by kathilipp | Nov 22, 2015 | Blog, Christmas, Clutter Free |
When was the last time you were searching for the perfect gift for your cousin that was coming over for the annual gift exchange – the one that was happening tomorrow? It’s happened to all of us at least once, or four times. This is one way to ENSURE your holidays will be stressful. We want to avoid stress this year so here is the plan.
Assignment:
- Make a list of everyone you will be making or buying gifts for (jot down a date of when you need to exchange or mail them).
- Keep notes next to each name of things you think they might like, need or really appreciate. Think about whether they would most appreciate a gift that you bought for them, or maybe they would love to donate toward a cause and you could do it in their honor? Whatever the case, take a few minutes and decide your plan of attack.
- Another thing I do ahead of time is window shop. I write down or take pictures of things so I can later add them to my list with their price. That way I don’t go nuts spending way too much. Then I go home and make up my real list including what I am buying and how much it costs.
Supplies:
The Get Your Christmas Organized Gift List
I actually take this one step further and create this list on a spread sheet because I have a budget in mind for each person. All of this is then stored in one place and when I am at the store I know that I can get what I intended and make sure I don’t spend too much doing so! This has helped not only keep me organized, but also keeps me from spending way more than I should have out of guilt, loss of time or impulse purchases.
The idea here is for you to be giving gifts from a place of joy, not last minute stress. Be smart, shop in stages so the hit on the budget isn’t so severe!
For more details: Get Your Christmas Organized page 48
Need more ideas for gifts? Check out what Evite says about how to ‘Find the Perfect Gift’.
Share Your Thoughts: How do you tend to get your gift list going? Do you plan it out or just shop and then worry about it later? Do you buy for everyone or just a select few? Share with us what gift giving traditions you have developed or adapted over the years.
by kathilipp | Nov 21, 2015 | Blog, Christmas, Clutter Free |
If you don’t plan your time, someone else will. During the holidays it is especially important to plan in advance so you have the time to do the things that are truly important to you.
I schedule downtime. Life can get very stressful over the holidays and I schedule time just to relax and wrap gifts with music playing or to kick back and read a book. The time leading up to Christmas shouldn’t be so rushed and stressful that you are totally exhausted and can’t enjoy the holiday. I schedule mini-breaks or downtime throughout the season. This is especially important if you have small children and their schedules are being disrupted.
The downtime is every bit as important as the parties and other social activities during the holiday season. I review calendars and make sure we find time to attend church, candlelight services, and other events that matter to us, I schedule downtime, and then everything else is worked into the time that is left or we choose not to do it. Go back to your Christmas mission statement and make sure everything you schedule fits into your mission. If it doesn’t, you can skip it this year. There’s always next year!
Do what gives you joy and don’t feel guilty for saying NO to everything else.
Assignment: Schedule Your Time for the Holidays
Gather all your calendars and spend fifteen minutes scheduling your commitments (personal, family, church, school, etc.). Now it is time to schedule in some fun! You may want to ask your family what they would like to do this year. Consider dropping things that no longer bring you or your family joy. You may also want to set aside some special time for just you and your spouse.
Once you have completed your calendar, be sure to hang it where everyone has access to it.
For More Details: Get Yourself Organized For Christmas – Page 44
Supplies:
1) a blank calendar for November and December (or download printable blank calendars for November and December here.)
2) School, church, work and personal calendars.
Share Your Thoughts:
How does it feel to have things scheduled out in advance? Did you eliminate some activities? What activities will you keep no matter what? When you think about the holiday season do you feel overwhelmed, relaxed, confident or frustrated?
Bonus Idea:
Do you love having a ton of different cookies for Christmas but don’t have time to shop and prepare for a more than one type of cookie? Have a cookie exchange party and invite your favorite people (and the best bakers)! Invite them with a Kathi Lipp inspired Evite. Check it and other fun Clutter Free Christmas party ideas here.
by kathilipp | Nov 20, 2015 | Blog, Christmas, Clutter Free |
When was the last time you got to December 10th and took a deep sigh of relief that your cards were completely done and mailed?? Umm, I have to answer that one honestly and say never. But I can also honestly say that when they are done early, my stress level goes way down. I do the whole thing in stages.
Assignment:
- Go through the list of things necessary to prep your Christmas cards. Maybe you need to buy paper for your annual letter or get pictures taken. Jot down all of the steps
- Start working through the list and possibly enlist the help of others. Maybe your spouse can order the stamps and print addresses for you. Maybe your second grader can put the stamps on.
