It’s Cozy Time!

I love holiday parties!  Getting dressed up, spending time with friends, meeting new people, enjoying some holiday cheer, I’ll take it all!

But, you know what else gets me in the mood for the holidays? . . .

I like to indulge by spending the evenings up until Christmas hiding out in my cozy little house.

I come home after work, throw a candy cane bath bomb into the tub and soak for a good half hour.  PJ’s must be ready to go! I choose my grey ones with big silver snowflakes and pink sparkly buttons.

Next, I am loving my future self in this moment because the night before I prepared a delicious dish of comfort food that only needs to be warmed up.  I plunk myself on the couch with Wayne and we enjoy a lovely bowl of homemade Mac & Cheese and I keep my secret ingredient (nutmeg) to myself as I watch him go for seconds before I’m done my first bowl.

After dinner and conversation about our day, our little dog Boink snuggles in and we choose the perfect Christmas movie.

I feel compelled to choose one of my childhood classics like Rudolph, A Charlie Brown Christmas and Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas but I decide to turn the choice over to Wayne because he always picks those special movies that I love and kinda forgot they were Christmas movies.

Those favourite picks include, Gremlins, The Ref, Iron Man Three and Die Hard.

This little tradition gets us in the holiday mood and it’s our special time together.

The hustle of the season can be so stressful and sometimes it’s difficult to slow down and enjoy the moments.  I remember how I felt as a little girl.  Everything was exciting about Christmas and I woke up happy and excited each day.   It wasn’t just about getting what was on my Christmas list, it was also about singing Christmas songs at school, catching all the Christmas specials on TV, watching my Dad put up the Christmas lights, helping my Mom decorate the tree, eating Oma’s cookies and getting dressed up with my brother on Christmas Eve.

Time moves on, traditions change and life becomes quite different as we get older.  We have responsibilities and stress that can take away from the euphoric feelings we may have had as children.

If you are feeling this way, the good news is you still have time to tap into that sweet spot from your childhood.

This week, choose an evening, shut off the outside world and be good to yourself.  Make it extra special with a yummy hot chocolate for dessert.  Now that you’re all grown up you can even throw a shot of Bailey’s into that heavenly drink.

If you’re really having trouble following my direction you can always call on Rudolph to help you out!  I’ve heard he’s quite the expert when it comes to leading the way.

Monica XO