7 TIPS TO ENJOY THIS HOLIDAY SEASON

Boom!  It’s December.  Well, actually it’s already December 7th.  How did that happen?  Are you like me and the holiday season always seems to smack you right in your jolly behind?  Mr. Black Licorice’s birthday is in November and I always try to hold off on any decorating for the holidays until his birthday has passed because in November I’m still recovering from my Halloween hangover of decorating and crafting.  Then wham right into Christmas holiday decorating and crafting.  Then you add on the shopping to get done because it has to be mailed out before a certain date or it isn’t going to get there in time and oh the disappointment.  I need to take a deep, deep, long, breathe… excuse me while I go enjoy a cup of coffee or tea and a good book.

tips to enjoy the holiday season with your family

Image Credit: Graphic Stock 

Are you tired of this kind of hectic pace during the holiday season?  You are not alone.  Over in The Abundant Mama Project Shawn L. Fink wrote a piece that sums it up beautifully you can check it out here: A Simple Guide to Enjoying the Holidays.  As a part of the Abundant Mama group she has us pick a word for the month for us to focus on so we can live more intentionally.  My intentional word for this month is ENJOY.  

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Enjoy,

warmth, laughter, singing

snuggled by the fire and tree,

Marching through the winter

wonderland of snow making tracks

and memories.

Enjoy,

dance, school concerts

children all a glow

to see our faces smiling

back at them.

Enjoy,

time with loved ones,

old friends and new

around cups of cheer.

Enjoy,

sweet taste of Christmas treats,

red excitement and green sparkles,

and singing our favourite tune.

By Bonnie Dani

So what have we enjoyed so far?

The tree decorating.  Once mama gave over decorating control over to her 3 helpers the process become much more peaceful.  Yeah the ornaments might all be located in pretty much the same part of the tree but they love doing this and I love watching them enjoy hanging the ornaments.  They must hang their own ornaments, so there you see Miss Ballerina hanging her Barbie ornament.  All of our ornaments are a combination of handmade, custom made or store bought ones.

decorating the Christmas tree

 

Last week Miss Ballerina performed at her school Kindergarten Christmas concert.  She is my youngest and so my last Kindergarten Christmas concert to enjoy.  She was so excited and loves to sing and dance on stage.  She is not shy at all.  Seeing her smile and enjoy performing actually make me tear up just a bit.  I had to let it go that she wanted to wear her favourite Dora socks which totally didn’t match but she claimed were her lucky socks.  I wanted to enjoy the concert and I decided I didn’t want to mar the night with an argument over socks.  No one could see them anyway as she was wearing her indoor shoes on stage.  Sometimes mama has to let go of some things.  She enjoyed her night and so did the I and the rest of the family.  It will be my boys’ turn later this week.

Christmas Perfomance

I think that is it so far, oh yeah, its only December 7th so still lots of time to ENJOY the holiday season.

TIPS FOR ENJOYING THE HOLIDAY SEASON WITH YOUR FAMILY

  1. Watch your favourite holiday movie with your kids.  I love to watch The Santa Clause (all 3 of them every year) and for myself I absolutely love to watch Love Actually with a nice glass of wine.
  2. Put the carols on in your house and sing loudly to them.
  3. Don’t stress about the perfect Christmas cards to send out.  You can always send out a Happy New Year Wishes Card instead.
  4. If your Elf on the Shelf is stressing you out, leave a note that reads ‘I have all the info I need to tell Santa, see you again next year’.
  5. Go out and explore Christmas lights in your neighbourhood or a new one.  We do this every year.  Walk the neighbourhood, and then sip hot chocolate with whip cream.Christmas Light Walk
  6. Teach and sing the 12 Days of Christmas to your kids and act out the actions to the song.  We have lots of silly fun and giggle and giggle every year.  Ok well the kids giggle at mom and dad trying to sing and do the actions to the song.
  7. Try making a pancake station for supper one night. It doesn’t need to be Christmas morning, any morning during the holidays would make it special.

 

Do you have a monthly word this month to help you make your month more intentional?  How about the rest of the year?  How have you enjoyed the holiday season so far?  Have you had to let some things go as well to add create a peaceful home during the holidays?  If you have more tips on enjoying the holiday season leave me a note in the comments, I love to hear from you.tips to enjoy this holiday season

Image Credit: Graphic Stock

Cheers and Enjoy,

Bonnie New Signature

 

 

 

Bonnie Dani

Educator, Writer, Blogger, Mom

Contact Me: [email protected]