I really can’t believe we’re about a week away from the last Christmas of the decade! I’m thankful to be done with work for the year, although I am especially thankful for the work days, too. I set our Christmas table several weeks ago, but haven’t had a chance to blog pictures of it yet, so here are a few:
This year I have once again used a mixture of Blue Willow and Spode Christmas tree. If you follow me on Instagram, you may remember that last year I used these same two patterns, but in reverse. I’ll post a picture below to remind you. I am a lover (hoarder?) of all things Blue Willow, so inevitably it shows up in my holiday decor.
This year I have come up with some fun things to do with our kids now that they’re older. We obviously aren’t doing things like visiting Santa or writing him letters. But teens can be especially reluctant to spend quality time together, which we joking call, “Forced Family Fun.”
I don’t want our holiday time to actually feel forced, though. I want them to be excited. They have worked really hard this semester in school (one in their first official year of college, and one in their first year of high school), so I want them to blow off some steam and enjoy their break. I’m also cognizant of keeping up with Christmas fun for our younger teen who is still living at home. She deserves the same years and experiences as her older brother. I don’t want things to just “drop off” because our family dynamic has changed.
Here are a few things we’ve got planned for the coming week:
- Gingerbread House Contest (with prizes! i.e. motivation to participate and have fun!)
- Cookie Baking
- Outdoor Fire-pit Time
- Shopping and Wrapping Presents for each other
- Christmas Lights displays
- A Christmas Puzzle (We do one each year, and this year I found the cutest one. Follow me on Instagram to see it.)
- Christmas Eve church service, followed by late night Waffle House
- Christmas Movie time together with snacks.
I’d love to hear how you make the season fun with teens and young adults! Please feel free to share in the comments below. Goodness, I can use all the help in that department that I can get!
Merry, merry Christmastime to you and yours!
Belle Antiquarian 
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