While travel plans may be postponed or look different this holiday season,  we’re focusing on #staycation ideas to help you enjoy your time at home and the restorative, feel-good benefits that come taking time off.

• Many flights are grounded but we know they won’t be forever. Let your imagination take flight and start mapping out where you want to travel to next. Will you bring a travel buddy or fly solo? Where will you eat? What will you need to pack? Make a night out of it by enjoying a drink and meal inspired by that region, while you research the best hotels, restaurants and attractions to visit. Then whenever cabin fever strikes, you can pick up your planning and remind yourself that broader horizons are ahead! 
• Vacations allow us to escape our daily responsibilities and unplug from daily distractions, while spending quality time with loved ones. Those are elements that you can bring to your home with just a little preparation and intention. Before your time together, take a few minutes to clean up clutter, storing any to-do lists and mail piles out of sight–even if just for one night. Then put your feet up and let yourself be a guest in your own home for the evening - no lists, no mail, no worries.
• There’s a physical reason why we love vacations! Doing something new and fun tells your brain to release dopamine, the hormone, and neurotransmitter that makes you feel good. Rather than browsing Netflix like you may on ordinary nights, bring some novelty to your evening by trying a new recipe or restaurant for takeout, playing a laugh-out-loud game like Speak Out or Pie Face, or taking a virtual lesson in painting, linguistics or music. Just mixing up your routine may give your mind the break it needs for a dopamine boost!
• Staycation, Family Edition. What are your kids’ favorite parts of vacations? Aside from time together with you, they may include swimming in hotel pools, getting special treats and enjoying a break from the ordinary routine. Ask them and then find ways to recreate the magic, maybe by roasting smores in the backyard, having a ‘swimming’ party in the bathtub in their bathing suits with bubbles, building an epic blanket fort, pulling out all of your board/video games for a family arcade night, and staying up late ‘just this once.’
• It’s time for a Staycation Spa Night. Many of us have beauty products gathering dust in the bathroom cabinets, from hotel or magazine samples to face masks and nail polishes bought on a whim. Pick an afternoon or evening to pull them out onto your counter. Then play some music or your favorite podcast while putting those products to good use! Bonus: If you have no desire to try something you’ve kept, it may be time to toss or recycle it and clear out that space. Refresh yourself and your bathroom storage in the process.

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