Keeping with Christmas Traditions

With all the restrictions due to COVID-19 it got me thinking about Christmas and what it might look like this year.

My memory took me back to a time when I was a little girl. My brother (wait, you must know he was 9 years older than me so that made it really cool to hang out with him) and I would always get up really early Christmas eve and go to a local farm and pick out the most beautiful tree. We would bring it home and decorate it. We would wrap the tree in the big bright lights, add homemade decorations, and then of course the finishing touch was adding strands of dangling silver icicles…oh the memories!

Our day didn’t end there. If there was snow, we would go to our favorite hill and sled ride with our neighbors. Later we’d return home for cocoa and some homemade cookies. The memories we made!

As I got older and had my own family, we have kept the tradition of decorating the tree with some homemade decorations from generations before. On Christmas eve we still travel around to look at Christmas lights. We would end our night back home with hot chocolate and cookies, discussing which was our favorite display of the night. Over the years, our children have grown up and now have their own families. They too carry on some of the same traditions from my youth and have even added a few of their own. Making new traditions!

COVID-19, has changed the way we need to do some things but even with the restrictions we can still create holiday fun and even make new traditions! What adventures might we have with a little creativity!

There are many safe and fun activities to do this year. The nice thing is, there are endless opportunities to be creative and no age limit on any of the activities!

Walk or drive around and check out Christmas lights in your community.
Go to one of the many lights shows that you can drive through. Click here for details about local Drive Through Light Shows.
Make homemade hot cocoa. You might want to try this recipe “Double Delight Hot Chocolate.”
Watch your favorite Christmas movie. Mine is A Christmas Story.
Decorate your own yard for Christmas.
Make your own Christmas cards and send them out to family and friends. See this gallery for some fun ideas.
Make homemade ornaments for your tree by gathering items lying around the house…old buttons, old jewelry, old Christmas cards, pasta noodles, stringing popcorn and cranberries. The possibilities are endless!
Make paper snowflakes. Click here for steps.
Listen/sing along to holiday favorites – Youtube is an easy resource and some TV channels broadcast music.
Make homemade Christmas gifts.
Make a delicious treat – many people like to bake sugar cookies and use seasonal cookie cutter shapes. Or avoid heating the oven and mix a sweet Chex mix; visit Chex.com for recipe ideas.
Call a friend or facetime with family.
If there is snow… build a snowman or make snow angels.
Read a wintry story – many people like to revisit Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol each year. People in Iceland give books every Christmas Eve and spend the night reading, it’s called Jolabokaflod, which translates roughly to “Christmas book flood.” Read about other traditions around the world here.

There are so many fun things we can do, but just remember to wear a mask, social distance, and wash your hands. The holidays may look different this year but we can make it a special, memorable time with a bit of ingenuity and creativity.