The holiday season is approaching, and even though it’s supposed to be a time for joy and celebration, it can often bring a lot of stress. This is particularly true for parents who have a lot of family to buy gifts for. From your parents living in an assisted living facility to all of your nieces and nephews, the list can get long!
From the crowded stores to the long lines, to the pressure of what to buy, Christmas shopping can be a headache for many people. For some people it can totally overshadow the purpose of Christmas which is about family and faith.
It doesn’t have to be stressful or anything other than wonderful, if you can manage to plan accordingly. To help you, here are some tips for making your Christmas shopping a smooth and stress-free experience.
Start Early
As they say, the early bird gets the worm. That’s why it’s so important that you get started early when it comes to your shopping. Not only will you avoid the stress that comes along with procrastination, but you may even find you get much better deals.
Waiting until the last minute can lead to sold out items, and panicking about how you’ll get the gift you wanted to buy. Get started early by making a list of all of the gifts you want to buy and for who. Create a budget, and decide whether it’s realistic for the amount of money you’re working with. This will avoid chaos, and help avoid impulse purchases or last minute stress.
Embrace Online Shopping
Online shopping is one of the best kept secrets for avoiding holiday stress. You get to do all your shopping from the comfort of your own home, avoiding unnecessary crowds, and sometimes getting even better deals. Many online retailers will offer exclusive online deals that aren’t available in their physical stores, which is an extra added perk to doing your shopping online.
Just make sure that you are careful about delivery dates. Sometimes we do all our Christmas shopping, thinking we’re off the hook, only to find that the items we ordered are arriving after Christmas Day!
Always check the estimated delivery dates before making your final purchase. Many retailers will offer express shipping, which is something you should take advantage of if the estimated arrival date is close to Christmas
Plan Shopping Times Strategically
Sometimes you can’t find everything you want online. You may have to go out and do a little shopping in physical stores. It’s as simple as strategically planning your shopping trips so you can do them outside of peak shopping hours.
Very early in the morning, right before closing time, or during lunch is often a great time to skip the crowds, as usually people tend to go late in the morning or just after getting out of work. This won’t just help you avoid long lines, but it will also help avoid the nightmare of Christmas parking lots.