childhood magic and wonder 
quality time 
experiences 
playful 
family time
For some reason this year has been a struggle to get into the holiday cheer. My usual excitement and enthusiasm is lagging. It is like I am the slow, color wheel on my computer screen. I keep waiting and waiting to be lit up by the Holiday cheer! My favorite thing so far this year…MERRY EVERYTHING AND HAPPY ALWAYS! That has been my new motto. More than ever I see the vast differences in other people’s holiday celebrations. My daughter’s boyfriend grew up in an Indian household, so for Christmas his mom wanted him to have something fun and somewhat normal so she would put up the tree and give gifts because everyone around them would. Our friends and neighbors are the usual “pick out something off my Amazon wish list, wrap it up & act surprised.” or gift each other the same amount of money each year to buy annual movie tickets to the same theater. WHAT!? Why is it that so much magic gets erased as we age into adults?
At our house the holidays have always been over-the-top gift exchanges, activities, giving, sharing…but for some reason, this year FEELS a bit off. That is NOT like me. I am definitely Miss Santa at our house. I LOVE traditions, wrapping, planning, creating…definitely finding intentional gifts, so what is different this year?
My thoughts and reflections go to—the adult weights or living, dying, money, responsibilities…real life…I am thinking about my brother’s kids who lost their Dad six months ago & how this will be their first Christmas without him. Or my neighbor who was just put into a home & it will probably be her last Christmas. Another neighbor’s husband is & has been battling cancer & doesn’t know if this is his last or my husband’s boss who just found out he has stage four cancer & this will be his last Christmas with his family…the holidays are such a gift & yet for many it can be a heavier time of heartache, loneliness, loss. The holidays are not all cheer for everyone. For some reason I am VERY mindful of this, this year.
How can we help? How can we bring a little CHEER & Holiday Hope to places that need a boost of some kind? How can we find ways to bring about Holiday spirit? How can we as adults create a little more Holiday magic?
Be a LIGHT. I never would have thought how moving to a coastal town that does not have very many houses lit up or festive lights, how much I would miss it. So, I ordered hundreds of feet of lights and I am determined to bring on some light to my neighborhood. HOPING everyone who drives by can enJOY a little bit of the holiday cheer.
Other ways to spread light…giving and sharing…do an angel tree, fix up used toys and give to needy families (this is a tradition at our house. We buy used Kelly or Chelsea Barbie dolls and buy $1 store accessories, add a love note, a candy cane & donate to local charities) maybe make cards or take a plant or flower to an elderly home for each resident, give someone in your neighborhood (who has health issues & may not have another holiday) a special dinner or advent or homemade gift that says you care, give thank you notes or a gift to your UPS delivery drivers (I usually leave out some fun candy bars and thank you notes), thank you’s to your pet providers or stores you frequent, DON’T forget the single people around you—sometimes they need someone to just connect & feel that it is a different day & not just a day off. Reach out…help a local organization feed families or make a difference in some way by giving back.
Put some MAGIC back into the season…even as an adult: Think of traditions you loved as a child. At my house our family did a train where each kid stood at their door and my Mom & Dad had a wooden train whistle they would blow & chug to each kids room and everyone would link and make our way down to the tree. One idea from this: Maybe if you have grown children that don’t live at home & are close by, you swing by their apartment & honk a number of times until they come out & you wisk them to your home for a special breakfast Christmas morning or brunch.
Another fun childhood memory—waiting up all night for presents or sleeping under the tree. One idea from this: could be to have a special slumber party with your adult kids sometime during the holidays. Have everyone bring pillows, blankets, sleeping items & camp out under the tree watching holiday classics.
Another fun childhood memory—games. Whether it was board games like Pictionary, candy land, twister or find the pickle on the tree, games can make the holidays fun! At our house, with adult kids I made an especially hard I-spy on the tree. I hid multiple tiny penguins, polar bears, stars, shells, tiny toys, special ornaments, etc. It was so fun to see three, college-age visitors hunt up and down and all around the Christmas tree trying to spy the various items. See what you can find—thimbles, buttons, the items can be endless & can be hidden exceptionally well. It can be a lot of fun! OR pull out board games and have a game night with fun soda mixed beverages, s’mores or a hot cocoa bar. Make it a fun memory.
Another childhood memory—advent calendars. As a kid it would be full of chocolate or candies, tiny toys, etc. As kids get older gift them ideas they can do to enJOY the holidays, experiences to do, opportunities to serve the community, little acts of random kindness, etc. Last year I gave my daughter a little tip to do each day to learn to love herself more. This year there are tips of living an intentional life with little chocolates. It doesn’t have to be a physical gift, but something they can learn and grow from too. A gift should be something that is given with intention and care.
