Planning for the holidays is my favorite thing to do; it isn’t what I do when I have “‘spare time”… it’s my passion, so I make the time.  Preparation and planning is important.  I have learned each year that it takes me more time to take down and put up decorations; more time to setup storage… and each year I want to do more… enjoy more… so I have to try to stay ahead just a little more.  So any little things that I can do – which also makes the season longer (that I love) I will try and share with you.

My home is a home “ready for the holidays”; whenever I buy something, I ask myself “would that look good at Christmas?”   I buy furniture that would be attractive with decorations or village displays; and I always choose colors that are complimentary … my couches are green… so are my kitchen chairs!

This year, I had to finish up some interior painting.  So, I bought some silver glitter and added it to the paint.  I used Olympic paint from Lowe’s; the glitter blends in very well… you have to add a little very slowly as you’re stirring the paint.  In the foyer, I painted one wall white/glitter… when the light is on it looks like snow; I can just imagine how it will look when the lit garland mirrors off the wall.  So, I went a little further and I painted the dining room… 3 walls silver/grey and 1 wall Navajo white; all with silver glitter in the paint.  I could have easily painted every room with glitter, but I didn’t.  However, for a nice touch I painted the inner door ways with the white/glitter; now, when I put up decorations (including the glitzy Halloween dressings) they will glow even more!  It’s a simple thing to jazz up the walls or entrance ways all year long and still be thinking about Christmas décor.

I also surfed the net and kept tabs on the local Michaels in waiting for the new Lemax and Department 56 Halloween and Christmas Village displays.  This year I set focus on the scenery, so in preparation we made images and printed them to match the themes… I set these as back-drops in the wall-unit.  I am also saving various shapes of Styrofoam that I can spray paint to make village accessories pop out.  (We will visit the villages at another time… so much to say about them)

My elves are busy at work… making their cookie designs for new packaging and selecting bags, bows and boxes to really set the stage.  We do lists for everything!  And this year, we knocked off what was left on our movie list; we purchased all the DVD’s that were missing for our collection.  I bought a good bunch from Overstock.com, all the DVD’s and one low shipping fee (under $3.00).

These are the DVD’s that we added this year….

•     White Christmas [Anniversary Edition] [With Music Download] [2 Discs] by Michael Curtiz
•     Alvin and the Chipmunks – A Chipmunk Christmas (25th Anniversary Special Collector’s Edition) – John Kimball
•     The Nightmare Before Christmas (Two-Disc Collector’s Edition) – L. Peter Callender
•     Jingle All the Way – Arnold Schwarzenegger
•     A Flintstones Christmas Carol – Russi Taylor
•     The Muppet Christmas Carol – Kermit’s 50th Anniversary Edition – Michael Caine
•     Miracle on 34th Street – Richard Attenborough
•     Miracle on 34th Street (Special Edition) – Edmund Gwenn
•     The Polar Express (Widescreen Edition) – Tom Hanks
•     All I Want for Christmas – Harley Jane Kozak
•     It’s a Wonderful Life (60th Anniversary Edition) – James Stewart
•     Peanuts Holiday Collection [Deluxe Edition] [3 Discs] [DVD/CD] by Bill Melendez
•     A Christmas Story Collector’s Edition (tin with apron & cookie cutters!!!!)
•     Home Alone (Part I/Part II) – Macaulay Culkin
•     The Santa Clause (Widescreen Special Edition) – Tim Allen
•     How the Grinch Stole Christmas – Jim Carrey

Here is a description of “A Christmas Story – Ultimate Collector’s Edition DVD”

For fans of the classic comedy A Christmas Story, the Ultimate Collector’s Edition is the ultimate Christmas gift. The gift set includes a usable apron, cookbook, and cookie cutters that would be great for a theme party around watching the movie.  It comes in a decorative tin can; the DVD includes the following special features:

Disc 1:

•     Feature film (Widescreen)

Disc 2:

•     Commentary with Peter Billingsley and director/ co-writer Bob Clark
•     Original readings by Jean Shepard, author and voice narrator of A Christmas Story
•     Documentary: Another Christmas Story
•     Featurette: “Get a Leg Up”
•     Featurette: “A History of the Daisy Red Ryder”
•     “Triple Dog Dare” Interactive Trivia
•     Decoder Match Challenge
•     Hidden “Presents”
•     Original theatrical trailer

*The Blu-ray Hi-Def edition includes the same special features all on one disc.

I still have a few DVD’s that I may get this year, such as “The Original Christmas Classics” (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer / Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town / Frosty the Snowman / Frosty Returns / Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol / Little Drummer Boy / Cricket on the Hearth).   I think the grand-kids would really love that one.   Also, “Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas”; the Special Edition releases in November 2011.

I make my storage labels, gift tags, I buy wrapping paper, I start wrapping gift boxes so they are ready for display or gifting and I do anything that I can to make things less hectic so that I can truly enjoy the most wonderful time of the year!

Last year, I had to organize someone to put the lights on the house outside, and because I waited, and then got the flu in November, I didn’t get lights up until December 4th … not this year!  I am scheduling my “lights man” next week so that he is on the front lawn when November 1st hits… once I know I have the exterior laid out and have the dates set on my calendar, then I can focus on the interior.  One of the things I do is photograph the house and then apply different types of lights a figures to get a ‘visual’ before making large purchase or applying hours of labor.

Please share your tips for holiday preparation, what do you do ahead of time to bring Christmas in earlier?

Love to all… love the fall xo