Family Time During the Holidays
This post on Family Time During the Holidays is sponsored by Stephen’s Gourmet Hot Cocoa through the Mom It Forward Influencer Network. All opinions are my own.
When the calendar is quickly approaching December, I can easily feel some dread set in. I love the holiday season, but it can also create a lot of tension.
The one thing that I know helps me is to keep the primary focus on family time during the holidays.
After all, it is the time spent together that forges bonds and creates memories to last a lifetime.
Focus on Family Time During the Holidays
I will be the first to admit that it isn’t always easy. Instead of planning big things, I tend to focus on finding time to build memories through the small things.
This could be taking a hike in brisk weather or just snuggling up on the couch to read a book together. At times, it is the boys heading out to go sledding while I say warm inside.
One of the things we just spent time doing was decorating the tree.
Decorating for the Holiday as a Family
Having just moved across the country, it is interesting digging out all the decorations from the multitude of boxes. However, I know that the boys expect to have a tree and I really want one as well.
I had to first buy a new tree as we donated our older one before the move. Just picking out a tree was a fun process with the boys as everyone had opinions. One of the teens dared to suggest we forgo a tree and just cut one out of the moving boxes to save money. Lucky for the rest of us that he isn’t the decision maker!
Although the local stores were sold out of the model we liked the best, I was able to order it online and have it delivered to our door. My 17-year-old son gladly put the tree together and got it stationed in the space we’d set aside for it. Then we made time to decorate it as a family.
Something that I am totally loving during the process is seeing my youngest son look at different ornaments as they are unpacked and hung on the tree.
Every few minutes he came over to me holding a different ornament.
For each of them, he shares the stories he remembers for ones that are his. “Hey, Mom, here’s the ornament from the year I was born. It’s even got the date on it!”
And, he kept coming over to me when he found ones that my aunt had given me over the years. “Look! This one has your name on it. 1982 sure was a long time ago!”
Okay, I had to resist from saying “gee, thanks kid! Way to make mom feel old.” when he made that comment.
Setting aside an hour or two for decorating is time well spent for me. I want to have time where music plays and people are chatting while working on a common goal. These are the times when I feel those family bonds strengthened and memories being created.
Of course, a good tree decorating ‘party’ needs something to drink and eat. If there is one thing my boys are all for it is refreshments!
Warm Bellies and Hearts with Stephen’s Gourmet Hot Cocoa
When the temperatures dip, hot cocoa becomes a go-to beverage for my family. Just sipping some helps to warm their bellies and bring joy to their hearts.
They love hot cocoa so much that they will sometimes run around outside for a few minutes just to come ask for a cup!
A favorite choice for our family is Stephen’s Gourmet Hot Cocoa. My youngest is quite partial to the CandyCane one while my teens go more traditional with the Milk Chocolate.
Other Stephen’s Gourmet signature cocoa flavors include:
- Salted Caramel
- Mint Truffle
- Dark Chocolate
- S’mores
When we are engaged in an activity like decorating, I like to heat up water and have it ready in a thermos. It is so easy to then set up an area for the refreshments so people can get what they want when they want it.
Mini-marshmallows for my crew are a must have, too.
With a few choices of Stephen’s Gourmet Hot Cocoa at the station, my crew was ready to go.
They adore how rich and creamy the different options are. To see all of their delicious and unique cocoa flavors visit: https://www.indulgentfoods.com/
And when everyone was done, my youngest took time out for hugs on the couch. That is something I will never tire of receiving!
Does your family enjoy drinking hot cocoa?
What are some ways you spend time together as a family during the holidays?
My daughter absolutely loves the hot cocoa as well. She asks for it all of the time, I think I should surprise her with some today.
We love decorating the tree together. We discuss our ornaments also. Love seeing how the kids tastes have changed over the years. We went from elmo to nascar really fast. We also love hot chocolate. Great giveaway!
We have a tradition at our church where we go Christmas caroling and then enjoy hot cocoa as a family. I haven’t made hot cocoa at home in a long time. I like a hot cocoa bar with marshmallows and peppermint sticks.
We do the same thing every year. After Thanksgiving, my husband goes to the attic and carries down the two containers of ornaments we’ve collected over the years. They all have a special meaning and we add a few new ones each year. It’s especially fun to look back on those we each made as kids. As for hot chocolate, there’s truly nothing better once the weather turns cold. My favorite is always milk chocolate with hints of peppermint. I wish for your family a very happy holiday! x
I am exactly the same. I love the holidays but I worry it will pass by too quickly with the stress of it all!! My oldest is 12 years and is starting to pull away from the family events claiming he is too old. This year I have managed to include him by giving him ‘grown up jobs’. For our decorations outside, i made him the electrical technician. For the tree, he got to put the special ones on. Spending time as a family is the most important thing. Hot chocolate is one sure way to always bring him around! I can’t wait to try the salted caramel flavour!
They definitely try to pull away as they enter the teen years. My 17 year old is happy to do things with the youngest son, but the 14 year old often “hibernates.” Of course, he had no problem popping out to enjoy hot cocoa with us!
I’ll take them all, LOL! I so agree, family time is so important in our house, we do everything together. Its so easy to lose site throughout the chaos’s, it’s the most beautiful time of the year and sharing it with family makes it even better. Love the images and so funny to see you mention the kids pointing out their ornaments they created, my kids do the same thing. Happy Holidays!
I totally want the Stephen’s Candy Cane Hot Cocoa! That sounds SO yummy! Well, they all sound great but I do love anything with a mint flavor! Thanks for the giveaway too! I love your tips and yes indeed – holidays can be chaos – we need to remember it’s about FAMILY!
Yes! Family should be the center of the holidays.
The CandyCane is definitely the favorite here for my boys. Mint goes so well with chocolate.