Celebrate the Holidays with Style Influencer Nancy Weiss

In preparation for the festivities ahead, we’re catching up with our friend and style influencer, Nancy Weiss of A Two Drink Minimum. One of our favorite snowbirds flew the coop from Illinois to Florida a few years back, leaving behind white Christmases for white sand beaches. Read on for her take on traditions, transitions, and holidays in paradise.

Happy holidays, Nancy! Let’s start with an easy question—your alias is @a.two.drink.minimum so, we need to know, what’s your favorite cocktail?
If it’s a warm day (and they usually are!), you’ll find me sitting in the sunshine with a Mojito in my hand... even in December. Since retiring and moving to Florida, my husband and I both enjoy getting dressed up for a fun date night and hitting a local happy hour. It’s one of our favorite ways to unwind and a great way to meet new friends.

That’s right, you’re originally from Chicago! Are you headed back home for the holidays?
It’s too cold for us out there! We have four married children and 11 grandchildren still in Illinois, so we’ll go back for a little bit, but once Santa drops the gifts for our young grandchildren, it’s back home to sandy beaches and sunny skies! We love living in Florida and hosting where the kids can escape the snow and come out for the long break after Santa visits. They stay with us and swim and just enjoy the warmth.

So you get the best of both worlds! What do you enjoy most about hosting the whole family?
I love to decorate and make it feel festive to keep those cozy holiday vibes going... and even if we have more palm trees than pine trees, we can always light an evergreen scented candle to capture that winter wonderland feel! It does get cool in Florida in December—the kids have fun playing in the pool, but it’s not swimming weather for me—so we like to pick up a few fun games to play inside.

Do you have a favorite game?
I was just back in Illinois and we played Scrabble together, so a new Scrabble board was on my wishlist this year! That’s just what you do when it’s chilly out—you head inside and play board games, and you eat cookies and sip cocktails by the fire. That’s the fun of bringing everyone together for the holidays, wherever you are.

From one host to another, what do you think is the perfect gift to bring to a party?
This time of year, I like to give something holiday themed. You can never have enough decorations, as far as I’m concerned. It’s fun to bring out new things when you’re hosting and to have items that spark good memories. Whether I’m wrapping up a candle or a fun plate for the host, I like to think that next year, when they bring it out again, they’ll think “Oh, Nancy gave me this!”

Speaking of fond memories, do you have any special holiday traditions you’d like to share?
We’re making new traditions now, and it feels amazing. My husband and I have been married 44 years, and the holidays look a little different every year. Sometimes, traditions that you want to hang on to forever… they change, because life changes. That happened to us when we moved down here, trading snowfall for sunshine. At first, I had a hard time accepting it, but now I embrace it! We’re eating Thanksgiving dinner around the pool with mai tais and my kids are saying, “Mom, this is the best Thanksgiving we’ve ever had!” It’s just about who you’re with and the way you feel… just being together — that’s what I love about the holidays.

You can keep up with Nancy’s adventures on Instagram @A.Two.Drink.Minimum and, as always, you can find all your island inspiration when you follow us @tbahama!

All photography courtesy of Piper Arielle Photography.