Whenever I watch old movies and read books set in bygone eras, I’m struck by how late they shopped, how they’d wait until Christmas Eve to trim the tree. If even Donna Reed’s character in “It’s A Wonderful Life” – the quintessential mom and housewife – didn’t drag out her Rubbermaid bin of ornaments until December 24, should we really hold ourselves to a higher standard?

My point: despite what Instagram would have us believe, there’s no such thing as “too late”. No matter when you start, it counts.

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Depending on your spiritual beliefs, a ‘miracle’ may mean very different things to you. Divine intervention, a manifestation of energy, or simply happy coincidences; no matter your take on how they happen, I think we can all agree that they happen – right?

And what I’m struck with is how often the right thing happens just when you need it most, and how they sometimes cluster together, as though purposefully set there to get your attention.

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It takes time to learn how to do things, and it takes even more time to learn how to do them WELL. (And if you involve your kids in making things, your finished projects will likely never be magazine-page perfect.) But isn’t that what makes them charming, heartfelt, and totally unique? Imperfect as it may be, that first – or fifteenth – messy attempt is worth giving as a gift, hanging up, or displaying in the middle of the table.

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Free spirits don’t always love being fenced in, but nothing feels better to an big-picture thinker than actually pulling off an ambitious dream. So give yourself the gift of a solid, workable plan that will make it possible to knock at least one of those optimistic goals out of the park. Then sit back, pour a cup of celebratory cocoa, and follow that impromptu plan wherever it takes you.

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For those of you who struggle with perfectionism and over-planning, adding an activity in what feels like the 11th hour may seem crazy. But remember, sometimes the best traditions start with a spur-of-the-moment decision. Could you bundle up the kids and go on a “cocoa walk” at dusk to check out the holiday lights in your area? Grab a roll of slice-and-bake sugar cookie batter and some red-and-green sprinkles and plan a low-fuss (but still totally fun) kid-led, after-dinner cookie decorating session? Grab a holiday book or two and curl up for an unexpected afternoon read-aloud session? Remember, your plans don’t have to be perfect to be joyful.

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Realizing you can’t – or just don’t want to – do it all, do it perfectly, or even just do the holiday just like you did last year, isn’t a failure: it’s a sign of sane motherhood. Plus, who wants to drag themselves across the holiday finish line with no energy left to enjoy the moment?

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