Wrong!
I grabbed all my stuff and took it to the kitchen only to realize the table was a mess. So I cleaned all the stuff off the table, cleaned the table itself, then dried it (because we don't want wet wrapping paper, do we). OK, time to wrap. I drop my load and step to the side only to find...I'm stepping in crumbs. I HATE crumbs. They are my nemesis. Time for the broom. OK, got that cleaned up. Time to wrap, right?
GROOOWWWWL
Uh, that was my stomach. Forgot it was snack time. Back to the fridge for a snack and drink. Now are we all ready?
YES!! But wait, where are the things I am going to wrap? Still hidden in the closet, of course. OK, off to get them (which involves getting the step stool to reach the upper shelf). Now I'm ready to wrap.
And wrap I did! 25 presents in an hour and 15 minutes - WOOHOO!! Another morning like that and I'll be done.
Here are some things I learned that make my life easier:
1) Buy one of these.
A Scotch 3M paper cutter. Apparently I can't cut in a straight line with scissors. But this little thing helps me cut much straighter (not all the way straight, but straighter).
2) Get a big box and put all the stocking stuffers together in the box. If there is anything that could be confused about which child it goes to, write their name on the back of the package. Now on Christmas Eve, all I have to do is pull out the big box and stuff the stockings. No more searching the house to find where I hid all the little gifts.
3) If you are wrapping a bunch of gifts, save time by wrapping all the gifts for one person in the same paper. In our house, David gets the Thomas the train paper and the blue snowman paper. Julie gets the princess and High School Musical paper. Then when you are all done, go and slap all the tags on the gifts at one time (or don't even tag them, just go by the paper).
4) OK, this tip is for those who are as anal as me. Before Christmas shopping starts (so like July if you're me), make up a spreadsheet with everyone you have to buy for and your budget for each person. When you get the gift, enter it and the price in there. Also put in there where you hid the gift (or a code if you have sneaky little ones). Then when it's time to wrap, you know where everything is. (This plan was developed after discovering gifts in Feb that I had forgotten about and/or lost :)) Then when you wrap the gift, highlight the cell to show you how close you are to being finished. I'm a huge task-oriented person and the list to cross of is great motivation to me.
That's it. That's all the insights into my weird habits great wrapping tips I have. What about you? Do you have any great tips?
Posts
I like to "hide" wrapped gifts in plain sight. It drives Clay nuts! I bought a BIG gift for Kaylie. It shipped in a BIG box. That box is sitting in our guest room in plani sight and Kaylie has noooooo clue!
ReplyDeleteAlso, another good wrapping tip is make sure you actually have tape BEFORE you get out all the gifts and paper and such.
I'm with you up until #4. LOL
ReplyDeleteI love that Scotch paper cutter. I'm going to look for that next time I'm out. :)
Wonderful list! I've always wanted one of those 3M paper cutters but was never sure if they worked or not. I'm putting it on my Christmas list!
ReplyDeleteI like the character coded wrapping paper, that seems like a simple way to keep everything straight. I'll be sure to use that tip this year. Thanks!
I do #2 and #3, too. And I also start shopping WAY early. Before kids (and when they were really little), my goal was to be done before July. That hasn't happened in the past few years! But I may try again next year.
ReplyDelete