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I'm so glad that you're here with me
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today as we head into this final stretch
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before Christmas and the holidays. This
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week can feel so magical, but it can
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also be incredibly overwhelming with our
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countdown and our timelines. And there's
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pressure to finish shopping and wrap
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presents and plan meals and you know the
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expectation that we want everything to
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be just perfect. And for some this
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season brings a lot of grief and stress
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and complicated family dynamics. So
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today we're going to talk about how to
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prepare your heart and your mind for the
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holidays with a few themes. The first is
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finding peace when the leadup feels
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heavy, the gift of rest before the rush
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and traditions and transformation
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and joy and grief coexisting. And then
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most importantly, choosing connection
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over perfection. So, if you ever feel
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like you're sprinting toward Christmas
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instead of savoring it, then this show
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is for you. I know that historically,
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the pressure that I put on myself, that
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was absolutely what happened for me. And
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trying to make everything just right and
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fair and even and lovely for all of my
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kids was really a lot of work and a lot
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of pressure and oftentimes pretty
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expensive. And it just took some of the
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joy out of my sales. And so I hope that
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this show helps you not have that happen
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to you and helps you to recalibrate in
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the final days before the holidays. So
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first we're going to talk about finding
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peace when a countdown feels like
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pressure and feels heavy.
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So during this week before Christmas and
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the holidays, it can stir up a lot of
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anxiety, uh unfinished lists, things
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that aren't done, family expectations,
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family dynamics, or memories that hurt.
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Peace doesn't mean doing everything. It
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means choosing what matters the most.
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And so this is about learning to let go
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of things you can't control and adapting
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and being flexible. So give you an
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example. A person realizes the big
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family gatherings trigger a lot of old
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wounds and they choose a smaller dinner
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with some trusted friends instead. Or
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they stack some of their events with
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other things they want in between. Or
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maybe they don't say yes to everything
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and they say no to some of the things.
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Maybe someone skips the mall and the
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chaos there and orders a few things
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online and bakes cookies instead with
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their kids instead of running to the
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mall. And that helps to create some calm
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and some connection. So it's about rep
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prioritizing what works for you. So this
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week I want you to ask yourself what
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actually matters to you? What's really
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important? What's a deal breakaker for
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timelines? And then give yourself
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permission to decline events that feel
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like too much or draining. Uh maybe
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create a grounding ritual, something
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that helps keep you calm. Listen to some
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music or light a candle or go for a walk
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that's mindful and present. You know,
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get off your phone and um just be in the
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presence of yourself um in the weather
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and the trees. uh maybe use phrases
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like,"I appreciate the invite, but I'm
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keeping things simple this year and so
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I'm going to decline, but thanks so
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much." Those are some ways that you can
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set a few boundaries around the hustle
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and bustle of everything that's going
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on. So, I know for me, I love to rest,
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but I find it hard to find time for
