So the rain or snow is falling, the cold evenings abound. Winter. It is here. And when we are chronically ill we may not be able to run out for evening get togethers with friends. We may not even be able to turn up the heater as much as we’d like since we are watching our budget. How do you create some sense of coziness in your life? Here are a few of our best tips.
Browse some blogs of your interests you rarely indulge
Whatever your interest is, there are multiple blogs about it. The other night I spent over an hour visiting blogs for vintage kitchen decorating. I’ve shared how I treasure my grandmother’s kitchen table in a blog and have decorated with antiques I have collected over the years. (I don’t really like to cook or clean, so I just pretend that is also part of the “vintage” attitude. I pretend a lot.) I didn’t buy a thing, spend any money, or even create a wish list. I just enjoyed looking at pictures and reading people’s stories. It’s like having your favorite personal magazine filled with images and stories.
Make a healthy seasonal snack
One of my favorite snacks is to boil up a bunch of sliced apples in water, Splenda, and pumpkin pie spices. I add lots of water and let it simmer in a big pot on the stove for about 90 minutes and then have a big mug of homemade cider. The apple slices are great warm by themselves, mixed in with yogurt or oatmeal, and a dessert with a bit of whip cream on them. The way the house smells is on of my favorite parts!
I just keep the skin on, but if you need to peel and core, consider the Starfrit 93013 Pro-Apple Peeler with bonus core slicer It is under $14 and has over 110 5 Star Reviews.
Sound too tough? Just a buy a sweet smelling apple pie candle and inhale!
Comfy lounge wear
Fuzzy socks in bright colors, cozy PJs or soft lounge pants, all make it possible to feel comforted regardless of the time of day. Soft robes, colorful blankets, and comfortable slippers.
We have a warm and cozy soft pink fleece robe that we are giving to one lucky winner here at Rest Ministries. It is 100% polyester and the size says, “One size fits most” — we’re thinking that means S, M and L. If you are interested in winning, leave a comment below with your favorite way to find comfort when chronically ill (get CREATIVE!). We will pick a winner on Friday and get the shipping address and send it right out!
Find warmth fast!
There is nothing like a wonderful heating pad during cold months. My personal favorite is the Sunbeam Health at Home King Size Heating Pad with HeatSense Technology. It is big enough you can roll over on it and not have to move it. But if you are looking for something to hold around a sore arm or against stomach cramps, you may opt for this much cuter stuffed animal such as Aroma Home Hot Hugs that have lavender and chamomile and a microwaveable insert.
Be nourished spiritually with this special blog
Would you like a little mini retreat? Want to put the rush aside? My favorite blog for spiritual nourishment is A Holy Experience by Ann Voskamp, the author of 1000 Gifts (an amazing book by the way!) Ann’s blog will help you relax as well as open your eyes (grab a tissue).
Warm toes
There are times my feet are freezing and the circulation is suffering. I love my Anti-Stress Microwaveable Comfort Booties. They do say to consult a physician before using these inserts that contain flaxseed and natural herbal essences, and are heating briefly in the microwave. You can also put the inserts in the freezer if your feet are swollen and warm and need cooled down, so use them all year round.
What is your favorite comfy cozy secret for fall when you aren’t feeling all that wonderful?
Share it below and be entered to win a fleece robe!
Lisa Copen is the founder of Rest Ministries and she lives in San Diego with her husband and son. She is gradually learning how to balance motherhood, family, illness, and ministry, but she still knows it will be a lifetime lesson. You can see the books she has written, including, Why Can’t I Make People Understand? at the Rest Ministries shop.
One of my favorite winter evening is snuggling up with my Joe , whole cranberry jelly mixed with cool whip, warm fire and Christmas movies. A nice spiced smelling candle would just send the evening into complete joy for me. =)
What great ideas, Lisa. Thank you!
Here are some of my favorite comfy, cozy ideas:
- Curling up in my recliner with a pillow and a warm blanket
- Drinking dairy free homemade hot chocolate (my husband makes it, and it is amazing!)
- using cozy lamps instead of overhead lights
- keeping the Christmas tree up just a little longer in order to enjoy the cozy sparkling lights on the tree
- lighting candles
- putting electric candles in the windows
- When I lived in Alaska we used to hang icicle lights around our window indoors, and we kept it up for the whole winter. It added a wonderful sparkly warmth on those long, dark, cold days.
