Recommendations for little kids, big kids and movies you’ll love watching together
Between all the Ho-Ho-Hoing, the holiday season also means extra trips to the store, rehearsals for every pageant you can imagine and so much present coordinating. Thinking. Ordering. Tracking. Wrapping. Hiding. Who else is exhausted? Here to save the day are…
Kid-Friendly Christmas Movies & Super Simple Dinners
Four to set the littles in front of, four to keep big kids busy and six to sit down and enjoy together–plus super simple finger food dinners to eat in the living room (with or without you). Best of all, these are movies your whole family might have missed.
Little Kids
About these adorable movies:
- Shaun the Sheep: The Flight Before Christmas When Shaun’s hunt for a bigger stocking hits a snag, the whole farm sets out on a wild holiday adventure — complete with a sleigh! (2021) Netflix
- LEGO Star Wars Christmas Celebration Rey leaves her friends to prepare for Life Day as she sets off on an adventure to gain a deeper knowledge of the Force. At a mysterious temple, she is hurled into a cross-timeline adventure. Will she make it back in time for Life Day? (2020) Disney+
- Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas George and the Man in the Yellow Hat are having a merry time counting down to Christmas, but neither can decide what to give each other. They seek to find the answers before Christmas morning. (2009) Hulu
- Santa Buddies: The Legend of Santa Paws When Puppy Paws, the feisty son of Santa Paws, forgets the true meaning of the season, the Buddies must remind him that Christmas is not about what you get; it’s about what you give. (2009) Disney+
What to serve:
Grilled cheese sandwiches + smoothies. That’s it! Make it easy with one of our tried and true smoothie recipes that kids love.
Big Kids
About these adorable movies:
- Hip Hop Nutcracker RUN DMC’s Rev Run brings us along for a hip-hop reimagining of The Nutcracker ballet set in New York City. (2022) Disney+
- The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special The Guardians are on a mission to make Christmas unforgettable for Quill and head to Earth in search of the perfect present. (2022) Disney+
- The Star A small but brave donkey named Bo yearns for a life beyond his daily grind at the village mill. One day, he finds the courage to break free, embarking on the adventure of his dreams. On his journey, he teams up with Ruth, a lovable sheep who has lost her flock, and Dave, a dove who has lofty aspirations. Along with three camels and some eccentric stable animals, Bo and his new friends follow the Star and become accidental heroes in the greatest story ever told — the first Christmas. (2017) Amazon Prime
- The Santa Clauses Scott Calvin is on the brink of his 65th birthday and realizing that he can’t be Santa forever; Scott sets out to find a suitable replacement Santa while preparing his family for a new adventure in a life south of the pole. (2022) Disney+
What to serve:
Naan bread pesto pizza + kale chips. Both recipes involve slathering simple ingredients (in some form of olive oil) and roasting in a hot oven. Both come together in minutes. And both are crowd-pleasers with kids.
Families
About these adorable movies
- Klaus After proving himself to be the worst student at the academy, a postman is sent to a frozen town in the North where he discovers a reclusive toymaker named Klaus. (2019) Netflix
- A Christmas Story Christmas Follows the now-adult Ralphie as he returns to the house on Cleveland Street to give his kids a magical Christmas like the one he had as a child, reconnecting with childhood friends, and reconciling the passing of his Old Man. (2022) HBO Max
- Arthur Christmas Everyone knows that, each Christmas, Santa Claus delivers presents to every last child on Earth. What everyone doesn’t know is that Santa accomplishes the feat with a very high-tech operation beneath the North Pole. But when the unthinkable happens, and Santa misses one child out of hundreds of millions, someone has to save the day. It’s up to Arthur (James McAvoy), Santa’s youngest son, to deliver a present to the forgotten tyke before Christmas morning dawns. (2011) HBO Max, Hulu
- The Grinch The Grinch and his loyal dog, Max, live a solitary existence inside a cave on Mount Crumpet. His main source of aggravation comes during Christmastime when his neighbours in Whoville celebrate the holidays with a bang. When the Whos decide to make Christmas bigger and brighter, the disgruntled Grinch realises there is one way to gain peace and quiet. With help from Max, the green grump hatches a scheme to pose as Santa Claus, steal Christmas and silence the Whos’ holiday cheer once and for all. (2018) Amazon Prime Video
- Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Movie Decades after being betrayed by his apprentice, a once joyful toy maker finds new hope when his bright young granddaughter arrives on his doorstep. (2020) Netflix
- The Santa Clause Divorced dad Scott (Tim Allen) has custody of his son (Eric Lloyd) on Christmas Eve. After he accidentally kills a man in a Santa suit, they are magically transported to the North Pole, where an elf explains that Scott must take Santa’s place before the next Christmas arrives. Scott thinks he’s dreaming, but over the next several months he gains weight and grows an inexplicably white beard. Maybe that night at the North Pole wasn’t a dream after all — and maybe Scott has a lot of work to do. (1994) Disney+
What to serve:
Raw fruits & veggies with any kind of easy cheesy sandwich!
- Apple-jack sandwiches
- Ham + cheese + apple melts
- Toasted ham + salami + cheese grinders
- Plus: a simple (no spill) way to get kids excited about veggies with dip
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