Christmas!

Although I know that not all of my readers may celebrate Christmas ( Happy (Belated) Hanukkah to my Jewish readers), I wanted to publish a post about Christmas. Even if you may not participate in all of the traditions that many Christians follow, I am sure that you know how Christmas celebrations are big in many parts of the world! The first things that comes to mind when we think about Christmas is family, friends, food, lights, and love. Some of my favorite things about this time of year is the festive atmosphere that surrounds us everywhere we go, be it lights, decorations, events, gatherings, or the snow! I know that many things are not possible this year due to the pandemic (for more info, check out my post on the virus!), but there are still ways to keep the spirit of Christmas alive! here are some ways you can celebrate Christmas if you are stuck at home like me:

Have a movie night: Whether you are with loved ones or by yourself, Christmas movies are a classic way to celebrate this time of year. Grab a hot chocolate ( add some marshmallows, tastes even better !) and popcorn and snuggle with your blanket while watching some cheesy Christmas movies! 

Make some Christmas food: I don't think there is really such a thing as "Christmas food", but maybe you like to eat a traditional Christmas dinner with your family, or mix it up a little bit by pairing different winter favorites. Perhaps you could toast some marshmallows by the fire, make some hot chocolate, spice things up with some apple cider, or start a tradition of your own by trying different food from different cultures! Try baking some cookies or cakes, maybe help your family in preparing a Christmas Lunch or dinner.

Host a Secret Santa gift giving: Before you skip over this line, know that this doesn't necessarily mean having to have a gathering with other people (although you certainly could). My friends and I are doing something like this, where we have a virtual pull out of a 'hat' to determine the person we give a gift to, and then we drop off the presents at a time when the receiver isn't home! When the person gets back, they will have a gift waiting in their mailbox or on their doorstep, and they would guess who was their "Secret Santa" based on the gift they receive! This is a really fun activity, and if you wanted to, you could host a video call and open your gifts together, just like you might have other times! Maybe this way you will get to reconnect with people you haven't talked to in a while, and mail them a gift!

Have a 'Ugly Sweater Contest' on video call: In my school, our teacher had us do something fun where we would wear an ugly sweater (if we had one) and show it to the rest of the class. Then we would vote on who had the ugliest sweater, and the person who won would get a prize! If you wanted to, you could all make an ugly sweater and see where your creativity would take you! Few years ago, when I remembered we had an Ugly sweater contest in school (and it was too late to go shopping), my mom and I pulled out whatever craft supplies we could lay hands on- sequins, felt cutouts, buttons and put together an 'Ugly Sweater', my friends thought it was cute and not ugly !

Pick up a new hobby: Okay, I know that this is not necessarily Christmas themed, but you could pick up a cool hobby, like baking, or painting, or learning an instrument, and then maybe come up with a way to show off your new skills by making a masterpiece to gift to someone! I personally like to put together parts of me playing a certain song on my different instruments and put them together to create a little band! I might want to work on putting together parts of me playing a Christmas song!

This is definitely not everything you can do, but if I started listing that, this post would become a book! I hope you like these suggestions and you are able to try a few of them! Let me know how it goes!

Image courtesy of Bitmoji