Mamas, I'm coming at you as a life-long procrastinator here. I mean getting things done at the last minute and working under unnecessary levels of pressure and stress is super fun (not), but I'd really like to skip that whole holiday-shopping-anxiety-frenzy this year. Anyone else with me?!
There's nothing fun about shopping for your fam and besties at the last minute, and there's all kinds of problems that come when you hold off: not finding what you need (or what your kid is dying to have), crowds/lines/annoying people (who don't understand that you have 40 minutes flat to get your shopping done before your son's out of school), Plus, hipping gets real dicey when you wait too long, mamas.
HEADS UP: If you're looking to get your hands on some goodies from The Baby Cubby for yourself, your littles, or any of the loves in your life, then you should know that our Christmas shopping deadline is December 17th.
So if you're like me and you need to get your act together in time for Christmas so you're not the last one running to the store for gifts and wrapping presents last minute, then here's a few things we can do:
Make a Plan and Set a Budget
Okay, you'll need to sit down with your fam and make sure everyone's on the same page about how many presents mommy and daddy will be getting for the kids, and how many presents they get to ask for from Santa. If you have little babies like mine, you can make a list of however many gifts you think is appropriate, and ask them what they would like, and write it down. Make sure that mommy and daddy are on the same page about how much you can spend, and which gifts you'll want to dish out to grandparents or relatives.
Start NOW
The fact that you can buy pretty much anything online that you could buy in the store, means that you have the ability to get all of your shopping done so much more quickly, mama! Once you have your budget and lists, it makes it way easier to check those off and you can spend a little more time to shop around to make sure you're getting the best price. Also, starting early means that you can spread out the costs over several paychecks instead of leaving it all until that last couple weeks of December and feeling like you're going to be eating canned corn all month to pay for gifts.
Wrap When You Buy
Something that will absolutely make your Christmas life much easier is wrapping the gifts as you go (oh, and don't forget to label them with tags, because I've opened up my younger brother's boxers on Christmas morning and it was a fun moment). The last thing any mama wants is to have to wrap every gift (and I do mean EVERY gift) on Christmas Eve right after the babies go to sleep. Wrapping as you go saves you time, because you can do a few presents every week, and by the time Christmas rolls around, you'll only have to worry about getting the Santa gifts out and under the tree the night before.
Pass Along Add-Ons
Okay, so every kid (and I do mean every kid) will make adjustments to their list at least once throughout the month of December. My kids have changed up their must-have toy and I'm doing my best to not lose my cool. I simply pass on the details to their fave uncles and aunts, Gammy or Grandad, and let them wrap it up/ship it over and that is a Christmas win-win-win.
Okay, so here's the thing... you know that you're going to need to get your shopping done at some point, so don't hold off waiting, because I promise you it will only make your forehead break out and you'll probably snap at your husband in a fit of shipping delayed rage.