Not your traditional holidays...

Halloween is almost here (yikes!) and that means there are more holidays on the way. They are so close that I am putting the final touches on a holiday workshop, the first one will be held November 7 at the Bartlett Library.  Yes, that is little more than a week away already!

Many people get overwhelmed this time of year and one of my best tips to offer is to prioritize. Work with each family member to discover what traditions are really important. Just because you "always do" something does not mean you have to continue doing it. If nobody enjoys caroling, then skip it and spend that time doing something else. There are many creative ways to celebrate the holidays, try some new traditions and you may find one that becomes your family's new favorite.

I love the holidays, and the whole Christmas season is one of my favorite times of the year. It is all about celebrating family. For me, that includes the great friends that have become family to me. We love to have events that include everyone. In order to do this, we have come up with some non-traditional celebrations that allow our friends to celebrate together without interfering with their traditional family functions.

My favorite is our Christmas Eve Open House. We have been having it for about 10 years now and it is always a little different as families come and go on their way to or from other celebrations. We set up our dining room table with appetizers and desserts (many left from a cookie exchange with some mom friends). Kids get to see their friends and the grownups get to have some relaxing time to just enjoy and get to know everyone a little better without having to worry about doing anything.  My preparation varies from year to year depending on how much time I want to spend. Some years it has been as simple as a trip to Costco for appetizers, beer and wine. Other years I have been more ambitious and made the food myself. You could even do this as a potluck if you want to make it super simple. No matter how you do it, this can become a great tradition to start.

Another fun new holiday that a friend and I are going to expand this year is Dessert Thanksgiving. I like Thanksgiving dinner, but my sweet tooth loves the dessert  even better. The problem is that I am usually too full to really enjoy it! She suffers from the same problem. Since we both love to bake we decided to get a couple families together just for dessert. It was kind of a spur of the moment thing, so make it even more fun this year we are going to expand it to include a few more families. It is a very simple thing to host since it is about everyone bringing a recipe that they love or want to try. Each guest can bring some wine or beer to make it simple so that the host just needs to provide the house.

Take a few minutes to think now and maybe you can come up with some ideas for new traditions that suit you and your family. One good idea is a twist on the traditional cookie exchange. I friend (that has unfortunately moved out of state) who started an annual cookie exchange, but changed it up a bit every year to add some variety. The first year she changed it we all brought candy instead of cookies to swap. Then we tried an ornament exchange. Then she moved away and left us on our own. The point is, there a lot of ways you can make an old tradition new and fun. Celebrate!