Grinch Night! A Fun Family Christmas Tradition!

Start a new Family Tradition this year – Family Grinch Night!

One of the very first annual Christmas traditions to get marked on the Calendar each year is our Family Grinch Night. The Little Holiday Helper starts asking “When is Grinch night?” before we even see the first of December.

I can’t say I blame her – it is one of my favorite family nights of the year (and we have a lot of them! Check out our family Polar Express Adventure! :)). I have been watching The Grinch tangle with the Who’s down in Whoville every Christmas since I was old enough to watch TV. In fact, I just realized tonight the original Boris Karloff edition was released in 1966 – the year before I was born! It’s even older than me! When I lived overseas, I had a copy of the Grinch with me when I could. And one year, while doing volunteer work at an orphanage in Nepal, I made my way into Kathmandu just to watch it at a little expat restaurant. Big (somewhat disappointing) surprise to me – it was the just-released Jim Carey Grinch movie. While it has greatly grown on me since, it was a complete shock to a home-sick me at Christmas back then!

But I digress, yet again…back to Family Grinch Night!

We love it! We dress up in green, watch the movie, and eat green food. Sometimes we do it large, and sometimes, if time is super tight, it’s just green fruit and veggies on a platter and pistachio pudding, green soda floats or green smoothies, and whatever other green stuff is in the fridge – olives, pickles, kiwis, grapes…you get the picture!

This year, I thought it would be fun to incorporate some of the great ideas I have seen floating around Pinterest into the festivities, and put together a little list of 10 Tips for a Fun Family Grinch Night!

And so, without further delay, I bring you…Family Grinch Night!

1. Get out your Grinch Night Movie!

First of all, you need the movies. We have both, and always watch them both on Grinch Night! Why? I can honestly say they are both my favorite! Choosing would be impossible! We start with one, take a break for some crafting, then watch the next while we eat!

2. Set the Grinch Night Mood

There is no better or quicker way to set the mood than these fantastic free printable Grinch signs! Print them up, throw them in a frame and hang them on the wall/set them on the table or TV and you are done setting the Whoville mood!

The Grinch Free Art Printable via Printables 4 Mom

Free Christmas Printables: Grinch Quote via Happiness is Homemade

3. Wrap up a Grinch Night Gift

In my college days, we played a little Grinch Game which required one to partake of an adult beverage whenever we heard the word “Who”. For obvious reasons, that would be a seriously un-cool game to play on Family Grinch Night. What we will do instead is wrap up a little gift, and each time “Who” is spoken, the holder needs to pass the gift along to the next person. When we reach the end of the movie, the holder is the winner! If you are interested in a Grinch gift, you might find something you like here on our favorites page at Amazon!

4. Get your Grinch Night Gear on!

In our house, that usually means just climbing into some green clothes for the evening, and last year the Little Holiday Helper and I gave ourselves some Whoville hair-dos! And we have also been known to scotch tape our noses up, just to be funny (I know – a little weird – but it looks hilarious! You should try it if you haven’t before!

This year, though, I am taking it up a level! I found these super cute Grinch pajamas and couldn’t resist! I had to order Grinch jammies for the whole family (Grandma included, just in case she joins us for Grinchmas!). It’s a bit of a splurge, but we get new Christmas pajamas every year anyway, so why not make them Grinchy?

5. Pour some Grinchy Drinks

Grinch Drinks via Cupcake Diaries

Our usual Grinch Night go-to is either green milkshakes, or green floats, much like these wonderful little Grinch drinks from Cupcake Diaries!

This year, however, we have been going through a crazy long cold-snap. It’s colder than Mt. Crumpet around here, and I can’t wait to cozy up with one of these!

Hot Chocolate Float via Crazy for Crust

6. Serve up some Grinch Night Snacks

By the time you finish all your Grinch Night preparations, you are going to be a bit peckish! Here are a couple of great Grinch Appetizer ideas to tide you over until Who Hash time!

