. Put Your Life Away & Enjoy the Holidays

My friends, today we are talking about handling the second week of December in such a way that  you, too, can enjoy the holidays.  I like to use this phrase:   “It is my week to put my regular life away so that I can enjoy the holiday.”

Upstairs in one bedroom I have a partially-finished quilt top.  I been working on some family history that is scattered in the basement office.  I have mending that is not done, some drawers that I want to line and so I have those supplies purchased.  It is time for me to put these half-finished projects completely away.  I know that during the rest of this week, all of next week (especially as the children get out of school) and the last week, which I call sandwich week (the days between Christmas and New Year’s), there will be little time for me to work on very much of anything but fixing meals, cleaning up, entertaining and enjoying the children, traveling, and being with friends and family.

If I leave my half-finished projects out, it will dismay me, confused me, and otherwise upset me, and keep me from having a simplified, focused special holiday.  So I like to start at the front door, walking around my house counterclockwise direction, putting the quilt top away, cleaning up those different kinds of makeup I was going to try, putting away the drawer liners for another time.  I’m  not going to get to them before Christmas comes.

So as you function this week, as you work through all of your priorities, just take a few minutes and put the half-finished projects completely way.  I usually make little notes in my planner where I have put these projects so during the first week of January, when things settle down a bit, the kids go back to school, and my husband has returned to work, I can return to my regular routine and finish up.  Keep periods of time during that first week or so of January without a lot commitments.  It takes awhile to ramp up after two or three weeks of having children, husband and other family home.

Remember this phrase as you’re cleaning up, putting away, and putting aside things you haven’t finished:  “It is important to put your regular life away so that you, TOO, to can enjoy the holiday.”

Find more helpful ideas in my House of Order Handbook.