“It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” 

Christmas decorations, snow-covered pine trees, hot cocoa with marshmallows are all things that bring out the Christmas spirit.  

Can you feel the Christmas spirit yet? There is no snow on the ground, which makes it a little bit difficult to feel the excitement of the upcoming holidays. 

The holiday requires so many things to be done such as gifts to buy and decorating the Christmas tree. 

While you are busy preparing for Christmas, I will share a list of some ideas you can do before Christmas to help you get into the Christmas spirit. 

First thing, take a look at all your Christmas decorations. You can assess whether you need new ones or if the ones you already own are good enough. Try to decorate whenever you can. Start with the small parts of your home, and move on to bigger rooms, and finally decorate your backyard and front yard. You can even make your own decorations from paper and other things that you have laying around in the house. If you have pets, you can dress them in cute Christmas outfits. Do not forget to decorate your tree; remember it is the symbol of Christmas. You can create a color theme to make the decoration process more fun. Be creative! 

When you have finished decorating, you can then fill your afternoons or evenings with classic Christmas movies. There are multiple platforms that have a variety of Christmas movies. For example, Hallmark Channel offers National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Home Alone, A Christmas Story, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Elf, Christmas with the Kranks, Jingle All the Way, etc. You can also search for Christmas movies on Netflix. Just remember to grab a delicious drink and your favorite holiday snack. 

Nothing can get you into the festive Christmas spirit more than Christmas music. Make a Christmas holiday playlist. There are many Christmas themed songs on iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, or whatever source you use. It is simple, just search your favorite songs and keep adding them to your list, and before you know it you will create a list that you can listen to every Christmas holiday season. Do not forget to share it with your family and friends! 

Another good idea to have the feeling of Christmas is to bake an assortment of cookies with friends and family. This activity is a fun way to spend your time and create wonderful memories. In addition, you’ll easily reminiscence about childhood Christmases with your parents and at the end of the baking process, you’ll have a delicious treat. There are a handful of cookie recipes on the Internet. If you’re a visual person, you can search YouTube for some helpful videos. Just follow the instructions, and you will make the perfect cookies. You can eat cookies with your family, and send some over to your relatives, friends, and neighbors, so they can feel the Christmas spirit as well. 

Organize a gingerbread house contest with your family and friends. It is going to be more challenging than making Gingerman cookies, but it will be also more fun. It is going to take time and patience, but do not take it too seriously! You can get the whole family to help with different tasks, which makes it a pretty good bonding experience. You can compete with each other to win a special prize. Then, you can decide whether to eat it or save it. Do not forget to take pictures! 

When you get enough of the Christmas spirit, you can feel even more festive by making Christmas cards. There are many Christmas cards you can buy, but it is more fun to make your own unique cards. You can get simple paper, colorful markers, and glitter; and just like that, you will have enough materials to create Christmas cards. You can look for some ideas on how to make cards on the internet. It may be beneficial to use websites such as Pinterest, Juxtapost, or Mamby. These sources will help you to get inspired and create perfect Christmas cards. Do not forget to add thoughtful words to those Christmas cards and send them to your loved ones. This experience will help you to feel more productive, and grateful. 

Everyone likes to receive gifts, but giving gifts can be more exciting. Think of some thoughtful gifts you wish to give your family and friends. You can buy presents or make them yourself. Wrapping presents is an important part of this experience. Try wrapping presents with grace by using some nice wrapping. You can search YouTube for wrapping tutorials. Trust me; your loved ones will appreciate your kindness and thoughtfulness. 

Do you feel the Christmas spirit yet? That is what I thought. Now you are full of Christmas spirit and you are ready to inspire others. Now you can relax and sip hot chocolate. You are ready for a magical Christmas. 

Olga Kopp is a Dakota Student Art and Community Writer. She can be reached at [email protected]