10 Easy Ways to Make Your Holiday Season More Peaceful

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah or something entirely different. These quick tips will help make this time of year more calm and peaceful for you and your loved ones. Since we celebrate Christmas, that is what I will talk about here. Feel free to take what works for you and leave the rest.

Decide ahead of time. What do you want this season to look like? How do you want to feel? What are you going to do differently to make those changes happen? Sometimes we don’t take the time to think ahead and we just go into it feeling rushed and unhappy. So, before the craziness starts, determine what you want this year. Set the tone and do what you need to do to make it happen.

Make a budget and stick to it. There is nothing worse than having this huge, extravagant Christmas and then receiving a pile of bills in January. Talk about buyers remorse! Before you get caught up in the buying frenzy, pick a reasonable budget and stick to it. Make sure you are keeping a list of what you spend for each person, this is where I stumble a bit. I buy things and completely forget I have them. Just keep a running list on your phone, I like using the Evernote App for this.

Another trick I use to keep things more calm is only buying 3 presents per person. We started this when our kids were little. They often hear, “If it was good enough for baby Jesus, it’s good enough for you.” Following the first Christmas tradition, we have Gold (the big gift), Frankincense  (something for the Spirit, like a devotional) and Myrrh (something for the body, a new outfit, coat, workout gear). I like that the categories also helps me with the “I don’t know what to get for ______ (fill in your tough to buy for person)”. There must have been something to what the Wise men did, because I just read this week that giving less is actually better for our kids!

Ask what is important to your family. A couple of years ago, I started asking my family what they were looking forward to most about the upcoming holidays, their answers surprised me. They love the time spent with family the most. It dawned on me that while I was working like a madwoman trying to create the “perfect holiday atmosphere” they were happiest just being together. Don’t forget to think about what is important to you too! So based on the answers you receive…

What can you remove from your list? Think about all of the stuff you are trying to cram into the upcoming month, what can you get rid of completely? Maybe you are trying to fit things in that really aren’t important to your family, or that you all secretly dread. If there are things you absolutely can’t remove maybe you can brainstorm ways to make it more enjoyable or less daunting.

Schedule quiet time. In the midst of chaos, we all need time to just be quiet and recharge. Make sure you plan this time as well. It is so easy to keep going and filling up the “free time”. Before you know it every moment is full, you are racing from one thing to the next, everyone is cranky (including you) and you are dreading this time of year instead of enjoying it.

What can you plan ahead? Sometimes my lack of planning is what gets me in trouble. I know things are coming up and rather than take the time to do a little work now I wait and stress myself out. So what can you get done early? Make some food ahead and freeze it? Grocery shop online and do curbside pickup? Gather all of the serving dishes the week before and set them out? You may have to think outside the box a little, but I bet there are things you can do now to set you up for success and sanity later.

What stresses you out and how can you take the pressure off? You are not required to be superwoman! You do not need to do it all! Your family needs a happy and calm mom, not a crazy-frantic-scary-person. Ask for help when you need it. I am not good at this! I often expect people to help when they see me running around doing all the stuff, but they are not mind readers. They will help if I ask! You have my permission to buy store bought cookies (or bake the pre-made dough), leave some of the decorations in their boxes and yes, you can, delegate to others!

Don’t stress about traditions. One of our family’s most memorable Christmas dinners was the first year we were in our new house. All of the grandparents were there and we could not wait to have the traditional turkey dinner. Well, it was the first time we had really used the oven after just moving in. They turkey did not cook. My mom rallied and made sloppy joe’s. We laughed and enjoyed our somewhat untraditional Christmas dinner. Sometimes things happen, it is your choice to decide how you will respond to those things. Determine how you will set the tone before those unexpected things happen. Maybe you will start a new tradition?

Enjoy it! Once things happen, make sure you take the time each day to stop, breathe and absorb what is happening around you. Hug your family and friends a little tighter. Sit and enjoy a cup of hot chocolate. Get involved in the conversations. These are the things that will really matter in the long run.

I would love to hear from you! Was there an idea here that you love and you are going to implement? What are somethings you do to make the holidays more peaceful? Please leave a comment!