Its Holiday Season 2020 and we are in midst the of a Pandemic! As of this writing the Coronavirus is back up and some cities are rolling back instead of opening. When will this pandemic end?
How do we enjoy the holidays in the midst of a pandemic? My best advice is to follow your state pandemic guidelines, this is so important. DO NOT IGNORE THESE GUIDELINES.
Plan your holidays shopping now! Think about what you want the holidays in your home to look like. Go to Pinterest and get some ideas (it is a great place for decorations, gifts, recipes and more).
Set a budget for what you will spend for the holidays, include in this budget decorations, food, and gifts (it is probably best not to travel out state during this pandemic). Don’t go overboard with your plans, work within your means. It is not good to go into debt for the holidays.
Make sure you don’t put a strain on your normal monthly budget. Shopping for the holidays should be a line item in your normal monthly budget, make sure the holiday season line item is a reasonable amount.
Order online early so that you items are delivered early since the pandemic the online shopping will increase drastically and this could delay delivered and you want to make sure that your items are available when ordering.
When shopping in person be sure to wear your mask and remain 6 feet apart.
Go as soon as the stores open to ensure that there isn’t a crowd and with COVID-19 the stores will only let a limited amount of people in the store and shopping early will hopefully avoid waiting to enter the store. However, with it being the holiday season there may be a crowd; remember Social Distancing.
Identify who you will purchase gifts for and what items you will buy for them. Make a list of every person that you want to purchase gifts for also after making a list if the amount for purchasing is over budget reduce your list. Do not go in debt shopping for the holidays.
It is easy to overspend during the holiday season. Stay on track by keeping a list with the amount and totals for each person you plan to spend money on. Determine if the gift will really benefit the person (they will enjoy it). Do not just buy a gift just to purchase the gift for someone. And if need be give fewer gifts, this can be tough but it is necessary to not going into debt for the holidays.
Look for sales and great deal for the item that you want to purchase. Amazon seems to have great prices, search now and compare prices.
Also, homemade gifts are wonder to give; utilize Pinterest for home/handmade gifts. These are some examples of what types of gifts they are:
- Hot Chocolate in a jar
- Cupcake in a jar
- Holiday Gift Basket
- Handmade ornaments
- Baked goods (cookies, pie, cupcakes, cake) decorated and wrapped in holiday foil, plastic, containers.
This year’s holiday season will not be the same, but it does not have to be a bummer and we can still enjoy the holiday season. We must make a few adjustments and make the most of it.
This pandemic is real, and this virus is serious although it is the holiday season the holidays are here and let us enjoy them to the fullest.
There is still so much we can do to make this holiday season amazing; these are a few things we can do to make it magical.
- Decorate your home inside and outside. Since we are home more let us decorate our homes and do it as early as of today. This way the decorations will keep you in a holiday mood
- Plan your meal but do not make large portions; just cook smaller portions; it will be fun cooking and preparing and eating and leftovers are always so good 😊
This holiday season will be different, but it can still be festive and fun.