Welcome back to the holiday planning series. If you’re new here, you might want to go back and read the entire Holiday Planning Checklist. Today’s countdown to Christmas checklist will get everybody caught up in the plan, regardless of what progress you’ve made so far. With Christmas just a little over a week away, we all have the same deadline. This checklist should cover most of the things that we all need to get done before Christmas Eve. Of course, if you’ve got overnight company coming, be sure to read the Quick Cleaning Checklist.
Whether you’re ahead or behind schedule, go through the checklist, making sure you get these things done throughout the week before Christmas and you’ll be ready to celebrate with your family by December 24. Of course, this checklist is just a guideline. Everybody has different responsibilities, so adjust your schedule to fit your own circumstances.
COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS
- Finish all Christmas shopping, including stocking stuffers.
- Finish wrapping all gifts.
- Write your menus and grocery lists for the week of Christmas, including special food for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and ingredients for holiday baking.
- Buy groceries for the week, including all your special Christmas foods.
- Finish making all your Christmas goodies, such as Christmas cookies and candy.
- Clean your house and finish decorating, if needed.
- Make all food and snacks for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
For those of you who wonder how all that can get done in one week and want more detail, below is the checklist with dates attached. By spreading out all these tasks throughout the week, you’ll see it can be done! If you work during the day, try working on the list in the evening. If you’ve got other obligations, you might need to do two things on the checklist in one day to make up for a lost day. So, here is how I suggest you get through the checklist:
- Friday, December 16-Saturday, December 17: Finish all Christmas shopping, including stocking stuffers.
- Sunday, December 18: Finish wrapping all gifts.
- Sunday, December 18: Write your menus and grocery list for the week of Christmas, including special food for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and ingredients for holiday baking.
- Monday, December 19: Buy groceries for the week, including all your special Christmas foods.
- Tuesday, December 20: Finish making all your Christmas goodies, such as Christmas cookies and candy.
- Wednesday, December 21-Thursday, December 22: Clean your house and finish decorating, if needed.
- Friday, December 23-Saturday, December 24: Make all food and snacks for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
That’s it! We made it! Now you can relax and celebrate with your family and friends! If you get a few spare minutes this week, check out my Start Here page, scroll down to the winter section, and you’ll find all the holiday posts in the series, so far. I hope it helps to make this one of the best Christmases ever!
How do you like to spend the week between Christmas and New Years? For me, it’s the perfect time to relax, reflect, and start planning for the new year. I’ve got some ideas coming up next time to help us make this next year even better!
Till next time, have a wonderful, productive week!