Straw for Jesus!

This idea is very similar to the one I added earlier today. You make or buy a manger that is big enough for a doll to be in it. Then you get a bag of straw and place it by the manger. Then either you let your child put a piece of straw in every time they do something good for another person, or my favorite at the end of the day you all do it together as a family and tell each other what you did that was nice. By the time Jesus is "born" there should be plenty of soft hay for him to lay in. Use your doll on Christmas day and place him in the manger. I also before my kids get to open presents (and so daddy can set up cameras and such) read them a short child version of the Nativity. It sets the right kind of mood for the day!