I’m officially off to celebrate the holidays and get some rest after a few super crazy busy weeks – but before I jet off to New York, I wanted to share with you a few other ways I’ve been celebrating the holiday time in Cleveland.

The Tremont Santa Shuffle

This past weekend, B, a few friends, and I participated in the Santa Shuffle – the annual running of the Santas and bar crawl in Tremont.  What a great event! It was my first year doing it (B had to convince me – I told him a 1-mile fun run wasn’t a race and I’d rather run a real Santa Race) and I think we’ll definitely be participating again in the future. Now that I live downtown, I hardly make it to the neighboring areas, including Tremont – so it was great to check out a ton of the local bars, enjoy a few cocktails with some Santas, and dress up in our holiday best.

Decorating!

I love everything about Christmas decorations. And now, with Pinterest, I have even more decorating ideas (that I don’t actually do) at my fingertips. B and I aren’t allowed a real tree in our apartment, and since I head to NY so soon, we decided just to put up a few decorations this year. SO, when B’s parents invited us over for their annual tree decorating evening, I immediately said yes. Decorating a tree, plus tons of yummy appetizers for our dinner? I was in. And this is my first year in B’s Christmas family photo – check it out:

Playing Dress Up

Just because you don’t have an ugly sweater party to go to this year (or you’re missing it because of your travel schedules), doesn’t mean you shouldn’t find an excuse to parade around in it one Saturday … whether it’s in a bar crawl, or just for when you’re sitting around your fire, it’s one great way to get in the mood for the holiday spirit.

Holiday Happy Hours, Parties and Tweetups

The past few weeks have included a holiday happy hour/bar crawl through Ohio City with B’s coworkers, more than a handful of holiday themed happy hours and parties, and even a recent tweetup. There may be too many to share details with you, but here are a few shots of my faves.

Enjoying A Surprise Lunchtime Performance 

Last week, B decided to meet me for lunch and we headed over to the Ameritrust Rotunda on E 9th and Euclid to check out not only the gorgeous building, but also some holiday music. Are you around tomorrow for lunch? If so, I encourage you to check out what they’re calling Circle In The City. B and I caught a great Christmas Brass Quintet featuring musicians of The Cleveland Orchestra. Not only was the music great, but it was so cool to see the inside of a building I walk by nearly every day. It’s beautiful –  definitely a hidden Cleveland gem! They also had food trucks outside on 9^th and Euclid serving up some food for those visiting.

Holiday Traditions

For the past few years, B and I make sure to take the time to enjoy a quiet meal on our couch and watch Love Actually. This year has been so much busier than usual that we almost didn’t get there – but B made sure we did! Even after a night of a holiday happy hour and a different holiday party (we made both!), he found time to make us pepperoni bread and queue up Love Actually.

Despite all the hustle and bustle, and nonstop rush and craziness of this time of year – I love it more and more each year! What’s your favorite thing about the holidays? Do you have any holiday traditions you just can’t miss?