How To Savor and Simplify the Season Part 2

This is Part 2, you can find Part 1 HERE.

[Each week during November I’ll share excerpts from Simplify & Savor the Season to organize and enjoy the holidays, with FUN FREEBIES!]

Great job, ladies. You’re on your way to be organized and enjoy the holidays! Last week I shared about a feeling focus, the Family Buy-in, and keeping it simple. This week, consider how to use delegate more fully in your holiday planning.

Delegate to the family

Sometimes the holidays can become a “mom production” instead of a family experience. Enter the principle of delegation. The ultimate key to effective delegation is to enjoy the process—no uber hovering, dumping, or complaining.

For example, one year I looked at our holiday plan and decided to delegate a few things that I had previously tackled by myself in these ways:

The Christmas tree. We set the actual tree up as a family and then gave the children decorations and one instruction—lights and pine cones go first. They did a stellar job (with a few charming gaps here and there…) while I made tasty victuals and Dad tried to get the lights to work. Now they happily decorate the tree each year while I essentially cheer them on from the comfy couch.

Gift-wrapping. I finally realized that people love gifts wrapped in bizarre and unusual ways as long as it’s done by children—what would be odd or offensive from you is considered “absolutely darling” from them. Now my children wrap all gifts in their “absolutely darling” manner. Together we make it happen—they have a ball while I smile and finish a Mom Only item.

Easy neighbor gifts. Don’t feel the need to make a production of neighbor gifts. For an easy-to-assemble present, we paired a can of gourmet cocoa with a clear gift bag of several almond biscotti and tied them together with festive ribbon. Fast, fabulous, and kid-friendly, it was a perfect combination. We even caroled for the neighbors when we stopped by to give the gift (of course, no need to mention the postcard experience of the children fighting over who could sit up front, which carol to sing, and whose turn it was to give the gift…)

And if simplifying or delegating isn’t working, then eliminate it. Remember, it’s just for this year, so you can eliminate an event, activity, or task that isn’t working for your family for one holiday season. If you’ve always made Christmas doilies for all thirty-five of your neighbors but this year the very thought gives you hives, then don’t make them. Traditions are meant to bind us together with love, not make us want to beat each other with knitting needles.

Some of thesem seem like a no-brainer, but it’s in the actual doing and delegating we find the change. Each of these delegations actually created more free time for me, more enjoyable time together, and a more memorable experience overall.

Look at your list for each of the next three holidays—what can you do to better delegate at least ONE of the activities or to-dos to create more savor time for you and your family?

Best,

Connie

This week’s FUN FREEBIE—4 FREE Simplify & Savor the Season podcasts (no purchase necessary!) by emailing [email protected].

AND, if you do purchase an e-book or print version of Simplify & Savor the Season, receive a FREE PDF companion booklet! AND partial proceeds are donated to Utah Food Bank!

What are these books? The Simplify book helps you in two ways: the first half shares a simple 3-Step plan to organize the next three holidays. The second half provides humorous family life columns so you can laugh and lighten up. The Take-Along companion booklet lets you write your plan in one spot, then tote it in your purse so it’s handy when you need it. Email [email protected] to claim your FUN FREEBIES!