I keep opening all these tabs on my computer with articles like

• How to Simplify Christmas
• Christmas Traditions
• Simplifying Christmas Traditions 
• What You Really Need this Christmas
• What You Don't Need this Christmas
• How to Simplify Your Kids' Christmas
• Clutter-Free Gifts for this Christmas
• Creating a Meaningful Christmas

And in the process I'm cluttering up my computer screen, my mind, my feeling of having more on that blasted To Do list; I've gotta read all these articles now and implement them into our lives - quickly, like last month!  And figure out what to do when some of the different articles by different authors contradict each other.  Gah!  Hello, stress!

And, for the love of Martha Steweart, WHAT do people mean when they say, "Are you ready for Christmas?"

Clearly I will NEVER be ready!

And then I got to thinking...

What if I stop trying to do all these things that other people keep telling me I have to do?

(And most of these people are people who I don't even know in real life!)

Oh, the freedom.
Oh, the release.

Letting go of somebody else's expectations.

Letting go of my own expectations.

My daughter is four.  She doesn't have any expectations honestly!  This is the first year she's shown interest in anticipation of Christmas.  She doesn't care how many different goodies we bake (or if we bake any!).  She doesn't care about the number of gifts she gets or what kind of gifts she gets (although, she would probably enjoy it more if it's more than just clothes.  Even I remember not getting too excited about clothes at Christmas time!).  She doesn't care about making sure we have traditions.  She barely knows about Santa, let alone an Elf on the Shelf (thank goodness, because I am NOT about to do that thing!).

What if, instead of planning what events we fill our family's schedule with for Christmas Eve, we instead spent time with our each other and off our screens?

What if we made memories as a family, instead of being jealous of others' families posted on Instagram?

What if we looked at our loved ones' faces, rather than at Facebook?

What if we just relax and be, instead of plan and do?

If I say the focus of Christmas is celebrating Christ's coming to earth, do I show I believe it by what I do?  Or am I making our culture's traditions and expectations the priority of this season?

You can add this blog post to your own To Do list - another article telling you what to do or not do this Christmas.  Or you can be encouraged by it and contemplate your own priorities and expectations and choose to focus on what really matters.