Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of IHeart Radio.

Good morning. This is Laura.

Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's tip is that you don't have to stop celebrating when the holidays end.

Especially when it's dark and cold outside, it's fun to take steps to maintain a festive mood, as long as you can. So lots of people feel a bit of a letdown after the holiday season.

Maybe things didn't go exactly as you wished with your

extended family. Or even if they did, that's all done now. And in the northern hemisphere, at least,

we are still in the darkest, coldest part of winter. Spring is a long way into the future.

But feeling festive is mostly a mindset,

and there are plenty of ways to keep celebrating through winter.

For starters, as you plan each week, ask what you are looking forward to.

Is there anything on your calendar that makes you genuinely excited?

If not, time to get planning.

Think about what would put a smile on your face,

and make sure that that bout of merriment has a spot in your schedule.

For many people, getting together with friends is a surefire way to feel festive. So reach out to a few folks and plan to get together for some fun. It could be lunch

or coffee or drinks or a run, or you could organize a dinner party or even a day trip or a weekend

away. You could arrange an overnight even a day trip or a weekend away.

You could arrange an overnight at a ski house or a group ice skating run.

Or just dinner at a restaurant you enjoy.

When those plans for margaritas and guacamole with friends are nailed down, winter will feel less gloomy.

Now might also be a great time to pull something off your list of 100 dreams. Are there any small items you could accomplish? If you've always wanted to go to a

paint your own pottery studio, or see Casablanca, the movie, that is. Now could be the time.

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