Advent Blog – Day 2

Now I know that the first step is to make a plan as I’d forget my head if it was loose.

More than Just Decorations

Not only do I need to put up the Christmas Decorations and prepare the guests’ rooms, I also need to move lots of our things out of the way in order to make room.

For example, our hall cupboard is normally full with shoes and costs but I have to find room for 4 extra bulky winter coats, which means other coats need to find space in our wardrobe.

My approach – start with a brain dump.

The List

Convert 2 sofas into beds
Buy a new sofabed
Make sure I have enough pillows, duvets & blankets for everyone
Create space in the entrance hall for extra costs & shoes
Create room in the lounge to put up the Christmas tree
Find somewhere to store the presents until Christmas eve
Buy all the presents
Clear room in the fridge & freezer
Plan the meals
Organise clean towels for everyone
Make sure there is room to hang towels and bathrobes, etc.
Plan a surface for guests to place their suitcase
Clear some wardrobe space for guests (my husband needs to move his sports gear)
Cook my Christmas puddings
Buy the new armchair for the lounge (we’re going to replace the old one so it seems a good idea to have 2 over Christmas)
Clear away any clutter from previous decluttering exercises
Make sure those urgent odd jobs are finished
Put up the Christmas decorations
Expand the dining table and make sure we have enough chairs
Get extra cutlery & china out so we have plenty
Get my kids to sort through their things and see what can be given away
Put stuff on ebay to sell

I wish I started sooner!

Phew, now I have such a huge list I think I need to crack on with it.
I’m also frustrated with myself thinking how many of these things could have been done before now – Note to self – don’t do the same next year!

Take a quick look over my list to see whether you too might have overlooked anything (or just feel smug if your list is smaller).