Can you believe Christmas is almost here? It’s only FIVE WEEKS AWAY. How crazy is that? How has it come around so quickly? How are we already here – again?
This time of year is always so unique; I love seeing the children light up with excitement as they consider Santa is making his list and checking it twice. It’s slowly starting to feel like Christmas too, the shops are decorated and have carols on repeat. Mangoes and Cherries are on the supermarket shelves, and signs are dotted about offering fresh cut trees for purchase. What an incredible season it is.
Although, with all the beauty, festivity and fun that surrounds Christmas it’s also a stressful time of year for many. There seems to be an endless list of things to get through whether its buying presents, wrapping, decorating, cooking, entertaining or going out to be entertained. For some, there are the Christmas parties and the dreaded ‘what to wear’ saga that most women deal with and the list goes on.
Accompanying this busy season and all the things on our list is our budget and this time of year can put significant stress on families. Advertising companies have worked all year tirelessly to surround you and your children with messages of the latest and greatest toy or gadget and the time to face the music is quickly approaching. According to the Australian Retailers Association and Roy Morgan Research, the annual Christmas spending figures indicate Australian shoppers will spend more than $48.1 billion in retail stores over the Christmas trading period from November 15 to December 24, 2016. The executive director or ARA is quoted as saying that some shopping categories are expected to go ‘gangbusters’.
What does this mean? Sadly, pressure on families and the purse strings. So, I’ve decided to share something valuable that is put together by a friend of mine; it’s called the GetRealLive 8-Week Christmas Plan. This plan has been carefully curated over the years to help families survive the season and enjoy it rather than endure it. The plan is thoughtfully laid out week-by-week with suggested items to add to the grocery list as well as decorating schedules, lightbulb testing and booking the babysitter. They don’t miss a beat, and it’s all done to make the season more enjoyable. GetRealLive believes the famous quote by Benjamin Franklin that states, ‘If you fail to plan, then plan to fail’ and with a projected spending of such crazy numbers we don’t want anyone failing because a plan wasn’t in place.
So, click on the link below, which is Week 5 but don’t worry, it provides links to the other weeks as well. Take the plan and as GetRealLive says, ‘make it your own.’
Lastly, if you didn’t see the link, I posted on Instagram, make sure you jump on and check out one of my articles that were published on ACC.TV and while there, make sure you look at their on-demand viewing. Quality programming for families where you never have to worry about what your kids are watching. Television for the entire family. And, as always, check out everything in the world of Little Miracles by using our hashtag #littlemiraclescommunity
Much love, Susanna xx
