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Last updated on November 2nd, 2022 at 04:50 am
If you’re feeling the pressure of the holiday season, you’re not alone. With all the events, gifting, and other obligations, it’s hard to have a stress-free holiday season.
This time of year is especially busy for our family —it’s the busy season for my husband’s business (and mine!) and we have important birthdays that land around Christmas.
Over the past few years, my husband and I have come up with ways to stay stress-free during the holidays.
Here are 7 tips to have a stress-free holiday season.
01. Plan ahead
We start thinking about Christmas gifts around July. One way we keep our gift list straight is by using our Christmas Gift Tracker.
It’s an all-in-one list of all the people we want to give gifts to, what the gift is, the budget, the actual cost, and if it needs to be shipped.
This tracker also includes a list of Christmas card recipients. After a few years, it was too hard trying to remember who we sent cards to the year before, so now we keep track.
02. Shop smart
True, there are a lot of deals this time of year but not everything is a deal.
We keep a list of items around the house that need replacing and keep an eye on sales.
One resource we found on YouTube (I say a little shamefacedly) is the Deal Guy. He does a lot of videos on Costco and Amazon …which is where we find ourselves spending the most.
03. Budget
As mentioned before, we start shopping ahead of time to spread out the costs over several months. We set a gift budget in our Gift Tracker and keep it updated so we know how much we’ve spent.
We use a personal budget as well. In the past, we’ve used Everydollar to help us stay on track and avoid big bills.
04. Check your decorations
I’ve gotten to the point where I don’t remember what Christmas decor we have. Before shopping for more, I check our boxes for what we have and take note of what needs replacing.
05. Simplify your decor
Have you ever bought a piece of decor that you realize doesn’t fit with the rest of what you have? Choose a color scheme or a theme and limit your decor buying to just those colors and item types.
One question that always makes me pause before buying a new piece is: Do I really want to store this?
06. Say no (& be realistic)
We’ve had holiday seasons where we were doing something every single weekend …and it was exhausting.
It’s ok to say no, especially if thinking about a packed calendar is giving you anxiety.
This goes for both parties and family traditions. There are certain events we want to attend every year and certain family activities we want to do. But if it becomes too much, we say no.
07. Focus on the true meaning of the season
In the end, I have to remember the real reason we’re doing any of this is that Christ came into the world. We are supposed to be filled with joy at this!
All these other things are good but not when we allow them to take over our lives and forget what the meaning is.
These 7 tips can help you have a stress-free holiday season.
- Plan ahead
- Shop smart
- Budget
- Check your decorations
- Simplify your decor
- Say no (& be realistic)
- Focus on the true meaning of the season
To help you stay stress-free, you can get a template of my Christmas Gift Tracker by entering your email below.
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