Perhaps this is your first Christmas with a new partner or as a married couple, and you’re wondering, how’s this going to go? The thought of sharing the holidays with a partner or spouse could bring up a myriad of emotions – excitement, relief, anxiety, curiosity, gratitude, sadness… you name it! Read on for some helpful tips for how to manage your time (and emotions) as a couple this holiday season.

Engagement and the months leading up to the celebration of a wedding can be such an exciting (and overwhelming!) time. Maybe you’ve been waiting a long time for this season, or maybe it’s come sooner than expected. Either way, you’ve made one of the most important decisions of your life: you’ve agreed to commit yourself to another person. Now is the time to help you set a firm foundation for a fulfilling marriage.

If you’re like me, I’m far less likely to lace up my runners and go for a walk or run if it’s pouring rain. Crappy weather can become a “get-out-of-jail-free-card.” Lately I’ve been attempting to not let the weather determine my self-care habits… and honestly? It’s been invigorating to learn that I don’t have to let external variables like weather get in the way of what feels good!

The idea of gratitude is that it’s not just available to us when everything is going well, but even despite things not going well, we can still feel or embody it. That, to me, feels hopeful. If we had to wait until the choppy seas of life calmed entirely to feel grateful, we may be waiting a long time. Gratitude is a powerful emotion that actually has the ability to change your brain... It’s true!