Thanksgiving stockings.

Yes, you read that right. It’s my favorite tradition here at the Underwood abode. Scott and I were trying to remember when we started it … and we’re just pretty sure it was within the first year or two of our marriage.  Here’s the gist:

We realized there are all sorts of little Christmas-y goodies we loved to gift but it seemed silly to put them into Christmas stockings because what fun are Christmas socks on Christmas morning?  So, we started our Thanksgiving Stockings. Every year after the Thanksgiving dishes are washed and put away, we gather everyone together and give out the Thanksgiving stockings. We have one for everyone at our house for Thanksgiving (including, of course, Buddy the Basset). This is our special way of marking the beginning of the Christmas season.

So, what’s in a Thanksgiving stocking? Oh, I’m glad you asked!! Basically, any sort of Christmas-themed item you can think of.  When Casiday was little we put in coloring books, hair bows, and a new Christmas movie.  Over the years, what is in the stockings has varied according to who and how many are with us for the holiday … some years everyone gets essentially the same things and some years the stockings are definitely personalized to each recipient.

This is one of those traditions we’ve shared with countless people and now several other families we know are doing their own Thanksgiving stockings. So, if this sounds like something you’d love to share with your family this year, I figured a quick list of ideas about what to include might be helpful since we’re just 2-1/2 weeks away from Thanksgiving. {I should mention, many of the links I will share are affiliate links and if you click on them, I will receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.}

Advent Calendars Personally, I like the ones where you get a piece of chocolate every day … but there are several other great options you can use as a family. For example, Truth in the Tinsel.

Candles Who doesn’t love a good scented candle? Try an evergreen scent or this one I just found this weekend — it smells amazing!

Socks Y’all, Christmas socks are so much fun! You can get them for the whole family … and we found the cutest ones in the Dollar Spot at Target this past week. 

Shirts Cents of Style always has the most adorable graphic tees—like this fun “Sleigh All Day” tee. (You might just want to check out their entire “Give More Good” holiday collection. It’s absolutely fabulous!) 

Movies  Since Scott’s collection of Christmas movies includes over 200 titles, it’s not that surprising we love to gift movies people may not have seen. Of course, you can never go wrong with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Elf, or —my favorite — White Christmas.

Mugs We have quite the Christmas mug collection also since this tends to be an addition to the stockings every year. Dayspring always has some awesome mugs. I love this one:

Coloring books We’ve found the Dollar Tree to be the best place to grab coloring books for everyone.

Jewelry This is especially fun for little girls who love dress up and all things sparkly.

Ornaments If your family gifts ornaments each year, Thanksgiving stockings can be the perfect time to do so. Dayspring has so many gorgeous ornaments! This Illustrated Faith ornament is one of my favorites!
Books We probably have more Christmas books than we have movies … and that’s saying something. Last year I made a list of my ten favorites.  Scott loves 25 Days, 26 Ways to Make This Your Best Christmas Ever and it would make a great addition to a stocking.

Tickets If you are planning to go see a special Christmas play or musical, this is a great way to gift the tickets.  I think it would be fun to make a themed Thanksgiving stocking around tickets to a performance of “The Nutcracker” or a community theater production of “A Christmas Story” or “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”

Pajamas Lots of people use this as their Christmas Eve gift but it’s been fun to get our new Christmas pjs on Thanksgiving and enjoy them throughout the season.  Don’t tell Buddy, but this year, we found him some Christmas pjs at Target. So fun! {What about footie pajamas for the whole family??}

Pencils, pens, etc.  Target always has the cutest Christmas pencils, pens, sticky notes, etc. in the Dollar Spot. These make great additions to Thanksgiving stockings. The Dollar Tree is also a great place to find this sort of thing.

Save the Date Maybe you have a favorite place to see lights or another tradition you do every year. How about making it even more special by creating an invitation to make sure everyone saves the date for your fun outing?

Coffee or Cocoa We love finding little bags of seasonally-flavored coffee and cocoa and tucking them into the stockings.

Ties I know, you usually gift Dad a tie for Father’s Day … but what about getting him a bow tie or regular tie for Christmas.  You can find something to suit any man’s taste from quirky to classic.

Decor Items  This is one of my favorite type of things to add. In fact, this gorgeous wooden plaque from Dayspring may just end up being a little “To Teri, From Teri” gift in my Thanksgiving stocking this year. It’s only $12, y’all!

Kitchen towels  I love cute kitchen towels for the holidays. Target has had the cutest collections for the past few years but I also love this set from Dayspring:

Collectibles  Several years ago Scott started my Fontanini nativity. It’s definitely my favorite Christmas decoration. Most years he has added a piece to the collection at Thanksgiving. This might also be a good way to start a collection for family members who have recently gotten engaged or married.

Gift Certificates Okay, so far this hasn’t made it into my Thanksgiving stocking but I’d sure love it if it did! How about a gift certificate for a massage or mani/pedi the week before Christmas? Wouldn’t that be amazing??  Or maybe a gift certificate for a dinner out … or pizza delivery for those crazy nights when there’s not time to cook?

Gift wrap I had never considered this one before but last year a friend told me they play BINGO on Thanksgiving and everyone brings gift wrap, ribbons, etc. for the prizes.  I thought that was so cool and then realized it might be nice to add some pretty gift wrap or ribbons or tags to everyone’s Thanksgiving stockings.

Frames  I love all the fun Christmas picture frames. What a great way to display your family Christmas photo … and what a great gift for grandparents who love to show off the pictures of their grandbabies.

Candy So fun to add a box of ribbon candy {my daughter’s favorite} or maybe just holiday M&Ms to the stockings.

Throw blanket We love a good blanket around here. I think Target and Kirklands always have the cutest fleece throws.

Handmade items Maybe you crochet and want to include a festive scarf or hat … maybe you paint or draw or do paper crafts … maybe you bake or sew … but I think a handmade item is a perfect addition every Thanksgiving stocking.

So, there you have it — 25 ideas for Thanksgiving Stockings.  Enjoy!!

What fun traditions does your family have?

xo,

Teri Lynne