Avoid Holiday Stress, Shop Local

What is it about this holiday season? I’ve been more stressed than I can remember.

Juggling work to make it to school holiday programs. Remembering to buy and drop off teacher appreciation gifts.

Finding the time to find the right gifts. Getting them early enough to mail before Christmas.

Wanting to please without overdoing it. Wrapping. Planning our trek through Indiana to visit family. Packing gifts. Packing up me. Sim. The kids. The guinea pig.

Ugh. How did things get so crazy? Is it like this every year and I just develop some form of holiday prep amnesia?

What’s worse, is that I usually look forward to this time of year. I enjoy shopping (not for myself), but for family and friends. For some reason, this year’s been different, more hectic. I’ve found myself making multiple panic-buying trips to Target trying to tie up loose ends.

But even as I cross off names from my list, few of those purchases have been satisfying. I mean, the gifts are fine. They’ll probably be appreciated. No worries if they’re not (I included gift receipts).

Then, today, I realized my problem with my shopping strategy this year — my Big Box purchases fall flat. The one-stop-shop convenience just doesn’t work for me. My chain-store purchases lack personality and creativity. So I turned my browser from Amazon to Etsy for inspiration, looking for unique gifts for some of the hardest people for me to buy for this year.

That’s when it dawned on me where I live, just a stone’s throw – a short walk actually – from a thriving arts district. I looked up a few galleries online and was delighted to see they have long evening hours during the week.

Instead of heading home from the train, I walked to the shops and found just what I was looking for: warm friendly shops, pleasant conversation with artists and local business owners, and gifts I can feel excited about giving.

On my way out of one of my favorite shops, Art Gecko, owner/artist Lisa Nordstrom said, “Thank you for shopping local.”

I responded with a polite wish for a happy holiday.

But I should have thanked her for renewing my Christmas spirit, helping me to be less stressed about getting the “right” gift and instead back to having fun.