The Holiday 2007 Season will be here before you know it. If you already know that you will be hosting or attending a few holiday dinners, parties, or other events, then start planning for them now. It is never to early to start making those dinner or party arrangements. The sooner you have those menus planned and the entertainment reserved the sooner you can start to enjoy your holiday. With timely organization and planning you won't just survive the holiday season, you will coast right through with less stress and more time to spend with those most dear to you.

While planning for holiday dinners and other events, don't forget about holiday shopping. Lack of planning for holiday giving can be stressful as well as costly. Shopping for gifts is not that much different from shopping for groceries. Creating a grocery shopping list before heading out to the store saves time and money. You already know what items you need beforehand and have budgeted accordingly. Not having a shopping list, tends to lead to more time spent in the grocery store which leads to more money spent. But, the spending doesn't stop there. After leaving the store or getting home, forgotten necessary items are discovered and a return trip to the store is needed which, again, leads to more time and money spent. Shopping for holiday gifts or gifts in general works the same. Creating a list of gift recipients and possible gift choices for each of them alleviates the need for several or last minute trips to the mall that can result in extra time and money being spent.

For those of you who will be shopping on the internet or by mail for your holiday gifting needs, remember to start looking and shopping early as well. Typically shopping online or by mail can be very convenient and not as stressful as shopping at a mall, but the holiday season shopping experience can be more than a little stressful. But with careful planning and a little organization, shopping on the internet or from a mail order catalog can be quite simple. Be sure to make a list for those you plan to buy gifts for and include their likes, dislikes, needs, etc. If there is a particular item that you really like chances are so do hundreds of other people. So place your order early to avoid items being back ordered or simply out-of-stock until next season. Ordering early also gives you the opportunity to return or exchange any items that might not have been satisfactory or quite what you were looking for. Another issue to be mindful of when shopping through the mail is the time it takes for purchases to arrive. Although a desired item may be in stock, this item still needs to get to you or the gift recipient. During the holiday season, many online retailers offer expedited order processing and rush delivery to last minute shoppers, but the costs for these "perks" can be expensive. So place your online shopping orders early to avoid costly last minute rush processing or delivery charges.