Tags
christmas machine, do the right thing, family conversations, family gatherings, holiday magic, holiday traditions, setting limits, staying balanced
I received more comments on my last blog than any I’ve ever written. I wonder if that is because it hit a nerve. . . ? So I thought I might continue on that holiday-improvement theme.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the prospect of making Holiday Magic at your house, one good idea from Jo is to ask each member of your family, “What one thing/activity really MAKES Christmas for you?” Then do one thing for each person and poof, your dashing about gets simplified! In other words, if you have yourself and four members of your family, you’ll have a total of 5 holiday items to tend to. Then, DON’T DO THE REST! (notice the wrenching in your gut as you consider that…but stay with it because it may be followed by joy!)
Another plan comes from the book Unplug the Christmas Machine by Robinson & Staeheli. They suggest you look over this list, check the ones you’re responsible for. Then place a star by the ones you enjoy, looking for some which can be happily dropped:
- make up gift list 11. getting the tree
- Christmas shopping 12. decorating the tree
- making gifts 13. outside decorations
- writing cards 14. hosting parties or guests
- helping out at church 15. preparing company meals
- holiday baking 16. planning family gatherings
- home decorations 17. helping w/ school activities
- packing for holiday travel 18. making Christmas dinner
- buying stocking stuffers 19. Christmas charities
- gifts for teachers, neighbors 20. cleaning up after activities
Complete the following sentence:
As a rule, I can count on _______ hours of free time each day. I usually spend those unscheduled hours in the following way: __________________________________. To find time to prepare for Christmas, I usually take time from __________________.
Many husbands report that their wives sort of go berserk over the holidays. Many women report feeling “all by myself” and “unappreciated.”
Could it be time to reconsider who is stealing the fun from the holidays?
Kathleen Fischer 