Family Activities To Do At Home This Season

This year’s holidays may look different from those of years past for those who are planning on sticking around the home.

We know some people are looking at the upcoming season with dread, but we have many ideas about enjoying the holidays at home. Like the Grinch, you may find your heart growing several sizes larger once you check out these fun family activities to do at home.

To help inspire you, we have split our holiday family activities into three main categories. Whether it’s something you can create and eat, something you can decorate or something you can celebrate near or far, give holiday joy at-home a chance.

Celebrating with Food

Special holiday-centric treats and the fun of making and eating them are all part of a good celebration. Put your spin on the things your family has loved eating over the years.

Maybe you will create a homemade gingerbread masterpiece. If that sounds like a stretch, you could keep things simple with a store-bought kit. Dig out family favorites and taste-test to your heart’s content.

Countless options exist beyond cookie-making and decorating, of course. Try DIY eggnog or a hot chocolate bar with toppings and mix-ins to suit everyone in your family. You could do the same with a festive popcorn setup, the perfect partner for a holiday movie night.

A fun way to get the whole family involved is to make it competitive. Test your cookie-decorating skills against everyone else and see who wins a judged competition. Practice cocktail or mocktail-making to see whose holiday drink scores the most points.

You can even get the community involved with a socially distant cookie swap. Everyone makes a few batches of their best cookies, then packages them up with a recipe card. Deliver these packages avoiding contact and watch as your swaps appear on your step or in the mail.

Decorate Your Space

If you are going to be at home, you may as well make it a place that you truly enjoy. Push the comfort and joy up a notch with holiday decorating being a family activity.

Decorate a tree and your doors. Buy window markers. For the most adventurous, make your home its own life-size gingerbread house.

It’s always fun to create ornaments, especially if you can theme them around things that happened this year. Every time you pull those ornaments out in the years to come, you will think back on your time spent creating them with family.

If you have the space and the kids are excited about the idea, put up mini-trees in their rooms to experience decorating for themselves. This lets them have the joy of choosing a theme or color scheme and provides even more decoration to make your house shine this holiday season.

Once your home is decorated, think about ways to enjoy it even more. Maybe that family movie night could be a sleepover under the Christmas tree? A ball of mistletoe might invite a kiss or two.

Reach Out Beyond Your Home

Once your home is beautifully decorated and full of delicious holiday treats, it’s time to reach out beyond your home with virtual or electronic holiday family celebrations. Using your screen for something outside of work or school will help that Zoom fatigue melt away.

Think about the in-person activities you might be missing this year, but don’t stop there. Consider how to replace or replicate them. For example, should your family enjoy caroling as a way to give back to your community, consider setting up a virtual caroling night with a seniors residence, or host your own and collect donations for a good cause.

Many families enjoy holiday parties and games. Any teenager will tell you that it’s easy to play games with others online. Why not connect with other members of your extended family and friends virtually for an online game or party?

If church and religious services are your reason for the season, you can find an online service that feels right for you, your friends and family. You can enjoy the songs, readings and other traditions, from the safety and comfort of your own home.

Please don’t let anyone lose hope this holiday season. With persistence and some creativity, there are many ways to have fun with the family during the holidays.

Choose your favorites from our selection or invent your own. Whatever you do, have a well-earned rest, enjoy your family and stay safe.