The Life of Bon: 6 Ways to Have a Truly Miserable Holiday

Sunday, December 21, 2014

6 Ways to Have a Truly Miserable Holiday




We all know Christmas is like the most uber best of all the holidays, right?  A lot of people think they know how to do Christmas right, but only bloggers have truly mastered the art of having the best Christmas ever. Or so we think.  Truth is sometimes all the extra bells and whistles around the holidays can make even the strongest of women go into panic mode.  Trust me I know because one of my favorite Christmas traditions is the annual Christmas break down. (You can read about them here and here.)  If you want to be just like me and about dang near go crazy with stress every Christmas time, then I will show you the ropes!  I present to you, how to have a very merry truly miserable holiday!

1.  Check Instagram several times a day to see how much more everyone is enjoying their holiday than you. If you are feeling frustrated, stressed, lonely, or overwhelmed the best thing to do to have a miserable holiday is hop on social media to see all of the people who never feel those things!  Cute couples kissing in front of lights, perfect Santa sugar cookies, and a Christmas tree up the day after Thanksgiving are great at making cranky people feel even crankier.  No one's life is perfect but social media would have you believe otherwise.  After all, no matter how much you are enjoying your holiday someone else might be enjoying theirs more!  The audacity!

INSTEAD:  Check social media when you are in a good mood, not a bad mood.  When you're feeling stressed or overwhelmed, take time out for yourself, read, go for a walk, and hang out with your family.

2.  Say yes to everything.  Every holiday party, every extra project, every holiday tradition from your great grandpas brother's ex wife.  To be truly miserable, over commit yourself to lots of stuff, realize you just can't do it all, and then bail last minute on someone who was counting on you.  Then you've upset someone else AND you've made yourself feel sick with guilt.  The more "stuff " you do during the holiday, the less you can actually enjoy the holiday.

INSTEAD:  Allow yourself to say no. Explain  in advance why you can't make the event or do the thing and be honest in your reasoning.  People respect and understand when you are straightforward and kind with them, even if you are saying no.  When you flake last minute, however, people usually aren't so generous with their understanding.

3.  Beat yourself up for not having your kitchen clean enough, the groceries bought, the menus planned and the presents wrapped.  I did this on Saturday- unleashed the water works because no matter how hard I try I just can't get to all the house stuff.  And trust me, it was miserable!

INSTEAD:  Set the timer for 15 minutes every night before bed and do a general clean up then.  The house will stay so much cleaner.  Order pizza for dinner instead of slaving over a perfect roast and use the extra time to soak in the tub and relax.

4.  Worry about super important  non important things like if you have your holiday manicure or if you bought your perfect baby her perfect baby Christmas dress.  No Christmas dress this year?  We will all live.  No picture of kids sitting on Santa lap?  I bet he'll still drop off a present or two.

INSTEAD:  Make some hot chocolate and cuddle up with your kids or husband or friends and watch a Christmas movie.  That time will be much more enjoyable than the time racing around the mall trying to catch Christmas perfection.

5.  Get presents for EVERYONE.  This means cute little presents for all of your neighbors, the people in your church group, your book club, your co workers, the peeps in your gym class.  You can't forget anyone!   Drive yourself crazy trying to remember to gift every single person in your life is a guaranteed way to quickly chase away any cheery feelings you may have had.

INSTEAD:  Try to be more sensitive and aware of the people who are really needing an extra lift this holiday and give a present to them.

6.  Make sure your Christmas Cards get sent out.  I will admit that I love the Christmas Card tradition- I've got a bunch on my fridge right now and gosh it just makes me feel loved.  But I just can't seem to get mine out on time.  Every year I kind of sort of hate myself for not having it together enough to send out a bunch of Christmas cards, but this year I didn't even really seriously entertain the idea and I haven't missed the stress a bit.

INSTEAD:  Send your holiday cards during another less stressful time of year, like Fourth of July cards or Valentine's Day cards. (There ain't nothing going on in February!)  Not only will you not go crazy trying to get them out, but people will probably notice and appreciate more the random holiday card in the middle of July.

There you have it- how to have a truly miserable holiday!  I am now going to go cuddle my baby and take a hot bath- one way to definitely NOT have a miserable holiday.  I hope you do the same!


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