If you're home alone for the
holiday, reach out to others nearby and afar to share the festive
spirit. On the other hand, if you're visiting your family home for a holiday,
try to focus on nurturing connections. Finally, spending the holidays at home
can wind up giving you more time than you're used to. To keep from getting
bored, stay busy doing fun things you've been wanting to try.
Method 1 Celebrating the Holidays at Home
1
Cook a holiday meal. Holidays at home provide the perfect opportunity to bake
and cook new or classic dishes. Make a big batch of holiday-themed cookies for
a celebratory social event, or try making a new meal for you and your
household. Invite friends or family members to join you in the kitchen to help
or hang out.
Plenty of recipes are available online,
including many geared towards specific holidays. For instance, look up a recipe
to bake a ham for
a spring holiday or fry a turkey for a fall holiday.
2
Decorate for the
holiday. A key way to
ensure you will enjoy the holidays at home is by decorating for the occasion.
The amount of effort you put in is up to you; go all out and fill every room
with holiday decor, or simply hang some thematic decor in the living room.
Whatever the approach you decide to take, sprucing up your place will make your
home feel livelier and more celebratory.
·
Whether decorating
for Christmas, Passover,
or any other holiday, there are plenty of decorating ideas you can find online.
3
Watch holiday movies. There's nothing quite like a holiday movie to get you in
the holiday spirit. If you're home for the winter holidays, watch a movie that
features the sort of celebrations you practice. Similarly, watch a horror movie
to celebrate a holiday like Halloween, or a documentary on a historical figure
to honor a holiday in their name.
·
Often, streaming services
will have categories of movies dedicated to celebrating a certain holiday.
·
You can also look
online for lists of popular movies that go with whatever holiday you're
celebrating.
4
Host folks at your
home. Especially if you find yourself feeling
lonely at home over the holidays, throw a holiday celebration of your own.
Don’t feel as though it has to be an extravagant endeavor - simply having a few
people over can be enjoyable and celebratory.[3]
·
Potlucks are
especially easy, as attendees can contribute to the meal. Simply let guests
know what you’ll be making ahead of time so they don’t bring the same thing.
·
It can also be fun to
plan an activity if you're having people over. For instance, plan on playing
games and let everyone know ahead of time so they can bring their favorites.
·
If you don't have
family around, you can reach out and connect with others who are in a similar
situation. Try using a site like MeetUp to
find others who do not want to celebrate the holidays alone.
5
Look for local
activities. If it is a
holiday that you do not personally celebrate, you might want to go out for the
day. There may be fewer crowds outside on that day, and you may enjoy doing
something outside of the house.
·
For example, if you
don't celebrate Christmas, you might go out for dinner and then catch a movie
at the movie theater.
·
Method 2 Enjoying Holiday Time with Family
1
Start a holiday
tradition. Traditions can
be an enjoyable part of getting together with the same folks for certain
holidays every year. Specific tradition vary, of course. Go with something
traditional, like reading the same short holiday book together, or something
inspired by the spirit of the holiday.[4]
·
For instance, during
the winter holidays, you and your family members could all spend an afternoon
volunteering together. Have a different family member choose the organization
to volunteer with every year.
·
2
·
Gather materials for a
holiday-themed activity. Whether you’re
hosting or visiting home for the holidays, a planned holiday activity is
something everyone can enjoy. For instance, have everyone bring over a pumpkin
or other gourd to carve at a fall holiday party. Similarly, you can gather pine
bows and pine cones so everyone can make a wreath for the winter holidays.
·
3
·
Make a point to
connect with a few particular people. You’re never
going to please everyone. More to the point, you likely won’t even be able to
spend quality time with everyone when you’re home for the holidays. Decide
beforehand who you want to catch up with this time around and initiate
conversations or activities with them during your time together.
4
Try
to let go of fixed expectations. This is much
easier said than done, but it’s an important part of maintaining familial
relationships. The fact of the matter is: If you have specific expectations
about other people’s behaviors, it’s unlikely they’re going to fit these
expectations perfectly. In turn, this may frustrate or otherwise upset you.[7]
·
Instead of having
fixed expectations about people's behavior or specific things you'd like to
have happen, try to approach the holiday together with a mindset that emphasizes
getting along.
·
When you feel yourself
become frustrated with a family member’s behavior, remind yourself that holiday
gatherings are for nurturing connections, and that issues that need to be
addressed are best addressed in other contexts. Avoid starting arguments. Let
go of your expectations about the holiday, and be open to whatever happens at
the gathering.
5
Take the opportunity to practice open-mindedness. It’s extremely common for disagreements or differences in
perspective to arise when all of your family is home together. If a serious
issue needs to be addressed, do so, but it may otherwise be best to let small
differences in opinion pass when everyone is home together for the holidays.
Method 3 Enjoying the Holidays When You Live Alone
1
Let friends know
you’re around. If you’re
staying home for the holidays, it certainly doesn’t mean you have to spend them
alone. In fact, friends who are staying in your area will probably be glad to
see you over the holidays. Give them a phone call or reach out through another
method of correspondence beforehand.[9]
·
Say something like,
“Hey! I just wanted to mention that I’m not traveling for the upcoming holiday,
so I’ll be around. If anything fun is going on or you’d like to get together,
let me know.”
2
Plan an activity and
invite others. Be proactive and
plan a social activity. You can model it around whichever holiday people may be
celebrating, or simply take advantage of the free time to do something you and
your friends enjoy. The specifics are up to you - go on a hike, hit an art museum,
or invite friends to play basketball.[10]
·
Be sure to invite
folks ahead of time so they can plan to attend.
·
If you just moved to
an area or if you don't know many people near you, you could use the internet
to organize a meeting.
3
Reach out to far-away
loved ones. Even though you
may not be able to see loved ones if you’re home for a holiday, you can still
share the holiday spirit with them by getting in touch. Especially if you know
a family gathering is happening elsewhere, give them a call during the
festivities and have everyone pass the phone around.[11]
·
If letters are more
your speed, sitting down to write loved ones is another great way to share the
holiday spirit.
Method 4 Making Use of
Extra Time at Home
1
Start that creative
endeavor you’ve been curious about. Almost everyone
has the urge to create, but many people struggle to find the time to pursue
creative projects. Holidays at home provide the perfect opportunity to finally
try that creative hobby you’ve been interested in.
·
Whether sketching,
playing music, or taking photos, set aside the holiday to spend time expressing
yourself creatively. If necessary, make sure to get the materials ahead of
time.
2
Try meditation. You’ve
likely heard about the benefits of meditation, and have maybe even tried it a
couple times before. It can admittedly be hard to get the hang of, but free
time over the holidays gives you extra time to practice. Make a point of
sitting down everyday to meditate, even if only for ten minutes.[13]
·
Once you make a habit
of meditating, you’ll experience more of the benefits and be more likely to
work meditation into your daily life.
3
Get that task done finally. You
know that home improvement or cleaning project you've been putting off? A
holiday at home provides the perfect opportunity to check it off the list.
Plus, you'll likely find it easier to wind down in the evening if you get something productive done during
your holiday at home.
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