How do you restore the magic of Christmas?

It’s a tough thing to create, either you have it or you don’t. I would try doing the things you used to do during Christmas, maybe that’s watching some corny Holiday movies or making a gingerbread house. Do something to refresh your memory.

Volunteer your time to a worthy holiday cause. Even if you are busy, you can spare an hour or two to help people less fortunate than yourself.

That might do the trick.

Yea, it appears that the spirit of Christmas is more associated with shopping nowadays than anything else. Maybe a good sit down with your family about the true meaning of Christmas (Being EXTREMELY cheesy here) and explaining to your children what it truly means to have peace and goodwill amongst man and his neighbors. I don’t know, it really set the Christmas spirit for me, to not only be at peace with the beautiful, quiet, serene landscape but also with my fellow neighbors.

This is difficult since it does not just involve you.

When my own holiday spirit is elusive, I go away for the holiday. I have had wonderful Christmases at the ocean walking on the beach with no Christmas stuff around. Just quiet present opening, immediate family, and time together.

Unless you can get the family on board with that, it is an issue. First, if you have children, I find it easy to rediscover the magic of Christmas through their eyes. What about asking your son to help you with the lights since he’s older this year? (hypothetical since I don’t know your situation) Perhaps take the whole crew on a trip to the woods to find your own tree (do not get stuck like that hapless West Coast couple did). Could you get the kids to buy toys for Toys for Tots or buy and wrap for another program for kids in need?

Is there something that you found especially memorable or magical in your life about Christmas at one time? Perhaps you could recreate that activity and add it to your family’s celebration while telling your kids about its meaning for you.

You also don’t say why you are not feeling it this year. Is that something you could share with your wife? Communicating it may help you feel better or, at the least, it lets her know the place that you are in so she can support you as you go through the holidays.

I often have trouble this time of year. I am OK so far, but when I get closer to the actual day I am going to be feeling the absence from family and friends (often it is just the idea of that and not the actuality of it that weighs on me) as it is our first Christmas in a new state.

Go see an irreverent Christmas play. I just saw Revenge of the Nutcracker, which is “It’s a Wonderful Life” meets “The Producers” and it’s a drag queen show. It was Christmasy, and I laughed my ass off.

You can start off by changing your avatar to something Christmasy like @J0E and I did!

@erichw1504 “SILVER!!!”

@J0E Silver and gold. Well, what do you think of our friend Cornelius? Seems all he thinks about is silver and gold.

“Who am I? The names Yukon Cornelius, the greatest prospector in the north!”

Watch “Scrooged”, “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, or “A Christmas Carol”. Put on some Christmas music. Make some hot chocolate. Warm up to the season.

My ideas… if the spirit of Christmas for you is giving to others and love for others, then take your wife and kids to the local soup kitchen and help prepare and serve a meal for those less fortunate than you. Or, have your family all write out their Christmas lists, and insist that one of the gifts they request is a donation or volunteer time from you in their names to an organization that is important to them. If the spirit of Christmas is quality time with family, the first suggestion will work, as will planning an evening doing Christmas crafts together, watching a favorite Christmas movie together, driving around looking at Christmas lights together, or some other family activity. If Christmas is a religious celebration to you, take your family to attend a local Christmas chorus, Christmas play, church event, or other event reminding you all of the “reason for the season.” I’m not Christian, so I’m not sure what all is typically available along that vane.

In short, I find that acting as if I’m excited about something and getting involved generally results in my actually feeling enthusiastic about it. Focusing on making things better for others rather than my own feelings also helps me.

Change the routine. Try to do it different then usual.

I for one like the idea of celebrating Christmas on News Years Eve.
Not only do you kill two birds with one stone.

But…
You’ll get a real tree for free.
All that you will buy for Christmas will be discounted since you can now shop after the standard Christmas.
Christmas eve/New Years Eve would be double the fun.

If you have a wife and kids you just have to fake it till you make it probably. Or, maybe do something you typically would not do to change things up like Disney or Skiing in Colorado, get away for the holiday.

great input, thanx. I’m hoping the parade doesn’t get rained out tonite.

Less is more.

Say no to excessive commercialization.

I find goofing off helps. Make crappy decorations out of paper. See who can make the most hideous ornament out of junk in the house. You’ll laugh, bond and make memories that will get you in the spirit.

dump em, being miserable at xmas is much simpler without a family

I wish I could help you – I don’t understand what the spirit of Chrismas is supposed to be – any Christmas related crap I see around me, I don’t want to be a part of it – it’s so fake and pretensious

Do something homemade. Make and decorate cookies or string some popcorn/cranberries for the tree while listening to festive music or your favorite holiday movie from when you were younger.

Start a Christmas notebook. Get a 3 ringed binder. This can also help your wife keep organized. In it, have your family write their favorite things about Christmas. There can be a section for favorite cookies, and they can each put their own along with you and your wife’s recipes. Have a section for traditions that you all enjoy. Singing carols, hanging stockings on Christmas Eve, everyone gets new pajamas, etc. Everyone gets a say. Discuss and throw out things you don’t like. Every Christmas notebook should have a space in back for favorite Christmas memories. Everyone writes their favorite thing that happened that holiday, and you can read about it again next year! Include pictures.

The point is to be involved as a family in traditions that your kids, especially, enjoy. Just listen to them and do what they like and it’ll make its own gravy. Next year, you’ll have those memories to look back on and new adventures to look forward to. It’ll snowball and you’ll have some sense of spirit. And if not, just be there for your kids. That’s always fun, and they’ll love you for it. It’s all about them anyway. :)

The popcorn stringing sounds doable, thanx.

Just humor the suggestions from your wife/kids. Christmases as a teen were the worst for me, because I had the Christmas spirit but the rest of my family didn’t, and I was too old for my parents to do all the cliche stuff.

All I wanted to do was make cookies, have everyone sing while my mom and I play Christmas songs on the piano, and wear Santa hats. Every Christmas in high school ended in tears on my end:(

But now I’m 21 (so not quite your kids’ age) and they’re willing to humor me again. My mom needs to give gifts to her colleagues, so she makes cookies with me that suit her goals while helping me have fun. My dad and brother will sing along when I play piano (although their eyes remain glued to the football game, fair enough), and my brother is willing to wear the Santa hat when we go deliver the cookies to neighbors.

So even if you don’t have ideas, I’m sure your kids do.

give it back to the pagans where it was stolen from

I just ignore the commercial stuff. Staying away from TV helps a lot with that.

Christmas music always puts me in the mood. I mean traditional carols in traditional arrangements, from the likes of the Roger Wagner Chorale and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, maybe with a little Bing Crosby thrown in.

Put on the music and get out the sparkly, shiny things and start going through the motions. Also look for something that smells like Christmas: pine branches, spicy candles, fresh baking. If the spirit is there, it’ll kick in.

Then follow where the star leads you.

@Jeruba – thanx, I especially love that last line!

simple: you don’t.