How to Plan for Christmas 2020 (and still make it fun!)

How to plan for Christmas 2020. Tips for getting prepared for the holiday season during a pandemic.

With all the uncertainty that covid has brought into our lives, now we’re left wondering how to approach the Christmas season.

We know we want (and desperately need) a happy, peaceful season to look forward to.

But how do we achieve that, when we…

…can’t spend time with everyone we love

…feel insecure about our finances

…are left to wonder how to shop, gift, and host for holidays in such unpredictable circumstances?

No one knows for sure.

But I wanted to share some ideas I had, to hopefully inspire you to find ways to actually enjoy Christmas this year.

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👉 Want to create a holiday spending plan you can actually stick to? Grab our FREE Christmas Budget Planner!

How to Plan for Christmas 2020

1. Simplify

If there ever was a year to pare down your holiday responsibilities, it’s 2020.

Look at it as an opportunity to get rid of any traditions that no longer serve you or your family.

Think specifically what your priorities and goals are for this holiday season.

Ask the people who you’ll spend Christmas with what they hope to do, too.

You may come up with new traditions that everyone loves!

Above all, focus on what you can control.

You can:

Watch less news and more fun holiday content.
Spend less time on social media, and more time walking around looking at twinkling lights.
Read fewer headlines and angry rants, and more festive novels or magazines

2. Shop local

When possible, support local small businesses this year.

If you usually pick up a Starbucks gift card for your niece, try the local coffee shop instead.

Get takeout or pizza from the mom-and-pop restaurant instead of a chain when you’re decorating the tree.

This also goes for supporting local food pantries, shelters, and other charities in your area.

3. Shop Early, Ship Early

With all the talk of probable shipping delays, save yourself the stress and finger-crossing, and just get those gifts ordered now.

Instead of standing in line at the post office to mail gifts yourself, ship them directly to the person when ordering online.

Snag a FREE 30 Day Prime Membership from Amazon, and ship to your heart’s content for free.

They’ll even wrap them for you for a few bucks!

(The gift bags they use are seriously beautiful, and your recipient can reuse them over and over. A win-win!)

Pro-tip: Wish you could send food to the loved ones you can’t see this year? Check out QVC’s food selection! They have everything from holiday treats to entire holiday meals, and you can ship directly to anyone you choose.

4. Be understanding

Everyone has varying levels of fear and cautiousness about covid.

Even if you don’t quite understand why someone won’t celebrate with you this year, try to be respectful and willing to change plans.

Along those same lines, be kind to your own grief and disappointment about all the things we’re missing out on this year.

Don’t feel silly for being sad that the holiday parade, party, or concert isn’t happening.

Stuffing down your feelings won’t help, so allow yourself to feel disappointed.

Then try to brainstorm another activity that will be meaningful.

5. Stay Organized

The antidote to any insecurity is to take action.

Find a way to stay organized with your gift-giving by tracking what you bought for whom, where you ordered it, and if it shipped.

Gather your recipes early, and start shopping for non-perishables.

Create a spending plan (use this FREE Christmas Budget Planner), and stick to it to avoid carrying holiday debt into the New Year.

The simple act of staying organized will help you feel more in control, and give you something fun to focus on.

👉 Want an easy way to organize all things holiday? Grab my Christmas Simplified Planner Bundle! It walks you through every step of holiday prep.

6. Find Socially Distanced Ways to See Each Other

It really stinks to not see people you love this holiday season.

But luckily we have all kinds of technology to keep us connected.

Video is the next best thing to being able to actually give them a hug.

Here are a few no-contact ways to spend time together:

Open or wrap gifts over Zoom, Skype, or Facetime
Host a Christmas movie ‘watch party’
Bake the same cookie recipe together over Skype
Meet up for cocktails online
Make the same Christmas craft together over Zoom

Or plan one of these fun virtual Christmas party ideas!

Preparing for Christmas 2020

Hopefully these ideas have given you some inspiration for preparing for Christmas 2020.

I sincerely hope that next year’s holiday season can feel a whole lot more normal.

But in the meantime, let’s try to make the most of what we can control, and be as festive as we possibly can.

Make all of your favorite holiday foods, go crazy decorating, make your house smell like Christmas, watch every Hallmark movie, or whatever makes YOU happy.

Wishing you a safe and happy Christmas!

For more holiday inspiration, check out:

2 Comments

Michelle says:

November 3, 2020 at 6:43 pm

These are all great tips! I never thought of opening gifts through Zoom! What a great idea for when you can’t be together during the holidays.
1. Rebecca says:
  
  November 4, 2020 at 8:19 am
  
  Thanks Michelle! We plan to open gifts with some family members across the country that way this year, and it will be nice to see them, even if just on video : )

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How to Plan for Christmas 2020 (and still make it fun!)