Okay, I’ll be honest: January is my least favorite month of the year. The holidays are over and there’s just not much going on. It’s cold and dreary out, plus it’s also cold and flu season, so we’re not getting out much. Sometimes you have to make your own fun and one great way to do it is to celebrate some wacky national holidays.
Did you know that January is National Soup Month? Warm up with a bowl of your favorite soup, or try something brand new recipe. Get everyone involved by creating a soup bar. Make some potato soup and offer a variety of toppings, like bacon, different kinds of cheese, sour cream, chives, and broccoli; or try some tortilla soup with crushed corn chips, avocado, cilantro, green onions, and jalapeños.
January 18 is National Winnie the Pooh Day. Who doesn’t love this cuddly bear who reminds us about true friendship? Snuggle under some blankets with a Winnie the Pooh movie or book. Winnie the Pooh movies are available at Netflix, or you can often find them for rent at video stores or your local library.
Winnie the Pooh makes me think of hugs and, coincidentally, National Hugging Day is just a few days later on January 21. Be free with your hugs and this is a great time to send hugs to those people who live far away. You can send virtual hugs in the form of emails, messages, or video calls, or send them a snail mail hug. Kids can even create their own life size hugs to send you friends or relatives! Use butcher paper, a roll of art paper, the back of wrapping paper, or any other long paper and trace the kids with their arms stretched out. Decorate the tracing with crayons, markers, or paints, and then fold it up in an envelope to send to a loved one.
January 27 is a favorite of mine – National Chocolate Cake Day. Do some baking with the kids, or celebrate on your own with chocolate mug cake. Here’s my favorite chocolate mug cake recipe:
¼ cup of flour
5 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of cocoa powder
dash of salt
1 egg
3 tablespoons of milk
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
a dash of vanilla extract
Mix all ingredients together in a mug and microwave for about 2 minutes.
You can even surprise friends with a mug cake by putting all the dry ingredients in a small bag in a mug, and attach a list of the wet ingredients they need to add.
Kids love to do things the “wrong” way so they’ll get a kick out of National Backwards Day on January 31. Dredge up some Kriss Kross memories with some backwards clothes, or try to do everyday activities in reverse. Challenge your kids do say the alphabet backwards, write their name backwards, and walk a line or do an obstacle course backwards. As a reward, have a backwards dinner – dessert first!
What’s your favorite crazy holiday and how do you celebrate?
This post originally appeared on MommyNearest.com.
