Holiday Cheer
Spreading cheer has never been needed more. Our family Christmas has officially been cancelled and because I don’t want my girls to feel that loss, I’ve amped up the effort to bring more cheer to our home and to the neighbourhood. And so this past weekend we baked dog cookies. Carrot, apple, oat & flax (it had to be aligned with our healthy lifestyle!) for our dog Nutmeg and for all the dogs we know on our street. And that whole process, from baking to packaging to doorstep deliveries, made the girls sooo happy. And it warmed my heart to watch. It’s something little that we can do and something BIG that we can give.
We also have spent some time recently making holiday crafts. I love to go to the dollar store as soon as festive stuff comes out and load the craft cabinet with ribbon and stickers and pretty things. The girls love it and when they feel inspired they know they have a ton of things to choose from. Then a trip to the post office to send some creations off to Grandma and Grandpa, and Nana and Papa. Our usual tradition of a photoshoot turned into a calendar will have to wait. And the simplicity of this gift will be just as happily received.
Letters to Santa! I encourage these all year! They change all the time but when my girls start asking for things, I say “Put it on your Christmas list!” And it works. It stops the asking and the nagging. It’s magic, I swear. And then when we’re finally ready to send our letters, I ask the girls to choose their top 3. And then I remind them…we don’t always gets what we ask for, greedy isn’t good, and that it’s good to share. (I feel like I teach this one often!)
We also, as I say, “play” the elf game. It’s a tradition that we started a few years ago and is really quite annoying (am I right?!) But also such a crowd pleaser! My girls are obsessed with this thing. And our elf even has a sister at their dads house. Holly and Molly. Obnoxious and time consuming...but certainly adding cheer! I found adding a reminder on my phone every night at 9pm helpful for this one! It says “move the things!”
We made (and ate) a gingerbread house! And even though I have a diabetic daughter, I count the carbs, administer the insulin and allow the holiday tradition to unfold. And no, I’m not baking this one from scratch! For this I simply pick up a box, ready to assemble. Although....I do think it’s time I try making one!
An advent calendar...ours is made of wood and has 24 little doors that open to daily surprises inside. It was a gift my from Dad and his wife a couple of years ago and I remember initially feeling like, “thanks a lot!” My kids thought it was magic but I knew it meant a lot of work for me. But I embraced it with the help of the Bulk Barn and it’s been adding cheer to our home all month! They did ask if it was really magic or mommy and I caved. And I’m okay with that. It took the pressure off having to remember every day and they seem to love it just the same. Sometimes they just have to close their eyes and wait until I fill it!
Festive mugs!! I LOVE them! My 2 favourite I bought from Second Cup when I worked retail at the mall over 20 years ago. And every year I replace a few mugs in the cupboard with these and 2 others that are a gift from my aunt. The girls also have child sized holiday mugs! I hope it’s a tradition they continue too!
And well of course, there’s the tree decorating and the music (I’ve been listening to this beautiful Christmas guitar playlist from Josh Snodgrass on repeat!) and we’ve been watching Christmas movies since November! We even planned a hike and roasted marshmallow on an outside fire. That was my favourite for sure. And hopefully a new tradition we can continue.
And well if that list of things isn’t adding enough cheer, then for sure our 12 foot frosty the snowman blowup on the front lawn MUST put a smile on the faces of passerby’s :)
What are the ways you bring cheer to your home and neighbourhood? I’d love to hear!!
Wishing you more peace, balance, happiness, vibrant health and lasting love.
Sandy xo
"What we think, we become." -Buddha