy, candy corn, candy canes, & maple syrup
So to make our dinner a little less sweet, we opted for another pasta meal that my family enjoys that actually contains some V-E-G-G-I-E-S (definitely NOT on Buddy the Elf’s normal menu!)
5. Beverages for Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
To make the meal a bit more festive, I did make some Buddy the Elf Drinks…I saw the idea online and just eyeballed the dimensions using construction paper and glue to pull them together!
6. Dessert for Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
For dessert, we (and when I say “we” I mean my 15-year-old daughter, but I did “supervise” and chimed in with moral support ) made sweet Elf Hats.
To make the elf hats, you only need 3 ingredients – just dip Bugles in melted white vanilla Candi-Quik and add holiday sprinkles.
Super easy and no elves’ help needed, plus they were so yummy, like magic in your mouth! Yum!
7. Featured Activity of the Elf Movie Holiday Family Night
Lastly, it was showtime (the chaos ensues!), so we settled in our cozy Santa PJs and enjoyed some Buddy Popcorn that I found at Walmart.
Seriously, how perfect, right!?!
All in all, it was another memorable family night shared with those near and dear!
So, what do you think about this Christmas tradition of having a family movie night?
Does your family have other favorite Christmas movies?
Do you own the movie or do you watch them as tv specials?
Do you have any great ideas to celebrate this most wonderful time of year?
My family and I are always on the search for new holiday movies to add to our family movie night Christmas tradition!
So until next time, cheers to staying off the naughty list and cheers to “smiling, smiling is my favorite”….oh, and cheers to you!
XOXO,
Magan
P.S. Looking for other fun ideas for the holiday season to enhance your family time together? On the hunt for more creative ideas to add to your Christmas traditions?
Check out my blog post about how to plan a Christmas Lights Scavenger Hunt (with snack ideas – no candy corn involved, promise!)
Love the Christmas Family Movie Night Idea?
Then you’ll also love this blog post about another one of my favorite holiday movies The Grinch Who Stole Christmas
Want to plan another fun movie night?
Check out my National Lampoon’s Themed Dinner & Movie Night!
