For the first time, I'm not able to celebrate the holidays with my family. With work, school, and distance getting in the way, I'll have to find an alternative way to celebrate with them this year. Here are some ways to make the holiday season a little sweeter, even without celebrating the usual way with family.

Learn to settle.

I was lucky enough to get the day of Thanksgiving off for work, but I worked late the night before and early the next morning, making my trip home a short one. This meant that my mom wasn't able to do the usual Thanksgiving feast, and we had to have an early dinner at a restaurant nearby. After dinner was over, I had to drive back home, which led to a very short-lived holiday. Even though I was only able to spend about a day with my family, it was enough for me. It's important to remember that it's not going to be the full holiday experience you're used to, and that you need to take whatever you can get.

Make new traditions.

A couple of my roommates weren't able to go home for Thanksgiving, so we had our own "Friendsgiving" to make up for it! On Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, we went out to dinner and celebrated. Don't be afraid to start new traditions like this to make up for the old ones.

Adjust your timeframe.

If you're not able to celebrate the holiday on the day you normally would, consider adjusting your time and celebrating another day. For my family, we typically celebrate Hanukkah on the first night, and spend the next seven nights lighting the candles together. This year, I'm unable to come home for any of the nights of Hanukkah, leading my family to turn our celebration into a Saturday brunch. Since that is the only day we're all available to celebrate, that's when we're going to do it, even though it's a little strange. It's important to remember that you need to celebrate the holiday whenever you're able, even if that means the day before it actually begins, or the week afterwards. It's the idea of family that really matters, anyway.

Remember, you will have to miss some things.

Every year, my family goes to Las Vegas with the family we have up there to celebrate Christmas. This year, I can't get off work and will have to spend those days helping others and spending time with my friends here. I'm sad that I'm going to miss out on a years-long family tradition, but that's just how it's going to have to go. Part of growing up means that I will have to miss some things from my childhood, and going away with my family on Christmas is just one of those things.

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The holidays can be a tough time without family or old friends around, but there are so many ways to adjust your life around them. What are the ways you're going to celebrate the holidays this year?