The holiday season is a magical time of year, filled with opportunities to create lasting memories. Let’s embrace the beauty of the season together with these free or nearly free ways to enjoy the holidays. Here are some ideas to inspire joy without stretching your budget.
It’s Five Faves time with Annie and Cindy
Take A Crisp Walk With A Friend, Your Sister, Cousin or Child
Put on your walking shoes and take a walk with your telephone and earbuds or in person with a buddy. I often text my sister, a friend or one of my kids in other cities and say “Want to take a walk with me?” Then I grab Chief and head out the door for a nice catch-up call.
Try it. Studies show it’s good for your mental health!
Drive Around To See The Christmas Lights With Carols On
For some holiday cheer, we bundle up and take the golf cart around the neighborhood with Christmas carols cranked up to check out the holiday decorations.
Our granddaughter gets buckled into her carseat and she loves seeing the light display.
Then come home for mugs of hot cocoa!
Take Your Time Wrapping Presents With A Favorite Movie On Television
Here is some pretty Christmas wrapping paper and ornaments. Check out my Amazon store. I like to sit on my bedroom floor to wrap gifts with favorite holiday movies on the television.
But Howard didn’t use the Christmas paper… Here’s a text with my sister recently and the presents under the Christmas tree.
Mix Up Your Old Christmas Decor (so that’s its like free decorating)
The garland that we used last year on the banister is now outside around the front door.
Play Some Board Games
It can get a little competitive but we like Monopoly, Scrabble, Rummikub and card games like gin rummy.
Cooking Together Is A Fun Holiday Activity
We are hoping that Luca makes his paella again with his helpers.
Bake Some Treats: The Best Oatmeal Cookies, A Family Favorite
I’ve been trying to lose weight so I am not going to make these until the whole family is here for Christmas. I don’t want to eat the whole batch. We usually have all the ingredients and I like to use GHIRARDELLI Premium Baking 72% Cacao Dark Chocolate Chips.
Oatmeal Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temp.
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 tsp flakey sea salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda; set aside.
- Combine the butter with both sugars; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.
- Reduce speed to low; add the salt, vanilla, and eggs. Beat until well mixed, about 1 minute.
- Add flour mixture; mix until almost combined
- Stir in the oats and chocolate chips. Chill dough for one hour
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Use a small ice cream scooper (two tablespoons) to drop heaping tablespoon-size balls of dough about 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
- Add a couple of chocolate chips on top (to look pretty) of each cookie and a light sprinkle of sea salt.
- Bake until cookies are golden around the edges, but still soft in the center, 8 to 10 minutes
- Remove from oven, and let cool on baking sheet 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool
Bake other holiday treats like Salted Caramel Apple Galette or here is A Roundup Of My Best Desserts.
Read A Christmas Story
When my father-in-law, who was a gifted preacher, was alive he read the story of the nativity to us every Christmas Eve. We want to carry on the tradition.
Those are free activities to enjoy the holidays! What can you recommend to us that gets you in the holiday spirit? Any great volunteer or holiday craft ideas?
Outfit Of The Week For When You Don’t Want To Look Like A Grandma
I bought the silky skirt and sized up so that it’s not too clingy. It can be dressed up or down.
streamlined moto jacket (25% off) • black mock turtleneck • 14k gold knot earrings (on sale) (25% off–I love mine) • Chanel lip gloss • Rails satin skirt • black and gold leather belt I have this • aviator sunglasses • well-priced Italian leather bag • 1/2 priced leather booties I’ve ordered these.
If you would like to receive this series every week, please sign up HERE.
Let’s see what my friends have discovered this week and make sure to wish Cindy a happy birthday this week! It’s a big one!
Best wishes to your Tommy and Mona! Small, intimate weddings are the very best and I can’t wait to hear more. Driving around looking at Christmas lights has been one of my favorite things to do since I was a little riding around in the back of my grandparents Oldsmobile. It never gets old. Printing the oatmeal salted chocolate chip recipe now. Yum. Merry Christmas to you, Howard, Chief and the entire – ever expanding – family! xo
OMG, the wrapping paper story was hilarious! It is good to hear that you are reading the story of the nativity as a continuing family tradition. My sweet Dad was also a gifted Preacher/Pastor and he read this to us from the Bible every Christmas Eve and we continue to do so with all five of our adult children and their families. Thank you for sharing your ideas, thoughts, talents and family with us. Merry Christmas!
