Christmas in July 2019 - Day Thirteen

Join our amazing community
Share what you know, learn something new!
register

PamelaG

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Premiere Member
May 27, 2011
4,629
5,728
113
Washington, the Evergreen State
Sorry for the late start today - I spent quite a bit of time at the Hallmark Keepsake Ornament Premiere - a little time browsing and a lot of time standing in line as it was packed! I'll put my ornament stash up on my blog later today.

Today's topic is Filling the Calendar - non-food - special events or activities in December? With your family, neighborhood, co-workers, church, school, clubs? Can't wait to hear what everyone has planned!
 

Minta

Super Moderator
Staff member
Premiere Member
Oct 14, 2007
1,989
1,994
113
50
South NJ
Some of the things we are planning for this year:
Driving around looking at Christmas lights at least twice.
Trip to the mall to take in the atmosphere, decorations and people watch.
Trip to 6 Flags Great Adventure between Christmas and New Years. We did this last year and it was fun.
There is a farm nearby that is transformed into Christmas Wonderlands and will visit that this year.
Want to go to Philly for their Christmas Market in Love Park. We have done a day trip to NYC the last couple years but this year decided to stay a little closer to home.
School Band Christmas concert to watch our son perform with the band.
Some Christmas Movie/shows marathon with the family. Everyone gets to pick their favorites and we pencil in nights to watch them.
 

PamelaG

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Premiere Member
May 27, 2011
4,629
5,728
113
Washington, the Evergreen State
Those are all great ides, Minta. Ours have been similar and we usually try to have something, at home or away from home, on the calendar for each day in December. Christmas lights most definitely and especially this year since we're in a new area. I love that people share great neighborhoods for lights on local Facebook pages. The mall is always on the list, not so much to shop but to look at the decorations and displays. Our mall choices usually include a bookstore so we can have a festive drink and browse through the books and magazines. Busch Gardens was our equivalent to 6 Flags and it was always so beautifully decorated. There's something similar here, not a theme park, but a zoo or botanical garden that goes all out for the holidays. I'd love to head to the nearest city to see their decorations - not sure which one is on our list for this year. No more school band or choir performances for us but I'll look out for local churches having special events and maybe a living nativity. Movies, of course, and at least one at the theater. There's always a new holiday movie or two to make a fun night out.

So much fun to anticipate!
 

Holiday_Mom

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Sep 12, 2009
3,808
6,160
113
We use to do a lot more things when the kids were younger and their schedules weren't filled with homework and school activities. These days we keep it very simple. These are the things we like to do between Thanksgiving and Christmas every year:
  • Bake cookies.
  • Read Christmas books.
  • Watch a Christmas show together.
  • Cut our own Christmas Tree.
  • Have a Christmas tree decorating party with music and food.
  • Go to the high school Christmas concert.
  • Go to the middle school Christmas show.
  • Dh goes shopping with our children one night for my gift.
  • I go shopping with the children another night for dh's gift.
  • Attend an Advent church service.
  • Buy toys and donate to Toys for Tots.
  • Buy gifts for people listed on our church's Giving Tree ornament.
  • Drive around to see Christmas lights.

Things we've done in the past:
  • Go to a Christmas parade.
  • Walk through towns and villages decorated for Christmas at night.
  • Horse drawn carriage ride at night in Cape May, NJ.
  • Make Christmas ornaments.
Things I'd like to do:
  • Go visit a Dickens festival.
 

Holiday_Mom

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Sep 12, 2009
3,808
6,160
113
Some of the things we are planning for this year:
Want to go to Philly for their Christmas Market in Love Park. We have done a day trip to NYC the last couple years but this year decided to stay a little closer to home.
Minta, I didn't know about Philadelphia having a Christmas Market. Bethlehem, PA has a Christkindlmarkt but I think that there is an entrance fee. I'd like to see that one day. Also, there is a Dickens Festival in Narberth, PA and one in Wellsboro, PA.

My parents have a house in Wildwood, NJ. We went to Cape May one night to do a carriage ride. It was a gift from my parents. :) Cape May is decorated for Christmas and the shops are open on the weekends.
 

MrsSoup

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Oct 13, 2007
19,147
10,585
113
Missouri
We always bake cookies and I have Christmas music playing all the time. This year I want to go downtown and see the lights. We've lived here for two years and haven't done it. We've been to the parade once and I want to go again this year. We missed last year because of a Girl Scout function or something. Not this year because neither of the kids are doing scouts. We try to go to the beach on Christmas and send our families pictures. haha I want to have the foresight to take a family photo in advance this year for a Christmas card and print them in enough time to send them as a Christmas card. I'm never that prepared so I think I marked it in my calendar this year, need to check on that. I will take the photo and do all that, just need to make sure that I give myself enough time to order the cards.
 

Minta

Super Moderator
Staff member
Premiere Member
Oct 14, 2007
1,989
1,994
113
50
South NJ
Minta, I didn't know about Philadelphia having a Christmas Market. Bethlehem, PA has a Christkindlmarkt but I think that there is an entrance fee. I'd like to see that one day. Also, there is a Dickens Festival in Narberth, PA and one in Wellsboro, PA.

My parents have a house in Wildwood, NJ. We went to Cape May one night to do a carriage ride. It was a gift from my parents. :) Cape May is decorated for Christmas and the shops are open on the weekends.

Philly started the Christmas market several years ago and I have always wanted to go but never did. Trying to make it happen this year. Here is the link for it. http://www.philachristmas.com

Cape May is such a pretty town. May have to try to visit there one Christmas too. I love the Christmas Shops in WIldwood :) especially the one on the boardwalk.
 

