Getting ready for the holidays can be exciting and overwhelming. But with careful planning and organization as the best weapons against the festive chaos, you can ensure a smooth and joyous celebration. It’s time to put on your reindeer slippers and grab a cup of peppermint mocha (no judgment here if you want to add Bailey’s Irish cream to your cup!) because we’re about to take off on a merry journey of holiday preparation! 

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The holiday season is upon us once again! If there is anything we can all agree on, it’s that being ready ahead of time can save you from drowning in an ocean of last-minute holiday chaos. Trying to get everything done during the most wonderful time of the year can seem like we’re always one gingerbread cookie away from losing our minds. Doing a holiday prep can help alleviate that stress and ensure a smoother, less stressful sleigh ride to Christmas Day. 

There is much to do, from preparing your home for the holidays to planning delicious holiday meals and perfecting your gift-giving skills without breaking the bank. As busy moms, we need a strategic battle plan to conquer the festive chaos. This survival guide to getting ready for the holidays will help you through the treacherous terrain of holiday preparation so that you can actually enjoy the true magical meaning of the holiday with your family without turning into a stressed-out Grinch. 

It’s time to sleigh Christmas like Santa himself! Let’s start getting ready for the holidays with this holiday prep!

Preparing For The Holidays

Picture this: you’ve been excitedly waiting (or maybe dreading?) to create a memorable holiday season for your family, only to find yourself frantically running around like a headless chicken, forgetting essential gifts, and just wanting to get this holiday season over and done with. This oh-so-wonderful time of year is undoubtedly one of the most joyous. Still, it can also be incredibly overwhelming with the never-ending to-do lists and multiple responsibilities while simultaneously trying to keep the holiday spirit going. 

Your secret weapon to ensure you don’t turn into an exhausted Grinch this Christmas is creating and embracing some pre-holiday organization and planning. Grab your favorite planner or open up that handy digital calendar, set the mood with some cozy lights and a cup of hot chocolate, and get serious about your holiday planning and organization. 

Set aside time for holiday prep

First, you need to block out a few days to plan your holiday. Dedicate a set of hours or days solely to holiday preparations with no distractions so that you can plan effectively. You can even take several days to up to two weeks if you need to. 

By setting aside an allocated time specifically for holiday planning, you aren’t making a million little decisions all the time and exhausting your brain.

As busy moms, we already have so many things on our minds, so it is crucial to have a day or week focused solely on making all the decisions you need regarding Christmas planning. 

Plan for the holidays early

Deciding when to block out those days for Christmas planning is also essential. Sure, you may be tempted to procrastinate until December 24th (don’t worry, we’ve all been there!), but this will lead to unnecessary holiday stress and leave you scrambling at the last minute. Avoid that last-minute panic and start planning well in advance.

The perfect time to start planning for a stress-free Christmas is preferably before December, but the earlier, the better. Look at your schedule and see what few days you can set aside for holiday planning. Even a few hours during the week is better than nothing.

I start my holiday planning in October because I want to make sure all the Christmas presents arrive on time. If I need to exchange anything, then I have plenty of time to do so and be able to wrap it before Christmas Eve.

Create a holiday to do list

When you are ready to start your holiday preparations, the first step is to create a holiday brain dump. This will help you clear your mind and organize your tasks, holiday plans, and activities. Streamlining and managing your holiday preparations helps make this season more enjoyable and less stressful. 

What is a brain dump?

A brain dump is essentially transferring all your thoughts, ideas, tasks, or any other information from your mind onto paper. Doing so clears mental clutter and creates space to think more clearly.

During the busy Christmas season, when our minds are buzzing with plans and to-do lists galore, a brain dump can prove immensely helpful in organizing our thoughts. It’s like decluttering your mind in preparation for maximum festive enjoyment!

Start jotting down every little task and event related to celebrating the holidays, such as family gatherings, seasonal events you want to attend, and school holiday shows. You can use a physical notebook, a digital note app, or a Christmas planner. 

