The holiday season seems to be an unavoidably busy time for all families. Between Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year, there are so many magical moments and wonderful ways to connect with community and spend time with family. But it doesn’t come without work! And in my house, most of that holiday prep work falls on Mom (me). There are a number of things that I do leading up to the holiday season, starting as early as late August, to get ahead so that I can show up for my family and community cheerfully instead of exhausted.
One of the most notable things I have done unashamedly is decorate for Christmas early. As early as November 1. In our house, we start preparing for the Christmas season as soon as Halloween passes. Over the first several weeks of November, the trees go up, garland comes out, we stock the freezer with cookie dough, and we slowly chip away at the holiday prep.
I used to save everything Christmas-related for after Thanksgiving. But once I became a mom, the benefit of getting a head start became very apparent. Here are five reasons we decorate for Christmas in early November and give ourselves permission to get a jump start on the holiday season.
1. It takes a LOT longer to decorate for Christmas with young kids
The reality of having young kids in the house is that it just takes longer to accomplish any task. Decorating is no exception. I LOVE having my little elves help me decorate for Christmas, but I have learned that if I want to include them in as much of the holiday prep as they are able, I need to budget a lot of extra time to get it done. A Thanksgiving weekend decorating marathon is not really practical with little kids who are excited to be involved.
With the outdoor lights, for example, we are able to choose a weekend in November when the weather is pleasant. Too many years we were outside in the cold elements on Thanksgiving weekend, scrambling to get lights up. By choosing the best day based on weather, we are able to put the lights up more safely and enjoy the process with our kids. We don’t, however, turn on the lights outside until after Thanksgiving so as not to offend any opinionated neighbors. Indoors, it is full-on Christmas 🙂
2. The early start makes Thanksgiving weekend more relaxing and allows us to give Thanksgiving the attention it deserves
Christmas is a season in our house, where we welcome the coziness of winter, embrace time as a family and with our community, celebrate Advent, and feel the magical anticipation of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. None of those things prevent us from fully loving and celebrating Thanksgiving – a day of gratitude. The fact is, giving myself permission to get the Christmas decorations up and go into late November and December organized and ahead of the game allows me to really unwind and spend time with my family on Thanksgiving day and that holiday weekend.
The kids aren’t begging to put up the Christmas tree. I’m not overwhelmed by all the to-dos. Instead, we watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, do a Turkey trot, and enjoy time with family. It is actually so relaxing.
3. We are able to fit in all the holiday activities that we enjoy!
Decorating for Christmas in early November frees up the weeks leading up to Christmas for holiday adventures, cozy family movie nights, and time with our community. With little kids in the house, it takes many weeks to watch all the movies we enjoy and read our favorite holiday stories. Then there are the Christmas markets, visiting with Santa, holiday shows and performances, baking, holiday train rides, church, and we have a December birthday. There are so many things we love to do and we couldn’t possibly fit them all in if we were spending the week after Thanksgiving getting decorations up.
4. Decorating in November makes Mom way less frazzled
There are two things that I do in early November that make me feel like I have supermom powers:
- Make sure I have all the gifts planned out and ordered
- Decorate for Christmas
I take on the bulk of the work required for these two tasks and having them both done early leaves me so much more relaxed!
5. Decorating in November makes the effort feel worth it.
We often travel during part of the holiday season. By getting the Christmas decorations up early, we are able to enjoy the festive decor that takes so long to put up and take down.
For me, decorating for Christmas in early November is not about skipping past Thanksgiving. It is about giving myself margin to really enjoy the entire holiday season and make the most of it with my family and community.