GrammaDeb

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Jan 4, 2014
2,440
3,413
113
70
Nevada
DH's family - in Los Angeles - the week before Christmas, went to China Town to shop and enjoy dinner. To continue part of that tradition, wherever we have lived, we have always taken our family out for Chinese dinner the week before Christmas. My mil always baked cookies and sweet things, and our family joined her to go Christmas caroling and drop off plates of goodies to friends & neighbors. We went caroling with friends on horseback one year, and we about froze...didn't do that again. I still bake and take plates of goodies - but no more singing. When the kids were still at home we bundled up in coats, hats & scarves and snuggled together under blankets to watch the Christmas Light Parade in town and had a big pot of hot chili with cornbread and hot chocolate when we got home.

We have a large outside mall with upscale department stores. I would like to take dh this year to see the window displays.
 

Myron's Mom

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Jul 1, 2018
2,693
6,086
113
Ohio
This year our big event will be to see white christmas, the musical at playhouse square. We are planning to see an afternoon performance so we will have a nice dinner somewhere after. When our son was still at home we always saw the nutcracker.

Generally we start the holiday season on thanksgiving night by watching miracle on 34th street and white Christmas. Black Friday (weather permitting) we cutdown a Christmas tree. We have done that every year since we’ve been married. It was a really big deal for our son who was 8 when I married his dad. We had a special saw with a big red bow ( husband uses chain saw now). Then out for pizza afterwards.

School Christmas concerts always included dinner out before hand with the grand parents. Christmas Eve we would have a big family dinner and then we would all go to church to hear my husband’s Christmas message.

My husband would love to go back down to Ogelbay in wheeling West Virginia to see the lights. Very pretty when there is snow. Of course then the roads are usually bad. I haven’t enjoyed it all that much in the past but I think this year I’ll suggest we go.
 

AuntJamelle

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Oct 22, 2007
4,320
2,643
113
South Bend, IN
The first big event of the season is our annual Christmas party for friends - the first Sat of the month but this year I think we will actually do Sat, Nov 30th!!! Which will mean I'll be putting up Christmas the weekend before Thanksgiving this year - there is no way I can decorate the house AND get ready for the party in one day - Yipe!

Dec 1st I think the box for the Pajama Elves will arrive for DS :)

Shortly after that will come a trip to the mall to see Santa (very likely our last year - waaaah!)

Then we'll have two of DH's brother's and their wives over for dinner one night

We'll take a night to drive around and see Christmas lights!

Either cookie decorating or gingerbread house decorating will happen!

I have my eye on something special this year - our local civic theater is doing Elf and I am going to try and have us go to a performance!!!

Every Friday night in December we will watch a Christmas movie, have popcorn, etc.

Those are the major events before we get to Christmas Eve, etc.
 

PamelaG

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Premiere Member
May 27, 2011
4,629
5,728
113
Washington, the Evergreen State
This year our big event will be to see white christmas, the musical at playhouse square. We are planning to see an afternoon performance so we will have a nice dinner somewhere after. When our son was still at home we always saw the nutcracker.

Generally we start the holiday season on thanksgiving night by watching miracle on 34th street and white Christmas. Black Friday (weather permitting) we cutdown a Christmas tree. We have done that every year since we’ve been married. It was a really big deal for our son who was 8 when I married his dad. We had a special saw with a big red bow ( husband uses chain saw now). Then out for pizza afterwards.

School Christmas concerts always included dinner out before hand with the grand parents. Christmas Eve we would have a big family dinner and then we would all go to church to hear my husband’s Christmas message.

My husband would love to go back down to Ogelbay in wheeling West Virginia to see the lights. Very pretty when there is snow. Of course then the roads are usually bad. I haven’t enjoyed it all that much in the past but I think this year I’ll suggest we go.
We went to see White Christmas at the theater in Boston when we lived in RI. It was fabulous.
 

Ahorsesoul

Moderator
Premiere Member
Oct 13, 2007
15,375
6,026
113
In front of my computer
This is easy for me. We do really do not plan a lot at this time of year. Now that we are retired we do not have any work related events. With DD living here we keep to her schedule and a lot of people upset her. DD will have a Christmas party at work but she doesn’t like to go. (Think of lots of people that she has no idea of what anyone is saying and she can’t hear the music).

I usually do a party for the Life Coaches but we are down to just one now so I’ll probably just do something with her. So pretty dull in our circle.

Will do one day of cookie decorating with DGS if DS is over being mad at us. If not I’ll do it with DDs friend or have them do a craft.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Holiday_Mom

teachermomof2

Santa's Elves
Premiere Member
Oct 27, 2007
14,638
4,491
113
PA
I hope to visit the lighted, musical tree in town with the family this December.
I'd also like to go to a drive through light display during the season.
We will have a movie night to watch A Christmas Story.
The family always decorates the tree together.
We will have M's school concert.
I'd also like to get to Pittsburgh for their Christmas market and ice skating.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Holiday_Mom

sweetpumkinpye

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Apr 23, 2008
16,881
20,641
113
59
Canberra, Australia
Over the years as the kids have grown we seem to do less and less, I am hoping to add a few new things to the list this year.
DD usually comes over on the day we are to put up the tree, she is the official tree fluffer. When the decorate the tree and add this years ornament. I hope to continue that.
This year I would like to go to the night markets.

We try to get together with DH sister for a meal out.
Look at Christmas lights is a must do.
Donate to the giving tree and a charity.
Bake biscuits and pies at mum's house.
Do some late night shopping.
Carols by Candlelight.
Christmas eve at our house.
Afternoon tea with BF's parents. (hoping to start this one this year)
 

housewife2

Well-Known Member
Premiere Member
Aug 3, 2008
5,187
5,738
113
74
va
havent decided yet. we always make cookies see the christmas lights around town. watched christmas movies all thur december. will plan more as time gets closer