Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas to one and all! Thanksgiving has come and gone, but the holiday season isn’t over yet! Christmas is coming and we’re all excited for it, aren’t you?
I just adore Christmas. It’s probably the most beautiful time of year where you see so many houses and businesses lit up for the holiday. Bright lights, Santa, reindeer, Christmas trees, candy canes, holly, mistletoe and perhaps a few presents. But I think what people also love about this season is the fact that it snows. Personally, I’m not fond of it because it’s just waaaaay too cold out. Brrr! But to be honest, though I may not care for it, it’s great to have a white Christmas. The other days I’m not too much in the snow mood.
Snow is the holiday’s personal way of saying “Season’s Greetings,” but for me it’s more like “Goodbye Season,” you know? It can also cause a big downer for some, keeping people locked up inside because of a big storm or something like that. That’s why so many prefer the more tame seasons out of winter.
Honestly, you can’t let the weather get you down though. Tis the season to be jolly, right? So, you should be happy about the weather, even if you are cooped up indoors for the brunt of it. I know I always enjoyed a good storm, whether rain, snow, sleet, thunder, hail or whichever else comes. The point I’m trying to make here is the fact that you should make the most out of your indoor isolation. When I was a kid, there were so many things a person could do to keep themselves busy like playing with toys, board games or even sitting down to have a chat. Then, as I grew older, even more ideas came to mind thanks to others who taught me new things or games. Keeping myself and other kids occupied is the easiest thing to do. Especially when the holidays are here.
The holidays are a fun way to keep yourself busy and you should check out below to see how whether kept indoors or not!
Holiday Charades/Pictionary
Pull the family together for some serious quality time. Charades and Pictionary of the holiday sort can keep everyone’s spirits up and bring out a bunch of good laughs. Get pieces of paper and write down different things that have to do with this time of year like weather, songs, people, places or things. Fold them, drop them in a bowl and mix away. Each person takes one and either acts it out or attempts to draw it. (I did this game at a family Christmas party. My uncle drew an arrow pointing up and someone say’s “Up On The Housetop”. What do you know, they got it right! But it was a seriously great laugh we had!)
Christmas/Holiday Crafts
Get out the paper, glitter, glue, pompoms, pipe cleaners, funny eyeballs, felt, scissors, paint and anything else you got handy to help you get creative! Bring out your creative side and make some festive holiday pieces either to hang up around the house, the tree, outdoors or to give to another as a present. Making something for someone from the heart is a great way to say “Merry Christmas”, “Happy Holidays”, “Season’s Greetings” or any other day that might be celebrated this season.
Cards/Thank You’s
Cards and Thank You notes are another fun way to be creative. Either cards that are bought from a store or made by hand is another way to spend some time with family. You can make each one festive and unique to each person or family it is for. Make pictures, write cheery messages or just signing your name in a fun way can help make someone’s spirits bright!
Christmas Music
Surely parents have plenty of those old Christmas or holiday hits lying around the house somewhere. So, dig out those old cassette tapes, CDs or even turn on the television to a holiday music channel. Crank up the music and let it pour throughout the house. It’s always good to have music playing in the background whether you are cleaning, doing some work, wrapping presents or doing those fun crafts mentioned earlier. Not only that, but if you got one of those awesome karaoke machines, make a game of it. Sing-a-long to the tunes of a Christmas carol and see if you can remember all the lyrics without messing up. I definitely sing out loud all the time, even when I don’t recall having the greatest voice. (Trust me, I’ve heard that more than once from my family, but I still continue!)
Decorations
Didn’t decorate the house yet? Well, get to it! Make it a family activity! Hang up the lights, put the tree up, place those Christmas cards you get where all can see and don’t forget to set up Santa’s sleigh and reindeer outside. Get all those creative holiday crafts you made put on the fridge, hanging from the ceiling, placed as a centerpiece or even set on the tree! If you celebrate another one of holidays at this time, get that fantastic decor up as well! Decking out your home for the holidays is a wonderful way to say “Happy Holidays” to one and all!
Baking
Baking is one of those traditions during the holiday season that never grows old. Every year during this season, I bake hundreds of cookies – sugar, no-bake, chocolate chip, peanut butter, etc. – for my own family to enjoy and the rest packaged in cookie tins to distribute among friends and family as a yummy surprise. Aside from cookies though, your families can make brownies, cakes, pies or other treats that can warm tummies up during the cold season.
Trivia/Games
How well do you know the holidays? Go ahead and find out by playing a holiday trivia game. Usually you can buy games pertaining to specific holidays like Trivial Pursuit. However, if you can’t, that’s okay! You can always create your own like writing down questions/answers then making it up to be something like Jeopardy, Bingo or make it up! If you want other Christmas or holiday games to pursue, create them by yourself or look online. Games are a great way to bind families together!
Reading
Reading is fundamental! Yes it certainly is! Keep yourself busy for a little bit by picking up a book to read alone or out loud. Find some holiday books to get you into the spirit of the season like reading about Rudolph, Frosty, Santa Claus, The Grinch and other momentous characters. Preferably, I read The Night Before Christmas as much as possible trying to remember line for line, then sharing it with kids. (Sadly, after Christmas ends, my mind somehow “forgets” it until next year. Funny, huh?)
Traditions
Traditions are something that happen every single year around the same time. For instance, I mentioned baking as my tradition this time of year. Some of you might read The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve every year, have the same topper on the tree since you were a baby, drinking hot cocoa while playing your favorite board games and other fun little stuff like that. A tradition is a wonderful thing to have as it is something you can look forward to every year for as long as you wish it. If you don’t know about any traditions in your family, ask your parents. And if you don’t have any, begin one, two or more!
So what do you think? Are you ready to spice up your holidays? Go ahead and tell us what you like to do during the season! We’d love to hear from you!
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