STRESS FREE HOLIDAY TIP #8

Be proactive. We are officially into the Christmas count down now, the last week before Christmas. Exciting for some, not so much for others. The holidays and special occasions are so commercialized it's hard not to fall into that trap, and it's even harder for the people that do not look forward to the holidays to face that everytime they step out the front door. The build up for Christmas typically starts right after Halloween nowadays. Many of us start shopping, preparing, and decorating as early as two months beforehand. My wise grandmother used to say, "The bigger the build up, the harder the fall." When the day comes and those two months of preparing are over, the presents are gone, the parties are over, family and close friends have all gone back home and we are left with our real lives once again, it can put some of us into a real depression. So be proactive and be ready for a potential let down. Or be excited, it's almost Easter -- according to the stores anyhow!!