Christmas Bucket List

I do quite well with lists and checking things off (and yes, sometimes checking it twice. Me and Santa, you know.). I decided to make a list for Christmas, things I want to make sure to do and see and experience, and to help me remember that many of the seemingly so important, frantic parts of the season are not for me. And that’s okay. This probably isn’t one of those lists that people will print out and share, or Pinterestize, or whatever, and that’s okay too. This is for me. And maybe you’ll get a good idea or two from it as well, and that would be a huge bonus.

Last year at this time I had *just* unpacked our moving truck in Arizona, but was back in Salt Lake for a few more weeks, then to Arizona for a few days, and then BACK to Utah for the holidays. I didn’t decorate. No tree, no lights, no holiday baking, just hanging up the lovely assortment of received Christmas cards. This year feels brand new and fresh in almost every way, I hope I can start a few new traditions, and also somehow remove the mental block of needing snow and fragrant piney trees and bitter cold weather for it to really be Christmas.

Harriet’s Christmas Bucket List:

  1. Find Christmas decorations…what closet/corner are they in!?
  2. Figure out tree situation & decorate (Should I get two trees?)(I’d LOVE two trees!)
  3. Lights up outside! (The first time for me!! A HOUSE with LIGHTS ON IT!)
  4. Luminarias on Christmas Eve (White bags and candles are ordered!)
  5. Christmas Card (family photo, order cards & stamps, address, send)
  6. Angel tree or other donation project for a needy family
  7. Make Christmas play list, play constantly: I just loaded my huge stack of CDs into iTunes!
  8. Pull out all Christmas movies: watch on repeat!
  9. Read Jesus’ birth story in all four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John
  10. Make gingerbread houses, one of my favorite family traditions
  11. Christmas cookies: gingersnaps & frosted sugar cookies
  12. Desert Botanical Gardens: Los Noches de Las Luminarias
  13. Go see some really great Christmas lights
  14. Church Christmas party, this is a Saturday morning breakfast. Brilliant!
  15. Christmas manicures (with these!!!!)
  16. Christmas orchestra concert at the kids’ elementary school
  17. Blue Eyes work holiday party
  18. Hang up all the Christmas cards!
  19. Wrap all the presents!!! (This is one of my favorite parts!)

What about you? What’s on your Christmas bucket list!? What are you trying to avoid over the next month?

harriet-sig

 

 

10 thoughts on “Christmas Bucket List

    1. Feisty Harriet Post author

      I had three last year and it was heaven in every way. (Full size upstairs, full size downstairs, half-size on dining room buffet.)

      xox

      Reply
  1. Sherry

    We *just* finished our basement (got carpet installed on Saturday), and I love the idea of two trees. But I’m currently lacking in decor for the second tree, and my husband thinks having a tree in an otherwise bare family room in the basement is just asking for trouble, which is probably true.

    I ordered Christmas cards last night, and I just now ordered the grandkids calendar for my MIL. My siblings-in-law do not take enough pictures of their children. This is what happens when people do not use social media much. I spent way too long trying to be sure all twenty grandchildren are fairly evenly distributed throughout the calendar in both group and individual pictures. I wish I didn’t care that much because I don’t think anyone counts.

    I am making these stockings for everyone in our family this year (http://www.michaels.com/loops-and-threads-impeccable-crochet-christmas-stockings/B_35464.html). I need to get cracking on those with more diligence.

    I bought the necessary foodstuffs for our shepherds’ dinner, which will be this Monday.

    I think that’s enough on my plate, but I’m sure we’ll remember more stuff to do with and for the kids in the coming weeks.

    Reply
    1. Feisty Harriet Post author

      While I was growing up we always had two trees, the upstairs “fancy” tree was put up in early December and decorated with the pretty angel ornaments. BUT, on Christmas Eve we’d go back to the tree lot and get a second tree, at the time they were usually free (but aren’t anymore…weirdly). That tree would be decorated with homemade ornaments: popcorn string, gingerbread boys, candy canes. Eventually we made a set of toy soldiers out of clothespins (the ones w/out the spring) and those went on the downstairs tree too. Honestly, when I think of Christmas trees I always think of the downstairs tree, it seemed so magical to decorate it on Christmas Eve, and then hang our stockings (fireplace was downstairs), and the next day have all our presents under that tree. 🙂

      Those stockings are gorgeous!!!

      xox

      Reply
  2. Alice

    Ooh good list! I should make one. So far we bought lights for the house (also new for us! we have a house and can put lights on it! so exciting!) and put up half of them, and bought a fake tree and put that up, although it’s not yet decorated. I need to get us stockings, since now we have a fireplace to hang them over AND a baby who obviously needs a stocking 😀 I too have ordered xmas cards (go me!) and next would like to drag the baby to get a photo with Santa, despite (or really, because of) the cheese factor 🙂 🙂

    Reply
    1. Feisty Harriet Post author

      The tree is my project for this weekend, and I am ridiculously excited about it! Yay, Christmas!

      xox

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Sherry Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *