Alexandra Breckenridge is keeping a special family tradition going with her own children.
In an interview with PEOPLE to discuss her new Netflix holiday film My Secret Santa, Breckenridge reveals she has kept a Christmas tradition that was started by her mom going with her own kids, Jack, 7, and Billie, 9 — and they’re taking a page out of her childhood playbook.
“My mother always used to let me open one gift on Christmas Eve, so I try to carry that over now,” the Virgin River star, 43, says. “Usually, I was very persuasive and I’d end up getting her to let me open all of the presents, so my kids kind of try.”
Breckenridge adds, “They’re doing the same shtick. They’re like, ‘But two, maybe just two?’ And so my husband and I will pick out the ones for them to open.”
This year, the kids are in for a big surprise. Breckenridge and her husband, Casey Hooper, are surprising their little ones with a Disney trip. “They are going to be receiving the rest of their gifts from Santa Claus and their grandparents,” she says.
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Christmas is proving to be extra magical for her family this year. In addition to an impending Disney adventure, the actress also suited up to play Santa Claus in Netflix’s My Secret Santa, much to the confusion of her children.
In the movie, Breckenridge plays Taylor, a single mom, who is struggling to make ends meet when her daughter is accepted into an expensive snowboarding class. When Taylor discovers that employees get a half-off discount, she disguises herself as an elderly man to take the only job available: the resort’s Santa.
The This Is Us alum tells PEOPLE that her kids have seen the movie, but they weren’t so sure about their mom playing Santa at first.
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“I told them right from the beginning what I was doing, and they were very confused, everybody was very confused,” she says with a laugh. “Maybe I didn’t pitch it right, but I was like, ‘I’m going to play this woman who pretends to be Santa Claus.’ They’re like, ‘I don’t understand, you’re not being Mrs. Claus?’ I’m like, ‘No, I’m being Santa Claus.’ “
Breckenridge says that ultimately “my son thinks it’s very funny,” while “my daughter was skeptical.” She adds, “But I think ultimately, they’re pretty proud of me regardless, so that’s nice.”
For the actress, starring in Christmas films is as much for her kids as it is for her. “I like creating Christmas magic for my children,” she shares. “It’s something that brings me the most joy, is to create that experience for them. And so, being a part of the storytelling of Christmastime in different iterations — obviously My Secret Santa is sort of an extreme, it’s a romantic comedy, it’s got a little bit of slapstick humor in it, so it’s a little bit different than the others, but it still brings that holiday magic and that warm fuzzy feeling I think people look for when they’re watching holiday films.”
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And if the opportunity presents itself to suit back up as Santa Claus again? Breckenridge says she would be happy to slip back into the big man’s beard.
“If I’m bringing the holiday magic at home or I’m bringing it into your living room, I’m here for it. I mean, yes, of course I would do another one. I think we should do a Secret Santa 2,” she says.
My Secret Santa is streaming now on Netflix.