10 Ways To Intentionally Prepare For The Holiday Season

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Today I am blessed to introduce to you Jenny from Women With Intention. Jenny, like me, has a heart for women. To help them succeeded and to help them do all that they do for God’s glory. I am sure you all will be blessed by her words today.

 

1. Start planning now!

The holidays are meant to be a time savored not stressed, rushed, and overwhelmed! Get out your calendar and mark down all of the events such as Christmas concerts, church events, and which days you will be celebrating the holidays with your family.

2. Create your budget!

No one wants credit card bills and a pile of debt arriving after the holidays! While you are budgeting, make sure you don’t forget some extra expenses around the holiday season including: extra food if you are hosting an event at your home or if you need to take food to a gathering, extra gas and travel expenses, gifts, holiday cards, postage for your gifts and cards, and supplies for wrapping or sending the gifts).

3. Plan your menu!

Where are you eating for the holidays- at home or are you visiting someone? If you are hosting, how many people will be eating? What are you planning on making? Do you need to stock up on toilet paper, paper plates, cups, silverware, or napkins? (These are great things to have others bring when they ask you what you need!) Will you have overnight guests that you will be making additional meals for? If you are traveling, do you need to take something to go along with the meal? What do you need to pack? By getting organized now, it will save you some stress as the holidays get closer!

4. Make a list of each person you will be shopping for and put the budgeted amount next to their name.

Note whether you will be buying or making their gift. Make sure if you need to mail the gift that you include shipping costs into your budget! If you are mailing a bunch of gifts find a day on the calendar to have as your mailing day!

5. Create a list of supplies that you will need to buy to make your gifts.

If you are making 5 people the same gift you will divide the cost of those supplies by 5 to figure out how much it is costing per person.

6. Make a list of who you will be sending Christmas cards to including their address.

Look for online deals if you are creating your own or printing photos to go inside of them. (Hint, usually on the day after Thanksgiving, there are really good deals if you have your list with addresses ready to type in!) Mark on your calendar when you need to have the cards mailed off!

7. Sit down with the family and decide what is most important to all of you this season.

Do you have holiday traditions that you do each year? Where are you going for the holidays? What does each individual member of the family love to do this time of year? Do you drive around and see the lights while drinking hot cocoa, go to a Christmas play, make cookies, or go Christmas caroling? Make a list and schedule them into your calendar. Even more importantly, this time of the year is very busy, what does each member NOT want to do this year? (Many times knowing what your family doesn’t want to do is just as important as what they do!)

8. Prepare and finalize travel plans.

My family is blessed with not having to ever travel more than an hour. For those of you who do, start making your lists of what you need to pack, food to take, gifts to take, and travel preparations that need to be finalized. Don’t forget if you will be gone for awhile to put a hold on your mail and have someone to take care of the pets if they aren’t traveling with you!

9. Declutter what you can now!

It will be time to start decorating soon and who wants to get out the Christmas decorations when your house is already cluttered! Start with the room your Christmas tree will be going in, then move to toys if you have kids since you will probably be accumulating more soon! In order to get in the holiday mood, light a wintery candle, turn on some holiday music and get to work!

10. As you make gifts and purchase gifts, wrap them!

This not only saves you from having to wrap them all at one time (which can take hours!), but also keeps anyone from seeing what you have bought. (I have some kids who try to peek at my house!) Make sure you keep track of what you have bought by having a list so you don’t have a bunch of presents wrapped and have no idea what is inside of them!

How do you be intentional in preparing for the holidays?

 

 

More About Jenny:

 

 

 

 

Now it is time for the Salt & Light Link Up Party

Be the Salt & the Light to the world this week and share:

• • • Marriage - What touched your heart for your spouse

• • • Health - A new recipe that you hope to bless your family with, or health tip that will benefit your family

• • • Service - A story of service that touched you

• • • Finances - A tip that will serve your family well
    • Homemaking - Inspiration to make your home a haven for your husband, kids, and guest
    • Time - Share a story that opened your eyes to the use of time in our life
    • Beauty - A reminder of what beauty really is in a world that tries so hard to

 

 

 

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Your Chance to be Salt & Light

More specifically, how are we as blogging mommies, wives, women, being salt & light towards others online? Here is your chance to generously sprinkle some salt and shine a light: a link up where you share a post that you enjoyed recently from someone else’s blog or website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Make sure to follow Marissa, Bridget, Misty and Mandy so you don’t miss future opportunities to be Salt & Light to others! Oh and check out Salt & Light’s pinterest board… your post might just show up there!

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I would like to invite you to my Facebook group Christian Homemakers in Training where we dive into homemaking, motherhood, marriage and group devotions. After all, we all need a safe place to grow together, right?

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