Fa La La La La La Florida

Before we get to the meaning behind my cheesy post title, I'd like to say a major thank you to Melissa at Smitten by Britain. She allowed me to do a guest post for today!

I've been thinking a lot recently about the differences between Christmas in Florida and Christmas in England. This year will be my fourth Christmas in England, so I decided to write about my 5 favorite things to do during Christmas here in England! 

So please make your way over here to read it!

I also had a good think about what I liked to do during Christmas in Florida. Instead of focusing on the cultural and weather differences between the two locations, I thought about what I liked to do the most. And while "going to the beach" and "sunbathing" didn't make the cut (but so should have!), I also wrote my 5 favorite things to do during Christmas in Florida!

1. Putting up the tree - In my family, buying the tree and decorating it is a pretty big tradition. We have to find the perfect tree. Decent height, no "bald patches" as my step-mom likes to call it, and a strong smell to fill the house! Then, we spend an entire night decorating, eating, and drinking while listening to Christmas music. My parents fight and threaten to divorce each other while trying to put up the lights while I laugh my ass off and just try to keep the cats in check. The ornaments have to go up in a specific order. It's serious business, but it's such great fun! 

I'm stuck! No, I'm kidding... Gotta love doing the grunt work!!

2. Pretending 50 degrees Fahrenheit (about 10 degrees C) is cold - Oh, yes, Florida's "cold fronts" are kind of a joke. But any excuse to wear a scarf and boots, right?? It's fun to dress up like it's winter, even fully knowing that by next week we'll be back in shorts and t-shirts. My friends and I like to have small bonfires outside and make s'mores! 

3. Driving around and seeing the Christmas lights - When I was little, there was a water tower that had the best Christmas lights display! My mom and I would drive around (sometimes twice at my request) slowly and look at them while listening to Christmas music. Since then, the water tower no longer does their massive displays. But I love going around my neighborhood and surrounding neighborhoods to look at the impressive lights. It feels magical!

4. Seeing old friends - Once I reached college, a lot of my friends and I went separate ways. Christmas vacation was always the best time to meet up again to reminisce, talk about our semesters, and of course do lots more eating and drinking. If the weather was nice, we'd have a pool party. Typical Florida December. My favorite thing to do, however, was go painting with my best friends. There's a local place where you can paint your own pre-made pottery. We'd spend hours upon hours there painting potential Christmas presents!

5. The local parade - One of the things I miss most about South Florida is our local parade. I was actually IN that parade for a majority of my life; first with my dance studio and then in high school with marching band. I never really got many chances to spectate it; however, when I did I thought it was absolutely amazing! It's no Macy's Day Parade, but it's still pretty good for a little beach town in Florida.

IT'S CHRISTTTTMASSSSS! I hope you said that like Slade's "Merry Christmas Everybody" song.

As you can see, Christmas in Florida and England are completely different experiences! But they both have the same priorities in mind.... Eat.... Drink... And be merry! 

Where do you normally spend Christmas? What are your favorite things to do there that make it so special and unique?