As you can expect, the holidays this year will look and feel differently than they ever did before. After all, we are living in such unprecedented times, and the best way to celebrate the holidays is not with big, flashy parties, but with close friends and family, given that most of us can only celebrate virtually during these times.
In this guide, we will help you liven up the holidays with these practical tips to make your celebrations more successful and still, worth remembering!
Guide to Virtually Celebrating the Holidays With Your Family this 2020
While most of us will be stuck at home during this season, there are still several ways on how you can effectively celebrate the holidays with friends and family. By doing all the things listed below, you can ensure a safe, fun-filled, and memorable holiday celebration with people you love and those who matter to you the most!
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Plan ahead.
There’s just no telling how things can turn out in virtual set-ups. Even professionals are figuring out how to manage their events properly, so a little effort in planning and setting things up can go a long way. Since it’s just going to be one night spent with everyone, make sure to do test calls with the devices that you’ll be using to celebrate the holidays with family. When you encounter issues, provide instructions on how they can adjust and/or better prepare to avoid them happening on the actual day of your event.
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Leave room for adjustments.
Inasmuch as you’d like to get things done perfectly, there’s just no guarantee that issues like internet problems won’t happen during your event, especially on those days when a lot of people will also be celebrating back in the Philippines, too. Not to mention, the poor internet connection that we have back home. (Just saying!) That said, saving a little room for adjustment can spare you unnecessary stress (or drama) during your holiday event.
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Accommodate the needs of your elders first.
The people who’ll be most affected by the sudden shift in celebration arrangements would be the elders in the family. That said, try to be more understanding and always consider them when making plans and activities for the event. Ask them when their most convenient schedule would be, and guide them or a family member staying with them regarding the use of their devices and what to expect in the program of the family’s event.
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Get your Pinterest ready.
Just because you’re celebrating at home doesn’t mean you can’t get creative with your table designs and decors! There are other places than just Google to look for creative inspiration. If you haven’t heard of Pinterest, try checking it out now. You’ll get tons of DIY ideas and inspirations on just about anything. Try it! From holiday recipes to gift ideas… you’ll find everything in there!
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Choose an activity to share with everyone.
If you’d rather not have everything shared over video (which is understandable considering connectivity issues – which we are already expecting), pick an activity that you’d like to have everyone joining whether that’s during family prayer, sharing of stories and insights, exchanging gifts, or singing. The idea is to gather everyone even at one point of your event to bond and do something meaningful together as a family or a group.
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Come up with a post-meal activity.
After everyone’s had their fill of the holiday meals, try to bring everyone back together for a simple activity such as playing a game or watching a movie. Talking is fine, too. The main idea here is to spend as much quality time together as possible. Depending on your activity of choice, which is also based on the group – are there more kids, teens, or adults joining – you may have to prepare in advance and arrange things to make sure the activity will go smoothly.
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Embrace the awkward.
If you think being on cam for long hours is awkward – you’re not alone. Recognizing that something new can feel awkward is the first step to embracing the new normal. And that’s fine. If you let others know how you feel, they can empathize with you and help you ease your way in to get comfortable with everything that you need to do in the moment.
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Try to not be shy at all times.
One of the main things you need to get over during the virtual holiday events is being camera shy. Try not to focus on how you look in the camera. You can simply minimize your camera view on the screen so you can focus on the others and the activity at hand. By trying to be comfortable in front of the family, they can also be comfortable spending time on the camera with you.
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Accommodate everyone’s needs.
Consider everyone’s time and preferences during this time. The kids may have this yearly tradition of watching a movie together so they might set something up for themselves and you need to accommodate that. For families, it’s also important to consider their plans during this period.
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Be grateful above all.
Consider this: 2020 has been a very different year for all of us, but you’ve come out of it healthy, well, comfortable, and happily spending time with your loved ones. Isn’t that enough a reason to be grateful? Simply put, you can think about all the bad and negative things that happened during the year, but in the same way, you can shift your perspective to focus on the positive. And that can only make your holidays much more meaningful, right?
Celebrating the holidays this year is very different from the previous years. And while the situation has changed, the reason for celebrating this year hasn’t. By focusing on what you have and received this year, you can still enjoy your time with friends and loved ones for all the love, joy, health, and other blessings. From our family to yours: A happy and blessed holiday to all of you! Stay safe and enjoy!
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