Nice article Lisa. It is not very creative but I enjoy cozying up with hot tea and a good book. Something about hot tea in a special cup brings me comfort.
This is a fairly recent, joyful discovery for me — a dose of Christian music every day brings about a rapid and long lasting comfort and change of mindset. Somehow through music, God especially is able to speak to my heart and get my focus off of the wind and waves of pain, trials, and sadness to the face of Jesus and His great love, power, and mercy. Often there is a particular song which He uses for that day (this morning’s was Nicole C. Mullen’s “Wholly Captivated”) and then it plays in my head all day long, blessing me and reminding me of my Father. What a lovely way to praise and pray which is such a comfort!
One of my favorite activities that i enjoy is decorating, doesn’t matter which season, but Christmas is my favorite:) Over the years I’ve saved most of the kid’s artwork that they made in school and brought home to me. I even have the coffee filter butterflies they made in preschool-they go on my fridge every spring:) When it come to Christmas EVERYONE helps decorate. It’s done on the Friday after Thanksgiving The kids typically handle the tree, I do the little things and my husband does the outside. We play Christmas music, have Christmas cookie’s that I pre-baked. When we were finished the house would be just glowing-inside and out! We’d have a fire in the fireplace light Christmas candles (and since our daughter is in Bible school we have scents of frankincence, myrrh, cassia and spikenard!) and pizza for dinner in front of the fire. My kids STILL schedule that day off to keep the tradition. They are 22 and 20 now. My favorite part is seeing all the ornaments and artwork they did through the years scattered around the house. Since we moved from our ‘dream home’ last year to a much smaller twinhome-because of my health, it’s much easier-so I’m not exhausted by the effort:) . Just seeing the warm glow in their eyes, the enjoyment they get from the process, and the time together, ‘making’ Christmas in our home before the busy-ness of the season starts, makes me feel warm, safe and loved. Talk about blessings! I then get the benefit of that beauty and joy everyday til Christmas itself actually comes! I know someday we won’t always get to be together on Christmas Day, or even decorating day, but I still have the memories and the actual artwork and ornaments to bring my children back home to me, whether in body or spirit. It’s the greatest gift ever besides the birth of Jesus!
I live by myself now in a one bedroom apartment in handicapped/elderly housing, so I have to make a point of doing things to celebrate the holidays, or it won’t get done. I’ve made it a tradition of getting out my Christmas holiday things and putting them all over the place, which always gets me into a more festive mood. For those times when I crave some creature comfort and need to take care of myself, I like to have a cup of special holiday tea. Bigelow makes one called Egg Noggin’ which I think is absolutely delicious, and the illustration on the box always makes me smile. Another thing I like to have is a mug of chocolate flavored soymilk heated up in the microwave oven – it makes it taste a lot like hot chocolate, and it is good for me at the same time.
These are wonderful ideas. I NEED those slippers for sure.
My key thing is softness in texture. Due to my disease, even the light touch of a sheet can be excruciating. Chenille is one of my favorite fabrics due to its softness. And nothing tops a soft cozy throw!
Having Lupus and Raynaud’s, I know just how important warmth is!
I love curling up on the couch in front of our fireplace with hot green tea and some crochet work. I love crocheting during the cold winter months because it keeps my hands moving to keep the blood circulating. Plus I can use the blanket I’m making for my friends and family to warm my lap! The idea that I am creating something to show my love for my loved ones reminds me that there are still ways I can give back to the people who give me so much.
The winters in Missouri get pretty cold, so I love anything that can keep me warm!
I use lighting to add a warm atmosphere; small fairie lights in the houseplants, plant lights at the base of the larger plants, small decorative lamps, indirect lighting because my eyes are sensitive, and full spectrum lights for seasonal depression in the morning. Also as many plants as I can get-they are ALIVE! Quilted scenes on the walls I put up during cold months. Adding all these visual warmers to the snugly stuff, including the dog and cat lying on my legs while I read, helps create a cheerful atmosphere.
