Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. As always, all opinions are mine alone. #OwnTheGalaxy #CollectiveBias
This time of year time just seems to fly by, doesn’t it? I swear it was just the other day that summer ended and the kids were back in school and BAM, now it’s Christmas. This time of year is always crazy busy for me and I end up running around like a mad woman trying to organize my life. It can be difficult because Mr. Harris tends to work a lot of hours this time of year and it never fails that one of the kids is sick or has a party or play on any given day. Between keeping up with activities and keeping everyone healthy and fed, Christmas shopping can be quite the task as well. Since I’m also the cook on Christmas, this month takes a lot of juggling and organizational skills that I must produce even when I feel that they are lacking (they are!).
One thing I did learn though, was how important it is to to keep these kids busy during the final prep stage. Christmas Eve is usually when we have houseguests, we’re finishing up any last minute Christmas gift wrapping and we’re prepping for Christmas brunch and Christmas dinner. This is the time that I need my family to be occupied, entertained and happy. A few years ago we began a tradition of letting the kids open one gift on Christmas Eve. What that gift usually consists of is fun pajamas, a movie or video game, fun snacks, board games, etc. Stuff that can keep them all busy and happy, and this is GOLDEN! It works like a charm!
We like to get them fun movies or games that are popular during that season, so this year the release of Guardians of the Galaxy on DVD came just in time. Not only is it a fun movie that all our kids will enjoy, it features an exclusive Character O-sleeve and exclusive music zinepack and a 64 page magazine with cast and crew interviews, exclusive behind-the-scenes photos and trivia PLUS a custom “cassette” laptop decal.
It’s being called the best Marvel movie ever, which is no small feat. We love our Marvel movies, so I just know that this movie and these toys will be used not only on Christmas Eve, but year round!
We created a gift basket the kids could enjoy that contained the movie, a blanket, a few fun toys, some snacks and I even found matching gift wrap! You can fill up the Christmas tin with your choice of homemade cookies and include your families favorites snacks.
Our plan is to present this to them on Christmas Eve with the yearly tradition of pajamas. The toys will keep the younger boys busy while they watch the movie and the snacks will keep all the kids happy and fed while they all cuddle up under that blanket.
Do you have any fun Christmas Eve traditions?
If you want to add Guardians of the Galaxy movie and toys to your Christmas Eve tradition, you can find everything you need at Walmart. There’s a movie display that you can purchase the movie in a few different formats and there’s another display for many of the toys. I found the blanket and drink cup near the backpacks and character accessories near the cash registers and the gift wrap in the Christmas section. 
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