- Tanya Grovum
'Tis the Season - 5 Tips for the Holidays
1. Organization under the tree.
With all of the festivities and so many things to remember to bring, make finding the right gifts under your tree easy! Instead of checking the tags on every gift each time you need to pack up the car, consider wrapping presents by person or by event. You can do this with different gift wrap, gift bags, ribbon or even consistent tags. For example, if you will be travelling to 2 events, you could wrap gifts for event 1 with red paper and gifts for event 2 in brown paper. That way you don’t have to read each tag each time you need to take gifts with you.
2. Hosting a holiday party.
Typically, the holidays are filled with a series of events that are filled with endless food and drinks. But this is will not be the case for everyone. When the celebration is over, if you find yourself with way too many leftovers or unused ingredients, consider sharing with others who may not find themselves in the same situation. If you’re on Facebook there is a great group called ‘Hungry Guelph & Surrounding Areas’ where you can post if you have something to share or if you are in need.
3. Host/Hostess gifts.
When attending a holiday gathering, it is customary to bring a token or gift for the host. The options are endless, but the ultimate goal is to express your thanks for being invited. At this time of year, coming up with another gift idea can be a challenge. We like the idea of giving something useful and ideally consumable.
Here are some ideas for thoughtful gifts for the host:
Handmade bars of soap paired with fluffy hand towels. Check out one of our favourite local companies, Protocol (https://www.protocolbody.com) for all different scents!
Everything they need to make breakfast for the next day – think, a delicious parfait (gift the granola, yogurt, fruit and honey) or your favourite pancake recipe (gift the recipe and all the ingredients, fruit and some maple syrup).
With New Years just around the corner, a bottle of prosecco is a welcomed gift.
If they like to cook, a good bottle of extra virgin olive oil and a set of cooking utensils.
4. Taking down your decorations.
I know we don’t want to think about this yet, but it’s a monthly blog and we want to share this incredible tip! When you are un-decking the halls, consider de-decorating in zones. Then designate a bin to each zone, so that all of the decorations go back into the same bin and decorating next year will be a breeze! Don’t forget the label! 😉
5. Don’t over book yourself!
Holiday celebrations are loads of fun, but make sure to carve out some down time or you may end up exhausted as you head back to work. This holiday season, make sure you schedule in some time to relax and rejuvenate yourself! A couple of down days at home in between all of the celebrations will benefit everyone in the family.
Here are some low key ideas to recharge your batteries:
Take a nap (or two, or three!)
Movie marathon – you can even pick a series you’ve always wanted to watch or re-watch a favourite
Pajamas day
Tobogganing
Ice skating
Picnic in the living room
Board games
Go on a hike
Build a snowman
Cozy up to a book.