It's Beginning to Feel A Lot Like Christmas (10 Things to do This Winter)

I know winter doesn’t technically start until December 21st, but in my head, December 1st is always the beginning of winter. The fact that most of December is actually fall has always been so odd to me! For me, December is the quintessential winter month.

I figured I would share with you all my winter bucket list (a.k.a., the things I’d like to do this winter), in the hopes that it would inspire you to get out and enjoy the season. Maybe, you will even write a bucket list of your own! If you do, please share it in the comment section below 🙂

Find snow: If I’m lucky, this one might just come to me, but if it doesn’t snow in the Tri Cities this winter, I want to make sure I go out and find some. When I do find some, I want to make a snowman, throw some snowballs, and go sledding. I’d also love to get Clark a little snowsuit and take some pictures of him in the snow.
Go ice skating: I swear, I promise myself every year that I’m going to go ice skating, and every year I end up not doing it. Ideally, I’d like to go to an outdoor rink, but I’ll take what I can get!
Get cozy: The perfect winter day, in my mind, involves some cute pajamas, a soft throw blanket, something warm to drink, and a day-long marathon of my favorite book or Netflix series. It will be a little hard to pull this one off in its purest form because Clark can get a little whiny, but the thought of taking a day off to do nothing but enjoy taking care of Clark and the coziness of a good book sounds absolutely divine.
Take seasonal pictures: Can you believe I don’t have any pictures of Brian and I with Clark yet? I have lots of pictures of Clark on his own, and a few selfies of me and him, but none of the three of us. I really want to get dressed up and go somewhere Christmassy to take some family photos this year. I’m still not great at taking tripod photos, but hopefully I can manage to get some good ones.
Bake cookies: I’ll be honest. I actually hate baking and cooking. Every now and then I’ll get in the groove and find it relatively enjoyable (mainly because it makes me feel like a real adult), but for the most part, cooking and baking is a chore. I really want to make sure I suck it up and do some baking this winter, however, because what is winter time without some freshly baked cookies? I’m also kinda craving homemade cranberry bread, to be honest. Though, if it turns out the way my banana bread did, it might be best to skip that one.
Do something creative: Winter is the perfect time to make crafts! This winter I want to take a little bit of time to indulge my creative side, whether that be sketching, making some origami, sewing, or creating a new decoration for the house.
See the snow geese at Freezeout Lake: My parents and I took a trip to go see the snow geese at Freezeout Lake once, and it was absolutely magical. They usually come through sometime around February or March (late winter or early spring). With Brian’s job, taking a trip like this would be tough, but I really would like to see them again. Freezeout Lake is a migration stop for snow geese. If you go at the right time, there are literally hundreds of thousands of them. I’ve never seen anything quite like it in my life.
Visit holiday themed shops: Okay, so I’ve already done this one a bit. That being said, I’d like to find a few more holiday shops to wander. One of my favorite parts of this time of year is soaking in all the decorations. Decorated shops are a great place to do this! Bonus points if I can find some that are giving away hot chocolates or cider!
Pray more: Let’s not forget what Advent and Christmas are all about. This year I want to really focus on rebuilding my prayer life and really delving deep into the richness that Catholicism adds to this time of year.
Build a gingerbread house: Here’s another one the I say I’m going to do every year and fail at! Brian and I have already bought a gingerbread house making kit. I’d love to make one out of scratch, but let’s be honest, that’s not going to happen. Hopefully, the fact that there is a kit sitting in our pantry will make us more likely to actually sit down and do it. I’d really love to build (haha!) a tradition of making gingerbread houses every year.