Christmas is my favourite time of the year and its just around the corner. With so much going on during that time its important to know how to stay organized. Planning is essential for a stress free holiday season.
I’ve created a christmas gift organizer free printable download to help you with your holiday shopping. You can get the free download here as well as lots of other freebies found in my resource library.
Time always goes quickly so even though it might seem early right now, you will thank yourself later for writing everything down.
I’ve also create the perfect Christmas planner. It includes 30 worksheets to help you organize everything from holiday card giving, to baking, gift buying and more.
Its available as an instant download after purchase. Afterwards just print and place into a binder for quick access.
I’ve created a top ten list to help get your organized so you can focus on having fun with your family.
Top ten ways to get organized during the holidays
1 Christmas cards
Try to get your cards done early. Its totally fine to have them sitting around for a month before you actually get them mailed out. Plus the earlier you mail them out the more likely you are to get cards mailed back to you. If you have moved addresses recently then definite mail your cards out early so that people have time to get your new address and be able to get their own Christmas cards mailed out.
Its great to send out cards with currently photos and a family letter featuring the highlights of your year.
2 Create a To Do list
Writing things down as they come to mind is a great way to lower holiday stress. Try and write everything down so that you don’t have to worry about remembering it in the future. Create a listing and store it in an easy to find place. I’ve created a great holiday planner with lots of worksheet to help you unload whats on your mind and store it all in one place for future reference. You can check it out here.
3 Shop early
Shop throughout the year. don’t put off your shopping till December or else you may end up using your credit cards. Take advantage of sales during Boxing Day to buy gifts for the following year. Store in totes to keep safe.
But just as important you need to keep track of your gifts so that you don’t forget that you have the. So make sure to create a list with notes of what you bought and for who.
4 Set deadlines
Divide your to do list into separate categories and set a deadline to complete them. If you are creating a task to shop for holiday gifts then first write down gift ideas as they come to mind, write down where the gift may be on sale, write down the day you plan to buy it if its on sale, and also write down how much you are willing to spend on it so that you can stick to a budget.
5 Create a wrapping area
Its not a good idea to leave holiday wrapping to the last minute. It can be helpful to set up an area with all your wrapping supplies, tape, ribbon, and tags so that you can wrap as you go.
Just make sure to keep a note of everything you have wrapped so that you don’t forget whats inside. Afterwards you can either use the gifts as decoration in your living room, under your tree. Or you can store them away in a bin or closet until Christmas.
6 Plan early for holiday parties
The problem with holiday parties is that they all seem to happen at the same time. So you don’t want to be competing with peoples work parties or other family events so make sure to plan early.
If you plan your party early then you will know how many are attending. This way you can plan ahead and make a list of what you are serving, write down what groceries you are going to need, and research for recipes.
7 Do homemade and knitting projects throughout the year
Don’t wait till the last minute to start your handmade gifts. Knitting takes a lot of time and you will probably need to be knitting in your spare time throughout the year. If you knit gloves and socks throughout the year you can store them in a bin to keep them secret. This way you will have a selection to choose from at Christmas time and all you have to do is wrap them up.
8 Organize your holiday baking
First decide if you are baking just for you, or to give out at an event, or to give as gifts. If you are cooking for a party then you need to prepare 3 days in advance. If you are going to be cooking several different types of cookies to give away. Then I recommend making the cooking dough a few weeks in advance and then freezing it. Decorating cookies takes time so make sure to bake your cookies a few days in advance so you have time to make the icing and decorate them. Items like fruit cakes need to be made at least 3 months in advance.
The best way to stay organized is with a Christmas planner. That way you can keep track of holiday baking, gifts, decorating, family traditions, Christmas cards lists and everything else Christmas. I’ve created a great planner with 30 worksheets to help you keep on track of things. You can find the planner here.
10 Get your house ready for guests
If you are hosting a holiday gathering than more then likely someone will ask to stay at your place. Get your spare room ready for guests by declutter, quite often spare rooms are used as storage spaces and this can make it hard for guests to move around.
Have a place available for guests to put their luggage and also make sure to have you spare linen out so you don’t have to go digging it out at the last minute. Add a night light to the room so that guests can see where they are going at night. And set out extra items like towels, pillows, blankets and toiletries. You may also need to have extra outlets available for charging phones and laptops. You may also want to get a guest wifi password ready so that guests can log in without accessing your personal account.
