The Heart Behind Why We Decorate for Christmas

Do you ever feel overwhelmed or just down at Christmastime? Do you get the holiday blues while trying to make it magical for your children? I was that way before the awful flood of 2016. I experienced having a flooded home and it changed my perspective on things like the holidays.

There can be so much pressure to buy all the sale items and to deck out your home in Christmas decor completely from top to bottom. But, what really matters is spending time and making memories with your friends and family. This is why we love giving clutter-free gifts like we talked about last week!

That being said, decorating for Christmas (however much is right for you and your family) can be a great way to enjoy the season with your family as well.

Here are a few tips to make that process seamless and stress free:

1. Sort your decorations into categories.

Take your decor out ahead of time and take a few minutes to sort everything according to what area of the home it will be going in.

2. Decorate one area at a time.

Tackle decorating one area at a time to simplify the process. You can even do this over several days if that makes more sense for you.

3. Take your time and enjoy the process.
Give yourself lots of time to work on decorating so that it doesn’t feel rushed or overwhelming. Put on some music, heat up some hot coco, and enjoy this time with your family.

Need help getting your home organized for the holidays?

Here are some photos of our decor from a few years back.

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Tips for Un-Decorating the Christmas Decorations

“If you dream it, you can do it.” –Walt Disney

Dear Mrs. Chaos,

How in the world do I find my house under all this Christmas mess?

Sincerely,

Struggling and Overwhelmed!

Dear Struggling and Overwhelmed,

When the holiday is over and the magic has gone, it is so hard to find the energy for the cleanup process.  Let the excitement of starting a new year be your motivation. My solution is to always grab my timer and label maker, and start small.   I take down decorations in 30-minute increments so I never feel overwhelmed. I repeat this 3-4 times (or more) a day to accomplish what I need in that room, and I always take breaks when the timer goes off.  

First and foremost, grab a trash bag and fill it up!  All the leftover boxes, wrapping, ribbon pieces, Christmas cards (Oh, don’t start complaining! Truthfully, do you REALLY ever look at them again?), broken items, old receipts, not so fresh garland, empty containers…..you get the drift!  This step really helps you focus on what needs to be put away.

Next, the kitchen is my first room to revive because it has to function at all times, especially during the holidays when everyone is home.  Set your timer for 30 minutes and go! Everything on the counters should have a place of its own. All dishes should be washed and put away. New kitchen items will have to find their place, so you will have to be tough when making space. Donate items you truly don’t use. (That waffle maker that you MIGHT use once a year really shouldn’t be taking up prime kitchen real estate) If you handle it 30-minutes at a time, it doesn’t become overwhelming.  Use your timer, and clean as you go.

Third, tackle the living room and entryway.  This is where most of the Christmas decorations are in my house. I do this room in sections.  I start at the mantle. Later on, I will tackle the tree. Next, I un-decorate the bookcase. So on and so on. My plastic bins are labeled so I know exactly what goes in each bin.  As the bins are loaded, up to the attic they go! Then hang your wreaths on the attic rafter by their wreath hangers. If you don’t have enough wreath hangers, you can simply put a nail in the rafter.

This same 30-minute process can be continued in each room until all of the decorations are down and the new items have found homes.  If you have “helpers” (for me that’s my teenage children), make the 30-minute segments fun by turning on music that they like. Oh, be sure to take photos of your decorated spaces so next year’s decorating is as easy as pie!  Some organizers print the pictures and keep them in the containers for that particular space! Isn’t that brilliant?

Happy un-decorating!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Chaos

The Heart Behind Our Christmas Decorations

Do you ever feel overwhelmed or just down at Christmastime? Do you get the holiday blues while trying to make it magical for your children?  I was that way before the awful Hurricane Harvey floods. Martha Carol and I both experienced flooded homes and we agree that it changes your perspective on things like the holidays.  For the first time in a while, I really feel like there is a lot of excitement about the holidays. Last year, most of us in Houston were still trying to rebuild from Hurricane Harvey. We were tired and frustrated.  

This year, the festivities started with my neighborhood coffee group’s ornament exchange. I always stress about getting the perfect ornament for those things!  Do you? Well, at that coffee, I discovered that I have really amazingly talented neighbors (yes, more than one!) that have recently written children’s books! Each read their books aloud to us. No, do not yawn.  Stop rolling your eyes! I was mesmerized! I literally felt like a child again full of anticipation about what would happen next and what glorious scene would be depicted on each page of their stories as they read their books.  Another neighbor illustrated one of the children’s books. (Seriously, that talent! I’m honored they let me drink coffee with them!) She brought along her original canvases to show during the reading. They were beautiful! That childlike feeling I had made me remember the excitement of Christmas as a child.  It’s the feeling we all long for at this time of the year. It’s the single most reason I love Christmas decorating. I want my home to embody the excitement and magic that children feel at Christmastime.

