I hope to be left with more than those few extra pounds - complements of too many holiday treats - hopefully I won't be left with those at all. I
hope to be left with the satisfaction of knowing I found the prefect most thoughtful gift for everyone on my gift list - not only the perfect gift, BUT that I also got a great deal on it too (black friday/cyber monday deals!)
I also hope to have sent out great christmas cards/letters to everyone on my christmas letter list,
I hope to have spend time with my sisters & mom baking cookies & other treats on our annual cookie baking day,
I hope to have fun pictures with friends & family at gatherings & outings, including a train ride to Chicago to ice skate and see the German market & huge tree,
I hope to watch my dog Matilda pull treats out of her stocking and get the perfect picture of her as she's enjoying her treats.
I hope to go to my husbands military christmas parties - one of which is a formal military ball - that will involve getting a appropriate dress and reading up on proper edict for the event.
I hope to find some awesome New Year's eve party, or event, or something to goto & actually be awake and having a good time at 12:00AM January 1st 2015.
I hope to make a great new years resolution list full of life changing, fun, constructive & realistic things for 2015.
I could go on and on about all the things I hope to do this "holiday" season - more than I have already.... The point is, I have a little over a month & a LOT of things I want to do - i'm pretty sure most of you have just as much maybe more than me planned.
Here is my strategy to get it all done - it's simple actually. I'm a list maker. I don't even know how many lists I make around this time of year, but it really helps!
A few key lists that may help you stay on top of all your events this year.
Grocery shopping list
below is a app to plan your thanksgiving menu. I have not tried it, but it looks cool.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/thanksgiving-menu-maker-from/id474820051?mt=8
1) menu list - what are you making?
I also really like having nice cloth bags for these events, then each event gets a separate bag to stay more organized as we travel around from place to place.
Next up, since I love deals - who doesn't? , I always make my Christmas list early so that I can ether go out on Thanksgiving night, or black friday, or just shop on line. One thing though MAKE A LIST. and stick with it! I didn't one year and ended up with a TON of stuff I though I needed and really did not... Great deals though ;)Good site to look at deals:
https://blackfriday.com/black-friday-2014
Last year The Microsoft Surface deal was sold out all over the place, everywhere I looked, however all I had do do was go to the Microsoft website and order one for the same sale price, it was great. Only problem was that the website was swamped, and I ended up pressing the "process" button twice, so I got 2 of them... It worked out ok though because I was able to sell it on craigs list and make $50 on it - the buyers still got a better price then the store...
Anyway - After I make my christmas gift list I look at all the adds then make a schedule of where to go for what - I always try to find a on line option because it's really fun to sit home in sweat pants and then have things brought to my door.... Also if you need any special outfits (such as a military ball dress) it's also a great time to go shopping for yourself - good time to get tools, maybe an air mattress for camping - anything you know your going to buy sometime in the next year - why not try to get it cheaper? Here is a link (best & worse things to buy in November) http://dealnews.com/features/what-to-buy-in-november/
As far as Christmas cards go - if you do photo post cards, I really like Vista print. make sure you google "coupon code vistaprint" before you pay because you can pretty much always get at LEAST 20% off. Link to vista print Christmas cards: http://www.vistaprint.com/christmas-cards.aspx?couponAutoload=1&GP=11%2f20%2f2014+10%3a30%3a04+AM&GPS=3310761900&GNF=1
Now for fun things to do - Sure baking is fun, shopping is fun, running around like a chicken with it's head cut off trying to get to three thanksgiving dinners in one day & then rolling your way out the door of the last place feeling terribly guilty for the thousands of calories you just consumed ... thats fun too right? but here are some things that are not just about eating & talking here are some active things to add to your holiday season.
1) make your Christmas gathering more fun by trying some of these games -
http://www.signupgenius.com/home/christmas-party-games.cfm
2) take the train to Chicago (my favorite!) Here are some things to help you have a great time.
-- Link to the train schedule http://metrarail.com/metra/en/home.html
3) Ice skating - we all know about the rink by Millennium park - always a good time, but sometimes really crowded - here is a lost of other options: http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/facilities/ice-rinks/ My favorite is http://www.yelp.com/biz/daley-bicentennial-park-chicago?osq=Outdoor+Ice-Skating - it's not too well known - so don't spread the word too much ;)
4) The German marked & big Christmas tree
http://www.timeout.com/chicago/shopping/christkindlmarket
5) Macy's windows
http://www.timeout.com/chicago/things-to-do/macys-state-street-sets-up-its-holiday-windows
6) Navy Pier
http://www.navypier.com/things2do/entertainment/special_events.html
7) the zoo (it's free!!!)
http://www.lpzoo.org/events/calendar/zoolights
8) Festival of the lights (better hurry it's this weekend!!)
http://www.themagnificentmile.com/events/lights-festival/
Just a few options here... I dare someone to make it to ALL of these in ONE day!
Since this is getting long, I'll save some for another post - happy list making!
Oh, and one more thing - here is a link to healthy new years resolution ideas.
http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20452233,00.html
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