What to put in a Christmas planner for easy holiday prep
There’s a lot of organisation that goes into Christmas, and one of the best ways to stay on top of it all is by using a Christmas planner, which not only simplifies Christmas, but minimises a lot of the overwhelm felt at this time of year.
This article covers what a Christmas planner is, and what to include in yours, so you stay on top of all the Christmas essentials, making your Christmas planning simple and enjoyable.
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What is a Christmas planner?
A Christmas planner, or a Christmas binder, is where you store all of your ideas, plans, to dos, and anything else you need to remember or do for Christmas.
Creating your planner
You can create your planner by using a notebook to write down your Christmas tasks, you can purchase a Christmas planner that has prewritten sections in it to help you plan for Christmas, or my favourite way, you can create your own Christmas binder using the following supplies:
What to include in your planner
Here are some things that you can include in your planner.
You don’t need to include all of these, choose the things that you need to organise as part of your family’s Christmas.
Master to do list
Writing a master to do list where you list everything you need to do for Christmas, will help you to feel less overwhelmed about what you need to think about.
Things to include on your master to do list are:
- Christmas events you want to attend
- Gift ideas
- Home décor ideas
- New meal ideas
Once you’ve finished your master to do list, write dates next to each item that you’d like to complete them by, and add the dates to your planner, so you can start to tick them off.
Christmas budget
It’s easy to overspend during the holidays, especially when it comes to gift giving, but having a Christmas budget section in your planner can help you be much more intentional with your spending.
When setting your Christmas budget, make a list of all the expenses you’ll incur over Christmas, including things like gifts, food, outings, gift wrap, and travel.
Next determine how much you want to spend on each area, or in total, and see if there’s ways you can keep costs down, such as asking if extended family wants to do Secret Santa, or if someone else can host Christmas this year.
Here are some things you can include in your Christmas budget section.
- Bedding, furniture, cutlery or crockery needed for guests
- Cards and gift wrapping supplies
- Décor
- Entertainment
- Gifts
- Meals
- Travel expenses
Gifts, stocking stuffer and advent calendar lists
Another planner section you can include are lists for gifts, stocking stuffers, and advent calendar fillers.
Starting this section as early as October means you can take advantage of sales, and you can break gift buying over a larger amount of time, to spread costs out.
The best way to start a gift list is to list everyone you need to buy for, including teachers and spare gifts.
When it comes to kid’s gifts, I like to buy a couple of gifts for each of the following:
- Something to wear
- Something to read
- Something they want
- Something they need
Once you’ve listed everyone you need to buy for, list gift ideas for them. At the same time, make a list of stocking stuffer ideas, and if you’re making your own advent calendar list advent calendar filler ideas as well.
Once you’ve finalised your gift list, start purchasing them, keeping an eye on sales.
I also like to add a delivered section to my gift list, so I can follow up any gifts that haven’t arrived by the time they were due.
Christmas supplies and decor lists
Keep a list of all the Christmas supplies and décor you need, making sure you dedicate time before Christmas to go through your supplies and throw out what’s broken, and replace what’s needed.
Some supplies you may like to add to your supplies and décor list include:
- Batteries
- Christmas cards
- Christmas crackers
- Christmas wrapping paper (including Santa only wrapping paper)
- Gift tags
- Ribbon
- Scissors
- Sticky tape
Christmas card list
If you send Christmas cards, having a Christmas card list that details who you want to send cards to, as well as their most up to date address, will make this task easier.
Meal plan
Including a meal planning section in your planner with the following information, will save a lot of stress when it comes to Christmas meals:
- Favourite Christmas recipes, or recipes to try
- Menus for meals you’ll be having at home, which can include breakfast, lunch, canapes, starters, mains, sides, desserts, and snacks
- Print outs of recipes, or recipe links
- Grocery lists broken down into sections like pantry, fridge, freezer, drinks, and long life snacks
- Food timing schedule, a schedule of when you need to start cooking or prepping each meal so everything’s ready at the same time
Cleaning and decluttering schedules
New items will be entering your home over Christmas, so getting your home organised before Christmas, may be a useful thing to add to your Christmas binder.
Here are some things you can add to your Christmas binder to make home organisation a breeze:
- Christmas decluttering checklists
- Pre Christmas toy declutter
- Quick daily cleaning tasks so you don’t have to do a massive pre Christmas tidy up
Christmas traditions list
Keeping a list of any Christmas traditions your family enjoys, or that you want to start, is another great idea to add to your Christmas planning activities.
Some Christmas tradition ideas are:
- Baking Christmas treats
- Going for a Christmas Day walk
- Going to Christmas markets, pantomimes, or concerts
- Reading Christmas books, some of my family’s favourites are How the Grinch Stole Christmas and The Polar Express
- Visiting Santa
- Watching family Christmas movies, like Elf and Home Alone
Christmas reflections
Once Christmas is over, reflecting on the day will save you time and money next Christmas.
Here are some questions you can add to your planner to make this easier:
- What did I love about Christmas?
- What did my family love about Christmas?
- What went well?
- What didn’t go well?
- What do I want to keep doing next year?
- What do I want to stop doing next year?
- Did I stay on budget? Why or why not?
Additional sections
Here are some additional sections that you may like to add to your Christmas binder:
- Christmas craft ideas
- Decorating ideas
- Elf on the Shelf ideas
- Receipts, flyers, memories
- Travel packing lists
Creating a Christmas planner – a recap
A Christmas planner is truly the best way to stay organised, and enjoy a calm, stress free festive season.
By keeping everything from gift lists and meal plans, to décor ideas and family traditions in one place, you’ll save yourself from last minute stress, and make space for more of what really matters – time with loved ones.
Whether you prefer a simple planner, or a detailed planner with all the extras, the key to a Christmas planner is to make it work for you and your family.
You don’t need to include everything listed here, just include the things that help you stay on top of what you need to make your Christmas preparations smoother.
Start small, and build your planner year after year as you discover what’s most useful.
Would you like a Christmas checklist showing what Christmas tasks you can work on by month? If so, be sure to download your FREE Christmas list printable so you’re ready before the big day arrives.
What’s one thing you always forget to do before Christmas that you’d love to finally stay on top of this year?
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