December journal prompts: a prompt for every day

How to use these December journal prompts

December moves fast. These prompts are short on purpose, so you can answer one in five minutes between plans. The first half of the month is about the season, the middle is about giving and traditions, and the last week turns toward the year you are finishing. When the year ends, keep going with our new year journal prompts.

31 December journal prompts: one for each day

Each number matches the date in December. Prompts 1 to 24 also work as a simple Advent journal.

Days 1 to 7

1. December is here. What do you want this month to feel like: calm, merry, restful, or something else?Write
2. Write about the first holiday you remember clearly.Write
3. What is one thing you could cut from your December to do list?Write
4. Describe your favorite holiday smell and where it takes you.Write
5. What tradition do you love that nobody outside your family understands?Write
6. Write about a gift you gave that made someone's face light up.Write
7. What does waiting, or the season of Advent, mean to you?Write

Days 8 to 14

1. Who would you like to send a card or note to this year? Write a draft.Write
2. Describe a snowy day you remember, or what winter looks like where you live.Write
3. What is your favorite holiday song, and what memory goes with it?Write
4. Write about baking or cooking a holiday treat with someone.Write
5. What holiday movie do you watch every year? Why that one?Write
6. Write about the holiday lights in your neighborhood. Which house is the best?Write
7. What is one way you can help someone in need this month?Write

Days 15 to 21

1. You are halfway through December. What has surprised you about this holiday season?Write
2. Write about a holiday gathering that did not go as planned.Write
3. What would a peaceful holiday look like for you?Write
4. Is there someone you miss during the holidays? Share a favorite memory of them.Write
5. What do you love about the darkest days of the year?Write
6. Write about a holiday when you were the one who made the magic for someone else.Write
7. The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year. What light do you want to bring into the year ahead?Write

Days 22 to 28

1. Describe your favorite holiday decoration and the story behind it.Write
2. What gift do you most hope to give this year, and why?Write
3. It is Christmas Eve. Describe tonight as it is, or as you would love it to be.Write
4. Merry Christmas. Write about one moment from today you want to remember.Write
5. What was the most meaningful gift this year, given or received?Write
6. How do you like to spend the quiet days between Christmas and New Year?Write
7. What was the biggest lesson of this year?Write

Days 29 to 31

1. What did you finally stop doing this year?Write
2. Write a thank you note to this year.Write
3. It is the last day of the year. Write one sentence for each month of the year that is ending.Write

Christmas journal prompts

For the Christmas season. For daily faith writing, see our Bible journal prompts or keep a devotional journal.

1. What did Christmas morning look like in your house as a child?Write
2. Read the Christmas story in Luke 2. Which part speaks to you most this year?Write
3. What does it mean to you that Jesus came as a small baby?Write
4. Write about a Christmas when you had very little, and what made it special anyway.Write
5. What is the best Christmas service, play or concert you have ever been to?Write
6. Who in your life feels like a gift this Christmas? Tell them why, here first.Write
7. Write about a Christmas tradition you want to pass down.Write
8. What would Christmas look like if you focused only on what matters most to you?Write
9. What is one way you could make room for quiet and wonder this Christmas?Write
10. Write a short Christmas prayer for someone who is hurting this season.Write

Winter holiday journal ideas for everyone

Not everyone celebrates Christmas. These prompts work for Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, the solstice, or simply time off.

1. Which holiday or celebration means the most to you this month, and why?Write
2. Write about a holiday food that only appears once a year.Write
3. What does your family do to mark the end of the year?Write
4. Describe the coziest moment of your winter break.Write
5. Write about a winter celebration you were invited to that was new to you.Write
6. What does giving mean to you when money is tight?Write
7. Who is someone who might be lonely this season? How could you reach out?Write
8. Write about the best day off you have had this month.Write
9. What holiday pressure could you let go of this year?Write
10. Describe a winter evening with the people you love most, and what you talked about.Write

Year end review journal prompts

Use these in the last week of the year. Then turn to our new year journal prompts to plan what comes next.

1. What were your three biggest wins this year, and what did each one take?Write
2. What did this year ask of you that you did not expect to give?Write
3. Which goal from January did you reach, and which did you change your mind about?Write
4. What new person came into your life this year?Write
5. What did you learn about yourself that surprised you?Write
6. What habits from this year are worth keeping?Write
7. Write about a small, ordinary day this year that turned out to be one of the best.Write
8. What did you spend money on this year that was truly worth it?Write
9. How did your health and energy change over the year?Write
10. What do you want to remember about who you were this year?Write
11. What did this year teach you about the people you love?Write
12. Finish this sentence: This was the year I...Write

More December journal ideas

• Keep an Advent page: one short entry each day from December 1 to 24.
• Write down the funny things people say at holiday dinners.
• Make a gift list page with what you gave and why you chose it.
• Write a year in review page with one line for your favorite moment of each season.
• Set up a one line a day journal now so it is ready on January 1.

Tips for journaling in December

• Write early. Five minutes in the morning, before the day fills up, is easier to protect than an evening slot.
• Be kind to yourself. If the holidays are lonely or sad this year, choose gentle prompts. Our healing journal prompts may help.
• Ask at the table. Read one prompt aloud at a family meal and write the answers down later.
• Keep going in January. When the year turns, continue with January journal prompts.

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