PORTLAND, Ore. - Looking at Christmas lights is just as much a part of our holidays as the presents under the tree. Granted, it’s a much cheaper way to celebrate the season—but the joy of discovery is the same.

However, since kids have come along, I’ve found myself racing through the experience like there’s a trophy at the end. In reality—there is a reward. It comes when I slow down long enough to enjoy not just the lights—but the people I am with.

Here are some ways to help you do that too.

Make it fun!

Take one step past simply saying “ooh” and “aww,” by mixing and merrymaking with these ideas:

• Play a Christmas-themed scavenger hunt, looking for…
  • Colors or shapes
  • Specific items: Santa, reindeer, nativity, snowman, snowflake, candle, candy cane, the Grinch, gingerbread man, sleigh, presents, bows, a star, stocking, mistletoe, poinsettia, etc.
• Quiz each other with the game, “I see something you don’t see…”
• Wear fun hats—like Santa hats or reindeer antlers

Eat some treats!

Being out on a cold night means hot drinks are a must! Stop by a coffee shop on your route, or pack one of these in a thermos:

• Hot chocolate
• Spicy cranberry warmer 
• Warmed spiced cider punch 

To take care of the appetite you’ll work up, visit a bakery, or take some holiday treats along for the walk:

• Vanilla butter cutout cookies
• Jell-O jigglers, Christmas-themed 
• Peanut butter cup cookies 
• Toffee cranberry crisps 
• Sugar ‘n’ spice nuts 

Say “Hello!”

Taking a walk around your neighborhood is one of the simplest ways to enjoy the lights of the season. Here are some ways to make it more meaningful:

• Greet the people you see
• Deliver Christmas cards on your walk around the block
• Give special notes to the decorated houses you like best! A poem to include might be, “Your lights so bright, have made our night…thank you!” Make up the notes in advance, and then drop them off at their doors with a candy cane or other small treat.

Oh, I know it sounds cheesy. But it’s the little things like this that make a neighborhood feel like a community of people, and not just a collection of houses.

See Portland!

Besides taking a simple walk around your neighborhood, here are some fancier places around Portland to try:

• Oregon Zoo Zoolights Festival  
• Miracle of a Million Lights at the Queen Anne Victorian Mansion
• Christmas Ship Parade
• The Lights on Peacock Lane
• Christmas Festival of Lights at The Grotto 
• Aspen Meadow Christmas Light Display 

So keep “going to see some Christmas lights” on your checklist this year. But let the outing be a “bright spot” that brings you closer to the people that you love.

In her day job, Lisa Smith attempts to transform her three children from super-charged emotion-bombs into contributing members of society. And in her "free time," roughly 11:00-11:30 p.m., she saves the world (i.e. “writes”) via her website at www.stretchmarkmama.com.

Lisa's husband, Nathan Smith, is the photographer who provided the photos for this story.  You can find out more about his work at www.crossmarkdesign.com.