Why I’m not simplifying the holidays

Special occasions deserve extra time and effort

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Today's tip is to realize that while some folks get
into simplifying the holidays, sometimes making a big production can
be a lot of fun. Special occasions are a great

(00:25):
opportunity to do that. Every year, around this time I
start seeing an avalanche of headlines about how to simplify
the holidays. The usual narrative is that we're all so
busy and put upon that adding the holidays to the
mix is an invitation to go crazy, so we should
pare down. Don't host that party, don't go to that party.

(00:48):
You don't have to send cards, you don't have to decorate,
don't give many gifts, and of course you don't have
to do any of these things. And plenty of people
don't celebrate the various December holidays anyway. But this line
of reasoning always strikes me as a bit bah humbug.
I mean, maybe there are people out there with such
fabulous social lives that they really can't pack in, say,

(01:11):
half a dozen extra things over the course of four
weeks of December. And maybe there are people who shoulder
the entire load of doing all the planning and gift
buying and such for their families. And if that's so,
the answer is to share this, which is one way
to streamline the holidays. But in general, most festivities associated
with the holidays are well fun. It's fun to see

(01:35):
sparkling lights and eat special dishes. It's fun to see
people we haven't seen in a while, especially when they're
all cleaned up and looking their best. Yes, people can
build all sorts of emotions and expectations into gift giving,
but the reason formal gift giving has evolved as a
custom all over the world is that it really does
cement relationships. Maybe it doesn't make logical sense that if

(01:58):
you and I both give each other fairly similar bottles
of wine will feel different about each other, But the
truth is we will, So why not acknowledge that and
make the most of it. Now. I'm no Martha Stewart,
but I do love seeing our tree with all the ornaments.
I love our matching stockings embroidered with each of our names,
And now I'm thinking how I can get a matching

(02:20):
one for the new little baby when he comes. I
make a holiday fun list every year with things like
going to the Nutcracker, going to a local model train display,
and seeing my kids perform in the church's Christmas pageant.
Ordering and wrapping presents is a lot of work, but
my husband and I split this and it's exciting to
see the happy faces on Christmas morning. And here's the

(02:43):
thing about it being a lot of work. Just like
with our recent episode on making those holiday trips, part
of wisdom is recognizing that things that make us happy
overall don't always make us blissful in the moment. So yes,
putting the kids in the car to go see Holida
lights takes more effort then marching through the usual routine

(03:03):
of dinner, baths and bed. Perhaps I'd be more rested
just doing the ladder, But what on earth am I
saving this energy for. It's hard to imagine the upside
of getting to January and thinking few, Thank goodness, I
didn't do anything. So I will not be simplifying the holidays.

(03:24):
I'll probably go a bit overboard as usual. But the
definition of special occasions is that they are special. They
don't happen all the time, so why not make the
most of them in the meantime. This is Laura thanks
for listening, and here's to making the most of our time.

(03:49):
Hey everybody, I'd love to hear from you. You can
send me your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just
connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before
Breakfast pod. That's B the number four, then Breakfast p
o D. You can also shoot me an email at
Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot com that

(04:12):
Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks
so much, I look forward to staying in touch. Before
Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For more
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