How to Organize Holiday Life

Here's how to organize holiday life. The problem with the holidays is that they are too short. We have four short weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas to make our family's holiday dreams come true.

Forget Santa - we all know who the head elf is here. So, Ms. Elf - how are you going to pull it off? Get out your notebook or calendar. You're going to make your own Christmas list. And it will be a doozy.

You're going to make a plan - or three - to organize holiday life so that you and your family can enjoy the season without being crazy busy. This early planning will give you a sense of control and allow you to be proactive in managing the holiday season.

How to Organize Holiday Life: Making a Plan

Woman sitting at computer with calendar on the screen.

Make a plan - or three - to organize holiday life.

Plan A: Write down all the special occasions, dinners, parties, traditions, etc., that you cannot live without. Include everything from Thanksgiving dinner to the school Christmas play, to your annual cookie exchange to Christmas Eve services.

Now, turn to the calendar and write down all the occasions with firm dates. This is how to organize holiday life. Add tentative dates for all unscheduled events, allowing as much time as possible between them.

These dates may change, but at least you'll be holding space for them, allowing you to organize your family's holiday life.

Now, list all the chores and special projects you need to accomplish by the end of the year. Christmas shopping, sending Christmas cards, gift-wrapping, holiday portraits, decorating, and any special handmade gifts you'll create with the kids. Estimate how many hours each will take and record that information as well.

To organize your holiday life, prioritize these tasks and assign a drop-dead, gotta-be-done-by date to each—schedule as much as you can for early December.

Some things have to be done early, anyway. If you plan to send personalized Christmas cards, you should get those family photos taken immediately.

Other work-ahead tasks include:

Cleaning and organizing for the holidays.
Shopping ahead.
Mailing gifts to friends and family back home far enough in advance to arrive well before December 25.

Returning to the calendar, assign specific dates for each of the chores and projects you listed above. Space these out so that you will accomplish a little bit each week.

The idea here is to organize holiday life to avoid that last-minute crunch.

Now you've got a plan for the holidays. All other invitations or events will be juggled around your basic schedule. This way, you just might avoid wrapping Santa gifts at 2 a.m. on December 25.

Plan B: How to Organize Holiday Life around Family

Plan A pertains to the head elf (you). Plan B relates to the whole family. Hey, why should you have all the stress - er - fun?

Go back to your list and see what you can delegate to others to further organize your holiday life and ensure things don't get too stressful for you.

Assign each assistant elf a specific area (or two or three) of expertise. Perhaps your 10-year-old daughter enjoys wrapping gifts.

Your teenager is an excellent baker. Maybe your husband likes to shop. Or you could save him for the manly jobs like putting up the exterior decorations. Whatever.

Create a chart and list each family member, along with the chores they need to accomplish each week to ward off the Grinch. After all, the more everyone pitches in, the more time you have for family fun.

Plan C: Plan to Have Fun

If you made a plan and included the family, and you're still feeling overwhelmed, something is obviously not working. Reevaluate your plan. Maybe you're trying to do too much.

What can you leave out? Remember that quiet evenings are also a vital part of the holiday season.

If you're always rushing around to parties, concerts, and breakfasts with Santa, when are you going to enjoy your lovely holiday home?

When will you have time to be a family? Be sure to schedule some downtime on your calendar as well. Write it in red.

We continually raise the bar for ourselves. Whatever we did last year, we need to do it bigger and better this year. The dinner will be more spectacular.

The gifts will all be custom-wrapped to fit the recipient. We really will go caroling this year...Sound familiar?

Tell yourself what you tell the kids when they write their wish lists: You can't have it all. And even if you could, it would not make you happy.

The trick is to make what you do have very special indeed.
You may have to forgo the holiday newsletter—consider sending it in February instead.

You may not have time to make the plum pudding, and your home may not glisten when neighbors drop by.

Take time to love your children and make your home warm and welcoming—if a bit messy. You are not a super mom, but you are a mom, and that's super enough.