Holiday Cheers from Curaleaf
However you celebrate the holidays, Curaleaf has your back. Discover how you can help people in need just by purchasing your favorite cannabis products. Plus, take your holiday entertaining to the next level with creative cocktail ideas. For those moments you need to take a breath, some tips for self care. And when all else fails, there is nothing like a good holiday movie.
Help Others While Helping Yourself
Make the season bright for yourself and help feed people in need! Join Curaleaf in our mission to Feed the Block – one of our national Rooted in Good initiatives. In each state, you can round up your purchase and donate to local organizations with missions aligned with our goal to feed our neighbors in the communities we serve. See your local dispensary for more information on how you can help this holiday season.
“Squeeze” More Joy Out Of The Holidays
Whether you’re hosting a holiday party or looking to impress someone special, use Select Sweet Squeeze to mix up our Berry and Bright cocktail recipe and light up your holiday festivities, you’ll be feeling the joy in as little as 15 minutes. Check out our Instagram for recipes.
Keep Your Holidays Bright
Even if holiday time is a happy time, it can also be tiring, taxing, awkward, and flat-out stressful. Though just as it doesn’t take much to put you over the edge, sometimes it’s the small things that can also save the day. Here are six little tips to help you survive the hustle and get back into the spirit of the season:
Classic Self-care
Why is it that self-care is always a reactive tactic? Don't wait ‘til you’re already burnt toast to give yourself the love you deserve. While that sounds easier said than done, implementing a PROACTIVE self-care ritual is completely possible! The “MASH” routine has staying power, because it’s so simple. Meditate, get fresh Air, Stretch your body, and Hydrate. Using your online calendar, your smartphone, or even your basic kitchen timer, set yourself an alarm to go off every few hours. This is your reminder to spend ten minutes to MASH. After just a day, you’ll realize the benefits of taking those few moments to take care of you.
Put a Deposit in the Sleep Bank
Sleep is restorative. It promotes a healthy body, brain and mood. So, when we don’t get enough sleep, it’s no surprise that the effects go in reverse. Come holiday time, our inflated to-do list tends to push sleep to the back burner even more than usual. If there’s one thing you can do to curb stress, it’s to stick to a rigid bedtime schedule, and get at least 8 hours of shut-eye a night. Turn those screens off at least 30 minutes prior to hitting the pillow, too. It’ll help your mind relax. If not? There’s always indica...
Travel Smart
Packing your bags for some holiday-inspired travel? If you consume cannabis regularly – and especially if you’re a medical cannabis patient – this can add a layer of complication. Before you leave your home state, research the local laws of your destination. By planning ahead, you might save yourself a headache down the road... both figuratively AND literally!
Discreet Sweets
You love cannabis, but maybe you’re not comfortable consuming it openly around your family quite yet. Edibles might be just the way to medicate. They’re easy to make and take, and options are limitless! For a sweet, uplifting, homemade treat that goes beyond a classic brownie, try these adorable, tree-shaped canna-crispie treats, or these melt-in-your-mouth medicated chocolate creme truffles. Both are soooo delicious… please take care to enjoy responsibly!
Educate Your Relatives
Or, maybe it’s not you... it’s them. If you’re dealing with a family member (or three) that takes issue with your cannabis consumption, then “hello, tension!” Fortunately, that social stigma is on its way out. Unfortunately, it’s going to take a long while to see it over the threshold for good. Consider toting along a copy of Higher Etiquette, an easy read on the subject of cannabis in modern society. As the name suggests, the book focuses on every iota of proper etiquette surrounding cannabis use. However, it also provides a great overview of the cannabis landscape, from its past history to its present-day reputation. Sometimes the best way to help an antiquated viewpoint “get with the times” is to introduce a new resource for information.
Take Time Out
When all else fails, curl up with your cannabis and watch your favorite holiday classic. Or, add some CBD bath salts to your tub, get hold of your favorite strain, and let your troubles melt away…
Actually... take the bath AND watch the movie. It’s the holidays after all!
The Curaleaf Christmas Movie Round-up
The Christmas season is chock full of fantastic flicks, which got our team talking about our own personal favorites. This handful of holiday-appropriate picks is sure to inspire some quality couch time!
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989) Beth, Director of Marketing
The classic of all Christmas classics. In a season full of idyllic perfection, Chevy Chase and his merry family are the PERFECT counterpoint. Everyone can relate to someone in that family. The dad trying to create a perfect season, mom managing family expectations, crazy uncle Eddie, the teenage daughter who loves her family while being completely embarrassed by them… The lights don’t work, the turkey is overcooked, the sled is a bit too fast. No matter how unpredictable life gets, the Griswold’s remind us that the holidays are really all about family. The rest is just, well, dog-eaten-gravy.
Home Alone (1990) Dan, Digital Engagement Lead
To kick off the holiday season, every year after Thanksgiving dinner, my family would gather in the living room to watch Kevin McAllister outwit the Wet Bandits in the holiday classic, Home Alone. No matter how many times we had watched it, without failure, this flick would send us into hysterical laughter (think: the Little Nero’s delivery scene) and bring us to tear up (think: Kevin’s mom returning on Christmas morning). It’s also one of the only films that I can recite the majority of the lines – “Bless this highly nutritious microwavable macaroni and cheese dinner and the people who sold it on sale. Amen.” 😊
Love, Actually (2003) Killeen, Content Curator
For anyone who has ever been called Mr. Grinch or Ebenezer Scrooge, Love, Actually just may melt your cold, hard heart. The movie follows eight different couples, each dealing with their own dose of strife during the holiday season. You’ll definitely laugh, you’ll possibly cry, and you just might even find yourself swept up in that magical Christmas spirit. As a once-proclaimed Christmas-hater, I’ll admit this movie is my guilty pleasure. It’s also got a soundtrack that’s quite decent, actually, albeit a bit sappy (in a good way)!
The Polar Express (2004) Kate, Program Manager
When this movie first came out in theaters, my mom was so excited she made the entire family dress up in onesies to go see it together. It’s always been her favorite movie. Now that I’m living a few hundred miles away from her, I can watch it when I miss my family. It brings me right back!
Fred Claus (2007) Ben, Digital Marketing Manager
Sibling rivalry, as anyone who has a sibling can attest, is a thing… No really, it is. And that rivalry goes to 11 as the holidays approach. I vividly remember trying to be the best while making my older sister out as the worst as the season drew near. That probably backfired on me more often than not.
This rivalry between siblings is at the heart of the story in Fred Claus, which is why I love it so much. Fred, the older brother to Nicholas (Santa) is up against the biggest challenge of them all – being the brother to the most wonderful human being on the planet – no small task. So he goes the naughty route, trying to always appear the better brother but ultimately being the worse (Hmmm… sounds familiar). It’s a fun, lighthearted, movie good for older children and their parents alike. It has some rebel threads, a solid soundtrack, and a positive message to remind us that being “good” and “nice” doesn’t mean you always have to play by the rules—or be perfect—so long as you love those who are closest to you.