12 Tips for Tackling Christmas in 2020!
Tip 1 – Write a list and set yourself a strict budget. Often, we can feel obliged to ‘overspend’ at Christmas time, by showering our friends and family with gifts of the extravagant kind. The only person who really knows how much was spent is you in the grand scheme, and you eating 2-minute noodles because you went over the budget doesn’t make you feel happy at a time of year that is meant to be happy and joyful, don’t add stress to your life for no reason.
Tip 2 – Ordering online? Allow a good 2-week time frame at minimum, everyone is trying to avoid the shops, trust us, we are! The parking is a nightmare, the crowds at a time we should be crowding less during a higher risk time. So, because of this, everyone will be more online savvy. Don’t wait by the door hoping that your goodies arrive by Christmas eve. Get in before then, wrap them up and pop them under the tree and kick back and relax.
Tip 3 – Sending out cards? Much the same as the online shopping dilemma it's about timing, so if you are sending out cards get to it in the early days of December, they may be a few days earlier but it’s better than a few days too late right?
Tip 4 – Putting the tree up? If you don’t have a tradition or are starting one, we recommend putting on some Christmas tunes, allocating some healthy dips and snacks, and getting the whole crew involved in decorating the tree. Maybe even pick and plan a funny theme – for instance, this year my family is doing a Star Wars theme called “merry-sithmas” and we are finding all sorts of weird Star Wars memorabilia for the tree and decorations around the house. But, always have fun with it and laugh at the dorkiness always.
Tip 5 – Pre-plan your meals for the celebrations in time, is there a fruit you can grab and freeze, meats that can be frozen, etc. grab all of those in advance as possible and pop them in some long storage like a freezer to avoid navigating your way through the shops unnecessarily on Christmas eve. We have all experienced that mayhem!
Tip 6 – Give thanks to the retail workers where possible and be kind, you may be stressed and losing your last strand of patience, however, more often than not these people are doing long shifts, working right up until late on Christmas eve and sometimes even Christmas day.
Tip 7 – Family/Friend walks in the morning – often we can be super scattered across different times and rushing around, not to mention eating a lot of food in larger amounts than we usually would be this time of year (thanks grandma), try to plan a time before you all part ways in the day that you can get a brisk walk in and hang out for a stroll around the block together if you have a dog they will be ecstatic! It's an exercise you can all do together and get a chat and laugh in before you all get home and collapse from exhaustion later on.
Tip 8 – Switch out some screen time for board games and books together with friends and loved ones – chill out in the lounge room together and read some books you love, and enjoy the calm time or have a laugh and play some old board games you have stashed in that linen cupboard from when you were all kids. Hungry hippo can make even the most serious sourpuss laugh. Monopoly not recommended… for obvious table-flipping reasons.
Tip 9 – Skillshare! It's highly likely that over the course of 2020 you learned something new right? Even if you were couped up in the house for obvious reasons scrolling through YouTube. Heck even if you just listened to the ATP Project podcast back to back during this time, you surely would have learned something new, the best way to solidify knowledge on a topic is to teach it to someone. Teach each other one thing you learned be it a physical or mental skill, it's free, and accumulative knowledge is something we need more of in the world.
Tip 10 – Watch the corniest Christmas movie you remember from when you were a child. Allocate one every night or every other night leading up to Christmas, after all… die hard never dies. Yes, it is a Christmas movie and that’s the final verdict.
Tip 11 – Get good at keeping your gut in mind, those cheeky microbe critters in your gut love sugar very much, they thrive on it! Christmas is their favorite time of year too… for obvious reasons! So be mindful to keep your gut health in mind when indulging so it’s less of a struggle come those iconic New Year resolutions in a week’s time after the big 25!
Tip 12 – Drink wisely, while this seems obvious often, we get too merry and do silly things we shouldn’t. If you are having a few at a venue, be sure to uber or cab it home of having a trustworthy sober pal who can get you from A to B safe and sound. The death toll on roads is highest this time of year and often for reasons that could have easily been avoided. Be safe.
Lastly, from all of the team – thank you for all of your support this year. The whole world has been through one heck of a roller coaster ride and those who have stuck by us even through these trying times have not gone unnoticed, to say the least.
Thank you for 2020 and we will see you in 2021… with more delicious goodies coming out of the pipeline!