I have been so busy the past few weeks, I have hardly had time to breathe. And I've hardly had time to write my blog. But that brought me to my blog topic of this week - time saving tips for the holidays. Yes, of course, you can just not do some things (very viable option), but if you are like me, it always seems difficult to give things up. So I go for efficiency! Here are my 5 tips for being more efficient for the holidays:
1. If you don't like cooking Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, buy it. We will be spending Thanksgiving with friends. We are responsible for bring dessert and rolls. So on Wednesday next week, I will be spending my morning driving (not cooking) to Whole Foods and Nothing Bundt Cakes to pick up desserts. I will be much happier in the car than in the kitchen!
2. Limit your holiday shopping options. All of my Christmas shopping has to come from three places - Amazon, Junior League A Christmas Affair (a Christmas shopping bazaar), or Shutterfly. It really reduces the stress, and I always find something for everyone.
3. Streamline your Christmas cards. I gave up handwriting and signing Christmas cards when we had kids. I print out mailing labels, which takes 20 seconds. And this year, I even paid the babysitter $20 to stuff the Christmas cards. Okay, it sounds impersonal, but it's not. I want to do it all myself. I'm still thinking of everyone on my list. I'm just not addressing their envelopes.
4. Take a vacation day to decorate. So finding time to decorate with a toddler on the weekends seems so stressful and somewhat impossible. So this year, I'm taking a vacation day to decorate the house. I get to decorate in peace and actually enjoy it! I am going to leave some of the tree decorating for the kids to help with but not so much that it's stressful.
5. Give gift cards. For all of those people on your list that you don't know well (teachers, mailman, maid, etc), just give them gift cards. They will appreciate it and it is super easy to do!
Good luck with the holidays! May you not lose your mind and hopefully have some fun.
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