How to be Present this Holiday Season

The holidays are an exciting time of year filled with delicious cookies, bright lights, friends and family. Most of us look forward to baking cookies, decorating gingerbread houses and hanging our favorite ornaments on the tree. We spend most of November and December getting swept up in planning parties and shopping for the perfect gifts.

It can be easy to become stressed and overwhelmed when we don't take the time to slow down and be present (no pun intended).

We've put together a few simple tips to help you be more mindful so that you can focus on what's important!

How to Be More Present this Holiday Season

1. Take a minute to breathe and remember what you're grateful for.

After all, the holidays are about being thankful and spending time with those that mean the most to us! Bonus tip: hang a sheet of paper on the refrigerator so you can keep a running list. Be sure to stop and read what others have have added to see what they're thankful for!

2. Keep up with tradition (or start a new one)!

Make sure to take the time to include traditions that hold special meaning. This can be decorating sugar cookies, building a gingerbread house or having a family double-shot-of-whiskey on Christmas Eve (yep - I said what I said).

3. Unplug to connect.

Put down the phone so you can spend time connecting with those you care about!

4. Eat what you want - and enjoy it!

Make sure to leave some room on your plate for a little bit of everything you want to eat and take the time to sit and enjoy it. And yes... that absolutely includes your favorite cookies (plural)!

5. Be realistic, not perfect.

Maybe you found the perfect gift or drew the perfect icing bow-tie on your perfectly golden-brown gingerbread man, but that doesn't mean your holiday needs to be perfect. Being realistic helps to limit stress when things don't go quite as planned. Decide what's important and manage your expectations accordingly.