Creating Calm at Christmas

This post was written as part of a paid partnership and contains affiliate links. They don’t cost you anything to use–and they help support our blog!)

Ok, I know this post may be controversial because I’ve seen so many photos of people’s homes all decorated on social media lately…and no one ever seems to say what I’m thinking, but I’m just going to say it, anyway.

Sometimes holiday decor stresses me out a little bit.

What?

But it’s so special and fun and cozy, right?

Well, yea. But what about everything ELSE in our house?

Does anyone else struggle with holiday decorations?

Since it’s not likely I’ll be able to totally keep our house picked up the entire Christmas season, I’ve been working on some ideas to help cut through the mental clutter that keeps me from settling in and enjoying the cozy-holiday vibes.

Clean

When we were growing up, the morning of Christmas decorating wasn’t ever decorating…it was cleaning! My mom always made us do a deep clean before we could put decorations out. I’ll admit to not being the best at dusting, vacuuming, and scrubbing. So, knowing that I “just did it” before putting the decorations out helps me let go of some of the guilt I carry about that since it’s not likely I’ll make the time to do much more than tidy up as we get closer to Christmas.

Corners

We’ve talked about this before, but our small house can feel like a total disaster when I’m behind on dishes, laundry, and paperwork (and the kids are behind on toy pickup!) because it’s all around me in our main living spaces. I feel like Christmas is especially hard in this regard because the decorations CAN seem a little like clutter if I’m not careful. When next to a stack of bills and receipts, my cute little snow globe suddenly seems a lot less calm and a lot more…ugh.

So, I try to clean off a few areas at a time and focus on those… and if things aren’t TOO crazy, I like to just keep a few areas off-limits. If I have a particularly treasured decor corner, I am really strict about not setting extra stuff down there.

P.S. It doesn’t have to actually be a “corner.” Sometimes, it’s a surface–like the bookshelf. Or the card catalog. Or the dresser in our bedroom. Or the TABLE! (ok, half of the table)

Candles

One thing I’ve been working on this year is to not wait until the actual day of whatever holiday we’re currently celebrating. I love the anticipating and planning leading up to a holiday so I often want to “save the best for last” but it takes the pressure off of Christmas morning if I haven’t saved up all the good stuff to that one day. When I was looking at the Yankee Candle holiday line this year, it sparked a long-forgotten idea to add a scent-related memory to go along with our family Christmas traditions. My mom often had a special holiday candle that made the house just feel…festive! Maybe that’s a tradition we should start, too!

If we start that good-smelling tradition earlier in the month, I think it will help me go ahead and celebrate all season long.

The “Christmas Morning Punch” one sounds lovely (pomegranate, cranberry, and morning festivities), as well as “Holiday Hearth” (spicy, sweet, and warm fireplace) But I’m a sucker for a good green-colored candle for some reason so I might have to pick “Singing Carols” (winter pine, juniper, and cheerful melodies).

I also love the three-wick candles with the holiday designs on them. I know our kids would love this “Be Jolly’ one!

(They also have a cookie-scented one I bet our kids would like, but I tend to prefer more nature-based scents.) Which one would YOU choose?

Actually, combining all of these tips is maybe the best strategy: Get, and keep one (or more) corners clean, and light a candle in it!

If I have a clean corner (or counter…or even a walkway like below!) to light a candle in, it helps me relax and focus on just enjoying that one space, rather than stressing out about everything I need to do for work. And, when I’m relaxed, it’s easier to get into the spirit of gingerbread house making, or letting the kids wrap presents, or setting up a Christmas craft early enough in the month that we can actually give them as gifts to our family!