Happy Wednesday friends!! I am linking up with Shay & Erika for Workin' It Wednesday. This is the last topic of the year, and it's a good one....keeping sane during the holidays.
Sing along with me.....
Sing along with me.....
Now it's no secret, I love this time of year. The sights, the smells, the food, I love all the magic of Christmas!
I love to do all of the Christmas things. That being said, here are a few things I do to keep things from getting too out of control crazy this time of year.
I must first say that I am a bit of an A-type personality and I am a planner. I do a few things in November to set me up for a fun December. Now I realize this may not help you right now....as we are 12 days out from the the big day. However you can check out some of my planning tips here, to really make 2018 smoother 😉.
One of my first tips is to say no. It's ok to not go to every holiday party, event or cookie exchange. And that's coming from a girl who wants to every Christmas everything! I also like some quiet nights at home, by the tree, with a favorite Christmas movie.
I must first say that I am a bit of an A-type personality and I am a planner. I do a few things in November to set me up for a fun December. Now I realize this may not help you right now....as we are 12 days out from the the big day. However you can check out some of my planning tips here, to really make 2018 smoother 😉.
One of my first tips is to say no. It's ok to not go to every holiday party, event or cookie exchange. And that's coming from a girl who wants to every Christmas everything! I also like some quiet nights at home, by the tree, with a favorite Christmas movie.
So I make a list of our favorite Christmas traditions and plan them out.
We love doing the same things each year & I plan out which weekends or evenings we will do them.
If you are looking for some new traditions to start, I shared my list here.
We love doing the same things each year & I plan out which weekends or evenings we will do them.
If you are looking for some new traditions to start, I shared my list here.
Let's talk about food. If you are hosting or if you are bringing food to a party this can get stressful as one more thing to think about. I usually write down what I will be making around the holidays in November (yes I am a planner). Then I pick up some of the pantry items I need early on. It helps lighten the load... nothing worse than pushing a heavy grocery cart through a crazy grocery store on December 23!
And speaking of food, if I am hosting, I like to have the serving dishes laid out a few days ahead of time. I put post-its on them so I know what is going where. It also helps when you have guests that want to help in the kitchen...they know where stuff goes!
It makes putting out the food a lot easier!
Eliminate some gifts. Just be present with your friends and family. We don't exchange gifts with friends, it's way more fun to exchange laughs over dinner!
And we don't exchange with our siblings, we celebrate with good food, a few family games and enjoy watching the kids open presents.
And speaking of food, if I am hosting, I like to have the serving dishes laid out a few days ahead of time. I put post-its on them so I know what is going where. It also helps when you have guests that want to help in the kitchen...they know where stuff goes!
And we don't exchange with our siblings, we celebrate with good food, a few family games and enjoy watching the kids open presents.
Now it may be a bit late for you this year, but I keep a little list in my wallet and jot stuff down throughout the year as I see or think of gift ideas.
That way when it comes time to start shopping, I have a few ideas.
Let's talk about Amazon Prime. This really helps keep your sanity all year long! The best feature I have found on the Amazon app is the little camera in the upper right corner...
Scan anything in any store and add to your cart or list. This does two things. One, it makes a list of gift ideas as you see things in stores. And two, it will show you the price from Amazon...which will probably save you money too 😉
I always plan out our meals each week, but it is especially helpful this time of year. One less thing to think about each day! Here is our meal plan for this week.
Five Meals for Your Family Table
I always plan out our meals each week, but it is especially helpful this time of year. One less thing to think about each day! Here is our meal plan for this week.
Five Meals for Your Family Table
If you are looking for some stocking stuffer ideas, I shared some of my favorite ideas last week.
Favorite Stocking Stuffers
Now keep calm & Christmas on!!
See you tomorrow. We are sharing all the details on our Annual Gingerbread Party we hosted last weekend.
Favorite Stocking Stuffers
Now keep calm & Christmas on!!
See you tomorrow. We are sharing all the details on our Annual Gingerbread Party we hosted last weekend.
There's always room for one more at our family table.
xoxo
Genevieve
ps... If you missed our other Workin It Wednesday Posts, you can catch up here.
A few of our other Workin' It Wednesdays, in case you missed them......
You have a great game plan!! I also lay out my dishes ahead of time with post it's!
ReplyDeleteI’m so glad I stumbled upon your blog! What a fantastic idea about setting out your plates And labeling them! Also I’m going to try that Thai Beef recipe! It looks soooo good!
ReplyDeleteI’d love to subscribe to your posts but I don’t see where I sign up?
ReplyDeleteHi Kelly! All the way down at the bottom of home page, it says "Join here and never miss a post". Just put your email in there and you will be all set :)
DeleteThanks for stopping by!!
Genevieve