Archive - 2014

I was only going to offer new Christmas Planning pages once a month, but in reading the comments from my first post, I realized that there were a few things that would be most helpful before January is over.

One theme from the comments was budgeting.  People want to budget better and budget earlier.  That’s such a great idea!  I created 2 pages that work together for Christmas budgeting.  First is a worksheet to write down items you need to purchase, the amount you want to budget, and the amount you actually end up spending.  I kept this form simple and generic (I’m going to keep saying that!) so that you can fill it in however you like.  If you want to write one line for “gifts”, you can.  If you need to be more specific and budget by name of recipient, you can do that, too.  Other things you might want to budget for include decorations, travel expenses, clothing, wrapping supplies, cards and postage, and craft supplies.

In this set, there is also a Gift Planner.  This is more of a brainstorming worksheet, where you can list every person you might want to give a gift to.  Family, friends, neighbors, kids’ coaches and teachers – list them all here.  Even if you don’t know future teachers’ names, you do know if you’ll need gifts and how many.  And if you do a gift or ornament exchange, make sure you write that down, too.  Even if you give a lot of baked goods, get that written down. This is all about getting information out of our heads and down onto paper!  Once you have a clearer idea of the gifts you need to purchase, make or bake, you can budget appropriately.  Oh, and don’t forget any charitable giving, like angel trees or Operation Christmas Child. (There will be additional gift planning pages coming.  Those will help you plan more specifically.

I also created a Holiday Spending Tracker.  If you’re super organized and start your Christmas buying early, you have a way to track that right now!

The Traditions worksheet is one for the whole family.  Write down every single thing you do to celebrate Christmas.  Advent calendar, daily advent readings, decorating the tree, lights on the house, caroling, baking, whatever…write it down.  Make sure all your family members get a chance to add to the list.  Then as a family, prioritze the list!  You’ll notice I added a line down the left of the page.  That’s the space for you to assign each item a priority level. The whole point of this worksheet is to see if there are things that can be dropped when the season gets stressful, or maybe even dropped altogether.  Once you’re finished, just stick it in your planner and let it percolate.  We’re going to come back to it later.

The last page is for those of us who write newsletters to send out with our Christmas cards.  It’s a Year in Review page that lists all the months with just a few lines underneath.  Again, how you use this is  up to you.  I’d recommend writing just one line per family member each month.  Record milestones, accomplishments or other noteworthy events. When it comes time to write your newsletter, get this worksheet out and write it up.

I also added the Notes page to this download.  As you’re working on these pages, you are likely to think of other things we haven’t talked about yet.  Write down all those ideas as you think of them so that they aren’t lost to the chaos of everyday life.

Click here for Christmas Planner Pages, Part 2.

My question for you today is, what is the most beloved Christmas tradition in your family?

We packed up the last of the Christmas decorations today (don’t judge), pushed the armchairs back into their normal places, and sighed wistfully at the now naked staircase. Yes, my friends, Christmas is over. So that means…it’s time to plan for next Christmas! I know, I’m crazy. But I’m a big fan of the All is Calm Christmas and that takes some planning. I made some rookie mistakes this year and found myself needing to have a little lie-down every so often, so I wouldn’t get too stressed.

Not that having your daughter star as Clara and Fritz and having your son make Eagle Scout isn’t stressful enough, but throw in some holidays and birthdays and…excuse me me while I go lie down for a moment.

Ok, I’m back.

So I’m going to try some thing new this year and I would like for you to come along for the ride. There’s likely to be free planner pages in it for you!

I’m going to start planning for next Christmas right now and sort of spread the thoughts and plans out over the year. My goal is to reach December in such a state of calm and collectedness that all I have to do is flip on the fireplace (it’s gas) and sit down with a nice cup of eggnog and listen to Christmas carols. Of course, whether this happens or not remains to be seen, but it sounds good, right?

Here’s what we’re going to do today. We’re going to sit down and think back to the holiday season.  Then we’re going to write down the things that worked, the things that didn’t work and the things we wished we’d done better.

No beating yourself for not pulling off the Perfect Family Christmas, because that’s never going to happen anyway.

Look, here’s a lovely printable planner page to help you! Christmas in Review There’s 2 pages, the Christmas in Review page and a notes page.  Stick them in your home management binder or under C (for Christmas) or H (for holidays) in your A-Z file.  Or start a new Holiday Planner!  There will be more pages coming, including a cover/divider.

And here’s where I’m taking a risk. After you’ve filled out this worksheet, come back here and tell me what was the best thing that happened during your holiday season and what is one thing you wished you could have done better. Don’t leave me hanging with no comments, ok?  I’ll go first.