After you’ve written your holiday brain dump, separate that list into two lists: one list for all of those holiday bucket list activities that you want to participate in and another list for those pesky but essential tasks that you can’t avoid, such as putting the Christmas tree up or shopping for gifts.  

READ NEXT→We’ve compiled this year’s best family-friendly and festive list of 125+ Ultimate Christmas Bucket List Ideas!

What matters most to you and your family? 

When creating your holiday brain dump, identify your family priorities and what matters most to you. As a mom juggling multiple responsibilities during the holidays, it is crucial to determine your priorities early on.

Is going to all the large family gatherings important, or would your family prefer a small, cozy Christmas dinner at home?

Is decorating your home with infinite Christmas lights like Clark Griswold a non-negotiable, or would you be content with just having your Christmas tree up? 

There are no wrong answers regarding what you and your family consider most important. Make the holiday season more manageable and organized so you decide what matters and eliminate all the excess and fluff. Having clear priorities will also enable you to allocate your time more effectively.

Prioritizing tasks

As a busy mom during the holidays, it is crucial to prioritize tasks effectively. After splitting your brain dump into two lists, go through each item on your lists and prioritize them from least important to urgent.

You can use exclamation points to show how vital a task or activity is or use colors. Also, you want to keep in mind any deadlines.

For example, make a goal to have your Christmas shopping done by December 1st and use that as a deadline when planning with your calendar. 

Break it down into smaller tasks

Instead of overwhelming yourself by viewing holiday planning as one large project, a good idea is to break down tasks into smaller manageable chunks throughout several weeks leading up to the holidays.

Assigning specific dates or times to complete each step lets you track your progress more efficiently. 

Come back to your list and check off items as you finish them. 

Holiday Prep Tips

Make a holiday budget

Financial stress during the holidays is a common concern for many families. By creating a budget well in advance, moms can allocate funds appropriately for gifts, decorations, food supplies, and other essentials without overspending or facing unexpected financial burdens.

Planning helps manage expenses and enables resourceful shopping through sales or discounts. Use this holiday budget tracker to keep track of your monthly holiday spending!

Some typical categories to set a holiday budget for are: 

• holiday gifts
• Secret Santa gift draw
• gift wrapping
• events
• decorations
• food or catering
• Christmas sweaters
• Christmas cards/holiday cards
• family photos
• cleaning services
• holiday decorations
• Christmas outfits
• Christmas family matching pajamas

Planning and making a holiday budget can also help save you money! Closer to Christmas, holiday items tend to get more expensive, but buying them earlier in the year can avoid the holiday markups, scout for deals, and avoid the overpriced reindeer sweaters. 

Research and compare prices before you go on your shopping trip to find the best deal on the large items you want to buy. This will help you make informed decisions and identify where the best deals are. 

Plan your gift-giving strategy

When shopping for Christmas gifts, create a list that includes all the names of people to buy for. If they’ve been on the nice list this year, include your family, friends, coworkers, and other people who add to your life, like teachers, postal workers, and babysitters. Even a tiny appreciation gift or a holiday card goes a long way. Handmade gifts can also be a thoughtful gesture. 

Before you go holiday shopping

1. Jot down what type of gift you want to buy for each person on your list and add a spending limit for each person. I’ve created a printable Christmas gift list you can use to keep track. The best part? It’s easy to use, and it’s free!
2. When you go on your dedicated shopping trip, stick to your list and only buy the items on your list that are under your spending limit.
3. Explore affordable gift ideas, such as homemade gifts, and even experience gifts, like tickets to watch a favorite baseball team play. 

Get paid for your holiday shopping

My favorite way to get cash back on online purchases is through rakuten.com, which allows you to either get money back on your purchases or convert it to travel points for free flights and hotels.

You can also utilize other online shopping platforms that offer discounts or deals. I always use coupon sites like honey.com or topcashback.com to shop for cash back or discount codes before I make my online purchases.

If you have Amazon Prime, remember that Amazon Prime Days are usually in October, and you can find discounts and gift ideas on these days. My daughter has been using my Kindle Paperwhite for reading, and I’ve wanted to get her a Kindle Kids e-reader. It is usually $120, but on Amazon Prime Days, the e-reader was only about $80! 

