Five Ways to Find Peace in the Busy Advent Season

As the calendar closes in on Christmas it’s easy to lose sight of the peace that is supposed to come with this season. If your Advent is headed in a less than peaceful direction, here are five strategies to get back on track.

Write it all down.

If you don’t have a family calendar the other eleven months out of the year, make one for December. Put everyone’s commitments on it, starting with the non-negotiables. Also, make lists of everything you need to do this month, and if you aren’t a paper planner person why not print a copy of our Christmas Checklist from our freebie library this month? You can become a member for free here, or current members can log in right here (search your inbox for "Pink Salt Riot" if you can't remember your password - we try and include it in every email!).   You can print as many as you need for yourself, and the rest of your family as well. If you have kids old enough to have their own holiday to dos you can also print one for each of them and guide them in writing down gifts they want to make, purchase, or wrap, and other seasonal things they need to get done.

Shop early and from as few places as possible.

Do not procrastinate on gifts that matter to you! There is nothing that steals holiday peace quite like constantly checking to see if your gifts will arrive in time. Select a few retailers that will be able to meet the majority of your gifting needs and place your orders in early December. Then you will have just a few packages to keep track of, and the bulk of your shopping will be knocked out quickly. Here at Pink Salt Riot we like to think that we are a pretty excellent one stop shop for the girls and women on your list. With everything from stickers, tattoos, and pencils to fine customizable jewelry, you can knock out stocking stuffers, gifts for your sisters, moms, and girlfriends all in one stop. We also ship orders out within 2 business days, even in the heart of the holiday season and most of our US customers have their orders in hand in 5 business days.

Say no.

It’s easy to get buried under a pile of commitments in December. But it’s also a great opportunity to look at your priorities and be intentional about what you say yes to. When you’re filling out that family calendar from #1, why not take a moment to consider whether each activity supports your priorities and serves to prepare your family for Christmas. Not everything is optional, i know, but consider what matters most in allocating your time this season.

Make time to enjoy the season as a family.

Put some time on your calendar to do fun family activities, either with old traditions or new ones you’d like try. Some fun ideas include baking as a family, decorating cookies, caroling at a nursing home, or wrapping presents as a family for other friends and extended family members. Let the joy of the season be something you experience as a family and not just something something you rush through as individuals.

Make time to reflect on the gift of Christmas yourself.

It’s important to remember that the Advent season is meant to be a season like Lent, a time of reflection and preparation. We reflect not only on Jesus’ coming 2000 years ago, but His coming into our own hearts and lives. If we don’t take the time to reflect, we miss out on so much of the grace the season has to offer, and therefore a great source of peace, no matter how busy the season is. There are so many great Advent reflection programs out there, but the two that I personally recommend are the Blessed Is She study, Bearing Light, and the reflection program I run each year called A Beauty Full Advent. What do you do to keep a peaceful heart in Advent? We'd love to hear your thoughts and practices in the comments!