You Need To Listen

As much as I love the holidays, I also fear them because of all the added stress that they bring. With the kids’ home from holistic boarding school and law school in Boston, I’ve got a house full of people who are all vying for my attention, at the very time of year that I seem to have the least of it to around.

For me, it takes a great deal of extra effort to remain stress-free during this supposedly relaxing time of the year. Over the years I’ve carefully crafted a set of guidelines to help myself through this busy season, which I thought I’d share with the rest of you.

Plan Ahead

As simple as this may sound, I know from personal experience how easy it can be to let “to-dos” accumulate until there’s so much to do that nothing can be done at all. Always try and plan ahead to avoid any potential mishaps! Start by making a list of all of the items that you will need this holiday season and then begin purchasing them weeks before they’re required. This will help you avoid the mad shopping rush that the holidays so often entail, plus it will give you additional time to stretch out that ever-limited budget.

Buy Online

Another way to ease the inevitable holiday budget crunch is to buy your gifts online. Buying online isn’t only significantly quicker than shopping in-person, but can also save you a lot of money. Shop the week of Black Friday and enjoy Cyber Monday without having to camp-out for hours, fight for the most prized gifts, or even pay for gas along the way.

Look for things that people wouldn’t ordinarily consider great Christmas gifts too. For example, this year I jumped onto the Internet for Cyber Monday and now I’ve managed to stash most of my out of state relatives at one of the best resorts in Las Vegas for a discounted price. They will be happy with their swanky hotel rooms and I’ll be pleased to have 4 less people in the house.

Buy in Bulk

Costco and Sam’s Club exist for a reason- the deals are simply better when you’re able to buy in bulk. When you have a household full of family and guests the last thing you will want to do is to run out of food supplies. Buying in bulk can be more cost efficient and helps avoid last minute dashes to the grocery store. I tried this last year for the first time, and was astounded at how much money and time I was able to save.

Freeze Those Holiday Favorites

In order to avoid spending the entire holiday season slaving away in the kitchen, try cooking freezable dishes in advance and then freezing them for later use. You will be surprised at how much preparation time this cuts out on actual holiday days, and your guests may not even be able to tell the difference between just-made and just re-heated dishes, if you do them right! For me, this method has been the key to allowing me to spend actual quality time with my friends and family, rather than my kitchen appliances.

Make a Schedule

Creating the perfect holiday is a lot like running a small enterprise – and you need to be as organized as possible to keep it afloat. Make a schedule, prioritize your tasks and factor in how long each of them will take to complete. This process will help you plan out your day and make managing your time a little easier. As well as keeping a schedule on my phone, I often keep a basic timetable stuck to my fridge that never fails to keeps my day’s priorities in check.

Enlist Some Help

Even if you are hosting the holidays this year, it’s a little unfair if you are expected to do all the work by yourself. Try and get your family and guests in on the holiday preparation action for around half an hour a day and you will be amazed at how much time this will free up. You can make it fun by serving eggnog or putting on some festive tunes.

Entertain Your Guests

This may sound like more work but it can actually save you some time. For example, offer your guests a plethora of classic holiday movies and while they are watching these you can sneak off and finish some last minute holiday preparations. Try to entertain your guests with activities that amuse them but that also give you some time off of hosting duties.

Make Sure You Relax

There are stressful points to every holiday, but make sure you find some time to relax and unwind. Working nonstop won’t allow you to truly enjoy the holidays and you are likely to burnout fast. Remember this is your holiday too, so try and factor in at least an hour a day just to take time for yourself and to recharge.

Don’t Leave Anything to the Last Minute

In order to avoid a holiday disaster, don’t put anything on the back burner. Even if it’s a task you hate doing, if it’s necessary to complete then just get on and be done with it. Nothing creates more holiday stress like remembering you have something important to do when crunch times approaches. Be sure to regularly check your schedule and tick off tasks as you go along.

Remember It Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect

It can be easy to demand perfection during the holiday season, but this really isn’t what the holidays are about. Manage your time well and put in the effort to create a wonderful holiday, but don’t take it out on yourself if a few things don’t go to plan. Very little turns out exactly as we anticipate, so be prepared but remember to enjoy yourself whatever happens.

As you can see, the holiday season doesn’t have to be anxiety inducing! In fact, if you follow these simple tips it can be a relaxing and highly enjoyable experience for you and your family and friends. Happy Holidays!