The Backstreet Boys’ Band Talk About Their Christmas “Epic Fails” And Traditions

The Backstreet Boys‘ Nick Carter compared enjoying Christmas with his three young children to that of the famous character Clark Griswold from the movie “Christmas Vacations”. No, it’s not because he set his Christmas tree on fire.

Nick Carter – Compares Decorating His House At Christmas To the Movie “Christmas Vacations”

Like most of us, if not all of us, Nick Carter and his Backstreet Boys have their favorite Christmas traditions that they enjoy doing.

As a dad to three young children, it’s Nick’s job to make sure Christmas is indeed the most wonderful time of the year, and he’s always looking forward to delivering.

Nick Carter, 42, and his bandmates, Kevin Richardson, AJ McLean, Brian Littrell and Howie Dorough, chatted with PEOPLE ahead of their gig hosting JCPenney’s Live Holiday Spectacular on Thursday.

Carter started off by explaining how he goes around decorating the house for Christmas due to having three young children.

“I got three kids, two girls and a boy, and they’re all really young, so I’m pretty much like Clark Griswold putting up all the ornaments and the decorations outside and the trees,” he said. Carter’s kids are aged between 6 and 19 months.

Another reason Carter feels relatable to Clark Griswold’s mishaps is because of the “epic fail” he endured trying to set up his tree last year.

“I had to buy this thing to get the bulbs working so I was outside with a staple gun, ladder,” he said. “But that’s kind of a tradition for me doing the daddy duties and setting up all the decorations.”

What Nick Carter And His Bandmates Think Of Christmas Traditions

While McLean’s Christmas tradition is different from Carter’s, it is equally special.

For McLean, Christmas with daughters Elliott (who recently changed her name from Ava), 10, and Lyric, 5, and wife Rochelle is all about the cookies.

“They’re not just your typical ornament shapes or candy canes,” he said. “We do those, but then we also by hand make whatever cool things we want.”

In fact, cookies are at the heart of their Christmas get-togethers, so much so that the 44-year-old’s brother-in-law baked a cookie shaped like Kevin McCallister’s famous scream in the mirror from Home Alone. He also carved out the Nakatomi Tower from Die Hard on cookies!

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Another Tradition McLean Loves Is Getting To read “A Christmas Story”.

Cookies are also a part of Richardson’s Christmas with his sons Mason, 15, and Maxwell, 9, and wife Kristin, 52, every year. They also gather up old and new toys to donate.

“We take them down to the fireplace which usually hands them out,” Richardson, 51, said. “We try to teach our kids about giving back and giving to those less fortunate at this time of the year.”

Littrell, 47, said he and his son, 20 Baylee, and wife Leighann, 53, are also all about making someone happy during the season.

“We check out the coat drives, and we dump our coats or we team up with organizations and give gifts to kids that would be less fortunate,” he said. “That’s something that’s very, very important, along with the cookie making and the decorations. My wife is the best decorator in the planet.”

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