- Make an assembly line while watching a movie to make it more fun. If it is too overwhelming to get done all at once, take time today to decide on one thing to accomplish each day this week. Mark each day on your calendar. By the end of the week, you will be ready to mail off your cards!
For More Details: Get Yourself Organized For Christmas – Page 39-42
Do you need help with card ideas? Evite can help! Check them out for some great ideas.
Share Your Thoughts:
Have you broken down all of the steps before of getting cards ready? Even though it is many steps, much of it can be tackled over time and with help! Do you elicit the help of others?? What do you job out to save time, stress or a possibly a papercut on your lip? Come share with us what YOU do.
by kathilipp | Nov 19, 2015 | Blog, Christmas, Clutter Free |
If you’re not sending a Christmas card this year, or you’re sending a card sans family photo, you get to sit this project out. For the rest of us, it’s time to sit down and choose a photo or choose a date to take pictures. Enjoy this project by inviting your family to help select the photo this year.
Maybe enjoy some Christmas cookies and cocoa as you look back on the memories you made together this year. If you still need to take family pictures, make a day of it! Plan on taking your photos together then going to the movies, out to eat, or grabbing your favorite hot beverage and shopping to fill your Operation Christmas Child boxes.
Assignment: Pick your Christmas picture or set a date to take a family picture.
The earlier you get the picture taken, the better. It’s November so photographers are offering holiday specials and booking sessions quickly. Get your favorite photographer on the phone and get this scheduled.
Make your appointment at a time when your family is at its best. If you are all night owls, don’t plan an early morning appointment. Also make sure no one is hungry when you go for the picture.
Outfits don’t have to match perfectly, but they should coordinate and not clash! Clothes should be comfortable.
On a budget? Digital cards save you time and money and allow you to send a card to any number of friends and family. In addition you don’t have to spend a ton of money on a professional photographer because your pictures don’t have to be as high quality to really look great. Check out the options on Evite and see if a digital Christmas card is right for your family.
For More Details: Get Yourself Organized For Christmas – Page 32
Supplies: Cards, Picture, Printer paper if you do a letter, stamps, envelopes, address, and return address labels.
Share Your Thoughts: Will you be sending cards this year? Will your cards include a family picture? Is it a Christmas picture or one taken throughout the year? What made you pick that picture? Do you send paper cards or digital cards? Any tips for others who plan to get a family picture taken or use pictures in cards?
by kathilipp | Nov 18, 2015 | Blog, Christmas, Clutter Free |
Assignment: Create a Christmas Binder with Tabs
This binder is going to be your friend for the next few weeks. You know- the kind of friend that you count on to help you keep your sanity. This friend should reflect you but more importantly the vision you have for your family Christmas! Yesterday you made a list of what is important to you for the holidays, what it would look like for you if you started fresh this year. Use your mission statement and go from there. But don’t forget this is supposed to be quick and easy!
For More Details: Get Yourself Organized for Christmas – Page 28
Supplies: a 3 ring binder, tabs, (optional) colored pens, plain paper to decorate a cover sleeve to slide in the clear pocket.
Maybe you have an old binder lying around that contains your child’s old science fair project. Maybe you were on a committee for church a few years back and you can recycle one for a new purpose! Maybe you will take out a blank sheet of paper and decorate it and then slide it into the clear sleeve of the front cover of the binder. Maybe you make a fun label for the outside. Whatever you end up creating, make it SIMPLE.
Next get some dividers for the different categories. Get one for Cards, Recipes, Budget and Receipts, etc. Then place them in the order that makes sense to you. Keep a copy of the mission statement in the front however, to remind yourself of the core values and what matters most to your family.
Go to evite.com for some great planning ideas. Did you know that there are tabs on there that give you tons of tips, ideas and ways to get your planning started? (it looks like Pinterest) Click this link to take a look.
Then set a reminder on your phone or an appointment on your calendar to do a binder check weekly. This check will ensure you are USING it after you took the time to create it! It is so important for you to not get overwhelmed. Use this time to store away any needed items to keep yourself organized. Put that receipt in the receipt section now because when you are in a hurry later, it won’t happen. Doing a simple task now will keep you from feeling crazed later!
Share Your Thoughts:
Where did you get your binder? Is it newly repurposed? What tabs did you put inside? Did you list out your Mission Statement and enclose it?
