Can you believe it’s already holiday time again? Halloween just flew by, Thanksgiving is next week, and then we’ll be full-on into Christmas or Hanukkah mode. It’s about this time that I used to start feeling anxious knowing the hectic crazy stress was about to begin. Dealing with the crowds and high traffic, trying to get the perfect gift for every loved one, praying you don’t forget anyone. By December 15th, I was a mess and developed a Bah Humbug attitude. Online shopping has helped some the past few years, but if it’s something I can’t see and touch first, I wonder if the item is cheaply made, is it going to fit, you know what I mean.
A few years ago, when I was creating my planner, I decided to add a section in it dedicated just to Christmas to help me stay organized. I do most of the gift shopping, but my husband likes to pick up random gifts for our son too, so being able to track what he’s bought versus what I’ve bought is worth gold to me. Seriously, gold.
By tracking all the activities around town and parties we get invited to means we prioritize better and make sure we do all the things we want to do most. I’ll be honest, I’m not good at keeping to a budget, but with the planner, I’m getting better.
This year I’m giving you an early present…my holiday planner! It’s free! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Don’t forget to send me a message and let me know what you think. Your feedback will help me improve it for you next year.
What’s in it you ask? Well, Let me tell you…
Calendar and event/activity tracking
There’s always so many things I want to do with my family. I want the holidays to be magical for my son. With the help of Facebook, I see all kinds of events that he would love to experience so I list them all and we pick out our favorites.
budget
As I mentioned before, I’m not great at creating a budget and sticking to one. I’m still not great at budgeting, but using my planner has helped. My husband no longer gets heart palpitations when he sees the credit card bills and has saved us an argument or two. Fingers crossed, I do better this year so we can budget for some home renovations we’ve been talking about.
Gift lists
My husband and I try to stay low key with each other, but one year, I bought my husband a special gft and realized when I was wrapping everything that it was all I had gotten him! I totally spaced the other things I had planned to get him. I’ve also ended up buying waaaay too much for my son and had to figure out what to save for his next birthday. Stocking stuffers…don’t even get me started!
Meal Planning and Grocery Lists
I know it’s not just me who ends up running to the grocery store three or four times in a day because I keep forgetting something. This is actually new for me this year and I am excited to save myself some time and gas money.
Party Planning
I love party planning and planning all those little details that make an event just a little extra special. Just FYI, this is the same event planning pages that I use to plan all the parties we host each year. It’s been a huge game changer. I usually have my planner with me so if I decide to pop into a store to look for party items, I have the list of items I need and I don’t buy a bunch of stuff I don’t need.
holiday crafting
I love crafting (and Pinterest) and always have tons of crafts I want to do by myself and with my son. Guess how many we end up doing. Zero. If I don’t write them down and have a plan for when to do them, we just don’t. I’m ashamed to say, this year we will be decorating the gingerbread houses I bought last year to decorate. Yep. I forgot the one thing we do every year. I’m on top of it this year though. We are going to do ALL the things. (Insert happy dance here.)
And this is not a complete list of all the things in the planner! Instead of continuing to read all about it, go get it now. It’s in the Resource Library. Do you have your password? If not, sign up now and get it. It’s where you’ll find all my free printables, recipes, and some extra free stuff just because I appreciate you.
Don’t forget to let me know what you think and join me in my Facebook group and share your favorite holiday traditions.