Christmas Blues Already?

There are now 85 days to go to The Holidays!

I'm still raring to go, but a close friend of mine seems to have the Christmas Blues already. I was telling her about my Christmas blog and she said she was going to go away and put her head under her pillow and hope it would all go away! Why? Because she had recently gotten divorced and just the thought of Christmas alone is filling her with horror.

I realise that this is an issue for a lot of people. Christmas can be a fabulous time filled with fun and gift giving, but it can also be the most stressful time of year due for a variety of reasons.

My friend told me that she intends to go away this Christmas. She's thinking about getting some winter sun in the Canaries, or Egypt- her theory is that the sun will make it less christmassy for her as she's usually up to her neck in freezing cold weather in December (she lives in Scotland). She's searching now for prices and she's hoping that two of her other friends to go with her. I'm sure that she'll have a great time, and it just means that her Christmas will be different, but still fab, this year.

I've never been away for Christmas day, but for the last two years have been away the week before, getting home Christmas Eve. The first year we did this took the kids to Orlando. It was so magical with the festive decorations and the Holiday music playing in the parks. We saw The Grinch in his grotto at Universal which all but my youngest loved. We also went to Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party and had hot chocolate and cookies watching the parade- that for me was the best! I was so organised before we went, and I ordered my last minute food to be delivered on 23 December- which my sister kindly put away for me. We arrived home early on Christmas Day morning, had a snooze and were up bright and breezy late morning for a busy Christmas Day.

The second year we went to the Canaries (Lanzarote to be precise). It was warm and relaxing, but for me not Christmassy enough. We had a good time, and flew back very late Christmas Eve to a car that wouldn't start. We got home at about 4:00 am Christmas morning - couldn't get to sleep because we were so worked up about the stupid broken down car and we were very tired through most of Christmas day. After that last experience we WON'T be going away and flying home Christmas Eve again!

Not sure how I feel about being away all over Christmas. There are some tempting places to go to. I did love Orlando at Christmas time, and New York looks so festive with the wonderful window displays and ice rinks. Skiing in Canada or mainland Europe would be great with all that snow. For some, the sun beckons and I know lots of people who escape to warmer climes, but that's not for me (or at least not this year!) If it were left to me husband though, I'm sure he'd say to forget the whole Festive thing, pack the bags and go find some rays!

Since I have had both good and bad experiences fitting in a break before the Christmas festivities begin, I've put together my top tips for making the whole experience as stress free as possible.

My Top Ten Tips for a stress free Christmas if you take a pre-Christmas break

1. Decide your budget (including your pre-Christmas break, spending money, presents, cards, decorations, food etc)
2. Make gift lists as early as possible (October or even earlier)
3. Plan your food menu for at least Christmas and Boxing Day (the grocery shops are open from 27th December), make your grocery list and buy non-perishable items early.
4. Put your Christmas tree up early to get the full benefit (this is easier if it's an artificial tree. Fresh trees can shed a lot of needles whilst you are away!)
5. Put your house decorations up as early as possible to get the full benefit or your efforts.
6. If you are happy to freeze meat and vegetables, or buy frozen, then these can be bought early and popped in the freezer. Just remember that if you have a frozen turkey and you don't arrive home until Christmas Eve, you may need to ask someone to remove it from the freezer for you before you get home. Fresh vegetables can be blanched then frozen.
7. If you must have everything fresh, then you could possibly order your fresh vegetables and meat online and have a friend or family member accept the delivery for you.
8. Complete your gift shopping at least two weeks before you go away.
9. Complete your gift wrapping and labelling at least one week before you go away.
10. Leave the final week before you go away for preparations for you break- checking tickets, packing etc