How to Have the Happiest Holiday Break!

Winter break is full of fun, food, friends and folks. AND of course – brightly wrapped gifts! It can also feel awkward. You could be spending time with people you don’t know very well. To make the time even worse, YOUR PARENTS WILL TELL YOU TO PUT YOUR SMARTPHONES AWAY! HORROR!

Before you think about going back to school after winter break, now is the time to ponder how you spend time with these people — especially when you haven’t even seen their social media profile.

Holiday Moments

What do you talk about? What do you do?  Relax. Here are some helpful ideas to make awkward real-life moments easier.

Ask your guests the same questions that you answer on social media. Remember when you made your social media page? You posted details like your favorite singer, your favorite movie, what books and sports you like. Talk to your guests about these topics. You will probably find out that you have a lot in common.

Being stuck in a house with your phones turned off can feel weird. Before your guests arrive, think of three things you can do with your company outside of the house. Skating, snow ball fights, walking to a near-by attraction, even showing your company your school.  There are plenty of things to do in or outside the house.

Don’t worry about sounding lame. Your guests will probably feel relieved to be away from the adults for a short time. If you are going to be in a strange town or location, take time to look up sights in the area. Then, if time together starts to feel weird, you can come to the rescue.

Things to Do

Learn some magic tricks. With a plain deck of cards you can have people scratching their heads and in awe. You never know—you might have real talent for magic. Even if you don’t, you’ll have fun with the challenge.

Even if you may not be allowed to use your computer or phone, you can still play games. You probably have a stack of board games hidden somewhere in a closet. Dig them out and learn the rules. Or get that deck of cards you used for magic tricks.

Before you hand your phone over to your parents, look up games you can easily teach your guests. There is something fun for every age and skill level.

Remember that no one is perfect.

Everyone feels awkward from time to time.

When you are together with relatives you don’t know very well, they are probably feeling like you are. Time without your phone will feel funny. Just be yourself and let yourself have fun in the real world.

Discover 24 days of fun and cheap holiday activities.
That’s over three weeks of things to do!

An Incredible Free Holiday Gift!

This holiday season, there is one gift you can give the world that doesn’t cost one cent. Be nice. Being nice is easy. It can take many forms. You could use your graphics program to create a thoughtful message and stick it in the lockers at school. You can shovel the walks of elderly people you know.

You can even use social media. Consider posting messages of goodwill to as many people as you can. The trick is to post positive messages to people you may not like or even get along with.

“Be nice? No way. I hate him.” That might be true, but think about this: There are people who like and even love that person that you hate. No matter how you feel about a person, someone else sees good and worthwhile qualities in him or her.

Remember, that guy or girl you dislike has friends, family, neighbors and co-workers who like them. And people you dislike probably dislike you! And you know in your heart that you are a good person, just like people you don’t like think that they are a good person.

Still think it is impossible to be nice to someone you hate? Then you need to hear an amazing story about soldiers being nice to people they were trying to shoot.

The Magic of the Holidays

Go back in your mind to World War 1, December, 1914. On one side of the battlefield: The Germans. On the other side: British, French and Belgian troops.

Soldiers were huddled in the cold dirt, in trenches on both sides. Late on Christmas eve night, the moon was bright and magical. Someone on the German side rose from his hole in the ground to start singing Christmas carols.

Other German soldiers soon joined in. When they were done, the other side—the Allies—sang a Christmas carol in return. Soon, the men were out of their trenches, singing carols and exchanging their meager supplies as goodwill gestures and shows of holiday spirit.

Of course, the commanders far away from the fighting did not approve of such behavior, but the soldiers there face to face with the enemy set aside their hostilities to be kind and thoughtful human beings, even in the face of war and death.

Reports on what happened the following days vary, but all agree that the front-line soldiers on both sides declared an unofficial truce. In some reports, the soldiers even played soccer on the battlefield.

Of course, sadly, the war resumed. For years to follow, soldiers fought for freedom in Europe. But in 1914 for the Christmas holidays, the soldiers set down their rifles and sang to the enemy.

Google the Christmas miracle of 1914. Then ask yourself if it truly is impossible to spread peace and goodwill for the holidays, even to people you think you hate.

Parents, learn what you can do to provide safe fun for kids during school holidays breaks.