My joy didn’t stop with the ornament exchange.  Now that many of our neighborhood’s homes are repaired, we are really excited about entertaining friends and family. On Sunday, our neighborhood hosted a holiday home tour.  I was invited to be one of the five homes showcased! ME!! I felt like I had just won the Southern Living Show Home Award. Lol! YAY!! I had so many mixed feelings about this.  My first thought was WOW! What an honor! Then, I felt excitement along with nervousness and lastly, there was a moment of pure panic! People will be looking at my house! EEK! How can I make them feel the childlike joy of the Christmas spirit? Do I have enough decorations to make this work? What will people think?

As y’all know, I love to decorate.  Love, love, love it and admittedly I have a lot of decorations...or so I thought. It’s the one time that I am not clutter free in my life!  What I loved even more was that the proceeds of the tour went to support the Toys for Tots program. To give much is to receive much, and it goes well with the Christmas spirit of giving.

Before the official start of the tour on Sunday evening, the homeowners whose homes were being featured were able to tour each home before the official tour started.  Everyone started at my house. Like I said, I like to decorate so every room of my home is decked with “Christmas cheer,” as I like to call it. I was feeling pretty confident about my home being on the tour - well, it started that way!

We then made our way to each of the other homes and by the end of the tour of these fabulous houses, I was frantically trying to figure out if I had enough time to make it to Home Goods to find more decorations!  The houses were fantastic, and I need to up my game! I managed to pull a few things from the rooms that were not being toured which made me feel a teensy bit better. I did make a point to add buy more Christmas decorations to my to-do list…Christmas décor is not clutter free.

LOL

But then I realized, that it wasn’t so much the number of decorations that mattered.  

Not one house was the same or even similar for that matter.  At the end of the day, it’s friends and family who make a house a home.  It’s our attitude; laughter and joy that make our homes have the magical and childlike Christmas feeling, not the decorations or the “stuff.”

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas.

Here are some photos from my open house.

These books would be excellent additions to your child’s library.

“Pride of Place”

A charming, original story by a first-time author has just been published!  Entitled, Pride of Place it weaves a beautiful Christmas event from the perspective of Christmas decorations as the special time of year approaches!

Everyone is excited.  Especially the Christmas decorations who wait all year to be brought out of storage and placed as star attractions in the home's Christmas display.  They want to be placed in Pride of Place and reading the book reveals what or where this is!  At the center of the story is 'mother' who has her plan, and what she knows and understands is at the heart of this meant-to-be-read-aloud rendition of an actual Christmas celebration and tradition.  You have to read the story to find out what children, their parents and the decorations learn about 'Pride of Place'! 

The story is written by an Aussie author, Denise Mannix  and the book is beautifully illustrated with actual artwork created especially for the story by a Scottish artist, Jane Cooke.  Both author and artist live in Houston.  The book has a special acknowledgement of Harvey hurricane survivors - the story was in fact developed out of the aftermath of the hurricane, so should have special meaning to Houstonians or anyone who has lived through a catastrophic weather event.   

Though the story is a Christmas tale it carries a message for children of all ages that has meaning throughout the year.

The author, Denise can be contacted on denisemannix@hotmail.com should you be interested in finding out more about the book and how to purchase it!

“Eepworm”

The eepworm is a character created by Corinne Goyette to be a calming companion for children.  Eepworms are soft and squishy toys with many rubbery tentacles that have a soothing touch.  At approximately 5" long, they are perfectly sized feel like a hug in a young child's hand.  They can help to comfort and calm your children when they are distressed.

Corinne wrote and illustrated My Friend EEPWORM  to introduce young children to these helpful creatures.  She wants to share eepworms with everyone, especially children with special needs who struggle with strong, scary feelings as she does.

The 6" x 9" 28-page paperback book is written in simple rhyming text with beautiful watercolor illustrations on every page and includes a note from the author.  It comes with one eepworm, and is suitable for children ages three to eight.

There are two links that have information and where you can order Eepworm, an online store and Corinne's website eepworm.com.  In the online store, hit the shop button to see a description.  The Eepworms are $4 each, while the price of the book and toy are $15.  They also offer king-size eepworms (20" tall) for $15. 

Grab a Cocktail, and Let's Get Busy Setting Your Christmas Calendar!

Are you worn out from the hustle and bustle of Christmas?  Feeling overwhelmed? Do you keep starting and not finishing your tasks because of the distraction of so many “to do’s” on your plate?

