I was never a good planner. In fact, I don't normally plan things ahead of time because I love living our day to day life with spur of the moment surprises. Believe it or not, the only consistent thing I plan is our weekly menu. I have proven time and again, that our last minute family activities, wanderings and adventures always turn out to be the most memorable ones. Be it an unplanned badminton game, spur of the moment trip to the beach or park, and random activity with the kids...
Having said that, I am singing a different tune now that Christmas is fast approaching. I knew I had to come up with my to-do list, otherwise I will never get things done. As a working mom and part-time content provider, I always get carried away by the mundane things I had to accomplish. I had to take action and make sure my family will have a meaningful Christmas this year. Let me share with you the 5 important things I need to strike off my to-do list before Christmas:
1) BOOK A CHRISTMAS PHOTO SHOOT
The photo above was taken in 2011 during our DIY Christmas photo shoot at home. This year, I decided to realize my dream of doing for a formal photo shoot with a professional photographer along with a make up artist and stylist. I am currently looking for cheap packages in the internet. It would be really great if I stumble upon a shoot for a cause for the Typhoon Haiyan victims.
2) SEND A PERSONALIZED CHRISTMAS CARD TO FAMILY AND FRIENDS
Confession: I am very, very bad with sending greeting cards. I always buy birthday, Christmas and thank you cards way ahead but they still end up buried in my cupboard. One of the reasons why I wanted to book us a formal photoshoot this year is because I want to come up with a personalized Christmas card like the photo above that I can send to our families back home and our friends in other parts of the globe. I am crossing my fingers I get this work done. Don't wish me luck, send me a reminder to get it done. LOL.
3) SHOP FOR CHRISTMAS GIFTS
We have started a family tradition of putting gifts under the Christmas tree and get the whole family to open it on Christmas eve. A practical and good friend of mine suggested I should consider shopping online this Christmas season to avoid the Christmas shopping rush also known as human and road traffic in Orchard Road. Being a self-confessed low maintenance wife, I have never been hooked to online shopping but I am seriously considering shopping at zalora.sg. Blame it to my friend who asked me to sign up for Zalora's newsletter, I now have an access pass to their latest deals and even got a $10 voucher after I signed up. I can't wait to fill up my cart and get value for my limited Christmas shopping budget.
4) SEND A JOLLY CHRISTMAS BOX FOR MY FAMILY BACK HOME
Every end of the year, we try to send jumbo boxes to our families in the Philippines. It is a real challenge to fill it up with Christmas goodies but the picture of big smiles and sparkling eyes of the receivers warms my heart. They always tell us it's not the value of the things we bought for them but it's our thoughtful gesture that really counts. We may not buy them expensive things but they always find delight in what we could afford to give.
5) WORK HARD AND DONATE TO TYPHOON YOLANDA VICTIMS
Pray and donate, these are the only two things I could do to lift up my dampened spirit during these tough times. I have to work double time to be able to donate more and I have to pray incessantly to provide spiritual healing and comfort to the typhoon victims. After all, the real meaning of Christmas is hope and love. I wish to share my blessings to give hope and spread love amidst chaos and uncertainty. May God bless the Filipino people and The Philippines.
I am here to remind you Che :) hehehe, just kidding, actually, I am so like you, so snail paced when it comes to sending since I have problems going to post office :)
ReplyDeletePlanning is very important for other vital things in life. And, for extra curricular activities or entertainment, spur-of-the-moment decision is exciting.
ReplyDeletei already have made a personalized Christmas card to send over my friends and relatives :) other to do's however are not yet accomplished because I am always stuck in front of my pc lol
ReplyDeleteBeen doing the others for years, but really must work on numbers one and two.
ReplyDeleteI'm your total opposite, a perennial, obsessive planner I can't even tell you how I got there. I guess, I could blame my P & G training eons ago :-) . Strangely enough, your to do list have been on mine too and they've all been ticked off. It's not easy, I know, especially with children around but it can be done :-)
ReplyDeleteYou
The best ways to be organized in this such busy occasion, thank you for the tips.
ReplyDeleteskipping numbers 1-4, always do #5 for me, haha! anyway, i am so guilty because i told my niece last year ( remember I was there Christmas time?) that I will send her my lens (18-250 mm) coz her 50 mm lens broke, ahhhhh, very sadly, I have not mailed it to her, I told myself, I will mail it this Christmas break, and we will not go anywhere unless I've mailed it! :) Yes, I am that bad, my problem is aside from going to the post office, the packing!!
ReplyDeleteanyway, good luck Che, and reminding you again, have you done them now? hehehehe!! as you said, aside from wishing you luck, we should remind you too. :)
I like Tip# 5 the most. My family have decided to give back this Christmas instead of receiving.
ReplyDeleteThat's one of my failures this year. I did not have enough time to order a customized Christmas card like I always do in the past years. Oh well, there is still next year! Beautiful family pic sis!
ReplyDeleteI admire your goal to help the Yolanda victims. It makes Christmas more meaningful.
ReplyDeleteVery sound To-do-list before Christmas. # 5 should have been the first one.
ReplyDeleteScorpion ka nga talaga, Dokie! LOL! #1 in your list reminded me of some issues with family when they can't get themselves available despite me booking a pro photog to do the shoot for us. It caused altercation between me and my brother. I cried and we ended up having none. Sad!
ReplyDelete#2, apir! Till now, I haven't sent out all the thank you cards that I needed to send out for our wedding day. Yeah, I suck at it! You're not alone. Hahaha!
#3 has been ticked off by me and my husband. We just need to buy a few more for some of my friends here as we don't really celebrate xmas. We do it for the yearend :-)
#4 is X for me. We prefer to send out cash gifts so that they can buy what they want. We did so last weekend. It's very impractical for us too if we do send out stuffs in the box coz everything here in Sydney is very expensive. I'd say life is indeed very unfair! LOL!
#5 we already did several times and we're not stopping. In our personal capacities, we've helped somehow; either in cash and in kind.
Thank you for this post. It's very interesting and very thought-provoking. It made me think of my own too. Kaya ang ending ng comment ko, NOBELA! Ha! Ha! Ha! Stop me please! LOL!
Well, I am no planner as well! As a matter of fact, the host of our upcoming Christmas Party asked me ahead of time what I shall be bringing and I confessed to her that I haven't thought of what to cook yet! Lol. The spontaneity in me! Your list sounds like mine, too except for the first one as I did't really plan ( what's new, right?) on scheduling or going for a photo shoot! I was able to pick a random snap that I used for my personalized holiday card. :)
ReplyDeleteI love especially love the last two things you listed. The Jolly-B box looks cute. And yes, many of us are lucky enough to be spared by the typhoon, but it now becomes our responsibility to help those who weren't lucky. :)
ReplyDeleteI like all especially #5.
ReplyDeletePlanning is indeed important especially this Christmas Holiday. I'm glad I'm done with it. And I'm now preparing and cooking some of the dish I have in my Christmas Menu.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite in your list is the last one. Helping those in need is really the true spirit of Christmas.
I did #5 in November and my list would include: sleep, sleep, sleep. lol. Hope you finish them all. :)
ReplyDeleteI love your plans po. You are very kind and generous! May God bless you more and your family! ♥
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