midwest living
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Why you ask? It is simply because it is a holiday with the least hustle and bustle and the most family and food. At Easter we are busy preparing baskets, at Halloween we must carve pumpkins, and decorate, and get the costumes ready. Christmas? Well we know how busy that season is. Then there is Thanksgiving. Plan a menu, or a dish, and enjoy the day with family and friends. Ahhh, I just love it!
Then it is over. Just like that. There really is no Thanksgiving "season", especially in Ohio where November brings the start of Winter. Christmas season has arrived before you know it.
Black Friday marks the beginning of the crazy Christmas rush.
Catch this sale! Make that gift!
country living
Bake those cookies!
ann stratton for country living
Decorate your home!
midwest living
Trim the tree!
myhomeideas.com
Plan meals for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day,
and New Year's Eve & Day!
better homes and gardens
Wow! Does it ever end? No wonder so many of us suffer from S.A.D. (seasonal affective disorder) come January. It must be the big anti-climatic let down after we ring in the new year. It's like coming down off a sugar high. One minute you are buzzing and happy, and the next minute you find your self grumpy and wanting to sleep.
How do I combat all of the Christmas season craziness?
Hello, my name is Stephanie, and I am a list-maker.
I find myself making lists of preparations, gift lists, lists for baking, lists of guests, lists of engagements. The December holidays seem more manageable and less stressful. Everything is down on paper and in my calendar and, at least in my head, I feel as though I have a handle on things.
If you are feeling overwhelmed already at the thought of all you have to do, I encourage to start out by making some lists. It can be very gratifying to check things off as they are completed. You will be less likely to forget to do something or buy something. If you get behind or stray from your lists, you can rearrange and get right back into the swing of things.
Of course the big bonus is that if you start ahead of time, you can time your lists so that the bulk of your preparations are done a couple of weeks before Christmas. This allows you time to really enjoy your kids, your family, and the season without all of the craziness.
For more encouragement on avoiding the Christmas mayhem, visit these sites for more de-stressing tips:
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Don't forget to mark your calendar for the Christmas Cookie Exchange on December 15th.
Stephanie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you...Thanksgiving is a wonderful Holiday! But Christmas is crazy with too much to do in too little time! Every year I say this year's going to be different. Maybe this year it will...yeah right!
Jane @ Finding Fabulous
I agree with your ideas on making lists-I don't know where I would be without them. It's funny reading about your cold weather when we are about to approach a very hot, humid and stormy summer!
ReplyDeleteGreat post.
Best wishes, Natasha.
PS Love the pictures!
Great pictures for this post, Stephanie. I'm a list maker too, but I think I will be more so this year since I'm hosting the family {for Christmas}. I will need a list for the lists! : ) I've always liked to get a little done each week, as far as gifts anyway, so it doesn't seem like such a rush and I get to enjoy some of my favorite Christmas movies, too.
ReplyDeleteI too am a list maker. And I used to almost burn out trying to do it all -- because I love it all! But although I make my lists to do "it all", if it doesn't get done, or if it needs to be altered, I don't sweat it anymore. I try to have fun and be as relaxed as possible.
ReplyDeleteI love Thanksgiving, too! You said all the things that make it my favorite holiday. You know what else I love about it? It is always on Thursday. Always. there is something comforting about that kind of predictability.
ReplyDeleteI have to have Christmas ready this year before Dec. 15th. I'm having surgery that day and will be totally out of commision for the rest of the season. So I'm working on my lists, too.
I make lists too. Actually, I have lists in cute notebooks (I'm addicted) all over the place. I have a trip notebook, a holiday notebook, a blog notebook...and so on.
ReplyDeleteSue
Lists, lists and lots of lists. Since we have had children, we also do not travel. "If you want to see us, you come to us." I also simplified my decorating (the kids were dismantling it anyway) and make activities kid friendly (cookie decorating and I don' care how much they eat or what ends up on the floor for that day).
ReplyDeleteHolly
Hmmmm...maybe that is why I started my Christmas decorating already. I don't want to last minute stress!!
ReplyDeleteFun post Stephanie!