Harried Holiday

Two weeks from tonight is Christmas Eve, but it isn’t the holiday that has me stressed. With a few shopping trips and a few more clicks on Amazon, I know that there will be presents under our white pre-lit Christmas tree and in the stockings that we will hang with care over the gas fireplace. I was able to host Thanksgiving dinner without much advance preparation (we were out of town the weekend before), and I’m sure I can pull it off again at Christmas. It helps that my kids are older and don’t have any impossible-to-find items on their wish lists. As long as we have ham and crescent rolls for dinner and apple pie and ice cream (for my daughter) and whipped cream (for my son) for dessert, they will be happy.

(I am reminding myself of all this so I don’t get too stressed.)

No, this year it is work that has me pulling my hair out and wondering how I am going to get everything done before the holiday. I don’t know what is going on, but I feel like the items in my in-box are multiplying like the Star Trek Tribbles. If I get caught up, it’s only because my assistant has fallen behind on processing the items in her in-box. Some days we pass files back and forth like we are playing “hot potato.”

I am trying to prioritize, focus on one thing at a time, and delegate. I think I can get caught up on my big items next week and then maybe I’ll even have time the next week to get organized. I hope my optimism isn’t shattered by a forgotten project or new crisis.

This week I sacrificed most of my personal time to work. I did keep up with my o’dark-thirty workouts, but those were driven as much by stress than any notion of taking care of myself. I had one fun dinner with some women who have blurred the lines between work and friendship, but the other evenings were spent working or at work functions (’tis the season for those too). Next week I will feel more pressure to leave work on time because my daughter just got home from college, but it’s more important that I get my work done before the holiday so I can relax and enjoy a few days off. 

At a different time of year, I might spend Saturday or Sunday working to get caught up, but I have too much to do to get ready for Christmas and I refuse to give up the whole holiday season for work. My priorities for this weekend including seeing my son’s wrestling match, going Christmas shopping with my daughter, decorating our Christmas tree and celebrating my husband’s birthday.  I also need to find time for laundry, grocery shopping and a bit of housework.

‘Tis the season!