Anyone else feel like their to-do list is just getting longer and longer lately? The laundry, picking up the kids from school, fighting off the crowds to get that perfect turkey, learning how to cook a turkey on Pinterest, finishing up all those home DIY projects before family is in town, finding where you put that old suitcase…and the list goes on. The holidays can bring a lot of stress, and you may find yourself wide awake in bed in the middle of the night thinking, “How am I going to do it all?”
Here are 5 tips to help keep your holidays focused on enjoying each moment:
1. Pace yourself
The list is written, it is long, and you can maybe knock it out in 2 days so you’ll feel better. The reality is, the list will never end. More things will pop up and a constant state of urgency will keep you alert to more things you can be doing. So sparse out your list and give yourself some time to breathe. Just take it one day at a time.
2. Enjoy it
Even though holidays may be stressful, there are lots of special moments. Enjoy watching your family gather around the table, go for a walk and enjoy the cold air and changing leaves and eat an extra slice of pumpkin pie. It is not every day that you get to be present in these moments, so soak it in!
3. Forgive yourself
Things will fall through the cracks and not everything will turn out the way you hoped. Going into the next couple of weeks with that truth will make it easier to give yourself some grace and be thankful for all the things that went right. You are just one person, and you tried your best.
4. No one else notices
I promise you that as kids and dogs are running around and grandmas are asking for the recipe of your store-bought stuffing, no one is going to notice that you forgot to clean the baseboards in your entryway. I mean, Grandma didn’t even realize your stuffing was bought in the frozen section at Costco! Don’t waste your attention on minor things. Everyone is just happy to be spending time with you.
5. It’s only once a year
Holidays can be really sweet, but they can also bring up sadness for many; no matter how the holidays are for you, it comes and goes and we don’t have to think about it for another year. Take a mental note on things that can be different next year or the things you want to hold on to, and then pack up your gravy boat and move on!
The changing of seasons and the excitement of the holidays can make many of us feel overwhelmed. But remembering the purpose of why rather than fixating on the how may help. NNU wishes you a happy, relaxing, fun-filled holiday season! We hope that the list gets mostly done and that you enjoy every moment.