One way our family celebrates our German heritage during the holiday season is celebrating St. Nicholas Day.

We aren't a family who emphasize Santa. (Our kids know that all gifts come from parents.)

We aren't Catholic, and we don't celebrate saints.

We do celebrate our ancestry and those who serve others, especially the less fortunate.

St. Nicholas Day is a great reminder of things that matter during the holiday season.

How do we celebrate St. Nicholas Day?

All the details are below.

St. Nicholas Day: How We Celebrate

We introduced St. Nicholas Day to our children when they were toddlers in our Montessori homeschool setting.

Activities were age appropriate and focused on the basic ideas of the holiday.

Check out the post below for the all of the details.

St. Nicholas Day Activities for Tots and Preschoolers with Free Printables

As our children grew older, we introduced more details about the holiday.

The kids learned more about each symbol and different ways various countries celebrate using the activities and printables below.

St. Nicholas Day Activities for Kids with Free Printables

When the kids were ready, we read the book, The True Saint Nicholas: Why He Matters to Christmas. 

This book was a fantastic way to help my older kids understand exactly who St. Nicholas was and how he fit into history.

Since we first introduced St. Nicholas Day to our children, they have very much looked forward to the tradition of leaving their boots or shoes out to be filled with treats and candy before bed on December 5th each year.

We choose to leave boots or shoes under the Christmas tree, as they're much less likely to be tripped over, spilled, etc.

This tradition has continued even into the kids' teen years, and most likely will continue, knowing the type of mother I am. Lol.

They love the contents of their St. Nicholas Day Boots or Shoes.

What to Put in St. Nicholas Day Boots or Shoes

Each year we put five specific St. Nicholas Day treats in the kids' boots or shoes to emphasize why we celebrate the holiday.

• Candy Cane
• Orange (or apple for those who are allergic to citrus)
• St. Nicholas Chocolate
• Pepernoten/Gingerbread Cookies
• Chocolate Gold Coins

Then we fill the rest of the boots or shoes with our kids' favorite treats and snacks.

I am very thankful my teens prefer chips over chocolate, as the chips take up so much more room in their BIG shoes and are much cheaper to purchase.

Our other St. Nicholas Day tradition is to prepare a German feast for dinner. 

It takes a lot of time, but is so worth it.

Our German menu varies from year to year, but is absolutely delicious.

Our St. Nicholas Day German Feast

The main dish of our German feast rotates between two dishes: 

• German Style Pot Roast (Sauerbraten) 
• German Schnitzel

Sometimes, like in the picture above, we serve both.

Our favorite side dishes include:

• Traditional German Red Cabbage
• Sweet and Sour Green Beans with Bacon and Onions
• Hot German Potato Salad
• German Cheese Spätzle
• Creamy German Cucumber Salad (Gurkensalat)
• German Potato Dumplings
• German Soft Pretzels

Each year we choose the ones we're in the mood to make and go with those.

If we decide to make room for dessert, we love enjoying some delicious German chocolate cake.

There is no "right" way to celebrate St. Nicholas Day. You can make it what you want it to be.

Different countries choose to celebrate St. Nicholas Day in different ways.

Choose what best fits the needs of your family.

If you're looking for more ideas, be sure to visit the post below.

St. Nicholas Day Celebration Ideas

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