Let the Journey Begin

Organizing to be Organized

Do you often find that when you want to work on your Christmas Organizing planning your time is taken up by finding all the things you need to work on?

As time has gone by, I have realized that the things I need to help me get and stay organized extend beyond my Christmas Organizing Handbook.

A Christmas Organizing Notebook serves as the foundation of your holiday organization year after year. By creating a notebook, you will have everything at your fingertips and you can continuously reference it for reminders and direction concerning your holiday plans. 

Remeber, since most people do not have exactly identical lives, your notebook will be unique to you and your family.  Throughout this web site you will be given directions that will allow you to personalize your notebook and create a holiday organizing road map to help you celebrate your own special holiday season.

Basic Supplies to Create Your Christmas Notebook

The first item you need to purchase is a 3-ring binder large enough to contain all of your information.  You may wish to start out by using the notebook this information is in, but many people may need to upgrade to a larger notebook.  If you notice one area of your notebook, like crafts for example, getting too large, you may want to consider having a separate notebook for that particular section. 

The list below is a suggestion of items to have when working on your notebook.  You may want to add other items, as you need them.

1 to 3 inch 3-ring binder
3 hole punch
Index dividers for 3 ring binder
Slash pocket folders or page protectors for keeping loose items in (example: recipe or craft ideas from magazines, receipts from gifts you purchase, etc.)
Notebook paper
Zippered pouch to hold pens, pencils and other loose items
Calendar for the whole year (can be a store bought one, or printed from a computer program)
Pages designed with photo pockets on them (usually 4 to a page) where you can put recipe cards and/or address cards
Colored Pencils (for marking on your calendar)

Creating Sections for Your Notebook

Here is a list of tab ideas.  Do not feel locked in to these because everyone will have the same tabs.  You must decide what areas are the most important to you and make those YOUR tabs.  It would be unfair of me to decide what your tabs are for you without your input.  Everyone’s notebook will be different because everyone has their own traditions and celebrations during the holiday season.  You can use your Christmas reflection writing to help you set up tabs. Think of all the things you do at Christmas and make a tab for each of them.  Personally, I have found that the more divisions I have, even within the category itself, the better I do because it presents (looks like) a smaller goal and not this "big project", (which makes) making it easier to tackle.  Here is an example from my notebook:

Christmas card list & addresses
Gifts (Gift Box, Gift List, Gifts from the Heart and General Gift Ideas)
Calendar (for all year)
Activities to do
Crafts
Baking/recipes
Cooking/recipes
Decorating
Entertaining