I am overwhelmed. Big surprise, huh? I haven’t wrapped a single Christmas gift and still have a few odds & ends to pick up. Hannah hasn’t seen Santa yet and it has been snowing the whole month of December and the poor child doesn’t have snow boots that fit. She does have some snazzy, sparkly boots from Justice, but they were obviously designed for looks, not comfort or keeping her little girl feet dry. I haven’t made a single cookie or piece of fudge. I put this enormous amount of pressure on myself to do way more than any human being could handle and then end up disappointed and frustrated when I can’t accomplish it all.
Am I really piling too much on my to-do list or am I not utilizing my time wisely? I honestly believe it is a little of both. How do I solve this and still end up feeling good about what I did accomplish? I have been thinking a lot about this. I have pondered many different scenarios. What is going to happen if I don’t make Christmas cookies or fudge? I can tell you one thing, Aaron won’t get mad that we have multiple different kinds of cookies stuffed in our extra freezer for the next 6 months. Will I miss my favorites? Yes, but I’ll have to accept the fact that it isn’t always possible to have everything that I want. I have what I need. I am going to give myself permission to not try to “do it all” over the next 2 weeks. I am going to concentrate on spending time with my family, wrapping presents and getting the things done that really need to be done, such as taking my daughter to see Santa and buying her some snow boots, not the things that would make me appear more Martha Stewart-like.
After I gave myself permission to knock a bunch of items off of the to-do list that is in my head, I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. I felt like I had given myself a gift – the gift of time. Time to do what I need to get done and a little left over to relax. It is true that I work well under pressure, but I don’t like how that makes me feel.
Fortunately I have a pumpkin pie in the freezer that I made at Thanksgiving time. My recipe makes 2 pies and there was no reason that we needed 2 at Thanksgiving, so in the freezer it went! For Christmas day dessert, I am using a new recipe that I found on Live Gluten Freely that uses the Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Devil’s Food Cake. I will make sure to let you all know how that turns out. I am simplifying my meal plan this week and enjoying the ride.
Sunday – Holiday dinner with girlfriends
Monday – Spaghetti with meat sauce, green beans and salad
Tuesday -Taco Tuesday
Wednesday-Burgers, baked potatoes, asparagus & salad
Thursday-Pizza and salad (and that pizza may just come from Mellow Mushroom 😉 )
Friday-Ham, brown rice, baked potatoes, carrots, broccoli, salad, pumpkin pie
Saturday – Christmas dinner at my Dad’s house
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Sending out a big CONGRATS to Anna – Anna won my Gluten-free Holiday Giveaway Galore.
Want to enter a fun giveaway from Katz? Click here for more information.
Discounts being offered by Around the World Gourmet.
Gluten-free foods becoming more abundant in stores.
