Christmas shopping in July (and August and September) may be sound awful to some people but to me it means FREEDOM! For years I tortured myself with the weight of world in the last 4 weeks before Christmas. I would start getting anxious in October knowing that December would be filled with one party or another, decorating, shopping, baking, wrapping and shopping some more. In the rush to have all that fun, I found that the fun got lost in exhaustion and frustration. Then, about 10 years ago I decided to get a jump on the shopping and found myself completely done by Thanksgiving. It was a Christmas miracle! I was able to enjoy parties without the worry that I had running around to do. I was able to have fun baking all day because I had no place else I needed to be. I was able to relish decorating the house without a mad rush to just get it done before company came. It was wonderful.
Now, to be clear, I completely understand that the meaning of Christmas is not presents and jolly old Saint Nick. I recognize the commercialization of the holiday and all the other complaints people have about the season. That being said, I am still going to buy gifts for my family but I don’t have to blow it out of proportion. I know that teaching my daughter the true meaning of Christmas and that the giving of your heart and your time makes for a life well lived. However, she’s 3 and I WANT to see her face light up when she get a new doll or a tea set. So, if I am going to shop, I’d rather not do it in crowds of people hell-bent on mowing me down over a closer parking space or elbowing their way past me to get to the check-out first.
So here are the top 5 reasons I shop early, boycott Black Friday and enjoy every minute of my holiday break:
- It’s easier on the wallet: Christmas in July sales. Who doesn’t love a sale? Many stores actually make Christmas in July a thing to celebrate! Even online retailers (think Zulily, Overstock.com) get in on the action. Does it get any easier than having it delivered to your door, especially when they are offering free shipping? BONUS: Buying something here or there as sales hit means I don’t have to have lots of extra cash on hand come December and I don’t have to finance Christmas on credit that will never end!
- It’s easier on my family: You know what I’m talking about. The family I shop for, whom I love so dear; they are the reason I am tired and cranky. (Couldn’t be the type A pressure I put on myself.) My constant use of the phrases, “Please hurry up!” and “Seriously?!” was likely fun for all! However, for the last few years, being done early means we now have the opportunity to spend a pressure free weekend away as a family enjoying the Victorian Christmas Festival in Manistee without a care in the world! BONUS: Eating dinner out (read as “not cooking”) after all that decorating and baking really adds to my festive mood!
- It’s easier on the mind: Constant errand running in the weeks before the holiday is stressful on the mind. I would lose sleep making lists of things to do in my head and rearranging my schedule to get to a store on my lunch hour and stop 2 more places on my way home from work. I would be tense and irritable and really just spreading Christmas joy everywhere I went like sunshine and rainbows. BONUS: When my shopping is done at Thanksgiving, I can take that time I would have been shopping to get a massage. I like to really unwind before I spend a week or two relaxing!
- It’s easier on the body: Shopping at Christmas usually means being bogged down with the weight of several bags as you rush to finish as much as you can in one rip. What is under those bags? Usually a winter coat, gloves, scarves and hats. You know the feeling; hot, sweating, tired, sore. Not to mention the actual shopping and the WWF moves of a frantic parent who promised their kid a sold out toy. SIDEBAR: When did this become a thing? When I was a kid you were lucky to get presents. If you got what you wanted it was a banner year. If you didn’t you’d ask again for your birthday! My parents NEVER promised me anything except an empty stocking and sad little Christmas if I didn’t behave! BONUS: I shop in flip flops. Enough said.
- THIS: (Actual Post from very early December 2015)
