Ho Ho Ho - Stressed to the max

It happens every single year. I begin the holiday season with hope, anticipation, excitement, and energy but within a couple of weeks I turn into the Grinch. I'm tired and stressed out folks! Every year I tell myself that I will do things differently - that I won't feel pressured to do everything or be everything to everyone, but every year I fail miserably.

Right now I'm sitting at my desk freaking out about my mile long holiday to-do list that I don't have the time to write. There's gifts to buy, gifts to make, gifts to wrap, cookies to bake, Christmas cards to order, Christmas cards to send, decorating to do, traditions to uphold, traditions to create, visiting to do, and lets not forget that pesky thing called a job that needs attending to every day. Yes, the list goes on and on. And yet somewhere, in between it all, I am supposed to find time to enjoy the moment - to enjoy the REAL meaning of Christmas -but how can I when it feels like the moments are flying by at sonic speed?

So what I want to know is this - what, if anything do you or your family do to make the holidays more meaningful? What is your de-stressing holiday secret? If you wouldn't mind passing it along I would be eternally grateful and it would really help me to de-Grinch-a-fy.