Happy holidays everyone! We are knee deep in my favorite time of year, people. If you are lucky enough to already be graced with shimmering snow covering your ground, I am jealous. Chicago is trying to hold on to summer as long as possible, but eventually it will crumble under Mr. Winter's frigged embrace...I CAN'T WAIT. Now now, I am not about to skip right over to red and green and Fa-la-la, the month of November can be filled with holiday cheer without relating it to Christmas (although I did buy our stockings on November 1st...whatever.) Here are a few the things I will be doing this month to ensure that my insides explode with holiday sparkles and joy.
This is probably the most important. #CharlieBrown is my jam, and a holiday is not truly celebrated unless the accompanying Charlie Brown film is viewed. Charlie Brown is a man ahead of his time...but I digress. This wonderful gift of entertainment is heart warming and pretty funny, I encourage you to kick off the holiday season with a viewing, and of course watch it ON #Thanksgiving. Side note, does anyone else find cartoon food more tantalizing than real food? No? Just me? Okay...moving on...
The Chicago ice rinks open on November 27th, I am on the edge of my seat day by day. This activity seems to hold so much cheerful wonder in it, I may burst on site. The lights, the night sky, the glinting snow in the background, children laughing...I am mesmerized. Now, I am 1) not good at ice skating and 2) I don't particularly like it, but maybe that's because I have never done it outside! I am prepared to be wowed. If you live in a city with an outdoor rink, grab a loved one or a cherished friend and go ice skating for a night! If you do not have an ice rink....come to CHICAGO WE HAVE SO MANY. Or, here are a few options: snow shoeing, sledding, building a snowman or fort, etc...you owe it to yourself to get outside, even though it is cold, have fun, and enjoy the beauty and love of the holidays.
LIGHTS FESTIVAL!!! Now, most cities, big and small, have some sort of light festival or show to go see; even the small town where I grew up with roughly 20,000 people has a pretty magnificent light extravaganza; Chicago...well, Chicago has quite the light festival, pictured above, on November 21st and yes I will be there to hug Mickey Mouse. Allow yourself to be in awe and see the beauty in how lights look, see if they bring up any nostalgic feelings, and enjoy the show.
Oh, how I love holiday food...yesterday I read that the average American gains 10-15 pounds from October 31st to December 31st...hahahaha and that's OKAY because food is awesome! I love holiday food; everything is so rich and creamy. The sweets, chocolates, cheeses, breads, meats...it never ends. My dream is to one day attend a feast like that seen in the great hall at Hogwarts. The holidays are a perfect time to experiment with delicious baking recipes you've been wanting to try, you'll have plenty of willing people to test it on! Keep an eye on my Instagram account, @smashleymmac, for holiday recipes, I'll be posting one every week until New Years Eve! The recipe for the picture above, #BakedBrie, is being posted today, yay!
All holiday details and activities absolutely include the involvement of loved ones; spend time with the ones you cherish and let them know how much you appreciate them, enjoy their company, learn something new about one and other, and laugh a lot. Until next time!
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