In a little over a week the commercial feeding frenzy commonly known as the holiday season will begin. How will you survive that 33-day span?

Traffic, stores packed with shoppers, weather, family issues and holiday stress all jell together to make your life a living nightmare.

You Have To Have A Plan

You probably already have a plan for Thanksgiving since it’s a little over a week away. However there are some things you need to remember about Thanksgiving.

First of all, Thanksgiving eve is the biggest drinking day of they year. Everyone shows up on your doorstep with a bottle or six-pack ready to party and give thanks.

Also it’s a great day to break your diet. If it doesn’t have sugar then there’s no need for it to be on the table. Carbs are the order of the day.

Planning to keep your health by not over consuming will take all the intestinal fortitude you can muster.

So moderation should be at the top of your mind.

Christmas Is A Whole New Ball Game

Christmas is all encompassing. It can take over your whole existence if you let it.

It can drain your bank account, raise your blood pressure, damage your psyche, strain family relationships and leave you in a position of envying Clark Griswold.

Once again a plan will make the excursion through this time frame much more manageable.

We always put up our tree over the Thanksgiving weekend. A plastic tree may not be in the true spirit of Christmas but pine needles, fire danger, water, etc. means more stress triggers you don’t need.

Create a budget and stick to it. Believe it or not credit cards must be paid back.

Buying something on sale then paying a 26 percent interest rate on it till next Christmas turns out to be not much of a sale.

Online shopping is easy but it’s also easier to overspend because of additional suggestions presented to you.

In fact you’d be ahead to pay cash for all your gifts in July at full pop and stick them in the closet until Christmas morning.

No January bills.

Some Final Thoughts

Everything speeds up between Nov 22nd and Dec. 26th. Everyone is in a hurry, the lines are longer, and traffic is backed up more often.

Keeping your stress at a manageable level is a challenge.

But with a little planning and some down time between the items on your to-do list you can make the holiday season a very happy and joyful time.

How do you survive this timeline? Comments below.

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