We are officially at that time of year where many people run on stress hormones. What if you were to make changes to how you do things, so that did not happen, and you end that cycle?!
Christmas time is one of my favorite times of the year. But it had become so stressful and every year I was waking up Christmas morning with a nasty cold.
I made changes so that I could enjoy the whole month, including Christmas Day and the 12 days after Christmas before I took down the tree and all the decorations.
Holiday tips for maintaining your sanity:
I used to do all the baking, this included Danish pastries for my husbands birthday (12/17) and our daughters birthday (12/20). Christmas cookies, dessert for Christmas as well. I now only bake Christmas cookies and do that with 2 of our grandchildren making an event of it, with a sleepover. We bake enough for them to bring home so their Mom does not need to bake. I order our Christmas dessert from a local bakery that uses clean ingredients.
I begin shopping for gifts in August. I DO leave a little room in the budget for the grandchildren who will invariably announce they told Santa they wanted XYZ, but never told anyone else!
AS I buy gifts, I take the price tag off before I put it away in hiding. I cannot tell you how much time and frustration that saves, if you do it as you buy it! I also make an envelope with each person’s name I am buying for at this time; to put receipts in.
I wrap gifts during Thanksgivings long weekend. Sometimes (like this year) this falls on the same weekend we get our Christmas tree. In that case, I may NOT get all the décor up but will begin it and do a little each day that week until done.
As we move into the colder months, we are more likely to be making stews, soups and casseroles for dinners. If you are doing that, make extra and freeze it. Now you have a homemade meal you can put in the oven to re-heat after one of those crazy days that even the best of planning does not eliminate!
The idea is to sit back and ENJOY the Christmas season, not simply survive it.
Some holiday party tips to maintain your health:
Carry a glass of water in one hand, this makes it much harder to shovel food in! It also keeps you hydrated. Dehydration makes you tired and irritable, which in turn means more likely to eat sweet treats!
The holidays are about maintenance, not deprivation. Go ahead and have sweets at parties (if you do not have Diabetes or Insulin Resistance) but go with the one for each hand rule. You cannot enjoy yourself if you are constantly worrying about calories and depriving yourself of things you want. Deprivation is stressful, stress leads to high cortisol production, and weight gain due to excess cortisol.
Fill your plate with mostly healthy options, and less room for those sweets. ENJOY the sweets you did take, really enjoy them.
Talk to people, you are not eating when you are talking! If that worries you, plan some questions you can ask of others in advance. People are much more comfortable talking about themselves than you realize!
Most importantly, enjoy yourself in every moment of every day, THIS 2024 holiday season is the only one you will ever have, yes there will be others, but THIS one is it, not happening again. LOOK for positive things every day, smile at a stranger. Enjoy it and everyone in it.
This months recipe is actually our favorite part of Thanksgiving! The leftover turkey is used to make it (but this can also be made with leftover chicken).
Turkey Tetrazzini
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 package of spaghetti (I use Jovial brand, gluten free)
1 package of mushrooms
2 cups of diced turkey, about ½ inch-1 inch cubes
4 Tbsp butter
6 Tbsp flour (I use Pamela’s brand gluten free baking flour)
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp black pepper
2 cups chicken broth (or turkey broth if you made that from the carcass)
2/3 cup of cream (You can use coconut cream if you cannot do the dairy)
¼ tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp sherry
½ cup of grated parmesan cheese
Break up spaghetti into 2-inch pieces and boil as directed on packaging, drain and place in a large baking dish.
Sauté the mushrooms in about a Tbsp of butter, set aside
In a saucepan, melt 4 Tbsp butter
Add 6 Tbsp flour and begin whisking
Add ¼ tsp each of salt and pepper
Add 2 cups of chicken broth
Boil for 2 minutes while whisking
Add 2/3 cup of cream, ¼ tsp nutmeg, 1 Tbsp sherry, and you can re-salt to taste.
Cover the spaghetti with half the sauce, the mushrooms and the diced turkey. Then top with the rest of the sauce and a ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese, enough to fully cover.
Bake at 400 degrees F until cheese is brown, about 20 minutes.
May your Christmas be just like Santa did it all!
Filled with happiness, family, healthy foods, a treat for each hand and love.
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