This year I am taking two weeks off work for the holiday season. Okay, I may have one day less than that as a workmate needs some help and despite her saying it can wait until the new year I want to help so she can relax over Christmas. I know, I am soft.
I am particularly stressed this year because I like having everything sorted for Christmas on the 1st December; the Christmas decorations go up that day with lots of Christmas music and bah humbug moments from Hubby, the presents are bought and lovingly wrapped and the cards are written and posted.
Despite starting out well by ordering all of my wrapping and pretty tape, tags and bows as early as March and the presents bought that is about all I have done. The sitting room decorations only went up on the 9th of December due to travelling and illness and so the stress level started racheting up. The dining room decorations were up on the 15th by which time I was that stressed I was wandering about doing things that were little more than useless despite having an organised list to follow.
The cards are written and those that need posting around and out of the country are posted but that is all; the rest need to be delivered. The presents still need to be wrapped. I work from my dining room most of the week and so the Christmas table cannot be done until Monday and I have still got some of the 'stuff' to move from the dining room - our house is that small some of our possessions are just stored there.
I know this all sounds silly because seriously the world is not going to end if it all doesn't get done - well okay, important things like present wrapping is essential as are card deliveries because Beautiful B would just cry if she got unwrapped presents.
Except that we are hosting Christmer dinner this year which means that I also need to go into Operation clean mode. My OCDish nature is not going to allow me to have guests in the house for an extended period of time without it being cleaned from top to bottom.
So, with delight I know I have two days to go and then I can get down to business. There is much to do with haste. There is a turkey to buy with all of the trimmings which is a trip with Hubby as he is the cook, a Christmas table to design and crackers to lay next to the tablewear, there are silly Santa hats to wear, and a special bah humbug apron for Hubby to wear and a special doggy suit for Abi so we can annoy Hubby.
There are Christmas films to watch, popcorn and Christmas sweets to be eaten, beer and alcohol to be bought for guests, visits on Christmas day to family to organise, a doggy cut for Lily so she looks pretty for Christmas, a party gel nail to fix after a mishap on a drunken work party, stuffing to make, a starter to prepare, afternoon entertainment to arrange to avoid the after-Christmas dinner snoozes and the list goes on.
All of this stress will be worth it and I will look at my family and thank my lucky stars for the bright lights in my life, for the happiness they all provide me and the love they give.
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