The Working Mother’s Ultimate Christmas Planning Guide: Everything You Need to do in the Run up to Christmas

This article is about everything you need to do in the run up to Christmas.

As much as Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, it can also be the most stressful.

Thinking about all the things that you must do in the lead up to Christmas can send shivers down anyone’s spine. No one wants you to stay up until 5am Christmas eve, leading to you spending Christmas Day barely able to open your eyes.

So, here at Mamo & Mono, we have created the ultimate Christmas checklist that you can use in the run up to the big day. Please don’t feel that you need to complete everything on this list (we certainly have never completed everything on this list).

Print it off and use it as a guide during Christmas time. Even if you complete less than half of the things on this list, your children will still have the most magical Christmas ever!

Below is the article ‘The Working Mother’s Ultimate Christmas Planning Guide: Everything You Need to do in the Run up to Christmas’.

1. MAKE A SCHOOL CHRISTMAS CALENDAR

(This can also be used for nursery events, however, for ease, we will only refer to school in this section).

What we mean by this, is for you as a mother to simply note down the important school events into a calendar. They could be inserted into your normal calendar, or you could create a separate calendar for school events. These dates can be noted down directly into your phone, a diary or a wall calendar.

December tends to be one of the busiest months of the school year.

You will likely be bombarded with emails, letters and reminders from school; and by having them all noted down, it is less likely that you will forget an upcoming event.

Some of the Christmas events that are likely to take place every year include:

• Christmas Jumper Day
• Christmas Carol Service
• School Disco
• Christmas Play/Nativity
• Christmas Raffle
• Non-uniform Day
• Christmas Dinner
• Christmas School Fair

So, look at this list above, and when it hits November/early December time you will know which events to expect. So, instead of rushing to find a Christmas Jumper last minute, you can buy one ahead of time, or review your child’s jumper from last year to see if it still fits. Also, if you know that the  Christmas raffle is coming up, have spare change ready, so that when you are cornered at school to buy a raffle ticket you can hand over those coins with pride.

2. START PLANNING CHRISTMAS ACTIVITIES

When you become a mother, you realise that Christmas magic does not just happen.

It is in fact created by parents behind the scenes. It is only when you have a child and start planning Christmas that you realise what your parents sacrificed for you to have the most wonderful Christmas.

Here at Mamo & Mono, we have created a list of some Christmas activities that your children will enjoy, and that you might consider booking in the run up to Christmas. (Remember, some of these events may get booked up very early, so be ready to book these even before December has even started!)

Visit Santa’s Grotto

An opportunity for your little one to meet Santa, talk to him, get a gift and have photos taken with him (with a family photo too!). A beautiful core memory for your little ones! Don’t forget to get some pictures in the form of a fridge magnet or bauble as a keepsake!

Visit a Winter Light Trail

What is Christmas without lights? Search online for your closest Winter Light Trail, and we can assure you that you won’t be disappointed. This is a chance for your children to see beautiful illuminations, large displays of fairy lights and be utterly transfixed by the magic and beauty on display.

View Local Christmas Lights

If, you are unable to attend a Winter Light Trail, then as an alternative, you could plan an evening viewing local homes with all their beautiful decorations and light displays – this will be just as much fun for your children as visiting a Winter Light Trail.

Meet up with Friends

You planned all year to meet up, but unfortunately it never happened. Why not use Christmas as an excuse to meet up, exchange gifts, and if your friends have children, this is the perfect opportunity for them to catch up too.

Visit a Christmas Market

Your children will love being outside soaking up the Christmas atmosphere surrounded by beautiful lights, music, decorations and lots of food. A wonderful opportunity to be outside during Christmas Time.

Visit a Christmas Wonderland/Fair

Another fun outdoor adventure during Christmas Time, and one with lots of fun rides and entertainment to keep the little ones occupied.

Go Ice skating

Why not take them ice skating over the Christmas break? A fun activity for all the family to try, and we are sure there will be lots of laughter at the end of the day following a trip to the ice rink.

Build a Gingerbread House

A lovely fun indoor activity to keep the children occupied during the Christmas Holidays. They will love spending time with their parents building a gingerbread house.

Baking with Children

Another fun and delicious indoor activity to keep children occupied during the Christmas festive period! Also, a way to get the home smelling gorgeous in the lead up to Christmas.

