It’s the day after Christmas, and for many of us, that means we’ve been going non-stop for a while now. There is the traveling to see family (or family traveling to see you), the shopping for gifts, shopping for special occasion food, shopping for the toilet paper you were just about to run out of, and, well, shopping for shopping’s sake. Visiting friends, baking cookies/cupcakes/pies for home, work, and school. Many of us spend an awful lot of December in either the car or the kitchen.

Stop and enjoy the scenery.
Photo by Corrie Blackshear, 2013. All rights reserved.

The thing is, all of those activities I just mentioned? The point of them is to make someone happier, right?

We stood in line for that one toy or electronic gizmo for one of the kids.

We waited for seating at a restaurant because his mom really likes that place.

We broke into fisticuffs over the last spiral-cut ham at the Commissary because it’s hubby’s favorite.

In the end, though, it’s not the video game, or the service at that restaurant, or even the ham that people will remember…it’s the time spent together with the people that we love.

For me, that means stopping for a while and taking time to smell the roses (or in deference to the season, the candy canes). Instead of rushing out for a fancy brunch somewhere, make a mess in your own kitchen.

Enjoy the scenery.

Head out to the yard for a snowball fight or some touch football.

Play a (gasp!) board game (it turns out they’re still fun).

Grab a couple of favorite holiday movies and get everyone together in their jammies on the couch to watch them.

If mom or dad is deployed, there are still ways to spend the holiday (or the days after it) with them. Try to set up an extra Skype date and hang out a little bit. Send a copy of the movie you watched so that mom or dad can watch it too, then talk about it together. When you sit down to make some cool crafts, have the kids make a couple of extra ones and send them as part of a care package. It doesn’t matter if they’re Christmas themed and they’ll get them after Christmas…when it comes to care packages, it truly is the thought that counts.

Here’s what it boils down to: Stop and take a moment to breathe. Enjoy yourself, right where you are, right now. You can always drive to the mall for post-holiday craziness later.

How do you slow down during the holiday madness and take time for you?