Personal Development

Christmas survival guide

I think we all understand, thank you very much, that Christmas is about to show up and bite us on the backside! Still seems like ages away doesn't it? Well the harsh reality is that it about 20 days until the BIG day. Of course I'll get everything sorted in time - really, I will!

Christmas is hailed as the biggest family celebration of the year - conjured up by those gorgeous images in films and magazines - so why is it so stressful and by the time the day arrives we are exhausted!

So with limited time until the big day, here are my top tips to get organised and not stressed for the big day!

Confirm where you will spend the day. Simple question but often requires military precision if you need to visit several different families.

Are you required to prepare any food? More often than not you will either need to "bring a plate" or be catering for a meal. Prepare a menu and the matching shopping list now! When you are grocery shopping over the next few weeks, pick up a few items so you don't have one giant shop at the last minute that you can't carry past the front gate - spread the load!

Are you the host/ess? Confirming the number of guests is a priority. Double check you have enough table space, seating, crockery, cutlery, serving utensils, glassware, platters, table clothes and napery. If you don't, hire it. There are lots of good hire companies around and it is fairly inexpensive. Have everything you need delivered a few of days prior to Christmas Eve so you have plenty of time to set the table and it is all looking spectacular for when your guests arrive.

Gift Shopping. Haven't even started? OK, list time; make a list of everyone you need to shop for, the budget for that gift and gift ideas. For example, Grandma - $50 - costume jewellery, cook book. Have the list in your handbag at all times and when you pop out at lunch time over the next few weeks just focus on one or two gifts and use the list as a guide - you will save loads of time and be able to keep track of your budget.

Emergency Gifts. Be prepared should you unexpectedly received a gift or a drop-in guest over the holidays. You need a gift stat! One of the best emergency gifts is gorgeous (and I mean deluxe), Christmas decorations which are beautifully boxed and wrapped. This gift is suitable for anyone! Also a great gift for teachers!

Gift Wrapping. If you have the time, have your gifts wrapped by the charity wrappers in most shopping centres. If you don't have the time, buy a bulk roll of white paper (available at most commercial packaging stores) and compliment your wrapping with different ribbons; these are readily available from craft and "$2 dollar shops". You will never run out of paper and you can use it for the rest of the year for other gifts (buy different ribbons for each occasion).

Greeting Cards. Traditionalists amongst us still love sending Christmas Cards. Again write a list of recipients and type up the address labels into a document that you can keep and add to each year - it will at least save you the time of writing the envelopes. Alternatively you could consider sending e-cards. E-cards are now available via charity organizations so not only are you saving time, you will also be helping a good cause.

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