get ready for christmas

By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, Organized Christmas
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

Sending holiday greetings this year?

A haphazard approach to season’s greetings is a recipe for Christmas-card chaos. Lovely as the tradition can be, it takes time to select, address and send holiday cards or Christmas letters.

Between poor planning and procrastination, too many of us find ourselves scrawling signatures late into the night, in a frantic dash to beat the postman to the mailbox.

Next day, our eyes blur as we sort the incoming mail: did we remember to send a card to Aunt Kaye?

to do today ... make a Christmas card list

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Halloween is coming ... and so is the morning of November 1st! For parents, that's the time when the excitement of Trick-or-Treat night gives way to post-Halloween reality: what to do with all that Halloween candy?

Whether they're worried about tooth decay and nutrition, or simply want to avoid the stress of a week of candy-fueled behavior from the little ones, smart parents put strategies in place to handle the Trick-or-Treat haul.

Here are some of our favorite ideas to repurpose, recycle and reduce the amount of Halloween candy in your organized home:

Repurpose it: Craft A Candy Masterpiece

Creative parents keep the fun rolling by incorporating Halloween candy into crafts projects. Upcoming holiday crafts projects are a natural recipient of the Halloween candy bounty.

Set aside colorful Necco wafers, hard candies and Smarties rolls to decorate a gingerbread house; foil-wrapped chocolate kisses can be recycled as Chocolate Kiss Christmas Trees, or added to Thanksgiving Blessing Mix or Snowman Soup.

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By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, Organized Christmas
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

Every family has one: a gift-giver of extraordinary flair and creativity. Year after year, this paragon finds just the right gift, large or small, for every friend and relation, and all without breaking the bank.

Her "just because" offerings are tiny jewels, she’s hip to the latest teen trends—and she never, ever hears the double-barbed response, "Oh, you really shouldn’t have!"

What’s her secret? A master gift list.

to do today ... make a master gift list

More than a simple “name-to-present” checklist, a Master Gift List is a power-giver’s tool of choice. It’s the place to record gift suggestions, track shopping, wrapping and shipping, and find inspiration for tough-to-buy-for loved ones.

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No photo today!

Seriously, nobody reading this blog would want to see how tired I look, or how disrupted my home and office are at this moment: the Countdown began on Sunday.

Hello, Countdown Chaos! It's as much a holiday tradition in our house as Trick-or-Treat--but not nearly so much fun.

Each and every year, the first few days of the Countdown are .... chaotic. No matter how carefully I prepare the site, tweak the server or think through bottlenecks, it's only when the online traffic comes pouring through the door do I find all the problems on the tech side.

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By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, Organized Christmas
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

What do you really want for Christmas? Our ideas may differ in the details, but most of us want much the same thing: a seasonal celebration focused on faith, family and friends.

We want the excitement of the season without the disruption that too often comes with it. We want to draw closer to those around us, not to be thrust apart by hectic schedules. We want to enjoy as well as prepare, and to keep the Christmas season in a manner that is joyous and spiritually centered.

to do today ... focus family values

Planning for Christmas, it’s easy to get caught up in the seasonal whirlwind. Tradition, the media, family expectations and the economy lean on our decision-making, each with a different agenda. Unconscious forces can distort our celebration for reasons that have nothing to do with what we truly want from the holiday.

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Ready to carve a Halloween pumpkin ... but looking for a little inspiration?

Check out this parade of creative pumpkin carving ideas from Better Homes and Gardens. This slideshow offers 31 different pumpkin carving projects, with how-to instructions for each pumpkin masterpiece.

Okay, the pop-up sign-up forms can be annoying when they stand between you and the site's content, but the show is worth the extra click.

Make your Halloween pumpkin stand out from the crowd:

Creative Halloween Pumpkins

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Here's a fresh entry in the Christmas Pocket Planner category: this pretty vintage holiday planner from blogger Lynn at Millers-Ink.

