Less is MORE: Ways to simplify your Holidays
Holidays are the most awaited days of beach coming year. Imagine everyone gets busy from fixing their schedules to cleaning and decorating the home to preparing the meals to be eaten.
Few more days left, and we will be welcoming another fruitful year.
Have you completed your to do list for these holidays? You might want to recheck it and to have a simple yet meaningful Holiday.
It’s definitely an awesome feeling whenever we have those extra time to spend with our families and friends. At the same time, it can also be an exhausting time as we need to prepare, work on busy schedules, and slightly in debt
Here are some few tips on how to make a less complicated, and less stressful Holiday, and for us to welcome the incoming year of 2019 more enjoyable.
Lessen the Decorations
I know how fun it is putting up all those colorful and beautiful decor all over our homes. From hanging our Christmas socks to putting up the lights all over, it is definitely one of those things we look forward to. But come to think of it, is it really necessary? Is it needed? Who do you really want to make the holidays special for? The passers-by? From this point we can test our critical thinking of deciding and choosing what we want vs. what we need. Put up all the decor that you adore the most and the rest that you would no longer need? Get rid of them and save yourself from tons of clutter.
Minimize Holiday Shopping
Sale and price drop everywhere, truly everyone will be tempted with all those promotions and discounts! From top to bottom, everything on you is new for the Holidays. Why spend too much on clothes and stuff if you can actually reuse the ones you have in your closet. Holiday is to be celebrated without the need of putting on your best dress and taking photos just to post on your social media accounts. Holiday is more than that.
Buying expensive gifts to give away is not really necessary. Yes, it is definitely fine to spoil your loved ones at times, but not all the time. Instead of buying them new clothes, or shoes that will just be stuck up in the closets or outgrown, why not give them something that is actually consumable like a gift certificate to a restaurant, or to a salon, a trip out of the country etcetera. You might as well consider giving them discount coupons for cleaning services that they may use after the holiday to tidy things up. If you know someone in Seattle, check out Divine Maids, and their amazing discounts. And with these types of presents, you will actually find them even more happy about it plus, it is going to be a memorable gift for them.
It is not a surprise to us all that almost everyday, tons of food gets to be wasted and dumped in trash. This is happening all over the world. Imagine how much more food are wasted during the holiday season. I know it feels great whenever we have a full meal course prepared for our relatives, friends and loved ones. But not all of these are being eaten especially if we have redundant meals like three to four types of salad, numerous cakes and desserts. We don’t need to impress anyone by having a lot of food in the serving table. Create a simple, yet delicious meal and people will definitely remember the thought of you preparing it instead of like cooking for the whole army.
Family First
During the holiday season, we receive a lot of invites. We may think it’s not affecting our expenses, but thinking twice, you’ll realize how much money are spent for each party we attend to. We buy clothes to wear and gifts to bring also food that we would need to contribute to the gathering as well. We should not feel obligated to go to each and every gathering or party.
It is more ideal to spend those time, money and effort with the best people, your family and the people closest to you. Each time spent with each other will be a memory that is going to be treasured by every member of the family, forever. So choose to spend your Holidays with your families and enjoy them to the fullest.
Look Back, and feel the Holidays as if you are a child again
As an adult, we admit that every time the holiday approaches, we get busier and busier and pressured on the things we need to do and accomplish We are overwhelmed by the additional obligations and responsibilities we may need to face during this season.
Think of the Holidays as if you are a child once again. Stress free, fun and exciting, and carefree. Feel the moment, and enjoy every minute of it especially if you are with your family and friends. This will surely be an unforgettable moment. Leave the worries behind and just have fun and enjoy as if you are a child again!
Be present instead of having presents
For children, we may think that they are all after the presents each holiday, but if you come to think of it, you will realize that as they grow, they would not remember the presents they receive, but your presence during this special time of his or her life. Instead of thinking of the best present you can provide to your loved ones, think about how to make yourself fully available and present during these days with them.
Turn the TV off, put away your smart phones and gadgets. Let’s start practicing the enjoyment of actually talking to your friends and family, spend more time with people you love and at the end of the day, you, yourself will realize, It was not about the presents after all. You will find the true meaning of Holidays, and get to experience real happiness by merely giving your full attention and presence, and you’ll see, It is all worth it.