Christmas is a magical time for children. There is just as much excitement for parents, but unfortunately, there are equal amounts of stress too. Christmas is a big event, which means that if you want it to be a success, you need a plan.
In this guide, you’ll find our top tips on how you can prepare for a magical Christmas well before December for your children. We’ll cover everything from getting gifts to planning activities like watching free cartoons, managing holiday stress, and more!
Set a budget
First things first, you need to set a budget. Generosity is rife during the holiday season, which often leads to some unintentional spending and some regret in the months that follow. Sit down with your partner and make a Christmas budget. Set aside amounts for gifts for your children, for each other, and then for other family and friends. Next, allocate spending for food, travel, and any other areas where you may spend - don’t forget social occasions!
Once you’ve created your budget, try to stick to it as closely as you can.
Get a list and check it twice
Now you need to find out what your little ones want from Santa. A fun way to do this is to ask them to write a letter to Santa asking nicely for what they want for Christmas. Explain that you’ll deliver the letters and just like that, you’ll have a wish list. To make it extra special, write a reply from Santa thanking them for their lists.
Once you’ve got the lists, decide what gifts you’ll get and try to spot any trend gifts. These are the hot ticket items that may sell out due to demand. You should aim to get these as soon as possible. Waiting for possible sales may be important, but sometimes paying a slightly higher price is better than missing out.
Get out the calendar
The holiday is busy and often involves a lot of events for parents and kids. Get out your calendars and include everything. Write down Christmas events at school or your local area, try to commit to family plans and visits, book any annual leave where necessary, and note any work events too.
Lock in your Christmas Day location
Knowing where you’ll be spending Christmas changes everything. If you’re at home, you’ll need to organise food, gifts, chairs and more. If you aren’t at home, you need to organise travel, gifts for those that you’re visiting, and all the other admin that comes along with leaving the house. Lock this in as soon as possible so you can plan accordingly.
Have your decorations ready
Decorations add an extra festive touch to the holiday season, so it’s a great idea to organise them as soon as possible. First, you need to decide whether you’ll purchase a real tree or get an artificial one. Next, get as many bits for around the house as you can. Try to get items that you can reuse to save yourself from having to purchase them again next year. Alternatively, you can always make your decorations as a family out of recyclable or biodegradable materials. Finally, plan a day when you can your family can decorate the house together.
Plan your children’s entertainment
Christmas day involves a lot of running around for parents, so you need some distractions up your sleeve to keep your kid’s still and entertained. Have some Christmas films, cartoons, board games, and other activities ready to go for the big day.
Manage your own expectations
This tip is particularly important for your own mental health. You will likely feel the need to make Christmas perfect, but the thing is, the perfect Christmas doesn’t exist outside of the movies. Despite your best-laid plans, things can go wrong and that’s ok. Just remember that as long as you’re with the ones you love, you’ve got everything you need for Christmas. Plus, sometimes a Christmas mishap can make for a great story!
Manage your children’s expectations
Next, you need to manage the expectations of your children. To them, Christmas is often a day when they just want everything they asked for on their list. They have no idea about how much these things cost, how much planning you’ll put into their day, and despite how much you may want to, you can’t always give them everything they want. The trick is to manage expectations in advance. Try to shift their focus to gifts that you know you can get, have some Santa excuses prepared (like a letter), and try to narrow wish lists if possible.
Make it magical
Finally, don’t forget to make it magical. Take a moment to think back over your favourite Christmas memories as a child. Was it a favourite story? Or perhaps it was coming home to a decorated house? Was it leaving something out for Santa or trying to impress the elf on the shelf? If you can, try to recreate as many of these memories as possible for your kids and you will feel just as much magic and joy as you did when you were younger. Part of the magic of Christmas is the fantasy of it all - like Santa. If you can preserve this as long as possible, your kids will tell stories about it for the rest of their lives.
Final Thoughts
Before things start getting Christmas crazy, follow the steps in this guide so that you can be as prepared as possible for the big day! Oh, and before you go, Merry Christmas!