Planning Christmas: A Defense for Early

As long as I can remember, people have been expressing their contempt for my desire to plan for Christmas long before society deems it appropriate.  And at first, I honored that censure by keeping it to myself. Now that I am older, more secure in my quirks and have had a few family Christmases under my belt; I think that if you don't at least start planning to plan it out while the leaves begin to turn you're nuts.

If I had my druthers I'd be having an open planning session during the summer solstice.  The longest day heralds the coming of the longest night, days get shorter, the weather slowly starts to get colder and at the end of the this journey you are looking at Christmas.   I'm usually knee deep in camping gear, summer travelling, household projects you can only do in the summer and the beginning of a new school year.  Once September rolls around, my attention is taken with school, sports, thanksgiving (where I live it happens in October), the beginning of Halloween and birthday party prep.  Late October is generally consumed with Halloween costume preparation.  Once Halloween is over, I can feel almost a physical pressure.  So on November 1st I start my engines and damn the torpedo of neigh-sayers. 

That's not to say I don't pay homage to everything that's important to me, my culture, and my family throughout the fall.  Remembrance day is a solemn occasion where Christmas doesn't  enter the picture.  My kids birthdays fall in the late back half of the year and those involve lots of attention to detail, and Christmas doesn't enter the picture (much; when you have a December birthday there will be decorations up).  I can only imagine what day of the dead celebrations might involve. 

In the summer I begin to try and figure out what we are going to do for our Christmas card.  Last year we had ugly Christmas cat t-shirts, Santa hats and aviator glasses.  In order to get the photo taken for the card, I had to reserve the photo session in September.  This year I'm having a heck of a time trying to top that.  I've got a half baked idea that involves the mall Santa so I'm in a holding pattern.  However, I've lost out on the October stationary sale.

Last year's Christmas card

Three weeks ago, when Walmart started putting out Christmas plates, Tupperware and other table top items I snagged several adorable plates at unbeatable prices that I will fill with baked goods and use as hostess and neighbor gifts.    If I don't pick things up when I see them, they tend to not be there when I'm ready to go back.  And then I'm scrambling and paying a whole lot more for the same effect.

There is the very legitimate school of thought that a card isn't necessary, nor is baking, nor should you turn yourself inside out around presents, decorations and get-togethers.  I counter this with the thought that with enough planning none of that is a problem.  If you have an idea in June about what you want to deliver in December, it tends to happen without a lot of stress because you've given yourself the luxury of time. This planning can also help you save a lot of money.  You're on top of what you need when early and late sales roll around.   I conclude this statement with the caveat that this only works if you want to get involved with these details. Christmas doesn't need them.

I love, LOVE, participating in all things Christmas because it's so satisfyingly fun.  Christmas themes are phenomenal: love, generosity, connection, celebration; friends and family, details, beauty. I love the excitement, the surprises, the family activities, the decorations, the random acts of kindness, selflessness and support, the food, the tastes, the sounds and the MUSIC.   I love when people go all out to decorate, or put up amazing light displays, or bake phenomenal treats. I love listening to a symphony play hark the herald angels sing.   I love the effort.

I also love feeling the anticipation.  Mind you, holiday anticipation isn't only reserved for Christmas.  I get pretty jazzed about Thanksgiving,  Halloween, Valentine's day, Easter and Summer vacation too. Christmas has the most because of all it's moving parts.  

It makes no sense to me when you take the time to put up a tree, decorate your home, bake treats, create a Christmas carol play-list and participate in holiday activities to only do it for a few days.  All this effort should deserve a fair amount of time to savor , appreciate and submerge yourself in the beauty of it.  And in order to organize all this fun, marshal all this anticipation and participate in as much Christmas as I can get, I have learned to honor my instincts and start early.

People have all kinds of different motivations for participating in all things associated with Christmas but at the heart of those motivations appears to be a desire to share.  Isn't that wonderful?!  And that is why when I wake up the day after Halloween, bam, I've got Christmas on the brain.

Now if you'll excuse me,  I need to go sort Halloween candy with the kids.  It's November 1st after all...