Are you already overwhelmed by the thought of the mountain of toys your kids will acquire on Christmas day? This has always been an overwhelming thought for me. I am so tremendously grateful for our families and their generosity, and they have always done a pretty good job of considering our living space when gifting our kids with things. However, as our family has grown, the influx of stuff has also grown, and my capacity has diminished.
We understand that living far from family is just as hard for them as it is for us, so we never wanted to tell family members they couldn’t gift our kids with toys and fun things. So our compromise was for us to refrain from gifting our kids with toys, and celebrate Jolabokaflod instead… but let me tell you, it is not a compromise!
Jolaboka-who?!
Several years ago, we began doing Christmas School using Read Aloud Revival’s plans, and I was introduced to Jolabokaflod (pronounced yo-la-bok-a-flod). Having married a bookish man and becoming bookish myself, I was intrigued. Essentially, this “Christmas Book Flood” is an Icelandic tradition of gifting books on Christmas Eve, and then enjoying them alongside hot cocoa and yummy treats.
“This tradition began during World War II once Iceland had gained its independence for Denmark in 1944. Paper was one of the few commodities not rationed during the war, so Icelanders shared their love of books even more as other types of gifts were in short supply. This increase in giving books as presents reinforced Iceland’s culture as a nation of bookaholics…” Because of this deep rooted bookish culture, Iceland has one of the highest literacy rates in the world.
Um. Yes?! We love books, we love hot chocolate/hot tea, and we love turning simple things into holiday traditions. Check, check, and check!
How We Celebrate this Bookish Christmas Tradition
There really is no right or wrong way of doing Jolabokaflod. It is simply gifting books, and making space to enjoy them together. Traditionally, Jolabokaflod takes place on Christmas Eve, but our family made some modifications.
As I already mentioned, we live far from family, so we typically travel during the holidays in order to spend Christmas with extended family. As our kids have gotten older, my desire to celebrate Christmas with them in our own home has also grown. Because we couldn’t have our cake and eat it too, we decided to establish our own tradition of Jolabokaflod on the first Saturday of December. We block out the whole day, and instead of exchanging traditional gifts, we enjoy a “Yule Book Flood” all our own. This year, we even went so far as to fill stockings with fun coffee cups, hot cocoa mix-ins, and stroopwafels! It made for such a sweet and low key day!!
Not only does this tradition off-set the expense of traveling during the Christmas break, it feeds the culture we hope to establish in our home – that together is the best place to be, especially with a book in hand!
Incorporating Jolabokaflod in Your Family’s Christmas Plans
If you’re looking for ways to slow down and enjoy the season, I highly recommend considering Jolabokaflod! It doesn’t have to be big and flashy, it only has to be intentional. Here’s some tips on how to do just that:
Choosing Books:
We are big fans of Read Aloud Revival for many reasons, but my “hook” was their monthly book lists. Somehow, they know all the best books, and I don’t even have to wonder if we’ll love them. Most of the time, their picks are followed by a resounding “read it again!” If you have no idea where to start, start there!! We have gotten their monthly lists from the library for years now, so each November, I scour their picture book lists for favorites missing from our home library.
Next stop: thrifbooks.com. That’s right. We gift used books to our kids every year. Very seldom do I buy new books for them. I do this for a few reasons:
- Spending less means giving more. I love that I can truly “flood” my kids with good books without breaking the bank.
- I decided a long time ago that if we were going to share a love for reading with our kids, books would occasionally be damaged in the process. Now, we do have strict rules for how we treat books, and we certainly don’t allow them to abuse their belongings, but buying used lets me relinquish my control a little bit.
- You don’t get the good “book smell” when you buy new. You just don’t. And that’s a shame!
Eric and I will typically buy new for each other, but that’s mainly because we have a particular book/set in mind that isn’t old enough to be purchased from a used book site. This year, I gifted my bookish man with The Wingfeather Saga, and the excitement from everyone was delicious!!
If this is your first time celebrating Jolabokaflood, may I suggest a picture book about gifting books? The Christmas Book Flood by Emily Kilgore looks precious, but I found out about it too late! I’ll definitely be snagging it for next year!
Creating a Cozy Atmosphere:
We treat this day just like Christmas. We wake up early, and immediately get busy making biscuits and chocolate gravy! (If you don’t know about chocolate gravy, you’ll definitely want to subscribe to not miss out on that recipe!) We pull out our occasion bin full of festive plates, napkins, sprinkles, and such, and we gather around for family breakfast before diving into the book flood.
Because we set the whole day aside for this time together, there is no rush. We simply plan to be together. So if they need to get wiggles out after breakfast, we go to the playground before opening books. If the weather is nice (as December often is in Southeast Louisiana), we’ll open books and grab our hammocks to enjoy them outside. This year, we opted for cozying up on the couch, wrapped in homemade Christmas quilts. We read as many books as possible before naptime. After resting, we gathered around the table for homemade hot chocolate and more time together, and it was just a delight.
Making It Your Own:
There are no rules! You get to make Jolabokaflod fit whatever your family would enjoy most. Here are some other adaptations to consider:
- Yoto player and/or Yoto cards. We LOVE our Yoto Player. It goes on every roadtrip, reads us to sleep every night, and we even use it for school. If you haven’t already invited Yoto into your home, let me introduce you!! This would be a great option for Jolabokaflod. Audio books totally count!! Great for all ages.
- Kindle or E-Reader. If your kids are older and ready to introduce technology a bit more, consider a Kindle! This is a great gift for the adults too!
Give it a try…
Jolabokaflod has been a truly beautiful Christmas tradition for our family. I love looking around after the unwrapping and seeing kiddos piled on top of eachother reading a good book. It is just the sweetest thing. Even if you are hesitant or don’t typically enjoy books yourself, I encourage you to give it a try. The Jolabokaflod possibilities are endless, and the results of intentional traditions are truly magical.
I’d love to hear how you enjoy a slow Christmas below, bonus points if it includes books!! 😉
Social media hashtags for sharing their Jolabokaflod moments #CozyQuiverTraditions, #Jolabokaflod