Starting with Nicole Heady's free pocket planner template, Lynn added custom-cut tags made with a Cricut Personal Electronic Cutting Machine. These tags can be circulated to friends and family to gather gift suggestions for the big day.

With a vintage color scheme, stamped accents and smartly-embellished front cover, Lynn's planner is a long, lean home for lists and planner pages!

Lynn's Holiday Planner

Looking for a simple one-page BOO poem for a last-minute Halloween BOO?

Enter BeenBooed.com! This tiny site offers three different Halloween BOO-ing printables (in color, black-and-white and outline versions) which feature the BOO poem on one side, a BOO sign on the other.

Even though the creator didn't find our BOO printables attractive (sniff, sniff), hey--simplicity works, too!

Ready, set ... BOO!

You've Been BOOed

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Ready to read more about saving money on holiday gifts? Catch our editor Cynthia Ewer's quotes in the current issue of Womans' Day!

Interviewed as part of the issue's No-Stress Holiday Guide, Cynthia shares ideas to simplify gift-buying and avoid late-night wrapping frenzy--and don't miss tips from other media sources to help simplify, organize and celebrate the holiday season.

This week, while you're waiting at the supermarket checkstand, turn to pages 73-74 and check out our very own Organized Christmas editor and author of the Christmas Countdown!

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By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, Organized Christmas
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

What's the number-one way to cut Christmas stress? Watch the calendar!

Keeping track of commitments, events and activities keeps the season real. If you know where the family must go, it's easier to get there--and to say "No!" to too many obligations.

Does a family calendar guide your holiday plans? We make it easy to keep track of celebrations, events and obligations with free printable calendar forms.

to do today ... create a holiday calendar

Seldom acknowledged but often felt, time pressure creates a unique stressor during the holiday season. Take back your time--and find calm amidst the chaos--with a family holiday calendar.

The eyes have it! Find or make pretty calendar pages for the months of November and December, or print free calendars from the Organized Christmas forms library.

Keeping the calendar in view is the first step to scheduling sanity, so post pages publicly, near the telephone. You’ll be armed with a clear view of your schedule before the room mother rings up.

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Oh, we love, love, LOVE blogger Pretty Pink Chandelier's crafty take on the Halloween BOO: BOO basket treats made from DumDum pops and mini-pumpkins.

With photos and directions, this easy craft will make memorable Halloween BOO treats for your neighborhood BOO: Get inspired with this BOO-tiful Halloween craft idea:

Neighborhood Boo! Cute Ghost Halloween Craft

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Creating a pumpkin masterpiece is as easy as "Ready, set, print!" with these free printable pumpkin carving templates from RD.com.

Scroll through the Halloween slide show to find a pumpkin design you like, then click the link to print a free carving template.

Taped over your pumpkin, it's easy to outline the carving using a small pin or skewer. Remove the template, then carve on the dotted line. Result: Halloween pumpkin pride!

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Goblin alert: the big day is near! Still looking for cute craft ideas or easy Halloween gifts? Try these easy-to-make Halloween crafts for classroom treats, Halloween BOO baskets or Halloween party favors:

Halloween S'Mores In A Jar Witches Brew Halloween Gift Mix Halloween Jiffy Pop Topper Pumpkin Poop

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By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, Organized Christmas
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

As we get ready for Christmas, we'll be making lists (and checking them a lot more than twice!), holding discussions with spouses, children and parents, and drawing up a holiday budget.

Too often, we record our plans piecemeal, consigning them to a confused clutter of scrawled envelopes, jotted notes and cryptic calendar entries--none of which make it to the shopping center with us when it's time to buy gifts.

The solution? Create a Christmas planner notebook--your personal guide to relaxed and happy holidays.

to do today ...

Create a Christmas notebook.

Easy to make and easier to use, a Christmas planner notebook cuts through holiday clutter and keeps planning on track. Home to lists and recipes, calendars and gift ideas, this simple tool is the architect and source of a serene celebration.

