Christmas Eve is tomorrow, and no matter how good you are at goal setting, list making, and time blocking, you probably have more to do than you have time to do it.
I get it. I’m used to doing a lot for Christmas, mostly in the food department. In highschool I used to spend the entirety of Christmas break in the kitchen, cooking and baking from morning until night. Looking back, I probably wasn’t much fun to be around during the holidays because of the stress I subjected myself to.
I’ve lightened up over the years, and now I don’t stress myself out trying to make 20 different Christmas cookies. Even with a smaller agenda, I get to a point each year where I have to start picking off projects and letting things go.
It’s hard, especially when you feel like you already trimmed down your list and planned the holidays to be just what you wanted (FYI, you can find a pretty cool holiday planner from this pretty lady. She sends it out in the fall so you have plenty of time to use it).
Anyway, today I’m sharing with you the things I am letting go of this year. Maybe I will get to these things next year, maybe I won’t. But in order to actually enjoy this Christmas with my family, I’m going to drop these things:
Embossing envelopes. Each year I get photo print Christmas cards, and one of my favorite parts of sending Christmas cards is embossing the envelopes with Christmas stamps. I wanted to take Christmas cards to each of my staff members, but I didn’t have the envelopes embossed. It was like a mental block in my head – I could not deliver those cards unless the envelopes were embossed. Finally I realized that was my own stupid rule that I made up – and I could break it. They looked just fine with Christmas stickers on the back – and would have looked fine without even that much.
Sending Christmas cards on time. I would prefer to send Christmas cards on time, but as I write this I have a whole stack of Christmas cards that aren’t stamped or addressed yet (they are embossed though 🙂 ). I can’t tell you how much peace I felt when I just decided they would be late. The people worth sending cards to won’t care if they arrive a few days after Christmas. It’s not April 15th; I’m allowed to be late.
Giving caramel popcorn to everyone. I make some pretty tasty caramel corn that I love sharing during the holidays. My gift list is pretty extensive, and includes most hospital departments along with our vet and dentist. Last week I finally realized I had probably made the last batch I would be making before Christmas. I took a hard look at my list and decided that most of those people would still love me even without popcorn.
Making gifts for my staff. Last year I made rice socks for my staff, and they loved them. I wanted to make them some hand warmers like these this year, but that would have been a pretty big undertaking. Not only do I have a small child to take care of, I’m missing something major for the project: a sewing machine. I decided that I would just take this year off. I’m on maternity leave, after all!
Decorating to the nines. I love decorating for Christmas, and when we moved into our house last year I pictured it covered in lights, with decorative pillows on the couch, festive scented candles scattered about, and garland hung by the kitchen window. We got the important stuff done this year – the tree, lights outside, and a few favorite decorations. But it is by no means the North Pole. I like it this way, and the only thing that would make me enjoy it less is if I thought it needed to be different.
Also, we have four cats. They love to destroy Christmas decorations.
Buying tons of presents. Somehow my vision of adulthood included buying lots of presents for lots of people. But it means a lot more if you have a small gift list of meaningful people. Also, going over budget seriously taints the joy of giving.
Sending presents on time. When you have a baby, “on time” has little importance. My friends and family won’t be getting all their presents on time because I didn’t order them until three days ago. But who doesn’t love an after Christmas surprise? The gifts will get there when they get there. My friends and family are no less loved, and Christmas will be no less enjoyed.
Making lots of treats. I can’t believe the number of things I used to make for Christmas. And most of them got packed up and frozen to be eaten later. You can really only enjoy so much at a time, so we are focusing on just a few favorites this year.
Stressing over the gift wrap. That caramel popcorn I make? I usually package it up in cellophane bags with beautiful ribbons, like something you would find at Harry and David. This year my popcorn was delivered in quart freezer bags with a miniature bow taped to it. I don’t think anyone cared. It’s better than the popcorn sitting in my kitchen forever and never getting delivered because it wasn’t perfect.
Let me tell you, I love doing each of these things and it’s hard to compromise on them or give them up. But there comes a time when it causes more stress than enjoyment, and that’s when it’s time to drop it.
What are you going to drop this year to make Christmas more enjoyable? If you want some more inspiration for making Christmas less stressful and more enjoyable, check out this post.
Merry Christmas friends!