I'm glad you liked the non food related ideas. Here are some more
:
I'm assuming you have young children from your initial post--
Christmas-
Take kids to see Santa, a holiday light display, live Carolers....
Go to one of those farms where you can pick out your tree, and make a day of dressing it with the family.
Take them sledding or ice skating
Watch all the old classic movies
Volunteer at a place making meals for those less fortunate. It's a perfect time of year to try and get kids to understand how lucky we are.
Valentine's
Instead of an overpriced dinner from a pre fix menu, maybe you could do something romantic with your DH like get a couple's massage, take a dance lesson, spend a night away in a town close to home (like a country inn or maybe a cutesy historic town nearby), etc....
Thanksgiving
Food is th focus of the day- but don't forget the Macy's day parade, enjoying a nice walk on a nature trail to see the leaves change, all the new clothes you will need after losing weight you can get great deals on cyber Monday!, etc....
I make some low carb favorites like cauli mashies, but mostly I focus on just enjoying seeing my family altogether and I volunteer for dog walking duty.
Super Bowl (American's second highest calorie count after thanksgiving!)
I like to get creative with fun low carb recipes here. We have done nacho toppings (meat, salsa, guac, cheddar, sour cream- but I used bell peppers to scoop
Chilli is a great one
Pulled chicken/ pork stuffed bell peppers
Wings!
Etc.....enjoy the game and have fun low carb recipes just for the occasion
July fourth
Again, I like making themed stuff- a favorite was a huge berry and cheese plate I made. It looked an American flag- blueberries for the square, rows of strawberries, cherries or raspberries alternating with rows of white cheeses cut into squares, to make stripes.
I have also done fruit/ cheese skewers with American flags......
If you are grilling, set up games in the yard for the adults, too. A bean bag toss is dirt cheap and a lot of fun for adults as well as kids.
Halloween
Movies that are age appropriate are a good choice.
Carving pumpkins with the kids is fun- and you can roast the seeds for a perfect low carb snack. I'm partial to lime juice and chile, I'd do cinnamon and Splenda since you have kids.
Deck out the house and yard with cobwebs, and whatever. I did a pretty involved centerpiece last year with day of the dead decorative plates, skeleton arms for the stems of cheap champagne glasses, and a few pumpkin/squashes.
Go to a farm to let kids the pumpkin, and enjoy a wagon ride or whatever other stuff they have going on (many have goats to pet, you can slide on a hay bale, etc.....).
Visit a haunted house/ trail walk of your kids are old enough.
Even playing a Halloween soundtrack and lighting the pumpkin is a fun thing to do in October.
Get into the costumes
After awhile, you won't miss the old carby traditions. You will have so many traditions and you will so much better, you won't feel like you are missing out on anything. You will have come to love your new lifestyle and holidays will be just as special. In fact, I'd say they are better, because wouldn't it be nice to wake up on Black Friday without feeling a truck hit you and your pants are too tight?
Holidays should never feel like you are depriving yourself. It's just shifting mentally in terms of the things are celebrating.