Welcome to this week's edition of (mindful) Merry Making.
My plan is to share my plans and my To Do list at the beginning of the week and then (hopefully) to check back in with the original weekly post and update with a Ta Da list of the things I accomplished.
If you'd like to read about the details behind this series and what my thought process behind this project is, read here: (mindful) Merry Making: an introduction.
This week I'm entering full on THANKSGIVING mode. Halloween is over. My oldest daughter's birthday has past. Now my November energies can turn to Thanksgiving and Advent prep and soaking up this last, lovely bit of Autumn.
I plan to update my giant list of Advent activities (a list I've maintained and updated since 2012, originally at Simple Kids), so check back later this week for that. You can find that here: Advent Activities: Simple Ways to Count the Days.
The Weekly To Do List
Holiday Frugal Deeds (done dirt cheap)
[ ] Check in with the GIFT LIST
[ ] Work (at least) one hour per day on homemade gifts
[ ] Holiday budget check in
[ ] $ Purchase 1/8 of gifts (I actually may skip this as I have a hunch some things will be better deals in a few weeks)
[ ] Compare grocery sales flyers to MASTER LIST for cooking, baking needs
[ ] Budget, set aside $ for any Black Friday or Cyber Monday sales
Household Frugal Deeds (done dirt cheap)
[ ] Pay bills, check balances
[ ] Menu plan for next week: simple meals, frugal meals
[ ] Can we eeek a third week of NO SPEND out of the month? (Probably not, but let's see how frugal we can keep things, as we prepare for the holiday season)
[ ] We have turned the heat on now, but let's work to keep it set to low and conserve energy
Around the House
[ ] Check in with any unfinished CATCH UP tasks
[ X ] Add any unfinished items from last week to the CATCH UP list
[ ] 101 Days to Christmas site (check in daily)
[ ] A Year of Puttery Treats (read each day)
[ ] Declutter the dining room
[ ] Have the children declutter their homeschool cubbies
[ ] Deep clean the dining room
[ ] Polish, dust all the dining room furniture
[ ] If there's room in the budget, purchase quilted dish storage kits for the dishes we inherited from my Grandmother (or make a note to do so after the holidays) - CHECK SALES
[ ] The kids need to spend some time cleaning their rooms
Holiday Preparations
[ ] Continue to work on ADVENT plans: readings, Advent Illustrated, activities with the kids, etc.
[ ] Find out if Christopher has to work over Thanksgiving (!!!)
[ ] Prep serving dishes and place settings for Thanksgiving
[ ] Finalize Thanksgiving plans
[ ] Finalize Thanksgiving menu
[ ] Prepare timeline for Thanksgiving meal prep
[ ] Plan centerpieces, table settings
[ ] Get everyone's Thanksgivings clothes cleaned, pressed, purchased $
[ ] Plan the calendar for next month: get as many final dates down as I can
[ ] Remember: WE CANNOT DO EVERYTHING, keep the calendar simple and realistic
[ ] Make and FREEZE one batch of holiday goodies
[ ] Make and FREEZE one Freezer Meal
[ ] Purchase 2 to 4 canned / boxed items from the MASTER LIST
[ ] Wrap and label packages
Family & Household
[ ] Write thank you notes (Jillian's birthday, nature swap, etc)
[ ] Baby gift for our new nephew
[ ] Does everyone have a snowsuit and snowboots that fits?
[ ] Plan the rest of the homeschool year
Celebrate!
[ ] Work on Autumn Crafts
[ ] Fill in the leaves on the Thankfulness Tree with the kids (ours came from the Dollar Spot at Target)
[ ] The Art Club Art Show
[X] Use the last of our Halloween candy (we only have M&Ms left) to make these cookies
Please note: Every individual family's budget, priorities, desires, and calendar is going to be different. I always say that one person's "simple" might very well be another person's "complicated" and that probably is more true at the holidays than just about any other time.
I want (mindful) Merry Making to be a positive series on the blog, and it will mainly be for my own personal motivation. I'm inviting you to join in and follow along, if you wish, but if this isn't for you, please just skip it. Take what you can use, let the rest go.