LESS IS MORE: SIMPLIFY YOUR HOLIDAY SEASON

HOLIDAYS DO NOT HAVE TO BE STRESSFUL

The holiday season is a time to celebrate and spend time with family. But, it can also be a time of stress and exhaustion. We can often end up with so many things to do. There is decorating, buying gifts, cooking meals and events to attend. It is easy to get caught up in just keeping up and not getting to really enjoy this time of year. With all this being said, the holiday season does not have to be one of stress. By simplifying the holiday season, you can reduce stress, save time and money, and focus on the things that really matter. This will help make the season a much more enjoyable time for you and your family.

HOME DÉCOR

Decide where you will put out your decorations before you start putting them out. This will allow you to clear the areas where you need to make room for decorations so that they can go up more quickly. If you really like how your decorations come out, take a picture to save for next year. Then you don’t have to rethink where to put everything each time you go to decorate. Don’t feel like you have to use every decoration that you own. If you have decorations that you do not want to get rid of, but also do not want to put up this year, then just leave them behind.

I like to pull down my decorations from the attic, pull out what catches my eye to decorate with, and leave the rest behind. You don’t have to use everything you own every year. And if you notice that there are certain things you never reach for, maybe it’s time to declutter those items. Involve your whole family in your decorating. It will save you time and it can be really fun. Our tradition is to decorate the weekend after Thanksgiving. Let go over perfection, and let them put things wherever they like them!

GIFT GIVING

Planning ahead can make a big difference in simplifying your holiday gift-giving. Make a list of all the people you want to give gifts to and have a general idea of what you want to give them and how much you will spend. You don’t have to decide on the exact gift, but having some type of idea can help reduce overwhelm. You can set a theme and stick with it for certain people. For example, many people enjoy a new pair of pajamas or a gift card to a certain restaurant. There is nothing wrong with setting a theme for certain individuals and sticking with it. There are only so many things you can get a person, and often as they get older, it gets more difficult. So, keep it simple, and don’t be afraid to give similar gifts year after year.

One of the gifts my mom gives us each year is a restaurant gift card and I love it.  Because it’s not something we often do. Shopping does not have to be done marathon style anymore. Take your time and do one or two people at a time if you can. I like to do a lot of shopping online, so I will look at my list and purchase a gift for a couple of individuals at a time. It can feel overwhelming doing it all at once.

ALTERNATIVE GIFT GIVING

As some of my nieces and nephews got older, we started doing an adult gift exchange. Once they were 18, they no longer got gifts from their aunts and uncles, they just joined in a group gift exchange, if they wanted to. The group was made up of the aunts and uncles and adult children, but only those who wanted to participate. It was a nice way to have a fun little gift exchange without the need to buy every individual a gift. One of the members of our Facebook group recently posted about the idea of doing a family trip instead of exchanging gifts. If your family is on board, that can be a really great alternative to exchanging gifts.  I am going to start working on my family in hopes we can do this in a couple of years!

HOLIDAY MEALS

Of course, again, planning ahead can help with holiday meals too. If you give yourself some time to think through what you will be making ahead of time you can decide what things you might be able to make in advance to save some time on the actual holiday. You can also decide if anyone else can bring certain dishes so that you can answer the question of “what can I bring” with something that will be most helpful to you. It will also allow you to think through any ingredients you will need so that you can get them ahead of time before the stores get crazy as the holiday gets closer.

Remember that you do not have to make everything from scratch. Although I do have to admit, that the frozen pies I made last year were not my favorite, it did make the meal prep easier. So, find something that you are ok with doing store-bought on and put your time and effort into the dishes that you really want to focus on. Plan ahead to use your leftovers. We make about a gazillion side dishes on Thanksgiving. The day after, I just make a main dish, like maybe a steak, and we will fill in the rest of the meal with leftovers from the day before.

HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES

Holiday activities can be overwhelming and exhausting when you try to cram to many of them in. If you take time to prioritize the activities that are your favorite they can be a really great part of your holiday season. So, be sure not to say yes to everything that comes up. Think about what things you really enjoyed in the previous year, or something new you would like to try this year. If trying something new rather than adding another thing to your schedule, see if there is something else that can be skipped this year. As fun as activities are, rest is really important.  This is especially true during the holiday season, so be realistic with your time and make sure you have some space in your schedule.

OTHER TIPS

Batch dry ingredients for baking.  Prior to your actual baking day make labeled zip lock bags with the dry ingredients needed for the recipe.  On baking day, that part is already done! Take advantage of Free Shipping Day on December 15th.  I have never done this or heard of this before, so check it out for yourself.  Hopefully, it’s true, but according to the internet on that date, many retailers offer free shipping. Treat yourself to grocery delivery if that is not something you typically use. Giving yourself an extra hour or two can be a big help on a busy day.

Think ahead if you need to stock up on extra groceries for the week after Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other holidays that may fall around the time of your normal grocery shopping. I normally shop on Thursday, so Thanksgiving messes up my shopping routine.  I don’t want to go the day before because the stores will be crazy, and I don’t want to go the day after because it’s Black Friday, so the stores will be crazy. So, I will order extra groceries the week before and do a delivery for any fresh items that we end up needing for that week. Don’t worry about doing it all!  Do what you can and what you enjoy and let the rest go!

Thanks so much for checking in! If you would like to hear the podcast version of this topic check out Lola’s Frugal Life Podcast! Also, be sure to check out my other blog posts on this site!

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