by Donna B. Yeaw

Yes, it's that holiday time of year again - Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Christmas. How do RVers spend their holidays?

Many spend their holidays the same way they always did - with family and friends. It doesn't matter if they fly, drive or RV it there. (Of course once they get there, it's mighty nice to have "your own" private place to be.)

But this can be a difficult time for first year full-timers. They may feel they have lost their traditions when they hit the road. But it doesn't have to be - there are ways to maintain old traditions and better yet, to add new ones.

DECORATING - OLD: You used to love decorating the house according to the holiday - lights, candles, wreaths, seasonal flowers/fruits. Everyone knew what the holiday was just by driving past your yard. Inside was the same - the bigger the house, the more decorations. Hope you didn't get rid of ALL your decorations, take a peek at what you can still do.

DECORATING - NEW: You can still decorate, you just need to think in moderation. Love the lights you used to string all over your yard? Well, you can still string them all over your camper (be sure to check with your campground hosts to be sure they have no problem). Minimally you can run a string along your awning in place of your other decorative lights. Did you have a collection of snow globes and only kept one? Bring it out! Same for the other collectibles - if you have room for them and like them, display them. Candles are wonderful both for atmosphere and the delicious scents that are available. (There's even one that smells like pumpkin pie!) The same cautions apply as in a house - the results can be even more disastrous in an RV. Okay, so you can't put a big wreath on your front door but you can get a sprig of holly or evergreen, tie it with a pretty red bow and hang it from your door handle (being very sure that you can open the door without getting pricked). Want a cornucopia on your table? What about a couple of pumpkins on display with some Indian corn? These are all viable - just downsize your ideas so they don't take over your rig.

 

TREE - OLD: Every year you bought the biggest and best Christmas tree and smothered it in your favorite ornaments. You used to have the tree centered in the front window where everyone who drove by could see it.

TREE - NEW: Obviously, you can't get the biggest tree anymore but if you crave a real tree it can still be done. Check out nurseries for little Norfolk Pines in buckets. Bring it home and decorate away. You can put it inside or out - your choice (and the weather's). When the holiday is over, donate the tree to your campground, a local park, church or school. Won't it be fun to come back in later years to see "your" tree?

 

ORNAMENTS - OLD: You have collected every ornament made by the loving hands of your children or you have finally moved to coordinated ornaments that all match or you have a wonderful eclectic mix of handmade, sentimental, beautiful and weird ornaments collected throughout the years.

ORNAMENTS - NEW: Ornaments: If you are like us, you may have kept some of your treasured ones. We plan to be somewhat creative in hanging them each year. We have one for each year we have been married so they will increase every year - should prove to be interesting. If you have a large coach or fifth-wheel, it may be easy to see possibilities for hanging them from various locations. But if not, don't despair, let your creative juices flow and see what you can come up with. One friend takes a small poster board and pokes holes for the ornament hooks, then mounts the display on the wall behind the dining area. Another buys an inexpensive styrofoam tree each year and hangs her favorites from it! Try different craft stores for ideas or check out some of the kids craft sites online. It's amazing what you can learn to adapt. For the mini-tree: If you don't have any mini-ornaments, you have two options. If you plan on the mini-tree every year, then you may want to start a collection and let it grow from year to year. Mini-ornaments are becoming more popular every year. You can also check out the doll house and other miniature collectible offerings. There are many items that can be adapted from those.

 

MISC - OLD: Every Christmas Eve, you used to take the kids/grandkids for a drive to look at all the displays of holiday lights. Or maybe you always took them holiday shopping or some other tradition.

MISC - NEW: No matter your location, there will be wonderful holiday displays to view. Take your camera and share the beauty with your kids and grandkids. If you aren't close enough to take someone shopping anymore, check out the churches to see if they can find someone who really needs help with shopping. Whatever the tradition was, try to find a workable substitute. The best ones are the kind that give to others.

 

MEALTIME - OLD: Twenty pound turkeys, slabs of ham and roast beef, dollops of cranberry jelly, mounds of potatoes, stuffing, turnips, squash and corn, rolls and homemade bread, all smothered in gravy and followed by your specialty, pumpkin or apple pie. Sound familiar?

MEALTIME - NEW: There are a couple of ways to handle this tradition. If you really crave the huge meal with all the trimmings and can't celebrate this way with friends and relatives, then eat out! All the food and none of the mess. You may also find that the campground is having a celebration and everyone is bringing their own dish. These get-togethers provide a great time for all and shouldn't be missed if you have the chance to participate. One last option, my favorite - find out who is serving holiday dinners to the poor and homeless. VOLUNTEER - there is no better feeling.

 

GIFT GIVING - OLD: Okay, like most families you've finally gotten to the point where you are drawing names but you still want to give special gifts to each other. This can be hard since you both tend to buy what you need when you need it.

GIFT GIVING - NEW: This new tradition follows on the heels of volunteering and is another one close to my own heart. We started this tradition after our first year of marriage. Instead of exchanging gifts, we take the money we would have spent on each other and buy gifts for one of the various emergency shelters (homeless, abused women, etc.) in the area we are in. We always talk to them first to find out if they would prefer cash or wrapped gifts. The first year we did this, we donated $200 worth of gifts to the local abused women's shelter. They expected to have 5-6 women in house and 2-3 children. We bought items like large sweaters, blankets, slippers, housecoats, socks and several gifts suitable for boys or girls in varying ages. We then wrapped them and marked the back of the tags with the suitable recipient (boy or girl, age 5-12 / woman, medium build). Other excellent ideas for shelters are travel size shampoos, soaps, deodorants, toothpaste, shaving cream, toothbrushes, combs & brushes, disposable razors, etc. Travel size containers can typically be found in most discount department stores (Kmart, Wal-Mart, etc.) or chain drug stores (CVS, Eckerd Drugs, etc.). These are good items year round - many folks arrive with nothing!

I hope I have given you some food for thought this wonderful holiday season. We are extremely fortunate to be able to live the RV Lifestyle. I, for one, love to share my feeling of joy and happiness with others. Rejoice in your life - don't despair. Happy holidays!

See you next time for more information on the full-time RV Lifestyle. In the meantime, keep on rolling!