Strategies for a Stress Free Holiday Season

Today, I am so excited to share these strategies for a stress-free holiday season from Julie of The Organized Details.

Holiday celebrations and preparations are in full swing. Your calendar is covered with commitments, appointments, and a countless list of things that need to get done. However, if you’re not careful, moving through this holiday season overwhelmed and uninspired can rob you of holiday cheer and enjoying time with your family.

You deserve better than that!

Let’s take a moment and sit down with your calendars and lists! I’m sharing my top 5 strategies to assure that you have a stress free holiday this year.

Strategies for a Stress Free Holiday Season

Keep it Simple
Extra lights, extra tinsel, extra boxes, and bows! It can all become too much, and the spirit of the season gets lost. Keep your celebrations simple! You don’t need to create additional responsibilities and errands for yourself. Your children will remember this holiday without the extra sprinkles on the cookies and extra bows on the gifts under the tree.

Look through your list and mark off items that are extras. Focus on getting the necessary tasks and errands completed.

Get your holiday gift list organized with this free printable.

Don’t Overcommit
It’s a hard time of year to say, “No.” We are asked to attend this party, participate in this activity, volunteer for this cause, and the list could continue. Be realistic about the time you have available and don’t overcommit. Sometimes a busy schedule is unavoidable, but it’s important to prioritize.

Learn to say “No” when you need to. The activities most important to you and your family members should come first.

Delegate when You Can
I’m the first one to try to do it all! I don’t really like asking for help. The reality is I’m human and so are you. Take advantage of the team you have around you. Sometimes, it is as simple as asking. I’ve found that when I do ask for help my friends or family members are more than willing to take a task off my list. For example, you could ask your partner to pick up the milk on the way home from work so you don’t have to head out of the house with both children bundled up.

It’s okay to ask for help. Practice asking with smaller tasks first.

Strive to be Present
Perfection is overrated! This year, my goal is to put aside comparing myself to others and focus on being present in the activities with my children and my family. Getting stuck in the mode of comparing ourselves to others or even setting unrealistic expectations for ourselves can quickly rob us of enjoying the holidays.

Make a commitment to yourself to be present this holiday season.

Reward Yourself
Moms tend to give, give, give, and then give some more to their loved ones. To survive this hectic holiday season with your sanity intact, it’s important to schedule some time for yourself. If you truly don’t have the time now, be sure to turn your calendar over to January 2015 and schedule time to reward yourself for your survival of the holidays.

Reward yourself so you can keep the spirit of giving in the air.

How do you make the holiday season stress-free? Share you tips with us!