Tis the season to be merry - and also stressed if you are organising Christmas this year. At such a special time, you want to get it right, but many people race up to the big day and are then too exhausted or stress to enjoy it. There’s a reason why Christmas Eve is a peak day for people getting colds. Here are our top tips for making Christmas a breeze:

Getting together with the family at Christmas should be full and fun and joy. In reality though the fun and joy rarely happens as spontaneously as it does on those Christmas TV ads. The secret to a successful Christmas with the family to think ahead and be prepared by considering who you’ve got coming with these three steps:

Tis the season to be merry - and also stressed if you are organising Christmas this year. At such a special time, you want to get it right, but many people race up to the big day and are then too exhausted or stress to enjoy it. There’s a reason why Christmas Eve is a peak day for people getting colds. Here are our top tips for making Christmas a breeze:

Here’s Part 2, tips for the big day itself. 

If you’re still planning and organising you can read Part 1 here...

Tis the season to be merry - and also stressed if you are organising Christmas this year. At such a special time, you want to get it right, but many people race up to the big day and are then too exhausted or stress to enjoy it. There’s a reason why Christmas Eve is a peak day for people getting colds. Here are our top tips for making Christmas a breeze...

There’s a reason Christmas Eve is the most common time of year for people to fall ill. Exhausted with the pressure of organising and burning the candle at both ends, most of us roll into the festive season and our bodies take the opportunity for a break - and make us ill. Avoid that this year with a bit of thought and careful planning.

I’ll let you into a little secret - no one’s Christmas actually looks like their Facebook post would have you believe. Most of us are just grateful we’ve managed to serve something resembling a dinner and not poisoned anyone in the process.

Christmas is usually such a mix of people, different styles, generations and needs that it can be really hard for everyone to have a good time. It is possible with a bit of planning and forethought. Consider these three needs:

Karen writes in Female First magazine about these nightmare Christmas scenarios
Made a fool of yourself at the Christmas Party? Unexpected Guests ? Arguments ? 
Read Karen's top tips for survival here:
 http://www.femalefirst.co.uk/books/survive-nightmare-christmas-situations-karen-meager-903231.html/