Looking to create holiday traditions that will last a lifetime—and beyond? Check out these fresh ideas for family togetherness.

A Year in the Making
Plot out 2013 with a family-made event calendar. First draw or electronically create a template for each month. then spread out a mix of printed photos from the past year and provide paper, crayons, markers and stickers so the kids can notate, make drawings and decorate the edges of each month’s page. Include everyone’s birthdays, and make copies to give as gifts to the grandparents.

Memory Quilt
Here’s a tradition you can build upon year after year: have each family member decorate a 9- by 9-inch cloth square to hang on the wall during the holidays. Store them after the season, continue the custom each year, and eventually you can stitch the accumulated cloths into a holiday quilt that reflects your family’s memories.

Celebration of Stories
Try a new take on the advent countdown with books. each night after dinner during the advent calendar period (beginning Sunday, December 2), give your child a holiday-themed book wrapped as a gift. Choose from classics like How the Grinch Stole Christmas and The Polar Express, reading them before bedtime. On the 24th, be sure to wrap up the ritual with The Night Before Christmas while snuggling together by your tree or fireplace.

Source: Meg Cox, author of The Book of New Family Traditions