*This post is in collaboration with Moonpig
Christmas is well and truly in swing now, huh? I always jump the gun a bit by putting the Christmas tree up a little early in late November, and making the most of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales with Christmas purchases. But by now it’s REAL Christmas. Allowed-to-play-Wham Christmas. Eat-a-cheese-board-on-a-weeknight Christmas. Hooray!
But that also means the pressure is now on to get everything done in time.
I mean, take a look at my day in the life of a working mum post to see how busy my life already is. And that’s before figuring out how to squeeze in all the Christmas prep. And don’t forget the fun Christmas stuff too. It’s not all chores, I want to make sure I enjoy the festivities!
So yes, I’ve been doing my utmost to get all of my Christmas shopping done this December, whilst still squeezing every drop of mulled wine I can out of the best month of the year.
Anyhow, the lads over at Moonpig got in touch with me to ask me what my Christmas shopping routine looked like and I thought it would be a great chance to list out all the ways I’m prepping for Christmas this year. Let me know if you have any other tips for a working mum tackling Christmas, I’m new to this mum life thing!
Prepping For Christmas As A Busy Mum
Book A Family Event Early
Now that I have a family, I’ve found I can’t do all of the Christmas events I would normally do. I still do a lot of them like the work Christmas party, cocktails with my besties and the local Christmas light switch-on. But now that I’m a bit busier, I do find that some events slip me by. I was meant to book tickets to a Christmas outdoor cinema but ran out of time to book for example.
So my advice is to prioritise one Christmassy event with your family and book it ahead of time. Something like the Blenheim Palace Lights Trail or tickets to meet Santa or a day trip to a UK Christmas market. Time just goes so fast once you’re in December so book it early and get it in the calendar asap.
Gift List Prep
Ok. Before the actual Christmas shopping commences, I like to make a list of all of the people I’m buying for and ideas for presents for them. I save it down in Google Documents so I can access it from home, work and my phone should a shopping opportunity arise.
I think it’s important to do this before the big sales like Black Friday and Cyber Monday kick in, so you don’t go overboard and just focus on what you need to buy.
Post-Bedtime Sesh
Ok, this has been the biggest thing for me this Christmas – making the most of the time between my daughter’s bedtime and mine. I’ve had full-on Christmas sessions on weeknights during this time, devoted to getting my Christmas shopping done online. (Because who can be bothered to go to real-life shops with a pram?!)
Moonpig sent me some goodies last week to make these sessions feel a bit more Christmassy. I lit the Christmas candle, put on The Grinch and snacked on some choc – and yes it really does make you feel extra festive. (All goodies available to buy on Moonpig of course! It’s more than just cards, kids.)
Get The Christmas PJs Out
I admit I do wear the ol’ llamas-in-xmas-hats PJs in the middle of July. It depends on whether I’ve done the washing to be honest. But it just feels so right when you pop them on in December. I feel like I may miss out on the Christmas after-work drinks or the latest festive film at the cinema this year, what with having a baby and all, but wearing my Christmas PJs is something I can do to inject a bit of Christmas magic into the average Wednesday.
Book Your Christmas Food Shop Slot
This tip came courtesy of the mums in my office. As soon as the supermarket-of-your-choice releases the slots for food shop deliveries in December, book one up for your yuletide shop! It means you don’t have to face the crowds during Christmas week to get all of the cheese board essentials (which I can imagine would be hell with a kid). Plus, you can keep changing your order in the run-up, so every time you remember something, you can add it to your shop on the app. Pretty good mum hack, huh?
Book Annual Leave Pre-Christmas
Because I had my maternity leave this year, I’ve had a full year’s annual leave to take in the last 5 months of the year. So I’ve taken a few odd days off in December just because I had to use them up. (This isn’t normal for me, I usually use up every morsel of annual leave on travel.)
But it’s actually been a dream being able to use a day for Christmas wrapping or shopping for last minute stocking bits, y’know?
Consider Letterbox Gifts
This is my new thing this year – letterbox gifts. It’s gifts you can send people directly that fit through their letterbox so they don’t have to go traipsing off to the Post Office. I started off with cookies you can send in the post, then moved on to flowers, and now I’m a little obsessed with these letterbox gifts. They’re like cute, flat, little hampers!
Not only are they cute but it’s a great shout if you don’t think you’re going to get round to seeing everyone over the festive period. I’ve definitely cut down the number of Christmas catch-ups I have this year, what with the babysitting requirements. So for a few friends I’ll be sending letterbox goodies and catching up in January.
Get Gift Sacks For The Big Day
Now that I have a kid, I totally understand gift sacks now. Once your child goes to bed and you have to put the presents under the tree, obviously it’s easier to just move one big sack rather than lots of rustling little boxes. Bagged myself a personalised one for Indi. I mean, no she can’t read, but it’s just too cute not to!!
Ok lads, they’re my tips and tricks for the run-up to Christmas as a busy, working mum this year. Things are a little different and I definitely have less time for this stuff, but I’m committed to having as much festive fun as possible!
Do you have any more tips for me??
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Total Blogger Transparency: This post is in collaboration with Moonpig but all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