Wonderful post Mary Ann! You’ve listed all my favorite things to do during this very beautiful holiday. Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas Mary Ann. Your family is growing! What a joy for you and Howard! Thanks for all the beauty you share. Sincerely, Pat
What a fun post and such great ideas!
Congratulations on your son’s marriage. Your husband gave me a laugh over the wrapping paper. Your holiday suggestions are great. I’m going to get out The Holiday and Love Actually to watch. They are our favorites. Have a wonderful 10 days until Christmas! Enjoy ever minute.
Thanks, Sydney. We are so happy that our son is SO happy. I think I will watch Love Actually today with my daughter.
The birthday wrapping paper incident gave Cindy Hattersley and her husband, Steve a good laugh too!
What a lovely holiday in the making! I printed your cookie recipe and plan to make a batch for an after-dinner dessert with a scoop of ice cream.
Let me know how you like it.
Lovely post! You are a gift to this community. Wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas and the happiest and healthiest of new years.
I’m impressed that your husband took the time to wrap gifts. And a sense of humor to boot. Hooray for him. Merry Christmas to you and yours. Enjoyed this post.
Hi Mary Ann,
Oh wow, how wonderful Tommy and Mona got married. They make an adorable couple. Mona is a beautiful lady. A small intimate wedding is a great thing to do.
Howard is a total sweetheart to wrap the presents, he is a keeper. I understand your reaction after doing your research to find the pretty theme wraps.
I bet that was an errr moment. 🤷♀️ That sounds like something my husband would do too. It’s a guy thing.
Happy healthy merry everything.
Well, I DID move his presents to the back..but they are actually wrapped really well.
Wishing MUCH happiness to your son and new DIL! Thank you for sharing Howard’s gift wrapping ‘gaffe’: if you hadn’t told us, it would seem that he is perfect: he cooks REAL meals and plans amazing vacations! Mine enjoys making tofu ‘experiments’ and I’m pleased when he most-of-the-time agrees to trips I’ve planned! (no real complaints, tho.) My only suggestions re. the holidays are to simply make time to enjoy the season (in spite of all of the extra to-do’s) and let go of perfectionism, as it just makes us grumpy and less fun (yes, these are my bugaboos…). I love your new skirt/jacket/turtleneck outfit: it will look smashing on blondes to brunettes.
Howard is a great guy. I’m keeping him after almost 40 years. That is so funny about the tofu experiments. We are going to have to grandbabies with us…so perfectionism is going out the window!
My youngest daughter did the same. She didn’t want a big wedding with all the fuss and money spent. She’s my fugal, practical daughter. Congratulations to the bride & groom! What a great Christmas gift to the whole family.
I laughed over Howard wrapping in birthday paper instead of your carefully chosen Christmas wrap. A quick retort too!
Love the outfit! A bit edgy but still classy.
Yes…how could I argue with the Jesus’ birthday comment 🙂
Congratulations to your son and new daughter-in-law! And I loved your husband’s idea of the wrapping paper! Wonderful!!!
It was such a nice wedding.
Merry Christmas, Mary Ann! Congrats and best wishes to the newlyweds. I have to chuckle about your hubby and the wrapping paper…I think it looks great! I’ve saved your cookie recipe to my files. Enjoy all the festivities with your sweet family.
IT’S A great cookie recipe! Basic but good!
Howard wrapped his own presents? My husband always bribes / pays my artistic daughter to wrap his gifts. I think the candle paper looks just fine. 🙂
I told him you said that, JULIA!!
I loved your free ideas. Also, my husband is a creative wrapper too!
It’s fun, isn’t it, Julie?
Lovely ideas for meaningful family time during the holidays. Made especially better with your new DIL! You are blessed
I do feel so lucky, Deanna.