The holidays are a wonderful time as we make time for those important to us. But, they can also be a very stressful time.
Here are some EASY tips to help get you get organized for Christmas and get through the holiday season without the hustle and bustle.
1. Make room
It’s a good idea to make room for the new items that will come into your home. Your children will be receiving Christmas presents, so take time now to go through their current collection of toys. If there are items that they no longer play with or have outgrown, now is a good time to donate or sell these items.
It’s also a good idea to figure out where you’ll set up a gift-wrapping station. This area will be where you store scissors, bows, tags, ribbon, and a storage container for gift bags and wrapping paper.
Click HERE for more information on how to organize the paper in your home.
2. Make a list and check it twice!
Before buying decor and food for the holidays, make sure you know what you already have so you don’t purchase duplicates. This is especially true for gift wrap and wrapping accessories. Often people keep gift wrap from previous years to use again in the future. Keeping this organized not only save on space but money as well.
3. Schedule important dates
Open your calendar and schedule important tasks and activities. For example, what day would you like to have all your Christmas shopping done or have the cookies baked for the cookie exchange? Start your shopping early. Schedule all of your dinner parties and family activities that you will be attending. Check your calendar each week and pick up any items you need for that week or the following week.
4. Wrap your presents as soon as you get them
Wrapping right away will help prevent little ones from seeing their gifts and save you from doing last-minute wrapping on Christmas Eve.
5. Organize your home
Declutter and organize your home so that you feel relaxed and calm for the holidays. Do 30 mins a day and focus on completing smaller tasks each day rather than stressing about the whole house. If you don’t have time to get it all organized, you can contact us to help!
NOTE: Don’t forget to go through your holiday decorations and donate what you no longer use or want before buying more.
6. Prepare your Christmas cards
Go through your cards to make sure you have enough. Review your mailing list and make sure all the addresses are up to date. Mail the cards out at least a couple of weeks before Christmas to ensure they arrive on time.
7. Stock up on batteries
Many toys, handheld video games, and other presents will require batteries. Stock up now, and you will be ready for Christmas morning.
8. Be prepared for the unexpected
Stock up on small gifts for those days when you need one unexpectedly (example: last-minute dinner invitation and you need a hostess gift). It will save you from having to run out at the last minute to get one. Go ahead and wrap them and have them ready to go. Examples of quick and simple gifts are chocolates, candles, a bottle of wine, glass charms/markers etc. For additional hostess gift ideas, check out this post from Good Housekeeping.
Once you’re all organized for the holidays, you can relax and enjoy your time with family and friends.
Happy Holidays,
Kathy
If you’d like more information about the Calm The Clutter home organization course, click HERE.
You can also check out my new course Paper Organization: How to Declutter and Organize Paperwork HERE. A course for an unbelievable low price! The topics include
- Benefits of organizing your paperwork
- Paper organization goals
- What to do before organizing your paperwork
- What to keep and for how long
- How to sort and organize paperwork
- What to do with incoming paperwork
- Where to go from here!
Before you go, don’t forget to join our Facebook group “Organize For Success” HERE.
Or download my 7 Top Organizing Tips to Get You Started for more organizing tips.
