How to make the holidays LESS stressful
Posted in: I'm Moving, Seasonal & HolidaysAs of today, we are six weeks away from Christmas Eve…. but hey, who’s counting?! No, we are not here to make you dive into full panic mode. That is NOT our intent at all… actually, this post is designed to do quite the opposite.
We are offering 5 quick tips on super simple things you can do now (as in this week!) to eliminate the last-minute stress of the holidays.
Just think about it… you get it done now, a time that is slightly less chaotic, and you won’t have to think about doing these things in the midst of gift buying, holiday party prepping, and everything else that makes a complete whirlwind. Heck, even if you do 3 of these things, you are ALREADY ahead of the game.
1. Collect the wish lists from your loved ones
Why stress on trying to brainstorm the idea for that “perfect gift” when you can ask for your loved ones’ wish lists and guarantee you’ll actually buy that perfect gift? This will not only show that you care (far in advance) but will help eliminate some of the stress of searching, searching, searching and eventually settling on something less than ideal because time is running out! #sendinbackup
2. Order your holiday cards:
Get those holiday cards ordered and addressed NOW and we promise you will thank yourself in December. This can be a time-consuming and less than exciting job, so getting to work now will eliminate that stress next month. Plus, how amazing will you feel being able to send your cards at the start of December rather than midnight on Dec. 23rd?!
3. Get the conversation started
How much are we spending on each other? What’s the grab bag theme? Who is hosting Christmas dinner? AH!!! Get the conversation started now so that these questions will be answered and all individuals can plan accordingly.
4. Put “decorate for the holidays” on the calendar
Instead of trying to squeeze this holiday tradition into whenever you have free time, why not carve out a specific day/time to decorate in one big swoop. If it’s on the calendar, you can get the kids involved and make a date of it. Heck, who doesn’t want an excuse at the beginning of the season to blast Christmas music and sip on peppermint hot cocoa? It’s a date!
5. Track your buying
Start a doc now! This way you can start an organized list of who you have to buy for, who you already bought for, and who still needs some attention from Santa’s workshop. Plus, if you create this doc and use it this season, you can make a copy and use it again next year (cutting out about half of the work!). You’ll be able to tell who you gave gifts to this year, how much money you spent this year, and will already have most of your gift plan done for 2016 just by saving the document.
So what do you say, are you willing to do a little prep work to eliminate some holiday stress next month? We promise… even tackling ONE of these 5 tips will help… and hopefully mean more time for holiday cheer… or cheers (we’ll take either, or both!)!