Gift buying can become very expensive, and it is easy to get carried away with the abundance of attractive deals and flashy displays tempting us at every shopping cart turn. But if you stick to your budget and shopping list, you maintain control, avoid impulse purchases, and keep you from maxing out your credit card. 

Wrapping gifts in advance to save time

Wrapping gifts may be one of the top things that people procrastinate on. How often have you found yourself wrapping presents on Christmas Eve just for your kids to rip open the wrapping paper a few hours later on Christmas morning? Let’s face it – we’ve all been there.

This year, you’ll have your Christmas shopping and gift wrapping done before Santa can say “Ho Ho Ho.” 

Once all your Christmas presents have arrived, schedule a few evenings after the kids sleep so you can wrap gifts without worrying about curious eyes. Put on a favorite holiday movie, listen to an audiobook or podcast, or watch a spicy TV series you have been dying to watch while you wrap presents. 

By wrapping your gifts in advance, you can enjoy a relaxing evening with your loved ones on Christmas Eve while everyone else is battling through the crowded malls and haphazardly wrapping their gifts or throwing them in gift bags. You’ll have extra time to focus on other holiday tasks that need to be done and have time to relax with your family. 

Just like you set a goal to finish all of your Christmas shopping, set a goal to have your presents wrapped before the middle of December. Check off the wrapped gifts from your Christmas gift list, and store them out of sight until you are ready to set them out under the tree.

Get Ready For Holiday Planning

By this point, you have already picked out a day or several days ahead of December to sit down and focus on planning and have written down all the tasks and events on your brain dump. You have separated the brain dump into activities vs. essentials and prioritized them from least important to urgent while keeping in mind the deadlines of each task or event. If you needed to, you broke down larger tasks into smaller manageable tasks. 

Once all of that is done, it is time to write it on a calendar and schedule each activity or task. Time is precious for busy moms during the holidays, and planning specific time slots for each job helps you stay on top of things and ensure you make the most of the festive season. 

Organize your calendar for holiday preparation

An organized calendar acts as your personal assistant during the holiday rush. Utilize digital tools like Google Calendar or smartphone apps to keep track of important appointments, holiday parties, holiday traditions, social events, school functions, and family gatherings—everything that makes up your bustling schedule! Color code different categories to quickly identify them at a glance.

One of the most significant advantages of using a calendar for holiday event planning is having all your commitments in one place. Whether it’s family gatherings, office parties, or community events, a digital or physical calendar overviews your entire schedule. This allows you to allocate time efficiently while avoiding overlaps or missed opportunities.

A shared calendar can also be a game-changer if you’re hosting a large group or coordinating group events. Platforms like Google Calendar allow you to invite others and create collaborative schedules. This way, everyone involved can view, edit, and update the event details in real-time, ensuring seamless coordination among family members or colleagues.

Use your calendar wisely to prioritize those must-attend events versus ones you can politely decline. Remember that only some things on your brain dump list will make it to your calendar.

We don’t have to attend every holiday gathering or your town’s Christmas events – unless that is what you want to do! Just remember not to burn yourself out with all the holiday events. 

READ NEXT→Need help planning a cozy Christmas party? Here’s exactly how to plan the ultimate Christmas pajama party (+FREE printables included!)

​Utilize technology and apps

Use technology tools like smartphone apps or online platforms designed specifically for holiday organization. These tools can assist with creating shopping lists (and even sharing them with family members), managing budgets efficiently, and scheduling events or appointments—all at your fingertips!

Set reminders to stay organized

Calendars offer helpful reminder features that prevent event-related stressors like forgetting important dates or leaving tasks until the last minute. Utilizing reminders will help you stay organized by providing timely notifications about impending deadlines, such as RSVPs or gift purchases so that everything runs smoothly.

