3 Sanity Savers This Holiday Season [2024 Repost]

[00:00:34] Hello and welcome to MoMo634, Motivational Moments just for today.

[00:00:43] Let's face it, as much fun as the holidays are, they can be exhausting.

[00:00:50] It's sort of like vacation time. There's a lot of prep work, planning and packing.

[00:00:56] Then there's the vacation itself. Then you come home and there's tons of laundry,

[00:01:02] unpacking and catching up to do. So here are three sanity savers this holiday season.

[00:01:11] 1. Let go of perfectionism. I have a friend who's known for saying,

[00:01:20] don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. We want our homes to look perfect. We tire ourselves

[00:01:28] out cooking and cleaning. We chase down viral videos to recreate things that, while gorgeous

[00:01:35] in a 30-second video, don't show you all the behind-the-scenes prep work, cleanup, and the

[00:01:42] entire crew pulling it off. I know this podcast is only five minutes-ish for you to listen to,

[00:01:51] but it's a couple of hours plus each day for the production, editing, uploading, content creation,

[00:02:00] and graphics for the memes, and social media promotion. And it's the same with our holiday

[00:02:06] productions. So maybe scale back the expectations a bit and be present more and enjoy the fruits of your

[00:02:15] your labors. 2. Divide and conquer. Much of what adults do around the holidays are for the kids,

[00:02:25] but kids are future adults. Why not begin now, training for that eventual passing of the torch?

[00:02:34] My kids loved helping me in the kitchen when they were smaller. For one of the dishes my daughter loved

[00:02:41] most, I gradually began turning more of its creation over to her. And now it's her contribution dish.

[00:02:51] 3. Focus on what's most important. So much of the holidays have become commercialized.

[00:02:59] We rush around getting stuff to give. Think about your neighborhood. How many cars park in the driveway

[00:03:07] or on the street because our garages are jam-packed with stuff? How many pay for years on storage spaces

[00:03:18] chock full of stuff they never use? Instead, focus on the intangibles. Time spent together making memories,

[00:03:29] volunteering together to make a difference in the lives of others.

[00:03:34] Visiting those in the hospital or who cannot get out. Investing in gifts that are handmade. Supporting

[00:03:43] friends with small businesses. Teaching someone a craft so they can make gifts and you're building

[00:03:51] memories with the time spent teaching them something new. The recipients will love the fact that it came

[00:03:57] from the heart. Consider this from 1 Peter 3, 3 and 4. Your beauty should not come from outward adornment,

[00:04:08] such as braiding hair or gold jewelry or fine clothes, but from the inner disposition of your heart, the unfading

[00:04:17] beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in God's sight. We often spend so much focusing on the

[00:04:28] external. How we look, how our homes look, all of those things, but we forget to focus on the internal.

[00:04:37] What really matters, as we discussed in the episode, Better Tell Your Face.

[00:04:44] Our meme for today says, the holidays are not about stuff. Instead, it's about the stuff dreams are made of.

[00:04:55] So there you have it. Three things that will help you ease the pressure on yourself and your family.

[00:05:03] Be sure to check out the episode, 10 Tips for Holiday Self-Care.

[00:05:08] If you enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe and share it with others. You can get the companion

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[00:05:47] Thank you for listening to Momo 634. Motivational moments just for today.