Another childhood memory—visiting lights, so maybe to create some adult magic–have a light up contest within the family. Everyone gets the same kit with a certain amount of lights, ornaments, etc & they can only use $30 of their own money to create some type of holiday display. Everyone gets creative & then one night you have everyone caravan to each house to see the display & pick an overall winner. OR you just have a special night where the family gathers and caravans to certain locations of magical lights & has hot cocoas in hand.
Another childhood memory—sleigh rides or snow tube rides. I remember as a kid my Dad would hook a rope to the car (please don’t try this at home. ;), attach a large tube and neighbor kids would zip through an iced over parking lot—many flying from a snow mound jump & a few falling through the inter tube hole into a thick powder. It was so fun!! As an adult we took a neighborhood path and packed the snow up from it and made it into a tube luge. We had cousins & neighbors over & created a big memory that we still talk about. As an adult—still go! Jump in and book a sleigh ride under a moonlit sky, buy a huge tube and make a snow run…make the memories that continue to last! We are all just BIG kids.
Another childhood memory—one of my all-time favorite gifts was a stuffed polar bear (that I still have). I still buy myself a stuffed animal every year for Christmas. Is there a beloved gift you would love to see and experience again? Maybe you loved trains or playing with blocks or magnets or dolls. Maybe you always wanted to take pictures or paint. Tap into things you enJOYed as a child and buy yourself something or invite someone to gift you something that reminds you of your youth. Take a walk down that memory lane and remember the magic.
Another childhood memory—Christmas books. The classics, the ones that were gifted. Books are a holiday memory. As an adult think of a book or series that might be fun to read alone or with your family (Harry Potter, Skipping Christmas–movie Christmas with the Kranks) and take a few pages each night before bed. I came across this site that seems to have an extensive list of ideas that may help you find something inspired to read for the holidays. https://www.julesbuono.com/best-holiday-christmas-books-adults/
Another childhood memory—Christmas movies. This is a classic Christmas tradition no matter how old you are. You have those shows that stick with you & are your favorites from your youth (Rudolph, Polar Express, Santa Claus, Elf) or the more modern classics that have great lessons to share (Family Man, Family Stone, Serendipity, Christmas Jars)
Another idea: The holidays are a fun time to truly create memories, so take time to make things intentional. My daughter & her boyfriend are coming home for the weekend & it is a tradition to kick off December with some sort of gift or display that helps bring some magic. When she was little it also meant that our little “Star” bear (many have elf on the shelf now) would arrive and be on Christmas watch. Well, now she is in college, but the magic is still important, so I planned a fun scavenger hunt for the two of them to do together with a fun gift at the end. I also found another “Star” bear that is holding a penguin, which is more like her adult self. I am going to hide it around the house & bring back a little magic from her youth. Kids & adults are never too old to enJOY intentional gifts that make memories fun.
Thoughtful SURPRISES: I LOVE thoughtful surprises. My husband over the years has given me so many nice gifts (cameras, laptop) but the thought filled gifts & surprises always mean the most—from a surprise kayak at a hotel pool that I paddled around in, or a kaleidoscope from a beach town we had visited, to a small, redwood tree seed encased in acrylic to a stuffed donkey—all things that he felt would resonate with me as a person. Often enough my favorite, thought-filled gifts that I cherish–are a card with heartfelt words and sentiment. When someone puts thought into something—priceless. My daughter’s boyfriend just got a 3-d printer & the first thing he thought about…something he could make her. He made her a darling Christmas sign to hang in her apt. When thought is there—it shows you care.
Find GRATITUDE & be grateful for ALL the gifts of Christmas and the daily gifts you receive. If you can find blessings daily through the holidays—it will make it that much better. Find appreciation and good will to men. Send love texts, share pictures with family, send love notes of appreciation for those in your life. Gratitude can change everything. Give thanks for the lights, the food, the family gathered, friends, people who pop in, holiday music, all you have been given. What you focus on you will find.
SELFLESS: I read this and can find admiration and truth in this.. I enjoy Christmas so much more as an adult because it’s not about me and my expectations. I can’t possibly be bored or disappointed, because I’m not hoping to get anything out of it. Now, Christmas is about celebrating my faith and practicing gratitude. It’s about specifically focusing on the people in my life that I love instead of myself, doing things for them that let them know how special they are .-comment by Megan Skipworth. [love that! thank you, Megan] so true. Love that focus.
The holidays are about HOPE, HEART, HAPPY MEMORIES, so with the holidays here, think about what brings you JOY, what fills your heart with giving, what makes you genuinely hopeful about your life, your family, the time you share & ultimately the greatest gift giving time you care.
Peace, Love and Light. -H
xoxo
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