5. Use Activity-Based Advent Calendars as an Excuse to Plan Ahead
As a parent with young kids, you'll want to start all kinds of fun holiday traditions. But also as a parent with young kids, time moves quickly, and December will fly by. To make sure you have all the experiences on your family's wish list, create an activity-based Advent calendar (who needs kids hopped up on chocolate treats every day, anyway?). At some point before Dec. 1, sit down and plan out one activity, big or small, for each day. Sure, some days can (and should, for your sanity) be as simple as "read The Night Before Christmas" or "sing 'Jingle Bells,'" but it's a smart way to schedule — and thus plan for — more substantial excursions or activities. That means setting dates for when you plan to ride your city's holiday train or visit Santa Claus at the library as well as the afternoons you intend to make an ornament craft or bake cupcakes for school. By committing those things to the calendar, they'll more likely happen . . . and won't creep up on you at the eleventh hour.
6. Prepare For Each Week Every Sunday
You did the hard work of arranging 25 days of holiday Advent calendar fun. Now you just need to remember to stick to your plan. Once a week, review the upcoming seven days and make sure, say, your grocery list is updated with the ingredients you'll need for Thursday night's hot cocoa making and tickets are procured for Sunday's excursion to the zoo's light display.
