How I Prepare For Christmas | Blogmas #2

Hi everyone! I need to learn to stop being such a night owl and doing my blog posts so late! I have just always found that I am more motivated to work when it's night time, which was perfect for when I was a student but not so much anymore. My insomnia doesn't help because it means that my brain can't focus for most of the daytime from lack of sleep, and I just feel like I'm wasting so much of the day. It's especially annoying this time of year when the sun disappears at 4pm, and we can't take any photographs for the rest of the day (note to self: I need to get some photography lighting)! I hope you all don't mind my nocturnal blogging schedule too much :) Thankyou to all of you who still keep coming back to read my posts! 

If you follow me on social media, you may know that I'm taking part in the Blogmas Challenge again this year :) I joined in with this blog-everyday-of-December challenge when I first started blogging back in 2015. I'd love for you to check out any of those posts for some festive inspiration! For today's post, I thought I'd share with you all how I get myself into the Christmas spirit. I find that because of my depression, I struggle sometimes to get myself into a Christmassy mood, to be excited and to join with the festivities. This is why I usually follow an internal checklist to do specific things that usually really help boost my enthusiasm. It's not that I don't like Christmas at all, because I LOVE IT! It can just be a very overwhelming time of year, with lots of things to do and people to socialise with. Having social anxiety makes it a month where I battling with myself not to be nervous all the time. I thought by writing this post, I'd help myself and also others get themselves prepared for the big day! Enjoy :) 

(1) Get yourself an Advent Calendar 

As I get older, getting a little piece of chocolate everyday isn't has exciting as when I was a kid, however I still always pick up an advent calendar because it's nostalgic and so ingrained in my mind now that it symbolises the start of the festive period for me. When I open that first cardboard door and reveal a cute chocolate character, it just hits me that Christmas day is so close and that it's time to get myself organised. If you don't like chocolate, there are so many non-food calendars designed for adults. Beauty ones are the most well known, but there's something for everyone. My sister once got a crafting one, in which she unwrapped a new washi tape each day of December. How awesome is that!? 

(2) Turn on your Christmas playlists 

This for me is what really gets me in the mood for the Christmas holidays! There's nothing quite like singing along to festive hits, having them playing as the background music for your life throughout December. I really enjoy listening to them as I'm wrapping presents too! They are just super fun, and I don't ever get tired of hearing them. In fact, I usually always have my favourite ones on repeat! What's your favourite Christmassy tune?

(3) Get your organised: it's time for some list writing!

I am an avid writer of checklists and to do lists and shopping lists all year round! I find that list-making helps with my anxiety and also keeps me focused, so I write one (or several) every single day! But if you don't usually write lists, then Christmas is a good time to try it! It can be super stressful to organise all of the gifts you plan on buying for your loved ones, so keeping track of what you want to buy, and ticking it off when you do, can be really helpful. Maybe treat yourself to a new notebook or list pad to inspire yourself to record your shopping and expenditure! I make note of everything by keeping a little notebook just for jotting down Christmas stuff. I write a list of all of the ideas I have in there too to help me brainstorm what to actually get for people :) 

(4) ALL THE TINSEL AND FAIRY LIGHTS!

Even if you live in student or shared accommodation where you don't have much room to decorate, or if you go back to your family home for Christmas day, you can still add a little bit of festive magic into your life by sprucing up your space with decorations! Just putting a little tinsel here and there, or adding some of those battery-powered fairy lights up on your drawers or bookcase or even around your computer, you can really help to get you into the mood for celebrating Christmas. Alternatively, you could get a festive candle (omgosh the Yankee candle Christmas range is amazing!) or an ornament or a little light up character (I have an elf one & it's super cute!). 