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Week Nine at the Holiday Grand Plan, Pantry Week, finds us still in the kitchen. This week, we focus on food storage, the pantry and any additional closets. Taking time to declutter, deep-clean and organize these storage areas will pay off when holiday baking begins.

Holiday prep chores this ween see us begin to address Christmas cards, continue to work on holiday gifts, and start thinking about Thanksgiving dinner.

Ready? Let's get organized with Pantry Week in the Holiday Grand Plan!

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Here and Now: This is my first year, and I'm excited! Since 2008: I found the Countdown last year, and boy, did it make a difference! From 2004-2007: I'm a regular--and my holidays get better every year. From 1999-2003: I remember the early days, and I wouldn't miss it for the world! From 1998: I was here for the Beta Test ... and never left! From 1997: I'm a pioneer: I got the very first round of Countdown e-mails in 1997.

By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, Organized Christmas
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

Welcome to the Christmas Countdown!

Today, we kick off Get Organized Week, and get the Countdown off to an enthusiastic start toward an organized holiday season. Ready to begin? Let's Count Down!

today's message ...

Welcome to the Christmas Countdown! I'm Cynthia Ewer, editor of OrganizedHome.Com and author of this six-week interactive plan to get organized for the holiday season.

I'm a wife and mother, grandmother of two, and the manager of my home. The tips and information you'll find here have been road-tested by my own family, and by the thousands of readers who have used this plan since its Web debut in 1998.

This year, we celebrate the 11th anniversary of the Christmas Countdown. Since our first beta test in 1998, this online organizing plan has helped thousands of families--like yours and like mine--simplify the holidays and prepare for the holiday season.

Each year, I receive hundreds of testimonials from families who have used the Christmas Countdown to create a stress-free holiday season. Like this one, from Dottie:

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It's Halloween week! Along with the trick-or-treaters comes a new pace to the season. Thanksgiving is on the horizon, so we turn our attention to the public space in our home: the living room or great room.

In holiday prep, we'll celebrate Halloween, then tuck its decorations away, replacing them with Thanksgiving themes. We'll complete Christmas cards and buy holiday stamps, and start saving mailing boxes so that we can recycle them to send gifts.

Finally, we'll prepare for Time Change Sunday with a household safety check.

Public Space Week Assignments

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Looking for a quick and easy Halloween craft gift? Check out this BOO-tiful gift in a jar from Living Locurto blog: Halloween M&M Cookies!

This layered Mason jar gift shows off Halloween-colored M&M candies to spooky perfection! It would be a great addition to a Halloween BOO basket!

The free printable includes the recipe, cover circle and gift tag to make it easy to assemble your own spooky Halloween treat.

Halloween M&M Cookies Gift Tags

More Recipes for Gifts in a Jar

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Ready or not, here it comes: the Christmas Countdown begins on Sunday, October 25 here at Organized Christmas!

Led by editor Cynthia Ewer, we'll work together to create a calm, stress-free holiday season for ourselves and our families. Organizing Christmas preparations into small, easy-to-finish tasks, the Countdown will see us to the first weekend in December, prepared and ready for Christmas.

Beginning Sunday, we'll start a six-week Christmas organizing plan. We'll create a personalized Christmas planner to simplify the holidays, make decisions about our holiday values, and spread out holiday activities so they're easy to complete in good time.

Each of the next six weeks will focus on one area of holiday planning:

Get Organized
Reality Check
Gifts and Giving
Get Cooking
Decorate
Celebrate

Each day, Cynthia will post an inspiring daily message right here, on our Organized Christmas home page. To make it easy to keep up with the Countdown, follow us on Twitter, or add our RSS feed to your feed reader.

Ready to get organized for a great holiday season? Here we go! The 2009 Christmas Countdown starts on Sunday, October 25 ... see you there!

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