Winter Supplement Volume 49

ENJOYING THE HOLIDAYS

Making the most of the winter season

RECOMMENDATIONS DURING THE HOLIDAYS

BY KEVIN SIGRIST Editor-in-Chief of Print and Production Executive

Holiday music is a means to get into the spirit of the season. The iconic Christmas music of the mid-20th century continues to serve as the primary sound of the season, and its uniqueness works perfectly to raise holiday spirits.

“I love the Christmas season and I think there’s a small window to listen to the music, so I try to listen to it as much as possible. We used to listen to records in my house growing up, so it reminds me of that. It’s nostalgic,” math teacher Matthew Smith said.

Smith’s favorite holiday music comes from some of the artists of the mid-1900s.

“I like the older stuff: Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole and all those guys from back then,” Smith said.

There are a lot of artists who make great holiday music. For a not exclusively Christmas option, check out the Vince Guaraldi Trio. Known for the music from the Charlie Brown animations, the group has made many holiday albums as well as soundtracks for the different Charlie Brown productions.

A Charlie Brown Christmas features incredible instrumental jazz music with covers of iconic holiday music. This is not all they have in their discography though. Anything from the trio’s holiday hits is incredibly well made,

but offers a focus that is not entirely centered around Christmas.

If you enjoy modern Christmas music, listening to older music by artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Louis . Armstrong can expand your taste across multiple different eras.

Holiday movies, primarily Christmas movies, are a great way to feel the holiday spirit in a concentrated fashion. Typically oriented around the Christmas season, they showcase all the best aspects of this time of year.

“Christmas movies are typically happy movies, so they give me good vibes. There’s always a good ending. You can’t go wrong with a Christmas movie because you’re always going to feel good at the end,” junior Addison Vanatta said.

Vanatta is an avid Christmas movie watcher and finds enjoyment in them through the memories she has associated with them.

“I think some enjoyment comes from nostalgia because I always watched Christmas movies with my family when I was little. They remind me of how happy Christmas is and make me long for when I was younger,” Vanatta said.

Plenty of festive movies are enjoyable even after many watches, so here are some good options for this holiday season.

Home Alone and its sequel Home Alone 2: Lost in New York have incredible soundtracks created by famous composer John Williams and very well-executed slapstick comedy. On top of this, actor Macaulay Culkin perfectly encapsulates the perspective of Christmas from the viewpoint of a young child.

While often disliked for uncanny animation, The Polar Express is also a great movie to check out this season. Full of interesting mystery and thrilling moments, the movie tells a story that would be every young kid’s dream on Christmas Eve.

Elf, starring Will Ferrell, is an iconic Christmas movie known for its hilarious performances from the cast as well as an entertaining story.

If you wish to spark the iconic debate of “What makes a Christmas movie?” watch the 1988 film Die Hard. While this movie is not focused on Christmas, the action-packed film starring Bruce Willis takes place on Christmas Eve, and it has been debated whether or not this is a Christmas movie since its release.

Consuming holiday media is not the only way to get into the spirit of the season. Participating in various activities with those you love is another great way to enjoy the season. One activity that can be enjoyed with friends and family is baking.

“One of my favorite parts of the holiday season would be seeing all my family members and connecting with everybody, and part of that is baking. Being able to cook and bake with my family is an opportunity to bond,” senior Annika Salchert said.

Salchert is an avid baker who bakes year-round and even runs a small business selling her goods at various fairs and through commissions. She finds that baking can help grow bonds through giving.

“I love being able to see the look on people’s faces when I share [my food] with them. During the holidays, it’s really fun to share that with them and see them enjoy it as well,” Salchert said.

Between baking with loved ones or giving baked goods to loved ones, baking provides a multitude of good experiences and enjoyment in the company of others. Salchert shared some of her personal favorites to bake during this season of giving.

“It’s fun to make pies because those are more of my specialty during the holidays. It’s an entire process and I’ve been making them the longest. It’s a tradition at this point,” Salchert said. “I also like to find new fun recipes. For example, I made chocolate-covered turkey strawberries for Thanksgiving this year.”

While Salchert is an experienced baker, you do not need a lot of experience to get started. Gather ingredients as well as the proper tools and simply find fun recipes online.

The Food Network’s website features plenty of holiday recipes to try. Their list of the 100 best Christmas cookie recipes features a large range of diversity, from chocolate bark to M&M magic bars.

Baking is a great way to bond with loved ones, as you get to have fun while baking for others and enjoying the work you put in with them as well.

DEALING WITH HOLIDAY FINANCIAL STRESS

BY PAIGE WHITESIDE Editor-in-Chief of Web and Copy Editor

For many, the holiday season is a time filled with celebration, gift-giving and joy, but it can be hard to enjoy yourself when dealing with financial stress and managing money. By focusing more on heartfelt gifts and setting a reasonable budget, though, the holidays can become more enjoyable for everyone.

From making fancy meals and desserts to purchasing gifts for friends and family members, expenses can rack up quickly during the holidays. It can be difficult to come up with enough money to cover the cost of everything needed for holiday preparations.

