Last Updated on April 7, 2024

I’m in full Christmas mode already! I’m constantly thinking about ways to get ready for Christmas early so I can enjoy the holiday season, instead of stressing about all of the things I’ve yet to do.

If like me you want to get as ready for Christmas as you can so you can enjoy the lead up to the big day, then here are 12 ways to get ready for Christmas early that you can start as early as October, or even earlier if you want.

MAKE A CHRISTMAS BUDGET

Budgets aren’t fun, but what’s even less fun is the feeling you get when you overspend, and it’s very easy to overspend at Christmas time.

Before you start any of your Christmas preparations, work out how much you want to spend on gifts, food, events, and anything else that makes up your Christmas celebrations, and write the amounts down.

This way you can track your spending against your budget amounts, and make sure that you stay on track.

MAKE A CHRISTMAS TO DO LIST

One of the top ways to get ready for Christmas early is to make a Christmas to do list, and the earlier you do this the better.

A Christmas to do list is a great way to get everything Christmas related out of your head and onto paper, or onto a digital list making app (such as Google Keep, or Evernote).

List down everything that you need to get done for Christmas on your Christmas to do list, you can always cross something off if you no longer want to do it.

Once you have your final list, start to write down the dates you’d like to get each item done by, and then add each item to their corresponding dates in your calendar.

Related posts:
How to get organised for Christmas using a Christmas planner
How to combine Google Calendar and a bullet journal when planning

FILL UP YOUR CALENDAR

Fill up your calendar as soon as you can with important dates, and dates you’d like to get each thing on your Christmas to do list, or each thing in this post done by, so you know what you’ve committed to, and how much time you have to get things done.

Filling up your calendar early also means that you won’t double book yourself, and you have time to opt out of things you don’t want to do, or don’t have time for.

Some things you can add to your calendar include:

• School events
• School holidays
• Family commitments
• Christmas light viewings
• Christmas markets
• Christmas supermarket food ordering dates

SET A DATE TO DECORATE YOUR HOUSE

One of my favourite ways to get ready for Christmas early is to set a date to decorate the house.

Decorating your house is a really nice event for the whole family, you can play music whilst you decorate, eat treats, and end the day with a family movie.

A worthwhile thing to do before you decorate is to sort through all of your Christmas decorations and donate anything you no longer use, throw out anything that’s broken, and then make a list of what’s missing so you can purchase it before your decoration day.

MAKE GIFT LISTS AND START TO PURCHASE THEM

For many of us gift buying can be the most stressful part of Christmas, and if you don’t know what to get someone, it can become an expensive exercise.

One of the best ways to get ready for Christmas early is to start gift buying as early as possible.

You can do this by making a list of everyone you need to buy for, including family members, friends, friend’s children, Kris Kringle / Secret Santa, teachers, and anyone who has bought you a gift in the past.

Once you have everyone listed, brainstorm ideas on what you can buy them and then start to purchase these items. You may also like to include stocking stuffers on this list.

Keep this list, and during the year add to the ideas if someone mentions something they’d like to get as a gift, or buy themselves. This way you have ideas for future Christmases.

Another great tip here is to wrap your gifts and label who they are for as soon as you buy them. This means little people won’t accidentally find them, and you won’t feel overwhelmed by having to wrap a lot of gifts at once.

Don’t forget to make your own gift wish list, so when someone asks you what you’d like for Christmas, you can share the list with them.

Related posts:
Gift ideas for a baby’s first Christmas
Christmas gift ideas for 3-4 year olds

STOCK UP ON GIFT WRAP

As soon as Christmas wrapping paper, gift wrapping accessories, and cards are available in stores buy enough stock, and a little extra, to ensure that you won’t suddenly run out of wrapping paper when you’re mid way through wrapping your gifts.

You may even consider having a roll of wrapping paper just for Santa to wrap his gifts in, which is something I started last year just in case my five year old wondered why Santa’s presents were wrapped in the same paper as the others.

DECIDE WHERE YOU’LL SPEND CHRISTMAS DAY

Where you spend Christmas day will impact how much work you need to do.

Speak to your family as soon as you can about where Christmas will be held, so you know how much you have to do, and so you can start planning.

PLAN YOUR MENU

Planning your Christmas menu early is a huge time saver, because between starters, mains, sides, desserts, and drinks, there’s a lot to do.

A great first step in Christmas meal planning is to list down all of the dishes that you want to make, as well as the recipes you need to make them.

Next list all the ingredients that you need, and schedule a date in your calendar to buy them, or to have them delivered if you’d like to save even more time.

There are some items that you can buy earlier, such as meat. Order your meat as soon as you can. Most supermarkets open their Christmas food orders at the start of October.

Alternatively, buy your meat as soon as you see it at the supermarket and freeze it until it needs to be defrosted.

You can also buy non-perishables or dry ingredients as soon as you’ve created your ingredients list, so there are fewer ingredients that you have to shop for later on.

Some other time saving tips when planning your Christmas meal include looking at your menu and seeing if there’s anything that you can prepare and freeze ahead of time, like mashed potatoes, vegetables, or baked goods.

If cooking a Christmas meal leaves you feeling anxious, you may be able to outsource the cooking. Some restaurants deliver ready made Christmas meals, and some supermarkets have precooked Christmas meals where all you have to do is reheat them.

Keep your Christmas meal plan so you can cook the same menu for future Christmases, which will keep Christmas meal planning simple.

Related posts:
10 fun Christmas recipes for kids
5 ways to make meal planning easier

WRITE YOUR CHRISTMAS CARDS

If writing Christmas cards is something you want to do, then now’s the best time to get started on them.

The first thing you can do here is list down the names and addresses of everyone you want to send a Christmas card to, and double check each recipient’s address.

Over Christmas mail delivery times can take a little longer, so aim to send overseas Christmas cards at least 3 weeks before Christmas, and local ones at least 2 weeks before so they arrive on time.

If you want to make your own Christmas cards, you may need even more time and it could be worthwhile to see if the company you use is able to send the cards out on your behalf.

FAMILY TRADITIONS

Are there any Christmas family traditions that you’d like to start?

The more organised you are for Christmas, the more time you’ll have to start thinking about these fun activities.

Anytime that you find yourself with a bit of time, start to research family Christmas traditions and see if there’s any that you’d like to try this year.

If you’re stuck for ideas, below is a link with some great ones.

Related posts:
25 Family Christmas tradition ideas
Baby’s first Christmas, how to make it memorable

BUY OR MAKE YOUR ADVENT CALENDAR

Just like wrapping paper, gift wrapping accessories, and cards, as soon as advent calendars are available in stores buy what you need, as they run out fast.

Or, if you’d like to make your own advent calendar, start to shop for things to place inside it well before you start your Christmas gift shopping, so you don’t have to buy too many things at once.

Related post:
Christmas advent calendar filler ideas for toddlers

HAVE PLAYLISTS FOR CHRISTMAS ENTERTAINMENT

A couple of weeks before Christmas make a music playlist that you can play on Christmas Day, with Christmas and non Christmas themed songs.

You can also do the same for movies to watch as a family, or movies to watch once the kids are in bed, so at the end of a busy day you can finally wind down and take a much deserved break.

I hope you’ve found some ways to get ready for Christmas early that you’re now inspired to start doing.

What will you do to get ready for Christmas early?
I’d love to hear about it in the comments section below.