My Fall To-Do List: Falling into Winter

One of the most potentially stressful seasons is upon us: the winter holidays. Depending on what you celebrate, you have more or fewer holidays. I personally celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving, my husband’s birthday, Christmas, and New Year’s. Luckily, I have a lot of luck using a Fall To-Do List to keep the season more enjoyable than stressful. Here’s the list I pretty much recycle each year:

Fall To-Do List

General

• Schedule Saturday Suppers, Friendsgiving, Fondue Fun Party
• Send holiday card
  • Design in Canva
  • Print card
  • Address and stuff envelopes

Halloween

• Send out invite for our party
• Decide on Halloween costumes
• Make costumes
• Go to a pumpkin patch
• Make caramel apples

Matt’s Birthday

• Brainstorm gift ideas
• Purchase gift
• Talk to him about what kind of birthday he wants to have
• Hang the Happy Birthday banner

Thanksgiving

• Send out invite for Friendsgiving
• Schedule reminder emails for one month out, 2 weeks out, and 1 week out
• Order tables, chairs, and bounce house
• Figure out table settings and tablecloth
• Plan menu
• Make name cards/gifts

Christmas

• Make a list of everyone who is getting gifts
• Plan gifts
• Purchase gifts
• Plan Fondue Fun Party
• Get gifts for Fondue Fun
• Get a tree
• Order supplies for our Christmas Countdown
• Make my personal gift list

New Year’s

• Decide how to celebrate
• Complete reflection process

The list helps me stay ahead of all the things I want to make happen in the season, like ordering supplies for our Christmas Countdown before it begins on December 1.

I could take this list to the next level by moving it into google sheets, assigning due dates and using the filter function to re-order the list by due date. Then I could simply work through them chronologically. But this version of the list works okay for me. If I start early, I can tackle things here and there. I try to take a proper lunch break as often as humanely possible. This list serves as my lunchtime to-do list.

Before getting into the weeds of separate to-do tasks, it does help to ask these questions:

What kind of season do I want to have?

1. Are there things I should add to my list to make that happen?
2. Are there things I should subtract from my list to make that happen?
3. Is everything on the list absolutely essential?
4. What could get cut if I start to feel stressed?
5. Is every single thing on this list an authentic expression of my desires or am I living out someone else’s Pinterest life?

I’m personally looking forward to a season of ritual. We are hosting our annual Halloween Party, our annual Friendsgiving Party, and our annual Fondue Fun Party. We are also traveling to see my family in Florida and maybe Matt’s family in Indiana.

For me, it’s a season of connection and fun. The stuff on my list feels like the right set of things for me. However, I do need to work ahead and spread everything out so that none of it feels overwhelming. For example, sending holiday cards won’t feel fun if I’m forced to address them all in one sitting.

I’m also staring at modern motherhood with a side-eye. It feels like every season is somehow stressful. Back-to-school is stressful. The Halloween-Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Year corridor is stressful. May used to be the end-of-school stress but now it’s April and May.

I think it’s important to pay close attention to our lives. We are not obligated to enact others’ expectations. We do not need to do anything we see on Instagram (unless we want to!).

I’m pretty sure these are the things that will bring me joy this year—as long as I can stay ahead of everything. Then I can be fully present and enjoy the moment.

Wishing you an awesome Fall season!