Personal finance teacher Renee Grisch suggests setting a budget ahead of time to limit financial stress during the holidays.

“Set a budget. Decide how much you are going to spend and break it down. If you know what you’re going to spend your money on [during the holidays], start planning your budget ahead of time and sticking to it - the earlier, the better,” Grisch said.

By putting aside a certain amount of money each month throughout the year with a goal in mind of how much you will be spending during the holidays, it will be a lot easier to manage spending when purchasing things like gifts, decor or holiday meals.

Freelance writer Marianne Hayes gives advice to those searching for a way to make a functional holiday budget on the website for Experian, a multinational data analytics and consumer credit reporting company.

Hayes suggests following a fivestep process when creating a financial limit for spending: starting early, listing expenses, determining how much you can spend, tracking and reporting on spending and finding other ways to free up money for the season.

While actually creating a budget and following it on a monthly basis can be challenging, it can reduce some financial stress during the holiday season.

According to Money Transfers, a website designed to help consumers find deals and solutions when handling money, in 2021, the overall holiday spending in the United States reached

by Ashley Vanderhoff

$886.7 billion with 68% of consumers expecting higher prices for holiday spending and 89% of consumers expecting to see inflation impacting their spending in 2022.

With prices on the rise, it is especially important to keep track of spending, making sure money is going toward meaningful purchases. While some people tend to splurge on buying the most expensive gifts for others, oftentimes a homemade and inexpensive gift is the best way to go when considering the sentimental factor of gift-giving.

Inexpensive options include making a letter or a card to express appreciation, baking a dessert or a meal or simply spending time with a loved one to show how much you care about them. These acts of gratitude can create long-lasting memories that won’t be forgotten while also giving your

bank account a break.

Senior Ava Lindgren prefers homemade over store-bought and expensive items and acknowledges the sentimental value of being given a uniquely crafted gift.

“I prefer homemade gifts because someone spent the time to create something for me,” Lindgren said. “It’s easy to spend money, but it’s harder to put the thought into actually making something. That’s why it’s so special. It comes from the heart when you give a homemade gift.”

By determining an allocated amount of money to spend during the holiday season and choosing to give inexpensive yet still meaningful gifts, the holidays can be centered around spending time with loved ones, relaxing and doing what makes you happy rather than feeling caged by financial limitations.

The average holiday shopper is expected to spend

of Americans prefer homemade gifts or gifts from the heart. according to Good News Network Online shopping accounted for 24.1% of total holiday spending in 2021.

89%

of shoppers expect to see inflation impacting their 2022 holiday spending.

40% of shoppers start buying Christmas presents before the end of October, while 60% wait until December. This information was gathered from moneytransfers.com

Colorfully decorate this festive version of Kaneland High School, illustrated by Photos Editor Lilliana Bobé. Share your creation with us on Twitter @kanelandkrier or on Instagram @kaneland_krier. Our staff will choose the three best submissions, which will lead to prizes for the artists and an announcement on our social media accounts.

HAPPY

BY SAMANTHA DUNNE Photography Executive KANELAND

Page design by Ashley Vanderhoff

Photo courtesy of Paige Foster

Junior Paige Foster has a 16-foot tall Christmas tree in her living room. The large tree is decorated with silver and red ornaments as well as white snowflakes.

The Nitsche family, with seniors Madelyn and Ethan, junior Mallory and freshman Audrey, have a uniquely decorated Christmas tree in their living room. The tree is decorated with small presents for family members to open on Christmas Day.

Ashley Vanderhoff

Photo by Samantha Dunne

Junior Kamber Smith has a large display of family photos with Santa Claus from years past. Taking annual Christmas photos is a tradition for the Smith family.

Photo courtesy of Basil Goldman

Photo courtesy of Kamber Smith

Senior Basil Goldman celebrates Hanukkah. On the left is his grandparents’ old menorah and to the right is a gift.

WHEN DO

BEGIN

THE HOLIDAY SEASON?

BY EXECUTIVE ASHLEY VANDERHOFF AND PAGE DESIGN BY EXECUTIVE KEVIN SIGRIST

“Part of the Christmas spirit is getting together with family and celebrating, which is what Thanksgiving is about too. Thanks- giving is a holiday that happens during the Christmas season, but the Christmas season is in November and December.”

MADDIE KERRY

“I start celebrating Christmas around the second week of November. I do this because Halloween is my favor- ite holiday, and I cannot switch that fast from scary to jol- ly. You can’t start celebrating Christmas after Thanksgiv- ing because you wouldn’t have nearly enough time.”

“I start celebrating when Christmas break begins. I have a small family, and we don’t get together very often. We cele- brate Thanksgiving, and after that is when I start listening to Christmas music. To celebrate Christmas, we get together and eat spaghetti. We also watch a lot of movies to celebrate.”

ELEANOR KUNTZ @kaneland_krier @kanelandkrier kanelandkrier.com WEBSITE