10 Fun Ways to Enjoy Holidays with Loved Ones

The holiday season is a time to slow down and celebrate the connections we have with special people in our lives. Family and friends, and a strong community help individuals to feel loved and appreciated, and holiday memories last a lifetime. Here are some ideas to meaningfully spend the holidays with loved ones:

Volunteer together

Giving back to the community as a volunteer is a great way to instill a sense of gratitude and generosity in younger generations. There are countless ways to do this, but here are just a few ideas:

Find a toy drive or a giving tree. Many charities and religious communities partner with families in need and offer individuals a chance to share their wealth with people who have less.

Make holiday cards. There are many different groups of people who may not have anyone sending them cards and will appreciate receiving them. Individuals who are incarcerated, seniors living in group facilities, and people in the military are all people who may be delighted by receiving a hand-made card!

Help out at a soup kitchen. Many people need to eat at soup kitchens to survive, and a great way to instill a sense of social justice, charity, and community is to work at a soup kitchen or food bank over the holidays.

Make meals together

What are the holidays without traditional cookies, cakes, or special meals? Many family traditions center around cooking and baking family recipes or traditional foods according to people’s religious, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. And even if you don’t have traditional holiday foods, it’s never too late to start! The website Taste of Home has a huge list of holiday recipes that anyone can make with loved ones.

Sometimes the stress of planning meals can be put on one or two people, however, a great way to combat holiday stress is to make sure everyone is contributing. Asking everyone to take responsibility for one aspect of a meal, or to assign meals to different people, is a good way to share the labor of holiday food prep. Planning ahead makes the holidays less stressful as well, and thankfully there are helpful guides like the website Meal Planning Blueprints, which offers some great tips for organizing recipes according to ingredients.

Sing at home or go caroling

There’s nothing like music to bring out the spirit of the holidays. For people who celebrate Christmas, caroling has long been a tradition, which can take place anywhere! For print-outs of classic Christmas carols, you can check out this article: 12 Printable Christmas Carols.

Jewish Hanukkah celebrations are rich in musical traditions, and sing-a-longs are a great way to mark the holiday. Check out the article 25 ways to celebrate the festival of lights for some videos of music to sing along to with your loved ones.

Create a time capsule

A time capsule is a container filled with items that mean something to the individuals who create them. For a family, it could be photos, art, favorite books, or other symbols of the present moment. The purpose of a time capsule is to remember a moment in time, to be opened years later. Some people bury a time capsule, and others hide them away in hidden parts of the house. For inspiration, here’s a cool video on a man who developed photos that were hidden away in a time capsule for 120 years!

Check out holiday markets

Visiting Christmas markets and other holiday markets is often family tradition, for good reason! For example, traditional German Christmas markets in the United States called Christkindlmarket are hubs of hot drinks, salty nuts, and delicious food. Markets are a great place to support local vendors selling their art and goods, and an efficient way to complete holiday shopping.

Make holiday crafts together

There really are endless crafts for loved ones to create together. From holiday decorations to useful home items, to cross-stitch and sewing projects, DIY projects are a great way to spend time together and create items to treasure. If you need inspiration, Country Living offers many suggestions in the article: 82 Easy Christmas Craft Ideas to Make Your Home Merry and Bright.

Decorate the home

Do you love picking out a Christmas tree fresh from a garden center or home store? Are the holiday plates and napkins ready to be freshened up for serving? Unpacking ornaments, dreidels, candles, Santa Claus-themed items, and more can be a delightful start to the holiday season. Special family heirlooms especially are fun to place around the house together, while taking time to remember the past.

Create a scavenger hunt

A classic family tradition around the holidays is to create a scavenger hunt around gift-giving and special days. To create a simple scavenger hunt, make “clues” to hide in different locations, eventually landing on the surprise or gift, at the final destination!

Explore holiday lights

Many cities offer outdoor light displays at forest preserves and zoos. Around the world, zoos offer light displays of animals and plants, which create a delightful family-family environment. Artistic light displays at forest preserves or botanic gardens can be a real sensory experience, with some light displays flashing along to music! With a hot drink in hand and warm cozy clothing, outdoor lights are a real treat.

Explore the great outdoors

Skiing, sledding, long winter walks in the forest, or along a beautiful body of water are delightful ways to enjoy the outdoors in winter. Sledding is a particularly classic family holiday activity and creates memories to last a lifetime! And, maximizing the amount of time spent in the sun is vital to well-being in the winter, especially in time zones that have much less light during this time of year.

Happy Holidays from Qualicare’s in-home healthcare and senior care franchise partners!