Christmas is 8 months from today!   Here are some things you can do now to help you be better prepared in December.

Remember, the goal is to have a low-stress December so that you are able to enjoy the holidays. Ideally, on Christmas Eve, you spend the day playing in the snow before coming inside to watch a Christmas movie while drinking hot cocoa and eating Christmas cookies.

• As you travel, for work or pleasure think about picking up small unique gifts from local shops. I've bought some of my best presents at little boutiques I stopped by on my way to a meeting. Of course, this means that you need a basic list of people that you know you'll buy for.
• Spring and summer are full of graduations and weddings and moves.  Make sure you update your Christmas card list.
• A rainy spring day is a great time to plow through your holiday recipe file, highlighting the keepers and discarding the ones you don't like.  You can even spend some time looking for healthier versions of family favorites! You can do the same thing with your file of craft ideas.
• Now is a great time to establish your holiday budget and to start putting money aside. You should never go into debt to buy presents, decorations, etc. It's perfectly fine to scale backyour plans to something more manageable.
• If you celebrate as a family, start to think about location, who will be responsible for what, what kind (if any) gift exchange you'll do. Having these discussions at a relaxed time is far less stressful than doing so  when you need to make a decision IMMEDIATELY!

What else can you do now to prepare?