Christmas is only 13 days away and while I love this time of the year (pssst, it’s my favorite!), it’s also always a little stressful what with the things I need to get done, but I will try very hard to make this beautiful time last and squeeze every bit of holiday joy out of it! Here’s a list of things I need to get done and some things I’d like to (and already have) enjoy(ed) this holiday season.
★ Finalize my Christmas gift list. I am almost done with my Christmas shopping (a few items that I order online are left) and I am pretty happy about it.
★ Get my Christmas cards send out. As you know, I always do a Christmas card exchange and that means I send cards to a lot of people. On top of that, I always try to craft all my cards by hand, which takes an extra little bit of time. I am happy to say that I am pretty much done with the cards that need to go overseas (these always have to get done first because of shipping times) and I am hoping to finish the domestic stack sometime next week. All cards should still arrive well before Christmas.
★ See a Christmas performance. J and I have tickets for “The Nutcracker” next week and I am so stoked. Going to the theater really make Christmas time extra special (and it makes up for the fact that I will miss out on my Mom’s Christmas Choir concert this year!).
★ Decorate the tree. Traditionally, we don’t decorate the tree until Christmas eve morning and even though we already have our little tree all set up with lights, the actual ornaments won’t be going on the tree until the 24th. I am looking forward to carrying out this holiday tradition at home this year.
★ Make some donations for a good cause. There usually is a food drive or a toy collection at our office during the holiday season and I think it’s a fantastic way to give back. I also have given donations to certain organizations in the last few years. Every bit helps!
★ Watch Christmas movies. I asked you for recommendations in an earlier post and I am planning to watch a lot of holiday movies this year. It’s my favorite thing to do during the holiday season and I’ve already watched three so far.
★ Take a trip to SoCal. I’ll be going down to visit my friend Maegan and see my in-laws. I am looking forward to some friend and family time on this side of the ocean if I can’t go see mine.
★ Take a deep breath and enjoy the season! I want for things to slow down (I know this is partly a mindset, so I am working on that!), take a sip of hot chocolate, walk around the neighborhood and admire the Christmas lights and just marvel at the magic of the season! I am looking forward to baking some Christmas cookies, drowning myself with Christmas coffee and tea specialties, enjoying Christmas decorations, listening to Christmas music, and all the other beautiful things you can think of.
What’s on your ‘to-do’ (and ‘to-enjoy’!) list the next two weeks?
Feisty Harriet
December 11, 2014 at 2:23 pmI love decorating a tree on Christmas Eve. When I was a kid we would usually get a tree the first part of December, but then always get a second tree on Christmas Eve day (back then they were typically free that day from any tree lot), decorate it with white lights and candles, tin soldier ornaments, candy canes, and decorated gingerbread men. That was always one of my very favorite Christmas traditions, the Christmas Eve tree. :)
xox
katelin
December 11, 2014 at 3:20 pmSweet mercy I can’t believe how close Christmas is. I still need to finish up our gift list and luckily our cards just arrived so I can finally send them out. I feel like so much to do in so little time as well. But like you said, we should take it in, enjoy, and hurray for the holiday cheer.
Marie
December 12, 2014 at 5:19 amYou make the cards yourself?? I can’t even muster up enough time or energy to take a picture of Matt and myself to get some cards done!
I seriously cannot wait to go see The Nutcracker. I’ve seen it before in Boston performed by the Boston Ballet, but if I could see it every year, I wouldn’t say no to that!
That is very cool that you make sure to make donations. Like you said, every little bit helps. The world needs more good people like you. :)
Tobia | craftaliciousme
December 13, 2014 at 11:53 pmI love your list!
Unfortunately I have almost no gift yet and haven’t even thought about my cards. I am behind everything this year. I really underestimated my star adventscalendar but it’s so fun.
Right now I am in Vienna getting this holiday vaccation started.
Have a wonderful 3. Sunday of advent,
Tobia
Chrissy
December 14, 2014 at 11:08 amI can’t believe Christmas is already this close! I don’t know why this always happens – you think you have all the time in the world and then suddenly time goes by and there is still so much left to do!
Gina
December 16, 2014 at 3:34 pmI feel the same way. I love this time of year, but it can be stressful! I finally got my cards send out yesterday and I already feel like I’ve accomplished a lot holiday-wise. I have a couple more gifts to buy, then I should be able to just enjoy the rest of the holiday season!
Tonight I think I’ll try to squeeze in baking, some Christmas movies, and a trip to the Fab 40’s to look at lights. Wish me luck!