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1. Remember what we are celebrating! Keep the focus on the gift of Jesus and glorifying Him in all you do. This holiday is not about gifts, it is a big birthday party to celebrate the life of our savior!
2. Do what you (or your family) enjoy. This will look different for everyone. I love to bake, cook, and sew so that is what I do. If you don't like doing those things you are not going to have fun and will just be stressed if you think these are things you must do to have a "Merry Christmas." You may have other talents and interests, go with those!
3. Set limits! Too much of a good thing is not fun. Set limits on gifts. Set limits on activities. Set limits on treats. Think talk with your husband and kids about what is most important to you this season, after that don't stress about the rest. These limits free you up to say "no" to those extras that come along. On the flip side if you've limited your planned activities you can also be freed to say "yes" to those extras that come along knowing that you've planned the important things well.
4. Delegate. Now that my kids are getting older there are things they are able to help with. They may not turn out exactly as I would like, but the point of doing these things is not perfection, it is the family time. Its about building relationships. Last year my daughter designed and baked our gingerbread house, what a great experience for her and a wonderful way to bless our family!
What have you done to simplify christmas and/or keep the focus on Christ?
I'm linking to Making your home sing Monday and Raising Homemakers.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteLovely post. I saw your link on Mom’s the Word today.
I remember when I was a young wife and mother how I would try to make everything perfect. I just could never do it all, and on a few holidays I just sat down and cried. How mixed up I was. Then, one day I read an article about what it might have been like for Mary the day Jesus was born – that certainly put things into perspective for me. And Christmas is supposed to be about Jesus and the joy of salvation and peace with God. I am happy to say that we no longer focus on having the perfect Christmas. Someday we may have nothing, but we will always have true joy when we have Jesus.
~Hope
Great ideas and I really #2, to do what YOU (and your family) like to do. Young families need to start their own traditions too, and not necessarily be bound by traditions just because their parents did them.
ReplyDeleteIf they like them, fine, but if they don't, why not start doing stuff that they enjoy with their own family and make their own traditions! Thanks for linking up to Making Your Home Sing Monday.