(5) Stock up on some present-wrapping supplies

Some people like to get their wrapping paper, etc., after they've gotten all of their presents, but it can be tough to find specific things that you need the closer it gets to the big day since everyone else is buying the same thing! This is why I like to start picking up a little something everytime I go shopping from the end of November onwards. And that way I'm not going to be stuck with purchasing whatever supplies are left over after the hectic Christmas rush. I just picked up a pack of ten sheets of wrapping paper from Wilkos for just £1!! How good of a bargain is that!? Other little things to remember to get too is cellotape, because that stuff starts selling out fast!, gift tags, bows and ribbons and anything you'll need if you like to make your gifts look all fancy, and bags for your gifts to go into :) 

(6) Treat yourself to some Christmas snacks

As some of you may have noticed on my Instagram story today, it's only the 2nd day of December and I have already eaten a whole box of Cadbury's 'Festive Friends' biscuits and some of my favourite German spiced Lebkuchen (which may single-handedly be my favourite thing about Christmas!). I know that I'm not the only one who buys some chocolate with the intention of saving it for Christmas or even giving it to a loved one, but eats it and has to go out and get more, haha!! My chocolate coins and mini candy canes were bought and devoured before November was through. Not even sorry! All of the Christmassy snacks definitely make me remember what time of year it is! I am already craving a Terry's Chocolate Orange. Let me know in the comments what your most loved festive treat is :) 

(7) It's the season for a festive bed makeover

Who doesn't love Christmassy bedding!? I mean, everyone loves the feeling of getting into a freshly-changed bed but it's so much nicer when you're snuggling under a cosy new duvet that's covered in a festive-themed print. I really need to remember each year to get some bedding purchased before December starts because all of the best ones sell out quickly. Like right now, I really want the gorgeous pink vintage Christmas cat print bedding from ASDA but the single sets have all sold out online *cry cry*. However, I will still be getting myself some new bedding to make me feel just that little extra bit more festive!

(8) Start your Christmas shopping (early!) 

Most people start getting their Christmas gifts from mid-November and I am one of those people. I write up my ideas list in November and from then on, I have my eye out for items whenever I'm out and about. It makes me feel so much less stressed when I can see a bag of Christmas gifts starting to get more and more filled, even if it's just with small things like chocolates or stocking fillers. If you haven't gotten anything yet, maybe aim to get at least a quarter off your list this coming week. There are lots of people who like to go shopping closer to the 25th December though, but I personally start to panic that I'm not going to get everything wrapped and ready in time! 

(9) Do some festive activities

For lots of people who go to work everyday or are on a break from college or university but are stuck with deadlines that mean they have to study throughout the Christmas holiday, or for those of you who like me struggle to get themselves excited for celebratory occasions, it can be really beneficial to you all to do some little Christmassy activities every now and then throughout December! I, for example, have a Christmas colouring book and whenever I have some time to relax or when I'm bored or whatever, I will do some colouring and the themed pictures make me think of happy memories from my childhood and such :) You could watch your favourite Christmas movie in the evening before you go to bed, or have a go at a crafty project, like making your own decorations. If you have a day off, you could visit a Christmas market or go to a festive themed show or to a local outdoor ice-skating rink. There's literally so many things you can do! 

*(9.1) Send some Christmas Cards!

I decided that this festive activity should have it's own section :) Writing Christmas cards always gets me looking forward to Christmas, even though it's not as awesome as when you were at school and you'd get all these cards from your friends and some of your classmates to bring home. Did you have one of those card holders? Ours was two long pieces of string with a Santa Claus head at each end! We still have them now, but they are no where near as a full as they used to be :( A lot of people don't seem to write Christmas cards anymore, and it sucks. I always still write some for my friends and family :) I bought mine back in November from Card Factory, which is always my go-to store for pretty and affordable cards! 

(10) Have your Christmas jumper ready!

There's just something so wonderful about wearing a Christmas jumper. People call them 'ugly Christmas jumpers' but I don't think they are ugly at all; I love them, no matter how bright or in-your-face they are! It is definitely a challenge though getting cute Christmas jumpers when you're plus size. I always see so many adorable geeky Christmas jumpers that are perfect but am disheartened a little everytime I see that they don't cater for larger sizes. It would suck whenever I would find a jumper, but as soon as I wore it, the print/design stretched and then I didn't like the way it looked anymore. However, a couple of years ago now, I discovered that Yours Clothing (a company that sell great clothes for sizes 16-36) sell festive jumpers and I bought one right away. It fits perfectly and the design doesn't 'distort' in anyway, so I get to feel festive and fabulous each Christmas time now! ♥

Writing this post did as intended and I already feel just that little bit more excited for Christmas Day! It's fast approaching now, time seems to be going by so quickly for me lately! I hope that my checklist is helpful to you and that reading it has got you looking forward to the big day! 

Thankyou for reading!

♥

What are your favourite things to do to get yourself into the Christmas spirit? 

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