Using a foot tent to keep the covers from touching my sensitive feet also keeps the covers from reaching my chin – not cozy! Recently I started using an extra long microfiber sheet that my husband doesn’t like – he says it’s too hot – so I’ve folded it into a “sandwich” around my side of our regular top flat sheet. It works great!
Sometimes when it gets very cold (or when I get as such) I heat up what we call our “bed buddy” (sock-like thing filled with rice) in the microwave for 2 minutes–and then put it wherever I can on me or on the bed to warm up.
I found some zip-up fleece booties with fairly good soles online, made in Canada. They’re made for camping, for getting out of one’s sleeping bag and walking around in one’s tent. For me, I don’t need to be in a tent; they work well to keep my feet warm when I simply get out of bed. They’re better than most slippers; in fact, they’re my favorite non-slipper slippers.
Coziness also comforts me when I have a cold, as I do now. One favorite is hot tea–herbal or regular, caffeinated or decaf. My tea collection takes up half a small cupboard! My husband shakes his head at it in amazement – it is quite a lot of different kinds of tea – but then when he needs some, he’s grateful when I make him a cup. When I’m feeling okay, coffee’s my choice–but when I get a cold, it’s teatime!
I absolutely love winter, but as with most of us, winter does not love me. Here are a few things I do, so that I can still be a part of it. On that cold rainy day I:
- Put on my comfy yoga clothes (some things feel better when worn inside out).
- Put heated up lotion on my hands and put them in latex free gloves to give my hands a treatment while making them warmer.
- Turn on the fireplace (I installed a fireback to reflect the heat, and warm the home more efficiently, and much cheaper than running the heater.)
- I have battery operated candles on timers places around the house.
- Us a low energy heating blanket to wrap up in.
- Grab my loom – it’s easier to use with arthritic hands, and you can have your gloves on at the same time. =)
- Put in a movie from the 1930′s – It’s far enough removed from my reality that I won’t become sad that I’m not living that life… but it’s also far enough removed that I can get lost in the movie and forget about my limitations. I know I’ll be able to dance like Ginger Rogers one day. =)
- My hubby makes me a cup of hot tea or a latte… YUM!
THEN… THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART… after getting all bundled up…
I open the window (even if it’s just a crack) and breath in the fresh air. I watch the rain fall, experience the thunder and lightning… and experience one more facet of God’s great majesty. I love winter, because although things look soaked through or frozen over, cold and bleak and dead, we know that this is the season of rest, preservation, and recharging for the earth. When the lightning bolt strikes the earth, it discharges energy that ionizes the earth and produces nitrogen oxide… It’s God’s natural way of fertilizing the earth. Even when it strikes the forest causing a fire, it burns away the old so that the new has room to grow… and the new has been supercharged by well fertilized soil to grow in. Then the hard snow comes. Everything seems to be frozen in place, unable to move, unable to function. But underneath it all, while the earth is at rest, it’s also reproducing and growing stronger… For soon, Spring will begin to emerge, and we will see the purpose for the rest required of the earth. Underneath the blanket of snow is one more of God’s great masterpieces. For when He lifts that white sheet, we will see what He’s been growing there all along.
It’s so true of our lives too. Even in the winter of sickness, we know that God is working these things in us to bring Himself glory. One day, He will lift the blanket of snow we rest under, and we will see the masterpiece He’s been working on all along. In the meantime, He brings Himself glory when others are able to see Him sustaining us as we endure the hardship and coldness of wearing the winter blanket of rest.
Psalm 119:50, “My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life.”
I wear AFO’s – ankle, foot, orthotics (leg braces below my knees and down under my feet) and when they get cold — they are COLD! so I found wearing 80′s style leg warmers does the trick. I used to wear them over my pants but I discovered they are a lot more efficient under my pants and mow my legs rarely get cold inside or out!
Great ideas to help so many through the busy holiday season. I love to visit the fun holiday blog party posts you can find during this season, and in fact, have several listed at SandwichINK (Just look for the cute hot chocolate mug with a gingerbread boy clipart). You get to enjoy holiday festivities right from your own home – no matter what you’re wearing. Perfect for those of us in the Sandwich Generation juggling the multigenerational issues of caring for elderly parents while raising children or babysitting grandchildren. Thanks again for the great tips. Merry Christmas.
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