Christmas Season Rush - The Before, During and After
As someone well-versed in “doing” Christmas to the nth degree for many years, I can tell you it’s exhausting and financially draining. For example, pre-COVID, we used to have dozens of people for Boxing Day dinner; this was after making dinner for around 15 family members on Christmas Day. But allow me to clarify, please.
When I say “we,” I mean “I” because I did/do 99 percent of the decorating, cooking, baking, cleaning, gift buying, wrapping, coordinating gift lists, etc. Don’t get me wrong. My hubby and family aren’t useless; it’s just that their usefulness is more in the one percent focused on entertaining and remembering to buy the liquor. But I digress.
In the rush of preparing for Christmas, I bet many (mostly women) try their best to ensure a fun, warm, fuzzy feeling for their family at Christmas. We must find the perfect gift for our spouse, children, grandchildren, extended family, and friends. We must bring joy to everyone at this time of year. Then I wonder, why only at Christmas? A response for another day, methinks.
Then, after the Christmas rush and New Year’s parties, we focus on removing the Christmas decorations, freezing or distributing leftovers, cleaning, and making room in our homes again. A new year, a new way forward. But here’s where it gets interesting.
With Christmas disassembled, the credit card bills arrive (starting just before Christmas). So despite our efforts to stick to a Christmas budget, we didn’t account for price increases in almost everything. Then there are the extraordinary spends like birthdays and baptisms and weddings and, well, you get the picture. That “cushion” you built into your budget? Well, that covered next to nothing, especially this year.
So how do you avoid overworking and overspending this Christmas season? How do you keep your sanity to avoid the winter blues of January and February? I have five suggestions.
Budget and Emotion. I know everyone tells you to “budget” for everything (and I do, too), but be honest. How’s that working for you each and every Christmas? The point is that when we shop for/during Christmas, we let our emotions guide us, no matter how much we’ve budgeted. So we need to adjust our emotions to fit our budget. For example, don’t buy Mom and Dad a trip to Mexico when you have a loan to pay off first. Instead, Mom and Dad will be happy with a small gift certificate to their favourite restaurant or simply seeing you on Christmas Day. As a parent, I can tell you that I truly don’t want to put my children out of pocket ever. I would rather my children help me with the workload and save their hard-earned cash. Also, please remember: When gift shopping, ask yourself if you would like to receive the gift you just picked out for ______, then check whether you can afford the item before purchasing.
Start Early. If you can afford it, hire someone to help you decorate, cook, and bake; however, not many people can afford this extra expense, so start preparing for Christmas early. Get your baking done by mid-December. Freeze what you can. Schedule everything you need to do and when (I use my email calendar for scheduling), and allow the appropriate time for each task. Build in slack time (the “what if this goes sideways” time). Then do what you’ve scheduled. Don’t stray from your list.
Christmas Helpers. Enlist the help of family to help you with Christmas, if you can. This help includes decorating, baking, cooking, cleaning, shopping, and anything else you’re too tired to take on. If you’re anything like me—I admit to perfectionism—you likely want to do it all yourself because only you can do it properly, and that’s fine. Just remember to make your list for yourself and also anyone helping you. This way, you can ensure everyone’s doing their assigned tasks on schedule.
Mental Readiness. Prepare for the big Christmas bill in January and/or February – try exercising, meditating, taking long walks, or even just vegging on the couch for a few minutes. Christmas is an event like any other in terms of extraordinary expenses. Sure, someone might say you should not have spent so much because now you’ll have to do overtime to pay the bill. But look at it this way, memories are what count in life. If that means having to spend a bit more and do some overtime over the next couple of months, ask yourself if the event was worth the expense. If it was, then no matter, you’ll do it again next year.
Debrief. After everything is said and done, and if you’re serious about changing things for next Christmas, have a family meeting and ask what they want to see next year. Come to a consensus and then prepare now for Christmas 2024. Stick to the plan!
The bottom line is that no one—NO ONE—expects you to go “above and beyond” for Christmas or any other occasion. That expectation? You likely put it on yourself. So check your attitude and the “why” for getting into an exhausting physical, mental, and financial frenzy at Christmas. If you feel pressured to do something because everyone else is doing it, you must step back and have that family meeting.
With the recession, a rising cost of living, and other extraordinary expenses over the past few years, I am rolling back my Christmas festivities. However, what I am doing will be done to perfection.
How will you handle Christmas this year? Toned down, ramped up, or status quo? Regardless, the ultimate question remains: Why do we need so much stuff, especially at Christmas?
