A lot of people can really over work themselves decorating for Christmas. It's easy to get caught up on the warm and joyful feelings Christmas can bring and do too much. Then you end up too exhausted to actually be present in your spirit when Christmas and your loved ones arrive.
1) Make a list of everything you want to do. For me it looks like this:
Decorate the fireplace mantle
Put up the tree
Put together the Nativity
Set up the Advent wreath
Decorate the dining table
Decorate end tables and around mirrors
Wrap gifts
Whew! Just looking at that can make you tired!
2) Break it into small bites of one hour to two hours at the most in a day and figure how many days it will take
3) Set a start date and an end date far enough ahead that you can relax for the week of Christmas at the very least but an earlier end date is better.
4)Decide which job comes first and which comes next. I like to start with the tree and fireplace mantle. It feels like Christmas right away. Then the Advent wreath and Nativity because we work with them together putting the last five pieces into the Nativity as we celebrate a character of Christ each week. Then comes the dining table, then the end tables and mirrors and that leaves wrapping gifts a few at a time. The lights outside of the house I have to wait on Lew and my grandson, Zack, so that gets stuck in when they can do it.
This process literally gets done in four days time or less except for the wrapping of presents and I am not over worked or exhausted. If you have tried to do it all at once, try this process. It may work for you too.