Holiday Prep For Your Home

Decluttering and deep cleaning your house are crucial steps to prepare your home for the holidays. It’s time to empty those overstuffed closets! Imagine a stress-free holiday season where you can actually find that box of ornaments without digging through mountains of forgotten sweaters. Sounds magical, doesn’t it?

How to prepare early for Christmas?

Declutter your house before you start decorating the halls with bells and whistles.

Go room by room to eliminate unnecessary items while organizing essentials neatly out of sight.

Tackle one room at a time, sorting things into categories like donate, keep, or discard. If not the whole house, declutter just the main spaces, especially the kids’ bedrooms and toy areas. You know grandparents will be coming home with carts of Christmas gifts from Kohls, ready to spoil their favorite grandchildren. 

Channel your inner Marie Kondo and ask yourself if each item sparks joy or adds to the chaos. Remember, less clutter means more space for jingle bell rockin’ festivities. Decluttering your home will make space for new holiday décor while making cleaning more manageable. 

Decluttering isn’t just about physical spaces; it can also be very beneficial for your mental well-being during the holidays.

When it gets closer to Christmas, deep clean the house so it’s ready by the time you have family over. Take the stress off yourself and delegate the tasks to a cleaning service (remember you included this in your budget!). It’s so worth it to take part of that stress off of you and just let the professionals handle it. 

Festive Decorations

Bring out the holiday spirit by adorning your home with festive decorations! Start with a wreath on the front door and then move indoors—decorate the Christmas tree with your family; hang garlands across mantels; wrap twinkling lights around banisters; add cozy throw blankets in living areas—the possibilities are endless! Involve your kids in this process by assigning them age-appropriate tasks like hanging ornaments or stringing lights on trees.

Add cozy touches throughout your home to create a cozy ambiance. Swap out lightweight summer curtains for thicker drapes, or add warm-colored cushions and blankets in living spaces. Light-scented candles that evoke seasonal fragrances like cinnamon or pine will instantly make you feel at ease.

Before stringing lights or lighting candles throughout your house, check electrical outlets for any damage or loose connections that could cause fire hazards. Keep walkways clear of obstacles to prevent accidents among guests—safety should be paramount during festive celebrations. 

Whether hosting intimate gatherings or larger parties this holiday season, designate areas within your home for entertainment. Arrange seating areas, set up a bar cart or beverage station, and ensure your dining table is ready to accommodate the feast. Create a festive playlist to add ambiance to your gatherings.

Mom hack: Once the holidays are over, put away your holiday decorations in color-coded bins. Store your Christmas decorations in green and red bins, brown for Thanksgiving, and orange for Halloween decorations. By color-coding and separating your decorations by holiday, you can easily take them out and start decorating without having to rummage through bins of random decorations. 

Getting ready for holiday stays

If you’re hosting overnight guests, ensure their resting place is as cozy as possible, and ensure their comfort by preparing guest rooms well in advance. Fluff those pillows, swap out the bedsheets for clean sheets (extra points if they have a festive touch), and throw in some thoughtful amenities like travel-sized toiletries or a small welcome basket with snacks or treats.

Remember the bathroom! Stock the bathroom with essentials like towels, toiletries, and extra toilet paper. 

Kitchen holiday prep

The kitchen tends to be the heart of holiday entertaining. An organized kitchen is essential with all the cooking and baking this season. Clear out unnecessary and expired items from your pantry and refrigerator to make space for holiday goodies. Make sure you have ample leftover storage containers and stock up on essential ingredients before grocery stores become busy. Plan your menus in advance, create grocery lists accordingly, and consider batch-cooking some meals ahead of time to save effort during busy days.

Stock up on festive supplies

Ensure you have all the necessary supplies before starting any culinary ventures in your kitchen this Christmas season. Check if you have enough cookie cutters for fun-shaped treats or molds for festive chocolates. Remember to stock up on food coloring, icing sugar, and sprinkles to add flair to your creations. 

Take inventory of pantry staples well in advance to stay supplied during peak cooking times. Don’t forget to sharpen those knives too – precision slicing is critical when carving up delicious roasts or chopping veggies for grandma’s famous casserole.

