Bright Blue Skies and a Positive Attitude

Yesterday was an absolutely glorious day! The sky was a gorgeous blue with no smog in sight. The rolling hillsides were lush and green. It was a bit windy which made the air feel crisp and cool. I was so thankful to not be stuck in my cubicle at work with only the khaki fabric panels of my cubicle and a 15 inch computer monitor (not even flat screen) in sight. TGIF!

Due to the economy my regular work hours as well as my usual paycheck were cut 30% in November. Although this has resulted in a financial strain for my household it has also given me 3 day weekends. I love Fridays because after I drop off my son at daycare I get to spend the day how I want. Sometimes I bask in the joy of shopping without two toddlers in tow. Other days I work at a client's site doing freelance bookkeeping gigs. It's my choice and that is a great feeling! By giving myself one day weekly that is not programmed for the most part (except for my league soccer matches) I am allowing myself to breathe. This practice has allowed my creative thoughts to flow. When I get good ideas, which is often these days, such an excitement wells up inside me and I am eager to start right away. Then, I find myself having to scale my excitement, and efforts, since there are only so many hours available in any given day and sleep is rather important. Yet, this is a good problem to have!

I cannot say everything always works out as planned. Once in a while I have to switch my day off at work to cover for a coworker who is on vacation. It might work out the my husband is called into work an extra shift so I need to watch my 2 year old. Mother Nature may even intervene and damper if not completely rain out planned outdoor activities. Yet the intention is there and about 75% of the time I get to reconnect with the true me who loves to spend time outdoors, listen to the rain, write, read and spend quality time with my children.

What does your true self like to do? Have you built time into your schedule to reconnect with your true self on a regular basis?

Only 363 days until Christmas 2009 - 5 ways to prepare

Only 363 days until Christmas day in 2009. There’s plenty of time to get ready!

Unlike the stores who mercilessly remind you Christmas is coming before Halloween has passed, I remind you of this fact so that you may prepare well in advance of next year’s holiday. If you were anything like me, this year came upon us too quickly. Of course, it is the same time every year but this year felt much more rushed and I didn’t accomplish much of what I wanted. For me the timing is especially tough because I attend college classes in addition to working full-time and mother to one teenager and two children under four years of age. This year my college courses ended on Dec. 14 which left me just ten days before Christmas to prepare without this additional distraction.

So, I remind myself, and everyone else, that next years holidays are about one year away. It is not too early to start preparing now. Here are some suggestions for a more peaceful preparation for next year’s festivities:

1. Pack the holiday decorations and cards in an organized fashion. Be sure to label them clearly.
If you require multiple plastic bins or boxes to pack up all of the holiday stuff, organize it for next year when you pack. Put all of the lights for the tree with the ornaments for the tree, separate from the lights for the house. Pack the holiday cards in a box with the holiday decorations you put up first around the house, maybe the holidays towels and figurines. If you have children under 10, wrap the breakable ornaments in a different colored tissue paper than the ornaments that are suitable for hanging by any age. (I learned this one the hard way!) Then, label the bins or boxes appropriately. Adding a number to represent the order in which you want the boxes brought in the house might be a good idea as well if you have lots of boxes.

2. Make a list of gift ideas to buy next year.
When you pull out the list next year revise as needed, in case someone bought or received something on your list for them during the year. Then, you are already ahead of the game as you have a list prepared for those Black Friday specials. Be sure to pack this with the holiday cards and other items you want to unpack soon after Thanksgiving.

3. Start a savings account or tuck away money in a special place for Christmas shopping.
If you put away $30 per month starting in January you will have over $300 in cash to spend on gifts next year. With some planning and regular contributions you might be able to accomplish all of your Christmas shopping with cash, thus avoiding paying interest for following months after paying for gifts with credit cards.

4. Add planned events (baking, holiday train ride, cutting down the Christmas tree) to your calendar/planner. If tickets need to be purchased in advance add the “tickets on sale” dates to your planner as well.
Don’t wait until the last minute to plan these activities. Last year I wanted to ride a local holiday train with lights. Unfortunately, I didn’t know that tickets sell out in October! So, this year I was prepared and bought tickets in October for a train ride on Dec. 21. For anyone who goes to music concerts, purchasing tickets months in advance is expected and similar rules apply to other special events.

5. Update your contact list throughout the year.
Maybe you shun the idea of pre-printed labels for addressing Christmas cards insisting that they be addressed by hand. I go back and forth on that one myself. However, things can be a lot less stressful if your address book is up to date before you ever start writing out Christmas cards. This year I received one e-mail from my aunt who still had two out-of-date addresses for me and was missing my current address where I have lived for two years. Yet, I see her at least once per month! When we receive Christmas cards, I compare the return address for each one against my address book and make updates as needed. For those of you who like the idea of using preprinted address labels but don’t know how, check out my blog in coming months as I will be posting instructions and tips for you.

As a child I was usually too busy playing with my new toys and other gifts when my mother packed everything up for next year. So I didn’t learn ways which I could improve next year’s experience based on how things were put away each year. With Christmas related items, I have special difficulty probably because I always think that I will have lots of time to do everything at my own pace such as writing out the holiday cards the weekend after Christmas and baking cookies the following week, etc. However, I haven’t had a peaceful or relaxing month before Christmas since I have had children. Ironically, at work I am very proactive and always file things based on how they will need to be retrieved later. Now, it’s time to apply the same principle to Christmas decorations. It just goes to show that we as people don’t always react the same way in similar situations. So, I am resolving to do better with this task in 2009. We shall see how things go next year.