What to Start Preparing for Christmas
Even though it feels like it’s still far away, before you know it you’ll be putting the tree up and Christmas will be here. Isn’t it scary how quickly it comes round? Rather than have a frantic December getting everything ready, there’s plenty you can start doing now to make the festive season less stressful for yourself.
Food and Drink
Food and drink play such an important role in Christmas celebrations – from the meal on the big day to all the snacks in between. Rather than stress out with one massive shop and worrying whether you’ve forgotten something, you can do lots of little shops in the run up to December. Top tip: get more chocolate than you think you’ll need. Selection boxes always go down a treat. Make sure to get a selection of tipples as well.
Cards
In a time where we do most of our communicating through technology, there’s something to be said for old-fashioned mail. Christmas cards are a lovely way of letting your friends and family know you’re thinking about them this year. Plus it’s a great way to touch base with those people in your address book you haven’t spoken to in a while. Buying cards now gives you plenty of time to sort out who you’re sending them to and then write them.
Budget
It might not be as choosing cards and chocolate, but a budget is important for your celebrations. Once you get this sorted you’ll know how much you can be spending on your Christmas celebrations. It helps to break things down into categories (check out this very helpful post on how to budget for Christmas) so the aforementioned food, drink, and cards. Do you need any new decorations this year? Plus the big one: gifts.
Gifts
Depending on the kind of person you are, gift-giving brings you either great joy or far too much stress. You can use this time now to start thinking about what you want to get your loved ones whether they are foodies, travel mad or animal lovers get started on your shopping now. There are lots of bloggers who make really great gift guides, like this one 10 Christmas gifts for him or check out these great gift ideas for dog lovers! For the music lover how about getting them a recording studio gift experience voucher? Have they been dropping any not-so subtle hints about what they would like? Or do you need to take to their social media to see what kinds of things they like? Maybe you’ve got the perfect idea in mind or you need a little inspiration for what to get them this year.
This year, more than most, festive cheer is needed so there’s no harm in throwing yourself into it. What’s the first thing you like to do to get yourself ready for Christmas?
