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As we go into the last few weeks of this agonizing year, why not end it off with some holiday fun? I spent twelve days doing a Christmas related activity each day, here’s how it went:

Day 1- Christmas Game Night

My family is very competitive, so any and all game nights are like World War lll at my house. For this particular game night, the theme was, you guessed it, Christmas. There are plenty of Christmas board games in stores and online, but you don’t need one for Christmas game night. I, for example, played the game “Disney Pictopia,” which my mom unfortunately won. What made this game night Christmas related was the movie we watched, “The Grinch,” and the food we ate, peppermint hot chocolate. Christmas game night is a free and fun activity for the entire family to enjoy. 

Day 2- Ugly Christmas Sweater

This arts and crafts activity is an iconic tradition for all Christmas lovers. For this DIY, Walmart is a girl’s best friend. I got all the supplies I needed from Walmart, for just under $25. I recommend using a glue gun to stick everything on, just so it will stay in place firmly. Also, a sweater can be used, but I got a sweatshirt. This is a great activity to do with friends or family, there’s not much to it, just be creative, your imagination is the limit. 

Day 3- Bake and Decorate Christmas Cookies

What would Christmas be if I didn’t put baking on this list? I personally think that sugar cookie mix is the best mix to use for cutout cookies, but it really doesn’t matter. For this, I just followed the instructions on the back of the mix, rolled out the batter, and used cookie cutters shaped like a house, a gingerbread man, a snowflake, and a snowman. I then put the cutouts in the oven, took them out, and waited for them to cool. After they cooled I used edible green, red, white, and blue gel, and green and red sprinkles to decorate the cookies. This is a quick and easy baking activity that was really fun to do with my family, which took only 30 minutes. 

Day 4- Cookie Drop Off

In past years I would usually host a Christmas party and we’d bake cookies, but with the obvious circumstances, I couldn’t do that this year. So instead I decided to do a cookie drop off, which is where I took the cookies I baked on Day 3, put them in a cute Christmas tin box, and dropped them off at my friends’ houses.  I drove around and put the Christmas cookie tins on their doormats, took a picture of it, and texted it to them, so they know it’s not a random box of cookies, and drove off. I treated the drop off like a game, I set the box down and ran, which might have looked sketchy to the neighbors, but was really fun to do. This is a thoughtful and sweet activity you can do with your friends, especially if you baked one too many cookies. 

Day 5- Angel Tree

Christmas time isn’t just about receiving, it’s also about giving back, especially to those who are less fortunate. The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree is a perfect way to do so. The way it works is that you go to this website and enter your zip code. This will show you your local Salvation Army Unit, choose the closest one to you, and click view registry. This will then take you to the Walmart website, where you can view the registry list, and see every item still needed to be bought. Add all the items you’d like to purchase to your Walmart shopping cart, and once you’re done go to checkout and choose delivery, and Walmart will ship the items directly to your local Salvation Army. This activity is so heart-warming. I bought the Fisher-Price Tic Tac Tony Kids Game, but there are still many more items that need to be purchased. 

Day 6- Christmas Photoshoot 

Whether it’s forced with your family or fun with your friends, you can’t escape the traditional Christmas photoshoots. If photos are a must, then these locations are by far the best for Christmas time. Arlington Highlands, I took my picture here this year and last, this outdoor shopping center decorates every year, putting up a huge tree, and lights all over the center. When the sun goes down is when you should check out these beautiful lights. Dallas Arboretum, this gorgeous botanical garden holds an event called “Holiday at the Arboretum” every year. This features their 12 Days of Christmas attraction and their Christmas Village, which is a great place to take pictures in front of. The location of the pictures affect your whole attitude, so choose somewhere everyone will love. Christmas photos don’t always have to be a burden. 

Day 7- Luminova Holidays

I didn’t get to go to Luminova Holidays, because they were sold out, but I did get tickets for an upcoming date. Even though I didn’t get to experience it personally, I still wanted to incorporate it into the 12 days, because this truly is a great activity to do with friends and family. Luminova Holidays is a limited-time event. It has an outdoor skating rink, mesmerizingly huge lights, and food vendors. You do, because of Covid, have to buy tickets in advance, but it makes the fun a bit safer. Luminova Holidays is a beautiful place to go with friends or family to make cherishing memories forever. 

Day 8- Christmas Interlochen

Want to see some Christmas lights, but don’t wanna be around people? Arlington Interlochen is perfect for this request. Arlington Interlochen is an activity where you drive around a large neighborhood and watch in awe of each house beautifully lit up, each house different from the next, all while staying in the comfort of your own car. The line of cars is very long, and it opens at 7 p.m., but it’s worth seeing these various themed houses. My family always plays a game when we go, we look at all the houses and make notes/take pictures of our favorites, and at the end, we have to say our top three. The game sounds simple but there’s a lot of houses to choose from, these lights and this game are perfect family gathering activities.

Day 9- Red and Green Meals Only

Red and green aren’t just colors for vegetables. For a day I ate red and green breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals only. For breakfast, I ate some avocado toast, with turkey bacon, and roasted tomatoes. For lunch, I had a salad with tomatoes, and some strawberries as a snack. And for dinner, I made some enchiladas with green and red sauce, with a side of Spanish rice. I definitely recommend doing this as a fun challenge, it’s really easy to do and very delicious. 

Day 10- Christmas Playlist

For me, it’s not Christmas until I hear The Jackson 5, Mariah Carey, or Ariana Grande. A playlist helps get the holiday spirit going. Some songs I recommend adding to your playlist would be: “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” by Mariah Carey, “Santa Tell Me,” by Ariana Grande, “Sleigh Ride,” by the Ronettes, “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” by The Jackson 5, and “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber.  Dedicating a whole day to make a new one, or update an old one is the perfect Christmas activity when you’re bored. 

Day 11- Watch Christmas Movies

There are probably hundreds of thousands of Christmas movies that have been made. My favorite types are animations, classics, and, of course, cheesy romances. So, I watched one of each: The Grinch, A Christmas Story, and The Princess Switch. The perfect Christmas movies night includes the movies, the food, and the drinks. While my family and I watched these movies we ate popcorn and drank peppermint hot chocolate. You can never go wrong with a Christmas movie night with the family. 

Day 12- Start a Christmas Book

To end my twelve days off, I started a Christmas book called A Dog’s Perfect Christmas by W. Bruce Cameron. The book is a #1 New York Times bestseller and USA Today bestselling author. I bought this book from Target, which has a varied amount of Christmas books in their Christmas Collection. The book is very good, and I recommend reading a Christmas book right before bed, it feels relaxing and calming. This activity is a perfect way to end the day and the list.