Christmas Arts and Crafts

When the Christmas holiday hits, and if there is any mention of being ‘bored’, whip out some paper, scissors, glue and glitter! Why not make some DIY Christmas cards for friends, cousins, grandparents or relatives?

3. CHRISTMAS CARDS

Christmas cards can either make you or break you.

We’re being serious.  Before having children, Christmas cards seemed like a lower-level Christmas task to complete. However, post children, they have taken on a life of their own. We want to help you to not be that person posting Christmas cards on Christmas Day (we have been there!).

Not only do you have Christmas cards to send, but if your child is in nursery or your child is in school then they will also have cards to send. This could range from cards for friends, teachers, teaching assistants, dance teachers, football coaches and the list goes on and on.  Furthermore, if you have a small child in nursery that cannot write yet, then it is up to you to also write these cards.

In addition, you may want to send Christmas cards to work colleagues and to your neighbours.

It is by no means compulsory to send Christmas cards. But if you are going to go all out and commit to sending cards, then here are some of tips for helping to organise and make giving out Christmas cards a little easier:

Make a List

Make a list of who you will send cards to. For example, husband/partner, children, parents/grandparents, cousins, aunties, uncles, other relatives, family friends, neighbours, work friends, school teachers, teaching assistants, school friends (for your child), nursery teachers or nursery friends (for your child).

Buy Christmas Cards in Advance

These can be bought online, in card shops, from supermarkets, if your school create Christmas cards from your children’s art work then these can be used, or if you want to be a bit fancier, then you could get professional photos taken of your family (or use old ones), and these could be used to send out Christmas cards to family or friends.

If you have any left-over cards from previous years, then use those too! Make sure to get spare cards too, as there may be someone you left off the list by accident!

Request a List of Names from School/Nursery

If you have children who are younger, then you will need to request a list of names from their class teacher, and this may take time for this to return. So, ask in advance so that you have plenty of time to start writing their Christmas cards. Schools break up mid-December, so you will need to ask in advance for this list.

Start Writing Cards Early

It always feels a bit ridiculous when you start writing cards in November, however, you will thank yourself later.

Most children break up for school halfway into December, and in those two/three weeks in December before they break up, they will have a full itinerary of Christmas school events. Trying to write Christmas cards in addition to also buying a last minute Christmas jumper is not a fun way to spend a Thursday school night (trust us, we have been there).

If you have a younger child who can write, but is a little bit slow at writing, the writing process may take longer, so it is in everyone’s best interests that they start earlier. Furthermore, if you have a lot of cards to write, this could possibly be a lengthy process, so the earlier you are able to start, then the better!

Buy Stamps

If you are sending any cards by post, then buy your stamps nice and early, in addition to posting your cards nice and early.

Deliver Cards

Send the cards to school with your child or give them to their teacher when you drop/collect your child.

For personal cards for family/friends who live further away, take them to the post office/post them in good time, the sooner you post, the better!

You can post your neighbour’s cards through their letter box, and this could be something to involve your child in as they will love posting the cards into letter boxes (just be aware if your neighbours have any dogs!).

4. CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

Take Decorations out of storage

So, this can be a process depending on how and where you put them away. If you labelled everything, then this will likely be an easy process. However, if you put your Christmas decorations away without labels or in different places, then this might be a more lengthy process.

Once everything is out of storage, then you will need time to separate out fairy lights, dust off baubles or you might find that some decorations are broken. You might require a trip to the shops to replace any broken items or update any outdated Christmas decorations.

Decide Where the Decorations will go

Do you have more than one Christmas Tree? Or a corridor that needs brightening up? Or are your children desperate to have Christmas decorations in their room? If this is the case, then you may have to separate your décor into piles depending on which room they will end up in. This will therefore allow the decorating process to run much smoother.

Set up Christmas Tree

This is where the fun starts, and the children will love to get involved in this step.

If you have an artificial tree, then this is the time to unfold the branches and start putting it together. If you’re buying a real tree, then this is a fun family day out to find the perfect Christmas Tree.

Once the tree is standing, then it is time to decorate it with lights, tinsel, baubles, ornaments and a Christmas star or angel. All children will love getting involved with decorating the tree.

