Everyone knows it and everyone says it... well, sings it mostly. Christmas time is the most wonderful time of the year and all too often it's seen as the only wonderful time of the year. The minute Christmas is over there's no more excitement. It's like, POOF, the stroke of midnight, and we are left with a bland year until December 1st hits again.

Why though? Why can't we enjoy the spirit of Christmas all year round? I mean, of course we won't actually be celebrating Christmas all year. (Yes, I'm talking to you, people who wait until March to take your Christmas lights down).

We should be just as excited to buy birthday, Valentine's Day, and anniversary gifts as we are about buying Christmas gifts. We should try to spend just as much time reaching out to our loved ones and smiling to those who offer us service as we do during the holidays.

The spirit of Christmas isn't just about what you do or the songs that you sing or the presents that you give; it's about the people that you make memories with and the way we chose to live out that period of time.

So if we want the Christmas spirit to stay alive, we need to choose what to invest in and keep investing in all year long instead of forgetting about it once Christmas is over.

If you want to bake, then bake. If you want to roll your windows down and sing songs loudly without caring who listens, do it! If you want to invite your family over for a nice, home-cooked meal just because, I think that they'll really appreciate it.

Those beautiful things about Christmas don't just have to stay with Christmas. Yes, the lights and the colors add so much to the experience, but we can take the things we love most about those experiences and incorporate them into our everyday lives.

Merry Christmas everyone and an extra merry new year.