Things To Do On Christmas Eve

Track Santa’s Christmas Eve Flight Path

He may ride a magical sleigh, but that doesn’t mean old Saint Nick doesn’t need a little help from time-to-time. When Santa flies into Australia, he’s in constant communication with flight controllers all across the country to make sure he doesn’t run into any planes. So, if you’re trying to figure out what to do with the kids on Christmas Eve, grab the nearest computer, phone or tablet and visit Air Service Australia. From here you’ll be able to monitor Santa’s flight path and see when he’s in your area. But remember Santa doesn’t deliver presents until the kids are asleep, so don’t let them take the tracker to bed or else they’ll be up all night.

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Create A Runway For Santa

If you’re looking for things to do on Christmas Eve that are a little out of the ordinary, why not help Santa out by creating your very own sleigh runway. If you’ve got access to a little extra space like a backyard or driveway, it’s easy to set up a festive landing strip to make sure Saint Nick knows where to go. All you’ll need are two sets of fairy lights laying side by side. And while most outdoor models should do the trick, if you want to take it to a whole new level, we recommend Crest Multicoloured Festoon Lights. These smart lights have 8 lighting modes through 100 multi-coloured LED beads, if that doesn’t get Santa’s attention, we’re not sure what will. Just watch your kid’s faces light up when the runway turns on as if by magic.

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Bake Santa Biscuits

Christmas Eve just wouldn’t be Christmas Eve without baking a few bickies for Santa, and with all the work he’s got to get through – it’s the least we can do. Which is why our friends at KitchenAid have come up with this deliciously fun recipe for Stained Glass Christmas Biscuits. They’re the perfect on-the-go snack for one very busy man and baking them with the kids is a fun family Christmas Eve tradition that everyone can get involved in. Check out the recipe below and for any Christmas cooking essentials, explore our kitchen must-haves here.

Ingredients

Makes 40

• 120g unsalted butter, softened
• ⅓ cup (80g) caster sugar
• 1 ½ tbs maple syrup
• 1 egg
• 2 ⅓ cups (approx.340g) plain flour
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp finely grated lemon rind
• 100g boiled coloured lollies, (red, green & yellow) each chopped into quarters
• 1 egg yolk, lightly whisked with 3 tsp icing sugar

Method

To start you’ll want to invest in a good quality mixer, like the KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer. The Artisan Stand Mixer comes with a range of attachments including the flat beater pour, which you will require for this recipe.

1. Attach the flat beater and the pouring shield to the mixing bowl. Beat butter and sugar on speed 2 for 1 minute. Increase to speed 6 and beat for 4 minutes, regularly scraping down sides of bowl with a spatula.
2. Add maple syrup and egg and beat well until combined on speed 6.
3. Decrease to speed 1 and add in sifted flour, cinnamon and ginger, then lemon rind.
4. Mix on speed 2 until well combined and mixture begins to form a ball. Using lightly floured hands, knead dough 2-3 times, then wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
5. While dough is resting, fit the food processor with the mini bowl and mini blade. Place one colour of the lollies into the bowl and process for 10 seconds, or until lollies are finely chopped. Remove from bowl and set aside. Repeat with remaining lollies, keeping the colours separate.
6. Preheat oven to 200C (180C fan forced) and line two baking trays with baking paper. Cut dough in half. Wrap one half back in plastic wrap and return it to the fridge.
7. Roll out the dough between two sheets of baking paper to a 7mm thickness. Cut out the trees (we used a 7cm cutter) and carefully place each tree on the prepared baking sheets. Using a small cutter (such as a diamond shape), cut out and remove a section in the centre of each tree. Excess dough can be re-rolled and used. Repeat with remaining dough.
8. Using a skewer, make a hole in the top of each biscuit, big enough to thread ribbon through to hang it. Brush each one lightly with egg yolk mixture. For best results, refrigerate the first tray of biscuits while preparing the second tray.
9. Bake for 5 minutes then remove from oven and quickly pile the crushed lollies into the holes using a teaspoon. Pile mixture up slightly in the centre and do not let lollies fall out onto the biscuit or it will stain. Return trays to oven and bake for 5 minutes, or until the lollies melt and fill the hole, and it's golden.
10. Remove trays from oven and set aside for 5 minutes without touching. Carefully move biscuits onto a cooling rack to completely cool.
11. Thread with ribbon and use as edible Christmas decorations.

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Watch A Christmas Movie

While Christmas is an exciting time of year, it can also be exhausting. Buying presents, preparing food, planning dinners and organising parties; with so much on, we wouldn’t blame you if you just wanted to sit back, relax and watch something on TV. Which is why we’ve asked some of the team at The Good Guys to recommend their favourite Christmas movies, and there are some absolute classics.

If you’re looking for something to keep the kids entertained check out Arthur Christmas, this clever animation has a Steller cast that turn what should be a kids movie into fun for the whole family.

If it’s just you and your partner, you can’t go past the cult British rom-com Love Actually.

But if you’re after something slightly more vintage, check out Miracle on 34th Street or the fan favourite

It’s a Wonderful Life. Of course, whatever you choose, remember – to make something a Christmas Eve tradition you have to do it every year, so make sure you choose a movie everybody likes!

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Now that you’ve got some great ideas for Christmas Eve, check out what you can do for Christmas day here, or if this article has really put you in the Christmas spirit, visit The Good Guys Christmas Gift Ideas Hub and find the perfect gift for friends and family and maybe a little treat for yourself too!