A Merry COVID Christmas

In Texas, we spend the entire month of August baking in the 100+ degree temperatures and end up feeling as dried out as the week-old turkey leftovers from Thanksgiving. So, inevitably, I begin daydreaming about Christmas, cooler temperatures, and fun times with family and friends. This year, 2020, my Christmas fever is out of control!

As I watch everything unfolding in the world around me, I am craving JOYlike never before. I’m betting you are too…even if you don’t know it.

Many people may be worried the Christmas Holidays are going to be ruined like many of the other benchmarks of 2020. I have a very different perspective.

We may not be able to celebrate with the big events or travel the way we usually do, but I believe, if we let it, 2020 will refocus our priorities for the season and make some of the best memories our families will ever have from the holidays. So, the question of the year is, how do we make that happen?  

In The World According to Wendy,I believe we must first focus on our own mindset in order to have a Merry COVID Christmas. So, let’s start there. You pack up other decorations that are out year-round to make room for your Christmas home décor to go out, right? Consider this the process of packing up the distractions and clutter of this year in your mind to start with a blank slate for laying out your plans for the Christmas season.

1. Choose JOY & Share It! We can look at the situation and be angry or bitter because things aren’t exactly like we want them, or we can be grateful to celebrate and make the most of this unconventional year. Only we can control our attitude and which perspective we choose. It’s truly that simple. You control how you will experience and remember this December 25, 2020. What will you choose?
2. Find Your Focus!All of us have a different way to celebrate Christmas. It means something unique to everyone. Knowing what is most important to you and focusing to make sure that is accomplished will be key to walking into the new year feeling successful about how you closed out 2020 with a holiday for the ages!
3. Be an Early Bird: We probably can’t celebrate the same way we do every year and expect to get the results we want. Finding new ways to create moments and memories won’t happen without new effort. So, start planning now! Don’t be afraid to be creative, and remember, sometimes keeping things simple makes them the best. All of it will take planning and preparation to keep the stress away. Schedules are increasingly working their way back to pre-COVID activity levels, but we still have a little extra time on our hands that we didn’t in other years, so see it as a gift and use it wisely.

You’ve checked your attitude, established your goal, and embraced the fact that some extra thought has to go into this year’s festivities, so what’s next? We need ideas and new ways to do things, so each week for the next 12 weeks, I’ll be sharing my top 12 ideas on how to create a Merry COVID Christmas. I hope it will bring you inspiration and encouragement as you plot your holiday strategy. Please feel free to share any ideas you have, too. You can reach me at info@texaschristmaspickle.com.

Please join us next week as we “Throw Out The Rules” and begin our 12-week process to creating a Merry COVID Christmas!

In the Spirit of Christmas -

Wendy