How do you get through the -ary months?

[Lelophants]

I know we’re all into the hype of Christmas right now but once that’s done it can feel exhausting and soooo gloomy. What do you do to get through those months? Starting a new gym membership doesnt do it for me lol. I have a friend’s birthday end of Jan so try to arrange something fun with her but apart from that?

Can I ask where you can find nearby hiking groups please. This sounds like a great idea

I love them all as they offer something, but for the colder months the early growth in the garden and running in the cold.

You want me to list each month and tell you why I love each individually?!

Im not quite prepared to invest that much in the thread!

I suppose that every month brings something to the table. Plus… even if every month was grey and rainy… I’d still have my lovely family and friends wouldn’t i

I like all the months.

January and February are good months for winter walks - I find the pale winter light and the bare branches of trees atmospheric.
Also good for all kinds of indoor things that you don't want to waste good weather on:

• museums and galleries
• theatre
• cinema
• crafts
• cooking

I also like it that those months have very little demand on your time, other than the day-to-day routine. There are no major festivals or holidays, no need to go away, visit or invite family or friends. It's all low-key in a good way and the time is all yours. Plus, every day the days get longer.

By March I've usually had enough of the long-drawn out winter mood though - that's my least favourite month as it still feels wintery and bleak yet ought to be spring.

I love January
I plan something for every month at the beginning of the year.
book holidays.
plan house projects.

1.Enjoy the fact we won't spend as much in January than February
2.Ds birthday is in Feb
3.Valentines day.

I was going to reply but BigSkies2022 wrote it for me.

Have a week in Spain in Feb but other than that work is so busy that every day just whizzes by and the winter months will be gone before I have time to be bothered by them

Go away somewhere warm for most of Jan and then spend Feb planning my veg plot! 😍

I used to hate January and February but as I’ve got older I value the quiet time. Our lifestyle is full-on from March onwards so J&F is my time to focus on organising things in the house, de-cluttering, clearing out wardrobes and drawers, and knowing that we don’t have any big social outings means I can lose any weight I’ve put on over Christmas, just a general re-set.

During the week? I don’t. I’m so done. At the weekends I spend as much time as possible outside

I used to find them dreary and bleak and especially so in 2021, when my dad had died the month before.

Then I started actively going for walks in my favourite places and started to see all the unique beauty. Snowdrops coming through and that brilliant cold clear weather that seems to be saved only for January.

I started to focus on things that made me feel like we were taking steps forward toward springtime and renewal, and now I find it a lovely time of year which means I now enjoy every single part of the year!

It sounds very gushy and lame but it's just true. Look for the good in things. It doesn't mean dismissing the bad.

Oh and also I really love Valentines day so that brightens things a bit!

Last January I took up walking/hiking properly - initially leading up to a big charity walk but it's done me so much good beyond that, both physically and mentally.

I'm actually now looking forward to January - once the December social madness is over and the days start to get longer again I'll be able to get some really decent length walks in. Hopefully there will be enough dry days but tbh once you get into the mindset I've amazed myself by even enjoying walking in a bit of drizzle.

It's sort of amazing to see everything staying to come alive again after winter. It made me feel a bit like Mary Lennox last February/March.

Hate those months but i have a holiday booked for end March so will be planning what to do while there.

Holiday in February half term helps, then the rest of the time I literally just hibernate and I try to look at it as cosy time.

I found mine on FB. Plucked up the courage to join and messaged the group leader!

I'm silently panicking about it now but have committed myself so can't back out. 2026 is going to be my year of change; I've spent the last two years recovering from a horrible illness and in the words of Starship: 'Nothing's Gonna Stop Me Now' 😁💯

I post on all these threads as a January birthday.
I bloody love it . Theres bugger all expectation, so make of it what you will.

Yes it’s wet and cold but the light is noticeably coming back - I love timing it. By the end of Jan it’s light at 5.

It’s the only month where nothing happens. Theres with no forced celebration day (except possibly for Burns night if you’re invested). Great time to organise your own get together as restaurants and hotels are cheap. I never stop drinking or eating anything in January. Theres no point. Enjoy the freedom of the nothing month.

Give it all up for Lent, plan for your best body in March - million times easier with the boost of Spring in the air.

I am not keen on Jan and Feb as they are cold, dark and wet months but at least each day gets longer.

I join a swimming pool in the winter months and enjoy going there and also to spa days every month or so. I enjoy having DD home from university until mid January. I love the Kew Orchid Festival and go to that. I love seeing the bulbs come up in the garden. Love seeing the baby seals on the beach at Horsey though already been. We also get work done on the house, painting and decorating, putting up new curtains and have a new leather sofa bed arriving in Jan. It's DSs birthday. There's always street parties in our street in Jan where we go to each other houses and take homemade food.

At least all the naff inflated Santa's have gone

Daffodils- that’s all I have for you OP (although this thread has done me the world of good to read - thank you to all you positive people!). We are way down south and daffodils come out early here - I saw one on Boxing Day last year. January does feel like it goes on forever, then the rest of the year slips away. Time is a weird concept.

This will sound harsh, but stick with it...

If you knew this was your last January & February, would you do anything differently?

Try to reframe these months in a positive way and see them for what they are, the chance to be still, to recoup after the hectic Christmas period and a chance to make plans for the year. I enjoy experiencing the weather (cold, frosty days) and watching what time it gets light and dark. Could you go to the coast on a cold but sunny day to experience the quiet beach and take an amazing picnic & hot chocolate with you?
Can you start or renew any hobbies, or arrange to catch up with friends? I like visiting cities on the train, on my own and I enjoy seeing them through the lense of the different seasons. I went to Cambridge in the height of summer & enjoyed wandering around the colleges in the glorious sunshine. I recently went back to enjoy it all decked out for Christmas.

We obviously can't change the weather/daylight that we get in these months but we can change how we perceive them & hopefully avoid the dread or thinking about them as cold, wet, dreary months.

Well, December is my worst month of the year, because of the dark (& also all the Xmas nonsense). So January always comes as a huge relief. It's also a great time to plan holidays and other activities for the rest of the year.
Plus I'm a tennis fan, so I enjoy hunkering down in front of the TV on cold early mornings to watch Grand Slam tennis from Australia!
I don't like the cold, so February can be a slog, but the light is really improving by this point, so it's all good.

Getting out of the house and going for walks really helps me. You start noticing signs of spring a lot earlier when you’re with nature and I need that to get me through!.

Please keep the ideas coming.