It’s starting to get a little chilly here in Holland! Just
this weekend it was about 70 degrees—then a day later we saw it snow. With this
drop in temperature, it only means one thing: the holiday seasons are
approaching! Here is a list of things that I’m excited for during the coming
months:
1. Snow sports—since we’re in Michigan, snow can be very abundant,
which means there is plenty of snow to go skiing, snowboarding and tubing on.
I’ve personally had little exposure to these snow sports because I never really
went to the mountains very much in California—a good snow resort is about 8
hours from my house, plus the cost of rental equipment paired with my lack of
skiing/snowboarding skills, means that I rarely got to experience snow very
much and the activities that go along with it. However, now that I live in
Michigan during school, I’m able to actually go sledding, tubing and even this
past weekend I went with some friends to The Edge to go ice-skating. Coming
from someone with a serious lack of skating ability, I had such a good time and
loved watching people have a blast as well! Hopefully, I’ll be able to try some skiing this year and go sledding some more!
2. A serious need for warmth—whether it’s pulling out the
classy grandma, holiday sweaters or just bundling up in a huge jacket, it’s the
time of year everyone needs warmth, especially internal warmth through hot
beverages. That’s right, it’s time for hot chocolate and hot apple cider! I
can’t wait for it to start getting even colder and going to JP’s or
Lemonjello’s and getting a hot drink and watching it snow outside. For me, it
never got too cold in California, so having hot chocolate was never that
satisfying, but when you are actually freezing your butt off, it truly hits the
spot.
3. Holiday music—no longer are people listening to summer jams,
but the radio stations have started playing holiday music, especially Christmas
music—it’s not even Thanksgiving yet! Despite how early this music is playing,
it puts everybody in such a good mood and makes people excited about Christmas
and going home. What’s so great is
that music is pretty universal, but people in California cannot relate to some
songs, especially Christmas ones, as much as people in the Midwest can. For
example, it’s more difficult to relate to the song “Frosty the Snowman” because
there’s no snow. However, we could relate to “Timmy the Tumbleweed” (ok, I just
made that up, but I think you get the idea that California people can’t
completely relate to Christmas music). Regardless of location, any holiday music puts a smile on my face 🙂
4. Holiday food—no other time of the year can you justifiably
have pumpkin pie, a huge turkey, stuffing, green beans and whatever else unless
it’s Thanksgiving time. Nor could you get away with eating candy cane cookies,
sugar cookies of Santa’s face, or rich, chocolate fudge unless it’s Christmas
time. That’s why I love the food during these next few months because you only
get this food once a year and it’s so tasty that you end up eating like fifty
pounds of it. Although you could eat these items any time of year, they truly
don’t taste as good unless it’s that time of year. Back at home, my mom makes
THE BEST candy cane cookies, Crinkle cookies, fudge, and things called “Crunchy
Bars.” The day when she whips out her oven mitts and starts making the dough,
my brother and I freak out because we know what good food is coming!
5. Family and friends—being so far from home, I rarely get to
see friends or family during the school year. However, during Thanksgiving and
Christmas, I finally get to see everyone again since I left for school in
August. This year, my parents are flying into Michigan and my brother is taking
the train from Chicago and we’re all having Thanksgiving here in Holland. I’m
so excited, and what’s even better is that we’ll all be home only a few weeks
after Thanksgiving, which means I can see friends again. Along with going home
for winter vacation, there is absolutely no homework to be done during the
break, which is the best thing ever after being stressed about finals and
everything.
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All in all, I’d have to say that these next few months are
the absolute best in the year because everything is changing and people are in
high spirits! These are just a few things that I’m looking forward to in the
upcoming weeks, so if there’s anything you look forward to, leave a comment!
Otherwise, that’s all I have for this week! Don’t forget to follow me on
Twitter @hopeleslie15.