Outdoor Lights

Don’t leave this until Christmas Eve (yes, we have been here!).

It can take time to untangle lights, in addition to this they need to be tested to see if they are still working. Furthermore, if these lights are being placed outside, then a ladder may need to be involved in this process. This therefore may need more than one day to set up. Give yourself plenty of time, and ask for help if you need it.

This step might be more challenging to complete if you have small children to look after, especially if you don’t have a partner or husband to help, so we would recommend asking for help!

Other Decorations

These might include hanging up stockings, a Nativity set up, a wreath for your front door or even Christmas table centre pieces.

Cleaning up After Decorating

To finish off the decorating process, pull out your vacuum cleaner and clean up any remainders of the Christmas tree, tinsel or glitter. Put away any decorations you don’t need back into boxes and take those back into storage. When it is all clean and the storage has been removed, soak up all the Christmas magic!

5. BUYING PRESENTS

Make a List

Who do you want to buy for? Please do not feel the need to buy for everyone, as this could become very expensive in addition to overwhelming. Some families may decide to only buy for children, whilst others might do Secret Santa, so that each family member only needs to buy one gift and each one only receives one gift.

This is also a reminder that Christmas presents do not need to be expensive, and handmade are just as lovely and at times are seen as more sentimental. When it comes to Christmas, we believe that it is truly the thought that counts.

Here is a list of people you may consider buying gifts for:

Husband/partner

Child/children

Parents/grandparents

School teachers

Teaching assistants

Uncles

Aunties

Cousins

Work colleagues

Neighbours

Christmas Wish List/Letter to Santa

Get your little ones to write a letter to Santa, and this will also allow you to determine what they would like for Christmas, so that on Christmas morning they are all smiles.

Buy Presents Early

As you can tell, it is a running theme here at Mamo & Mono to do things early.

Time passes so quickly during the Christmas period, and therefore, we never want you to feel overwhelmed during this process. Therefore, the best way to do this is by starting early.  

Now that you have a list of people to buy for, start looking for presents as early as you can; and don’t forget to purchase stocking fillers.

Also, in the lead up the Christmas, as you will likely be welcoming lots of new toys into your home, start decluttering old toys before your home starts overflowing with things.

Wrapping Paper

Make sure that you have enough wrapping paper, scissors, sellotape, ribbons, gift tags and gift bags. Use old wrapping paper to keep costs low too. By having everything prepared ahead of time, it will make the wrapping of presents a lot smoother and quicker too.

Start Wrapping Early

Don’t be one of those mothers wrapping presents at 3am Christmas morning.

We have been there, and it is not fun.

Plan ahead of time and start wrapping presents little by little, you could start this as early as late November or early December. An option could be to wrap a few each night when your children have gone to bed or in the day if you have childcare.

Once they are wrapped put them away safely (and don’t forget to label who they belong to).

6. CLEAN THE HOUSE

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, start thinking about the things that must be cleaned around the house, this is especially important if you are hosting. Here are some of the main areas that should be cleaned in the run up to the big day:

Places to clean in the home include:

Toilets, bathrooms, change bedsheets (if you have festive bedsheets then put these on your bed), vacuum, make sure that you have clean bedding, duvets, sheets, pillows, pillowcases and clean towels if you have visitors, dust, complete laundry and declutter (as you will likely be housing many news toys on Christmas Day)

Stock up with supplies

Make sure that you are stocked up with cleaning supplies, toilet roll, hand wash and shower gel/bubble bath. This is especially important if you are hosting!

Thank you for reading the article ‘The Working Mother’s Ultimate Christmas Planning Guide: Everything You Need to do in the Run up to Christmas’.

Christmas is an extremely wonderful time, but it is also extremely busy, therefore, it is very easy to become overwhelmed. Use this article to help organise yourself during this hectic time.

We will also have a part two to this article which will include things to organise for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and all the fun things to plan and do on the day.

Thank you again for reading, and we would really love you to come back again soon.

Please drop us a comment if you liked our list and let us know if there is anything we missed.

Team Mamo & Mono xoxo

This article is about everything you need to do in the run up to Christmas.

Picture credit: Unsplash – Anastasiia Chepinska, Alison Anton, Daniil Silantev, Richard Bell, Caroline Hernandez, Nathan Lemon, Janay Peters, Jamie Davies