The holiday season is a time for togetherness, gratitude, and creating joyful memories, especially in Assisted Living communities where connection and comfort are prioritized. At The Landing in Alexandria, Virginia, residents and their visitors can enjoy a vibrant calendar of wintertime celebrations designed to honor traditions, spark joy, and strengthen relationships with neighbors, family, and team members.
Any visit to The Landing during the holiday season includes welcoming, festive spaces filled with tasteful decorations. We incorporate Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year's decorations throughout the communal areas, creating festive themes to reflect our residents' preferences.
Within Assisted Living neighborhoods, resident participation in decorating engages neighbors and friends in a festive and exciting seasonal tradition. It also fosters a sense of pride when residents see the results of their decorating efforts, including trimming the tree, setting up holiday centerpieces, and making holiday wreaths.
For many people, the upscale, boutique setting is a major draw of The Landing. Those beautifully designed interiors become even more stunning when they serve as the backdrop for elegant seasonal decor.
The Landing offers an extraordinary dining program year-round, but our culinary team makes meals around the holidays extra special. Led by our executive chef, the culinary team personalizes the meals to reflect the residents' favorite family holiday recipes and cultural traditions to make the holidays feel more like home. Our seasonal menus feature beloved favorites enjoyed during Christmas, Hanukkah, and other holidays. Roasted turkey, latkes, pies, and holiday cookies are just a few of the delicious additions to our holiday menu.
Meanwhile, the community event calendar includes special dining events, such as themed brunches and dinners. Those special events might include a hot cocoa bar, a holiday tea party, or a special Christmas morning breakfast. During special themed meals, residents and their guests are invited to dress up in their best festive attire while enjoying holiday music and sharing their favorite holiday memories.
Regardless of the special holiday meals and culinary events, all of our meal offerings remain nutritious and balanced. Our team continues to tailor meals to the individual dietary needs of our residents. It's an important balance for older adults, especially during the seasons that are associated with indulgence.
The Landing features a well-rounded life enrichment calendar throughout the year with the goal of supporting physical, social, and spiritual dimensions of wellness. Seasonal programming also incorporates those elements but with a fun, festive twist.
Our creative and cognitive enrichment programming includes crafts, such as making ornaments, decorating cards, painting menorahs, and creating memory books. Residents get to be creative with success-oriented craft options that double as decorations or gifts for loved ones. Many of the crafts also engage fine motor skills to keep them sharp, and they can even help maintain healthy brain function.
Residents and their guests can join in on holiday-themed trivia nights to keep their cognitive skills sharp. Holiday movie marathons, featuring classics such as "It's a Wonderful Life," add to the festive feeling of the season. The community also hosts interactive options like gingerbread house competitions.
Music and movement are also a major part of the Assisted Living calendar. Music programming helps support memory, encourages emotional expression, and aids overall wellness by getting older adults moving. During the holiday season, the music programming focuses on seasonal songs. Light movement classes that residents might normally participate in are now set to holiday music. The calendar often includes holiday sing-alongs and caroling groups.
Residents stay busy throughout the holidays with our robust calendar options, but we also make intentional efforts to invite family and friends into the community. Special open houses and guest days are prime examples of ways you can get involved if your loved one lives at The Landing.
Special seasonal events, like tree-lighting ceremonies, concerts, and holiday meal celebrations, offer the perfect chance for family and friends to get involved. The holidays also provide opportunities for intergenerational programming, especially events for grandchildren, who join residents in making crafts, baking, or telling stories related to the holidays.
Collaborations with local organizations are also popular at this time of year. Local schools, choirs, volunteer groups, and other organizations often plan visits to spread holiday cheer. They might carol or put on a children's holiday performance or coordinate gift drives for residents.
The Landing is the ideal location for friends, family, and community members to join our residents. Many inviting lounges and community spaces provide room to gather and make meaningful memories during the holiday season.
At The Landing, our residents come to us from a variety of backgrounds. That means our community members celebrate a wide range of holidays and engages in many different traditions throughout the holiday season. Celebrations and programming within the community center around Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year's, and other holidays our residents celebrate. We even incorporate events for non-religious observations, such as the winter solstice.
Our team members take a personalized approach to caring for every resident. As part of that care, we get to know each resident to learn about their values, beliefs, and holiday traditions. That allows us to tailor the seasonal programming to incorporate those meaningful aspects of our residents' lives, and it encourages them to participate in the culturally and spiritually meaningful programming we provide.
Through our thoughtful efforts to highlight a variety of holidays and personal preferences of our residents, we work hard to make all residents feel included. Music, decor, stories, and food programming aim to bring neighbors together at The Landing, and those socialization opportunities can strengthen senior friendships to positively impact healthy aging.
Holiday celebrations at The Landing are more than just events — they are opportunities to nurture connection, celebrate life, and uplift spirits in a warm, supportive community. Through festive décor, shared meals, joyful music, and inclusive traditions, residents and their visiting loved ones experience a holiday season that honors the past while creating new memories with friends and family. It’s all part of The Landing’s commitment to making every season vibrant and meaningful for those who call it home. To discover what The Landing has to offer, schedule a visit by calling 571-568-7621.
