Our Family Weekend of Hygge

Perhaps you've heard of Hygge before.  Quite simply it's a Danish cultural practice embracing everything cozy about winter.  Coming from a family who is prone to SAD (Season Affective Disorder) and is undergoing a somewhat 'dry' February (this is our third year of limiting our drinking in the month of February), creating a weekend where we embraced Hygge seemed like something fun to look forward to together and to break up the monotony of winter by leaning into it.

Hygge is about curating a space where you embrace coziness and relaxation and is all about wellness.  Having felt like we still haven't recovered from a busy holiday season, a weekend involving embracing the great indoors (and outdoors a little bit, but then retreating back to our den of comfort) seemed really appealing. Here's how we did it.

Molly enjoying hot chocolate 

Book a Block of Time in Advance
Look at your calendar and try to allocate at least a day or two to embrace Hygge. We booked an entire weekend starting on the Friday night and working right through to our Sunday night.

Figure Out What Cozy Means For You & Your Family
To us this meant lots of blankets, candles, comfortable clothes, and warm beverages (think tea and hot chocolate).  We stocked up on all of these and had them readily available all weekend long. I indulged in a face mask and a brunch catch up with a friend.

Plan Your Time
We wanted to make this experience about family togetherness. Our quiet time was a mish mash of quiet reading, board games, puzzles, crafts, soft music, family movies, crock pot meals, Lego Building, and naps.  We also planned an outing on Sunday to check out ice sculptures, enjoying a winter activity and then retreating back home for some more warm comforts and togetherness.  All meals were baked, slow cooked, and based on comfort foods with one delivery exception.

Enjoying the Ice Sculptures In Yorkville

What We Played
-Zombie Dice
-Yahtzee
-Jenga


Movies We Watched
-13 Going On 30
-The Greatest Showman
-The Muppets

Would I Do It Again?
Yes, much like Dry February this is going to become an annual occurrence in our house.  We all had fun and look forward to doing it again.

What I'd Do Differently
I would stop by a fruit market before hand to up the fresh fruit we had on hand. Next year I might add in a little more self care whether it's bath bombs, a massage, or just painting my nails with Molly.


Happy Winter Everyone, Only a month and a half to go!

When The Party Is Over

Last week I had a solid case of the January blahs. I was sick with a head cold, had a less than stellar work week, and the kids were not adjusting their 'back to school' schedule no matter how much we tried at the end of the holiday season to get them back to a normal bed time routine.

Weeks like this are the few times when I miss having a coworker, particularly my former work wife Mrs. C, to commiserate with over coffee.

One morning Jack literally brought a pillow into the bathroom with him so he could "lay down" while brushing his teeth.  The kids were up late at night and exhausted each morning.  Chris and I felt like we had no evening to ourselves.  It was gloomy outside, and then it rained the same amount it normally does in a month in 24 hours.

I was ready to have a pity party.  And maybe I did, just a little bit, but I got over it pretty quickly.  We left up our tree until January 6th this year so we could enjoy the twinkling lights for a few extra days. I upcycled our received holiday cards into gift tags for next year.  I darned some socks, took some long naps to recover from my illness instead of pushing myself too hard.  We cleaned out our closets and donated some clothes. Molly and I planted some micro greens that have started to sprout, Why Hello!

This week I'm feeling a lot better.  I've reached out to more friends for coffee and some in person socialization. I've been walking the dog on the sunny side of the street. The kids are doing a readathon fundraiser for their library and it's been particularly nice to cuddle with them and read after a long day.  Chris and I have been playing cribbage nearly every night and I'm filling up our social calendar to beat out the worst of the winter blues.

We're taking the beginning of 2020 slowly, because we don't have to tackle an entire decade in the first two weeks of the year.  I am looking forward to our hygge weekend in a few weeks.  Any books, games, candles, or snack recommendations you'd like to share, let me know.

Stay cozy as the cold weather sets in and be kind to yourself as blue Monday approaches.