I’ve been feeling the pressure of the holidays since about mid-October. I love gift giving and seeing family and friends, but still find it to be the toughest time of year. I feel rushed, don’t get enough time to myself and never feel like there is enough of me to go around. This year, I’m trying to take control.
We have 14 family events from early November to the end of December. On top of that are friends’ birthdays, holiday parties and work events. It’s a lot to facilitate so I am applying an overwhelming (ask Wonder Boy) amount of organization.
I’m well into my Christmas shopping and event prepared for holiday baking. In order to save visits to the dreaded mall, I’ve been doing a ton of online shopping. As soon as something shows up on my doorstep, I wrap it and take it to the attic. I’ve also developed a spreadsheet (nerd) of who gets what when and how much I’m spending.
I might also have all of the holiday cards addressed. That way Wonder Boy and I can write them as we watch TV and they’ll be all set to go by the end of next week.
I’m curious about you. How do you handle the holidays and keep stress at bay?
Mandy
You suck! We haven’t even started (although we are planning to chip away at a huge portion of it this weekend). Tell your husband to please send me ideas!!! I do the spreadsheet thing too! We have absolutely no mechanism for minimizing stress during the holidays. I have decided this year that I’m going to try to enjoy all the get togethers more than I typically do. I can’t believe all that you’ve wrapped. Stresses me out! Keep that to yourself:)
Kate
I don’t suck! I offered to wrap gifts for you and that was a genuine offer. The only thing I like better than getting good Christmas gifts is wrapping Christmas presents. I win the lottery and I’ll still work, but only as a professional gift wrapper.