2008 December | Funkidivagirl.com

Funki and oh-so-helpful organizing & life-hacking tips by yours truly.

Although I am Ma-Gyver and pretty much organized all the time, getting ready for Christmas can even stress me out; there are so many details to think about! Over the last few years I have slowly developed a system that helps to keep me focused, within my budget and virtually stress-free. As a result, I get to spend more time with my family during the holidays and truly enjoy the season. I will warn you: I am a bit crazy about organizing, so this may be too much for you to do all at once, but I promise if you implement some of these things this year and do more before next Christmas, you will be less stressed and have more time to spend with family and friends.

So, what’s my Ma-Gyver secret? I have a huge binder that holds all my Christmas gift ideas, to do lists, magazine tear-outs, favorite recipes and craft ideas.

On the first page is a breakdown of the weeks leading up to Christmas, starting with the first week in November. Here’s a sample of my “Master To Do List”:

First Week in November

Make Santa appointment
Brainstorm gifts: look in magazines, online for ideas
Take photo for cards

Mid-November (before Thanksgiving)

Make gift idea lists & plan budget
Card list: purge, add & update addresses (send email)
Decide color scheme for tree, decorations & dinner table
Buy Advent things
Review past years notes
Decide dates for parties

Last Week in November

Order gifts from catalogs & online
Order Christmas cards

Thanksgiving Weekend

Take out decorations & make a list of what’s needed
Pull names for Secret Santa gifts
Discuss Christmas with family (Christmas Eve/Day, Activities, Ornaments)

1^st Week in December

Rent any tables & chairs needed
Send gift wish list to family
Make labels for cards & buy stamps. Mail cards.
Buy wrapping paper, bows & tape
Buy any dishes, tablecloths, candles, etc.
Buy Christmas tree, wreath, doormat & any other needed decorations
Decorate the house & tree
Make shopping lists
Shop for pajamas (or order online) & our special ornaments

2^nd Week in December

Make sure we have teacher gifts
Send any gifts
Check church services
Plan Christmas Eve & Day menus, baking, grocery lists

Located behind the “Master To Do List” is a budget spreadsheet for this Christmas. I actually created it last January, based on the previous Christmas. It has headings that say “Projected”, “Adjusted” and “Actually Spent”. I find that keeping track of my spending (cash only, no credit cards) helps me to set a realistic budget for the next year. For instance, I have learned that I typically spend $50 on wrapping paper, tape and bows. In the past, I might have thought that I spent $25, but I can see that it isn’t the truth. The key is to put everything on the spreadsheet and not just gifts and decorations. Some things that are not typically tracked by most people–logs for the fireplace, more groceries, outfits for the kids, stamps for Christmas cards, craft supplies–are the things that leave you scratching your head in January, wondering where all the money was spent.

Next in the binder is the “Gift” section. In here I have created a table to brainstorm gift ideas and keep track of what was bought and still left to buy. I have a chart for my son, daughter and a list of others that I need to buy gifts for like teachers, sitters and other family members. Here’s an example:

Gift ideas for The Boy

From Santa:	Purchased & $ Spent:



From Us:



Stockings:



From Sister:

Also in this section is a list of my favorite places to shop in the neighborhood, online or at the mall. One of the best things in this section is an Excel spreadsheet called “Gift Giving History” that I started in 2005 where I have listed all the gifts that I given each year. I just don’t trust my memory anymore and would hate to give my mother-in-law the same gift as last year! The idea behind this section is to make gift-giving fun, unique to the person, within my budget and stress-free.

The next section in the binder is titled “Decorating”. A couple of years ago I decided to change my decorating color scheme every year, so here’s where I brainstorm and write down ideas for future decorations. There is also a list of my favorite places to shop and a complete inventory of all my Christmas decorations; at a glance I can tell if I have 7 stands of white lights or 6 strands–without having to pull out the storage boxes. This section has many magazine tear-outs of decorating ideas that give me inspiration every year.

I hope that I have given you some tools to become more organized this Christmas. In Part 2 of A Ma-Gyver Christmas I will continue my Christmas organizing tips. In the meantime, If you have a specific organizing or planning question related to Christmas, email me via the “Contact Me” button and I will address it then.

Like McGyver, who could dismantle a bomb with a roll of duct tape, a toothpick and a nail file, I am Ma-Gyver, organizer of everything and life-hacker extraordinaire. From time to time I will be bringing you my tips and tricks for keeping an orderly house and mind, but if you have something specific that you need help with, just ask and I will try to help.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! It was my anniversary, so we celebrated that. Instead of a home-cooked turkey meal and lounging around all day, we spend 2 nights at a new W hotel and ate lobster in a restaurant. Since we were right next door to the mall, on Friday we hit the stores bright and early; my daughter and I just enjoyed being in the crowd, while my husband and son did some serious shopping. That was quite a switch!

But more than eating or shopping, Thanksgiving weekend means one thing to me…..IT’S CHRISTMASTIME! This is my favorite time of the year! I love the shopping, the decorations, the desserts, the music and just the magic of it all. With the exception of new 4 Real Housewives profiles, all of my blog posts in December will be about Christmas–the Funkidivagirl way.

I absolutely love Christmas music and I won’t allow anyone to listen to it in my family until the day after Thanksgiving, but then it is on every day, all day. Some years back I made a CD of my favorite Christmas music and gave it to all my friends as a gift. As for myself, all I have to do is put on this CD (well, now in my iPod) and I am instantly in the Christmas spirit. Here’s the cover that I made for the CD. That is my son and that is my husband dressed as Santa. Yes, he figured out that Daddy was Santa, that is why he is smiling so big. Oh, and my son is dressed for a play about baby Jesus (I felt like I had to explain that!).

Here’s the inside cover listing all the songs:

One of the more obscure songs in my collection, Gee Whiz, It’s Christmas by Carla Thomas is one of my favorites because it reminds me of spending Christmas Eve with my large extended family when I was a child. This song was played to death! We used to have a talent show on Christmas Eve and one year my cousins and I lip-synced and danced to this song. Now that my grandparents are no longer alive, my aunts and uncles are much older and the cousins all live far apart, we no longer get together as a large family. My Christmas Eves are much quieter nowadays, spent with my kids and husband and maybe my parents and mother-in-law. Sometimes though I pull out the old videotape and do the dance for my family (this cracks them up). My kids know the words and sing along. Take a listen.

So, if you don’t have a Christmas playlist of your own, browse my suggestions on iTunes and download a few. It is guaranteed to get you in the Christmas spirit!