Preparing for holiday food

Plan your Christmas menu in advance to ensure a stress-free culinary experience. Make a list of all the dishes you want to prepare and gather the corresponding recipes. Consider choosing recipes suitable for prepping ahead, such as casseroles, soups, stews, or slow cooker meals.

Take note of any special ingredients you need and ensure they’re included in your grocery shopping list. You’ll need to make your grocery lists based on your inventory and planned meals. 

Try to go to the grocery store days before your party or gathering, and avoid going on high-traffic days like Fridays and the day before a major holiday. 

Prep some dishes in advance to reduce stress on the day  

I prefer spending time on Christmas Day hanging around the tree with my family than spending all day in the kitchen cooking. That does not bring me joy.

To ensure I spend more time out of the kitchen during the holidays, I make a meal plan before the gathering and cook the meals ahead of time.

Preparing dishes in advance is a brilliant strategy that can significantly reduce stress and allow you to enjoy your time with family and friends on special occasions. Planning ahead minimizes last-minute chaos in the kitchen and ensures that everything is perfectly prepared.

Once you have decided on your menu, identify tasks that can be completed before the event day. This may include chopping vegetables, marinating meats, or making sauces/marinades beforehand. By completing these prep work tasks early on, you’ll save valuable time while cooking.

Another great idea for using these printables is to print them out and store them in a holiday binder, keeping all your ideas in one place.

My go-to meals for Christmas time are ready-prepped cinnamon rolls for breakfast and Shepherd’s Pie to eat all day. It is the only time of year I make this meal, making it even more special. I like to prepare all the ingredients for the Shepherd’s Pie, mix them together, and pop them in the oven on Christmas Day. This results in less time in the kitchen, reserving lots of time for family Christmas activities.   

Preparing For The Holidays Printable

Are you ready to improve your festive planning game?

Download the Preparing For The Holidays Checklist, designed to simplify the process and ensure a stress-free holiday season.

These free Christmas printables help you keep track of everything from gift shopping to food preparation. With this printable, you’ll feel like the ultimate multitasking maestro as you conquer your holiday duties one checkbox at a time.

The Preparing For The Holidays Checklist includes:

• A Christmas Bucket List Template
• A Christmas Brain Dump Checklist
• Monthly Christmas Checklist
• Task List & Project Planner
• Christmas Budget Tracker
• Free Printable Christmas Gift List
• Christmas Meal Planner
• Holiday Grocery Store List

The printables are in PDF format, which you can download to your electronic device. I use this holiday guide on my iPad and write everything down with my Apple pencil.

Ready For The Holidays

As we wrap up our whirlwind adventure of getting ready for the holidays, let’s take a moment to appreciate the true magic of this chaotic season. Planning for the holidays is like being the ringleader of a circus – it’s wild, unpredictable, and exhilarating. Yet it’s also a time when we, as busy moms, get to play the roles of Santa’s little helpers, master chefs, and chief decorators all at once. 

But here’s a little secret I will let you in on; you do not have to do all the festive things to make the most incredible holiday memories. Seriously! There is no one-size-fits-all approach to celebrating the holidays, and it’s perfectly acceptable to prioritize what truly matters to you and your loved ones. 

Remember that the true essence of the holidays lies in the moments of connection, love, and gratitude rather than the number of activities or tasks you accomplish.

So, take a step back, evaluate your priorities, and feel empowered to choose festive things that align with your values, interests, and capacity. This will ultimately make the holiday season a more joyful and fulfilling time of year.

So, let’s raise our strong cup of spiked peppermint mochas in the air, and cheers to all of us moms – the multitasking miracle workers that we are – just trying our best to turn the chaos into cherished memories with the goal of making the holidays our own kind of magical for our loved ones! May your days be merry, your to-do lists manageable, and your sanity restored just in time for next year’s merry madness!

Wishing you joy, peace, and laughter this holiday season as you gracefully navigate through the holiday chaos. 

This is all about the best tips for a getting ready for the holidays stress free!

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