Crostini with Pea Pesto via One Perfect Bite

Realistic looking Grinch Guacamole via Kudos Kitchen by Renée

I know what you are thinking…but don’ t be afraid! I mean, my prep limit for each activity/menu item is generally required to stay under the 10 minute mark, and even I am not afraid of this! She gives a FANTASTIC tutorial…you can’t NOT make this incredible Grinch centerpiece!

7. Create a Grinch Night Craft!

If you have finished watching the first Grinch Movie, the kids are probably ready for a little stretch. Besides, after drinks and appies, they probably aren’t quite ready for Roast Beast or Who Hash yet anyway! This is a great time to craft up a little Grinch ornament for the Christmas Tree!

DIY Grinch Ornament via Coffee Cups and Crayons

Here is a lovely little Grinch ornament kids can make with no trouble at all! All you need is a clear ornament and some paint! And now that I think of it, a green ornament would make it even easier!

Grinch’s Heart Homemade Christmas Ornament via Fun-A-Day

Mary Catherine used painted wooden hearts stacked on one another with a sweet little fingerprint heart in the middle! But you could just as easily make this growing Grinch heart with cardstock, felt, foam, or any combination!

8. Serve Dinner a la Grinch Night!

The Grinch; Who Hash via Food in Literature

I love this Who Hash idea! There is even a free printable Grinch label to really impress the family! The recipe looks great if you are a corned beef fan. I will likely have more takers in this little family if I do up some plain old hash potatoes with a little onion, peppers and egg, and maybe even a sprinkle of  bacon, being a special occasion and all!

 

The other option I am leaning toward is this nice and healthy Mac’n’Cheese, Grinch-style!

Green Mac and Cheese via Weelicious

This Mac’n’Cheese is not only perfectly Grinchy, but nice and healthy too, with spinach, peas and broccoli hiding in there :).

9. Finish off Grinch Night with Grinchmas Sweets

There are so many amazing Grinch treats out there it was really difficult to choose just a few. At the end of the day, it came down to picking what would be quick and easy to prepare (I have a list of things to do tomorrow from here to Whoville, so speed and ease was the main requirement). We usually seem to end up eating Who pudding (thank you pistachio jello!) but this year I am feeling much more inspired.

In no particular order, I give you

Rice Krispies Grinch Heart Sweets via Amy’s Party Ideas

Amy also has some cute free Grinch party printables you might enjoy to go along with these adorable Grinch hearts! In fact she has a whole lot of Grinch party ideas!

Candy Cane Blossoms via Princess & The Peas

I think these little Christmas cookies look perfect for Grinchmas, don’t you?! And darn…I saw these little candy cane kisses in Walmart yesterday and briefly thought about picking them up. Why didn’t I??! Now I need to go shopping!

5 Ingredient Grinch Fudge via Travel Parent Eat

Quick as magic Elf Dust! This is also a great treat to think about leaving out for Santa, if you ask me!

Grinch Kabobs via Growing a Jeweled Rose

And of course we need to have at least one healthy Grinch treat on the table! These little fruit Grinch snacks are adorable, and good for you too!

10. The Grinch Sweet that Wasn’t/Won’t/Can’t 🙁

Christmas Lasagna via OMG Chocolate Desserts

Remember? I said whatever I made for Grinch Night tomorrow had to be quick and easy. So…even though this is the PERFECT dessert for Grinch night, I can’t put it on the list, for obvious reasons. BUT I absolutely had to share it with you, in case you have just a wee bit more time for your Grinch Festivity Planning this Christmas!

I hope you have enjoyed this little journey through one of our favorite Christmas Family Traditions! If you are looking for other fun family tradition inspirations you will want to take a read through some of these great ideas!

And if you are planning a Family Grinch Night of your own, I hope you have found some helpful inspiration! Just for fun you might want to check out some of our favorite Grinch supplies here on our favorites page!

And as always, we would love to hear about your own Grinch ideas!

 

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. To learn more about  them click here

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save