If you're feeling a bit sad this holiday because your family is far away, take heart. There are still ways to keep up with holiday traditions, and even create a few new ones. The following ideas will help you stay in touch and create a lasting heirloom all at the same time.
Ornament Exchange
If you can’t get together every year for the holidays, you can still have a part of your family with you in spirit. Why not do a homemade gift exchange each year, where one family sends ornaments to another. Families can choose names and have individuals send ornaments to each other specifically, or just send one piece to each other.
Seeing a new ornament every year will help family members feel closer, and offer a reminder of them each time the Christmas tree is put up. For an even more meaningful exchange, make the ornaments yourself. Homemade ornaments don’t have to be perfect, in fact, the more unique and even silly they are, the more cherished they become.
Skype
The world of conference calls has opened up to the point where you don't need to even pay to "talk" to someone live anymore. Skype offers a variety of calling and conferencing plans, and even has a free variety if you all just want to do a group chat at once. If you have video camera software and equipment, you can also see each other's smiling faces as you talk. It could be the next best thing to being there.
Family Holiday Blog
To share your individual holiday experience and photos, why not start a blog devoted especially to the holidays? You can limit access to just your family members (so you don't need to worry about the rest of the world seeing what you write) and start up a free site on Blogger or WordPress. Photos and videos are easy enough to add, and the site could make you feel as if you are sharing in each other's Christmas celebrations, albeit virtually.
When you're homesick, you can also pop over to the site to relive some favorite family moments. Blogging is a wonderful way to record thoughts and emotions from the day, and easy enough that anyone in the family can join in.
Family Holiday Journal
If the virtual world is not your thing, consider starting a family holiday journal that you send back and forth each year. This can work well if your family is not overly large (as it would difficult to send to each family in time for the holidays) and if you are the type of person who enjoys writing your thoughts by hand. The benefit to this type of journal is that you have it from year to year and it becomes a cherished heirloom.
To reap the benefits of a holiday journal, have family members write down their thoughts and memories, plans, or Christmas wish list. There are no rules or right or wrong way to create the journal, but the participation of each family member is what will make it the most special. It's nice to look back and read the words each person recorded in their own handwriting every year. Family members can send the journal back and forth in time for or just after the holidays.
Cherie Burbach - Cherie Burbach writes about dating, relationships, health, sports, and lifestyle. She's the author of eleven books and ebooks.
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