In a special holiday surprise, some of Us Weekly‘s favorite TLC couples came together to share their biggest Christmas traditions and more.
On the Wednesday, December 24, episode of their podcast, Jinger Duggar and Jeremy Vuolo were joined by Little People, Big World stars Zach and Tori Roloff and OutDaughtered stars Adam and Danielle Busby, asking each family what their Christmas mornings are like.
“I’m sure there’s some chaos,” Jinger joked at the start of the episode.
Jinger and Jeremy share three children, as do Zach and Tori. For Adam and Danielle, their house is a little busier with six kids — including quintuplet daughters.
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“We have a lot of traditions that we do just within the family,” Danielle said on Wednesday. “But when it comes to aging out of things … it’s like you’re phasing out [certain things], which is exciting in a way. But it’s also like, ‘Wow, we don’t have little littles anymore.’”
Scroll down for the biggest takeaways from the TLC crossover podcast ahead of Christmas Day:
Where Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo Are Spending Christmas
The podcast began with Jinger and Jeremy revealing they’re having Christmas at the Duggar family’s Big House for the first time in nine years. “It’s exciting,” Jinger said. “The reason we haven’t been back for Christmas Day is because that’s the only time of year that [Jeremy’s] family is all together. And so throughout the years, we’ve decided, ‘OK, that’s going to be the time that we spend with the Vuolo family over Christmas.’ … The Duggar family, they’re always together a lot, and so it’s easy for us just to pop back.”
Christmas Morning at the Duggar House
Jinger recalled the different ways her family navigated Christmas with 19 children growing up. “There were some years where we’d be like, everybody has to wait, we go down together and then it’s a free for all. Everybody just opens gifts,” she said. “And then some other years, I remember us waiting and each person would open. They either start from the oldest and go down or start from the youngest and go up. … I don’t know what they do now.”
Jinger added that her family will have a gift exchange with everyone at the Big House. She’s buying for her sister Jana Duggar, while Jeremy is bringing a gift for father-in-law Jim Bob Duggar.
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How Adam and Danielle Busby Told Their Kids About Santa
When asked if Santa makes an appearance at their home for the holidays, Adam and Danielle revealed that they held a “family meeting” with their kids to discuss the lore. “We kind of just laid it all out,” Adam said.
“I mean, they’re [in] fifth grade,” Danielle continued. “They have been saying things, you know, because they hear things from the other kids or whatnot. And not everybody does Santa Claus tradition[al] things … but we just kept getting asked and asked and asked again, over and over and over again.”
While making the big holiday confession, the couple wanted to make sure their kids still understood “the true meaning” of Christmas. “Santa Claus is something that is inside of all of us … like whenever we give gifts to other people, we’re not expecting anything in return,” Adam said.
Some of their kids apparently had their suspicions already about the Santa story. “And then some were like, ‘But mom, so I know you would put stuff in the stockings, but did Santa put stuff in the stocking before you put stuff in the stocking?’” Danielle joked. “It’s like, ‘OK, well, you’re really thinking deep about that.’”
Christmas Morning at the Busby House
Adam said his main job on Christmas Day is “holding the kids off” until Danielle wakes up. Danielle explained that she doesn’t want Christmas morning to feel rushed, so they make an effort to be “attentive” when each kid is opening a gift.
The couple also shared their elaborate Christmas Eve tradition of covering the entry way to their living room in wrapping paper overnight “so we know there’s no way that [the kids] could have possibly come through into the living room overnight.” The little ones then get to “bust through” the paper on Christmas morning to see their gifts.
In previous years, the parents would leave one present for each of their kids unwrapped so they know which is from Santa. Danielle noted that they’ll still do the same thing despite breaking the news about Santa to their kids.
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Zach and Tori Roloff’s ‘Grinch Behavior’
When Tori revealed she needs to take Christmas decorations down as soon as possible on December 26, saying she gets “overstimulated,” her husband took her side.
“I agree with this Grinch behavior,” he said. “We’ve done it a couple times and it is actually super nice.”
Tori explained that she wants to start each new year fresh. “Christmas sometimes gets a little cluttered and it just gets a little chaotic,” she said. “December 26, I’m like, ‘Alright, done. Take it all out.’”
Christmas Morning at the Roloff House
Zach and Tori said they always have a live tree that they decorate as a family. On Christmas morning, their kids wake up early. “We typically do stockings first,” Zach said. “Then we move over to the gifts, and I feel like we try to take turns. … Then one of us will make breakfast, and later in the day, we usually meet up with family depending on what year it is.”
When it comes to gifts, Zach admitted that Tori does most of the shopping — and the wrapping.
