I don’t know about you but I really am not a fan of winter. Between the short hours of sunlight, the biting wind, generally cold days, and add on some icy roads, I really have grown to want to skip the season. But I know that the seasons serve a purpose, and that it’s best to try and find ways to enjoy the season than wish it away. Spring always follows winter. So, rather than wanting to avoid the season, this year especially, I really want to find ways to welcome it and truly savor it. That’s where my winter list comes in.
I’ve tried to create some type of seasonal list the last few years of things I want to do, foods I’d like to, towns or cities to visit, or events to attend that are specific to the season. These are ways for me to live in the season and experience its’ abundance rather than feel like it passed me by.
So this winter, I started what I’m calling a “Winter List”. This isn’t a bucket list or a to do list, but more an inspiration list. Because I do not look forward to winter, I tried to find things I do enjoy that I can weave into the season. For this list, I’m considering “winter” November through about March. While that’s not technically the exact winter season, it’s how long it feels like winter lasts in Pennsylvania.
So here’s what I did. First, I brainstormed anything I thought would be fun or enjoyable during the season. I wrote it during my morning pages about two weeks ago because I could tell I was really loving fall, but never wanting it to end in a way to avoid winter. So I brainstormed whatever came to mind. Big things, small things, and things in between. Once I had a good starting point on paper, I started to categorize them which you’ll find below. Then I checked with Teddy on any he had for us and added them to the list. And now,
Hospitality
- Host a holiday potluck with friends
- Host friends for a Winter meal prep day
- Have a favorite things, board party, or dip party at the house in Jan or Feb so there’s something to look forward to in the new year.
- Host a game night for friends
Home
- Make turkey corn soup with rivels from Grandma Meemo’s recipe
- Bake a pecan pie (or two!)
- Make chicken pot pie
- Purchase new blanket
- Go on frequent library trips
- Put up Christmas lights for us to see when we walk into the house
- Have a fire in the backyard
- Listen to Christmas records
- Decorate the house for Christmas
- Sit and read by the Christmas tree lights
- Light candles for every day meals
- Make crack cookies and share them with others
- Make turkey hash
- Make cowboy cookies
- Watch a Christmas movie with hot chocolate
- Print Chatbook from road trip
Outdoors
- Visit the Christmas Lights at Rocky Ridge (and First Post for dinner prior)
- Go to the Holiday Bonfire at Landis Valley
- Visit Stone Gables Estate in Elizabethtown for the Christmas Light Drive-Thru
- Do a winter dry camping trip locally
- Go for a 6 mile hike outside
- Visit a new to us Pennsylvania state park
- Take a day trip to Longwood and eat at the Whip Tavern
- Go for a scenic drive if it snows
Exploring
- See the downtown of Cape May, NJ at Christmas
- Do a Candlelight Christmas tour in Lititz
- Visit Bethlehem, PA for the holiday events
- Go to Bedford, PA for a weekend
- Go to OCMD for a weekend
- Visit Gettysburg at Christmas
- Go to trivia night at a new restaurant
From there, I either write them down all on one sheet or may keep them in my phone to reference regularly. If you’re interested in your own Winter list, you can purchase the download for the list here and print it out and write down your own ideas.
And again, don’t feel like this is a checklist where you have to complete everything, but rather use it as an inspiration of things you can do during the season.
