10 Things To Do Over Christmas To Unwind & Relax

This post is actually first and foremost a reminder to myself to slow down a little this festive season; I've been so work focused that I almost completely even forgot to build in some time off to spend with family and friends. For any of us who work within the online world, you'll know how hard it is to actually switch off from social media and the internet. I've made a little pact with myself though to take a few days away from my laptop, enjoy the awesome people in my life, and finally make my way through my 'to read, watch, and listen' list. If you struggle to unwind and relax too, I thought today I'd round up 10 ways I'm planning on relaxing a little over Christmas and hopefully encourage you to do the same! 

Read

  • Wild by Cheryl Strayed: After reading (and falling in love with) Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed earlier this year I've been itching to read her debut book Wild. Soon to be released as a film with Reese Witherspoon as the lead, it chronicles her eleven hundred mile walk of the west coast of America after losing her mother and her marriage falling apart. I love the way Cheryl writes and I have a feeling I'll really enjoy this book.
  • #GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso: I think I'm the last person on the planet who hasn't read GIRLBOSS yet, but I finally have it lined up for my festive reading. I'm sure you know the premise by now, but it's Sophia Amoruso's story of how she became the founder and CEO of Nasty Gal and found success on her own terms. 
  • Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: Anna Bond of Rifle Paper Co teamed up with Puffin to re-release a few of their children's classics with covers designed by Anna herself. They're absolutely beautiful and I treated myself to Anne of Green Gables (one of my childhood favourites) and I know Alex has picked Little Women up for me for christmas. I've never actually read Little Women so it's top of my reading list for the next few weeks and I can't wait to lose myself in the classic read. 

Watch

  • Unbroken: I've been itching to see this film, directed by Angelina Jolie, since I first saw the trailer. It's released on boxing day and it's a war drama film telling the story of Louis Zamperini, a former olympic track star who after surviving a plane crash in the pacific spends more than two and a half years in Japanese prisoner of war camps. With a script from The Coen brothers, I'm really looking forward to seeing this one on the big screen.
  • The Theory of Everything: A film I'm super excited to see; The Theory of Everything tells the story of Stephen Hawking and his ex-wife Jane and documents their relationship, his diagnosis of motor neurone disease and his success in the field of physics. The trailer made me shed a little tear so I'm sure the full feature will leave me reaching for a pack of tissues - though I can't deny that I'm a fool for a good romantic drama. 
  • Boyhood: Alex and I have been meaning to watch this film for a while now and we've put aside Christmas Day afternoon to finally sit down and enjoy it. A coming of age drama film, this one is extra special as it was filmed intermittently over an 11 year period, chronicling the growth of both it's fictional characters and the actors who played them. 

Listen

  • Serial Podcast: The most hyped podcast of the year, Alex and I have only just started listening but we're completely hooked - we might have even listened to every episode by Christmas at this rate! You can find out more about it here if you haven't listened already. 
  • 10 Albums On Repeat: I am not a christmas song kind of girl, so I'll be listening to my favourite albums on repeat while probably eating far too much chocolate and cake. I shared ten of my favourites a while back on ALO here. 
  • After The Jump Podcast: I never thought I'd be all that into podcasts but after getting hooked on Serial I've realised I really enjoy the audio format. Something I've wanted to listen to for a while now is After The Jump by Grace Bonney; a mix of creative series, interviews with artists and designers, and discussing the challenges they face - it sounds like the perfect podcast for me for some creative inspiration. 

Bake

Baking is one of my favourite past times - I find it so theraputic and always love whipping up something in the kitchen but I just haven't made the time to do so recently. I have a huge list of recipes I want to try so I thought I'd share a few of them with you today in case you're in need of some foodie inspiration too:

I hope however you're spending the festive season that you have a fantastic few days, and I'll be back on the 27th with regular posting but until then I'm switching off and wishing you all a very merry christmas!

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Jen Carrington