3 tips to getting more enjoyment out of your holiday season by doing less:

  1. Get all your extended family/friend gifts on Groupon. For gift giving think experiences or activities vs objects. What does the recipient like to do? Get a massage. Go out to eat. Go to the theater. Treat them to an experience that they will enjoy or can share with others. They are more likely to enjoy and remember that experience than a bar of soap or pair of socks. 
    Bonus: if you are giving gifts to folks out of town you will save $$ on shipping this item! Envelopes cost way less than packages.
  2. Order takeout for Christmas dinner. But wait, you say, we MUST have our traditional Christmas ham! But must you? What if you started a new tradition?! A tradition is just something that you repeat over and over so that it become special. Think about how much simpler and less stressful dinner would be if you ordered out instead of made all the food yourself. My family has been ordering Chinese takeout on Christmas eve since we were little and honestly it has become so special and no one is stressed out about the food. Instead we are enjoying our time with each other. 
  3. Only buy three presents for your kids. You don’t have to get them a million things. Remember quality over quantity. They will appreciate the gifts more if you spend time thinking about what they would actually like and use. They will remember and be able to enjoy 3 things vs 20 things. Something thoughtful and personal will help the bonding process between you two vs them unwrapping a gift just to toss it aside a moment later to move onto the next one. Plus the wise men brought three gifts to Jesus. So be like the wise men and only give three things. 😉