Grab your coffee (or cocktail) and a pen and paper, sit down and read for just 3 minutes.  I’ll keep it short!

1. Add all dates to all December functions on your calendar.  Do not get up because you remembered you are supposed to bring cookies to your kids class tomorrow and you need to see if you have flour.  Sit back down. Are the dates added?

2. Look at what’s on the calendar. Make a list, in calendar order, of things you will need to do for those activities. Some examples:  Cocktail clothes need to go to the dry cleaners before the company party? Schedule that. When do you need presents shipped? Schedule that. Cookies need to be baked before the school event? Put the grocery shopping and the baking on your calendar.  Give each “to-do” a deadline and add these deadlines to the calendar. If it’s not on your calendar, it doesn’t exist.

3. Download our gift log.  Fill it out as best you can. Put this in a safe place THAT YOU WILL REMEMBER.  My list stays near the computer and gift wrapping in my office. Lisa uses an app for her list.  Here is the link. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/santas-bag/id397698040?mt=8

4. Now, schedule a date with your girlfriends to bring their presents and a bottle of wine for y’all to get busy wrapping! Wrapping and Wine Wednesdays? Schedule it!

Ok, now what’s on your calendar today?  

Ready, set, go!

P.S. Download our Holiday Gift Planner and Clutter Free Gift Idea List to get you started!

The Answer to a Clutter-Free Christmas? Staycations. Here's Why.

Do you find it getting harder and harder to find the right gift for certain people on your list?  Do you find yourself buying a gift just for the sake of giving the gift even though you know the person you are buying for does not need or necessarily want said gift?  I think we have all been in this position. As the world moves toward a less is more mentality, this predicament is becoming even more prevalent.

As a mother, I am embarrassed to admit (on several occasions mind you) to finding unopened gifts my children have received.  The gifts are unwrapped and properly thanked for but beyond that, they are just clutter. This in no way diminishes the feeling of gratitude towards the gift giver; it is just a fact!

WOW, that sounds terribly ungrateful and if you know me you know I am nothing but grateful for the people and gifts in my life!  I cannot stress that enough. However, I have come to know that experiences trump most things, and the gift of an experience outlives that of a trinket or latest gadget.  

This is why my family moved from giving mountains of gifts when the children were young to what we called “the three wise men gifting” (three gifts) as they became teenagers. Now, we do a “staycation.”

What is a stay-cation?  It’s a vacation in your own city or a city nearby.  I will not lie, not buying gifts felt really weird and still does. But when I ask my family what they would like for Christmas, they tell me another staycation.  

Last year’s staycation:

I planned a family dinner at Damien’s Italian Restaurant with a shuttle to the Alley Theatre to see a performance of A Christmas Carol.  If you are in Houston, this is a must!!  Damien’s Restaurant provides a free shuttle to the theatre district.  The minibus drops you off right in front of your theatre and like a magical carriage following the performance it is there to pick you up.  What’s more, they know you are going to the theatre so they pace your meal to accommodate those plans. No need to worry if your entre will be out with perfect scheduling or whether the check will be delivered in adequate time to retrieve the car, drive, park, walk to your seats.  

I wanted to add a little international culture to our itinerary so I planned a dinner at Yauatcha Houston, a dim sum teahouse offering classic and contemporary dim sum, wok dishes, patisserie, and an innovative wine and cocktail list.  I paired this with a performance of Shen Yun, a performing arts group that performs classical Chinese dance, ethnic and folk dance, and story-based dance, with orchestral accompaniment and solo performers.

Continuing with our internationally themed staycation, we also attended a family dinner one night at Peli-Peli, a South African restaurant in Houston.

This year’s staycation:

We’ll kick off our staycation with dinner at La Griglia Italian Restaurant with a performance of Ä Christmas Pageant at Stages Repertory Theatre.

I have also planned a family outing to I-Fly, the latest immersive experience combing VR technology with the real rush of skydiving over some of the world’s most beautiful destinations.  Now everyone can pick a bucket list place to skydive atop! We will then grab an early dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, where we will no doubt recount the excitement.

To continue the experience, I purchased tickets to the Houston Rockets versus Boston Celtics basketball game and thought that might team well with a great barbecue dinner.  

Our house is still decked out with Christmas cheer.  We still do our Secret Santa exchange on Christmas Eve while wearing our matching PJs and Santa still delivers stockings to our family on Christmas Day, but Christmas has become more about our time together and less about the presents.  These staycations have put the meaning of Christmas right back where it should be!

Check out our Instagram for more clutter-free gift ideas!  We have been posting one per day and will continue to do so until Christmas Eve.