Christmas Missions Completed: Week Two

November is the key to less stress in December! Trust me. I think this is my fourth year working in advance. And if it didn't work, I wouldn't keep working ahead each year. Here's what I accomplished this week to prepare for Christmas:

Purchased Christmas Lights
I mentioned last week, that I discovered a burnt out set of lights when I checked them. This week, I made a point to get them purchased, so they will be ready for decorating day!

More Brainstorming
I did a lot more brainstorming for gift ideas. Probably too much, since I used Pinterest to help me a little bit. Having the extra time to think in November helps so much with the stress level. So much less pressure in November. This brainstorming also included talking to my husband about gifts and his ideas.

Ordered Stamps and Boxes
I was going to pick up postage stamps and boxes this week at the post office. I thought I'd be in the area. As it turns out, my plans changed. So to get another item off my list, I ordered my book of stamps and about five USPS Priority mail boxes online. The boxes are free! I did pay an extra $1.25 for handling on my stamps. I decided it was worth it to me.

Ordered Photo Prints
I placed an order for photos online, as part of a gift. This is a long overdue task for this person, so it felt good to remember to get this done! I ordered through Walmart.com and they will be ready to pick up in a couple days. I could have done One Hour processing, but I wasn't going to be over that way, so I paid a little less for slower processing. I hope to have some other items to pick up there when run that errand.

Finalized Our Baking Plan
Our youngest daughter likes to bake. So I had a discussion with her this week about which items we would bake this year. She said no to one of my favorites, but picked another one that I expect will be just as good! Next steps are to schedule the baking on the calendar, make a complete list of ingredients to buy, and then buy the ingredients on sale just before the Thanksgiving holiday.

Purchased Fabric
I'm making one of my nieces pajama pants to match the pajamas I'm making her American Girl doll. This week I went to the fabric store to purchase the fabric and other items needed. I even came home and washed, dried and ironed the fabric! Next step is to cut the fabric.

Baking Ingredient List
Once we decided what we were making, I got around to making the list of ingredients I needed. I counted up how many cups of sugar from each recipe to determine how many bags I might need. Luckily only one! I did the same thing with all the other common ingredients.

The list seems kind of long, but none of it took too long to accomplish. A little bit of time each day making progress towards what I want to accomplish for Christmas preparations. I'm feeling really good about my progress so far. I'm secretly hoping I can be done shopping by the beginning of December.

Tell me what you are doing to prepare for your holidays. Thanksgiving is just a little over a week away, are you prepared for it?