Simplify

I apologize for being absent for the past week or so. Life got in the way while I was dealing with morning sickness and way too many commitments (most not holiday related). I realized a few things while feeling stressed out last week though and that is the need to simplify life. In the blogging world, I'm trying not to get stressed out if I can't post as often as I want, don't have time to drop Entrecards everyday, or find myself staying away from Twitter because I know it will eat my time. I've also learned a lot over the past year about simplifying my everyday life but I will share some of that in a later post. Today, I'm going to talk about simplifying Christmas.

Be realistic. Do not try to take on more than you can chew at the holidays and realize it is ok to say no. I've had years I was so busy I could hardly see straight and that was just not fun. It may be too late to get out of a few commitments this year but make a mental list of how you can change things next year.

Cut down on the decorations. I love to decorate my house for Christmas but it has gotten out of hand. I always put up my decorations the weekend after Thanksgiving. I got my upstairs tree up and a few other things this year and then came down with two migraines in two days. Having a horribly busy week last week meant I was never able to touch the decorations again. My plan today is to finish putting them up but only the items I really like. I'm not going to stress about getting every single item up.

Keep presents within reason. So many parents have gotten out of hand with gifts for their kids. Children do not need a ton of items, many are happy with a simple cardboard box. Our child is only getting 3-4 gifts this year from us and I think that is plenty. I'm also not worrying about getting a gift for every person I have ever met.

Bake less. I love to bake and look forward to it every holiday but I always take on more than I have time for. This year, I can hardly stand to be near a kitchen thanks to morning sickness. I miss my baking but I'm also learning life goes on without it. My child has asked to cut out sugar cookies so I will probably buy some pre-made dough and make Christmas cookies with him sometime this week. If I can stomach it, I will make a few loaves of pumpkin bread, but that is probably the extent of my cooking this holiday season.

What are some practical ways you can simplfy the Christmas season? Trust me when I say, you will enjoy the holidays so much more when you simplify.