I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I missed our Small Things, but had a great time with my family, and even got our Christmas tree put up over the weekend. (I had help, so I took advantage.) The only thing I'm struggling with is the Turkey Guilt I still feel for not pulling every last morsel of turkey meat off the carcass before throwing it away. I'm sure that if I'd wrestled with that bird for another half hour I could have gotten another 1/2 cup of meat from it, but I just got sick of the greasy job and quit long before my Dad would have ever considered quitting. It's rough being a frugal Norwegian sometimes. The guilt. The GUILT!
Well, let's just jump into Today's Small Thing, which is to get a head start on your holiday preparations. Oh, I know that since this last weekend was the first "official" weekend of the Christmas season this won't technically be a "head start," but if your life is like mine, I need several "head starts" to get moving. :) It always feels like I have pleeeeenty of time....and then suddenly I'll look up and find that it is December 15 and I'm behind. I don't want to do that this year, do you? Naaah.
So for example, with a houseful of guest coming in a few weeks, and not enough beds or bathrooms to go around, I will be putting some guests in the master bedroom. A horrifying thought! We picked up in there last week, but the master bedroom is usually the dumping ground for all the stuff that gets moved out of the rest of the house! But I really do not have any choice. That means that the clutter I don't normally care about will have to get shoved into someone else's closet, and I don't want to be doing that an hour before they arrive. I need at head start on it if I have any hope of pulling it off.
Some of you will be traveling during Christmas and won't have to worry about cleaning your house. (Lucky!) But it still means that you will be packing and making sure people have socks and underwear to last. And no one wants to be shopping for shoes that you just realized Junior outgrew and won't have anything to wear but holey socks to the Christmas feast. Give yourself a head start by making a checklist of things to pack, things to purchase, and things to bake so you won't be running around at the last minute.
Here are some other head start ideas that will help us fight our Procrastinating Tendencies:
- Check your pantry supply for baking items. I'm out of shortening and low on flour.
- Purchase "extra" things like butter, eggs and milk for the extra pie or dessert you'll need to make for the party you forgot to put on your calendar.
- Wash sheets and towels so they are ready to go before company arrives.
- Wash sheets and towels so you have something clean to come home to from your trip.
- Bake and store what you can, if you can keep from eating goodies ahead of time.
- Clear out space in your freezer for leftovers.
- Purchase storage containers so they are ready for duty - hey! we just did this!
- Assess tablecloth/centerpiece/serving dish situations: do you have what you need? I just realized that I only have 8 glasses for 35 people coming over....
- Polish silverware (or buy plastic ware)
- Start a Christmas Planner.
- Make your gift list if you haven't already. There is still time to hand-make some simple gifts.
- Take advantage of some "Cyber Monday" deals and do some shopping online.
Ticking even one item off your list will help you relax and enjoy the next few weeks. I want to be joyful and grateful, in spite of our tight budget and time constraints, and being proactive will get me going in the right direction.
60 POINTS!
POINTS: 60 for giving yourself a head start by DOING one thing that you're tempted to procrastinate
Share your ideas! What can you do NOW that will make a difference later?
Song of the Day: It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas, Bing Crosby
