Holiday Survival Tips with Dunkin Donuts Coffee

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Raise your hands if you love coffee!

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IF you’re not raising your hand, you can excuse yourself from my page. No, I’m only kidding – you can stay. But be warned there is a lot of coffee talk here.

Before we dive into the joy of coffee, let’s talk about Christmas. Can you believe it’s in less than 3 weeks? However, I will say, I have my life a little more together this year than I have in the past. Most of my gifts are ordered and shipped; my Christmas tree is set up and decorated; and my house is decked with hundreds of twinkling lights, festive ferns and hand-knit stockings. As much credit as I’d like to take for this, I owe a lot of it to my family (who helped decorate).

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And coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. Despite having my life together on paper, I wouldn’t have done it without the help of my favorite coffee, Dunkin’ DonutsĀ® (which you can easily buy at Walmart with a $1.00 off coupon via Ibotta). It’s been #DunkinToTheRescue this month šŸ™‚

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My husband loves their original blend, while I prefer the sweeter varieties, like Blueberry Muffin, Vanilla Cupcake and Cinnamon Roll. I think much of that has to do with the fact that I love these items when they’re not coffee, so it’s only fitting I’d love their flavors mixed in my morning joe.

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I recently paired up with Dunkin’ DonutsĀ® to share my tips for holiday survival, which ironically enough, includes their coffee! Aside from that, here are a few other things that have kept me sane this holiday season, despite a packed travel schedule, 9-5 job and busy social life.

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Ask for help!

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This is a BIG one, and is one of my biggest saving graces during the holidays. I’m normally a very “do it yourself” kind of person (thanks to my slightly OCD personality). As much as I prefer to handle the baking, decorating and wrapping myself, it can be far more stressful to do this. Thankfully, I’ve opened up to more help through the years, which has made my holiday season 10x more enjoyable. This year, I was lucky enough to have my parent’s help with holiday home decorating and my husband’s help with gift buying. Plus, my work friend has agreed to help me bake and decorate cookies and sweets. Even if you’re a perfectionist like me, you’ll quickly see that it’s more fun when you have someone help you.

Make (and bake) in advance

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This goes for anything, whether it’s cookies, Christmas dinner or homemade gifts. My mom, as you know, makes thousands of Christmas cookies a year. There was a time she would stay up for 3 solid days, baking, whisking and frosting. Now, after a few too many years frazzled, she spends a few weeks preparing for our families favorites. To store, she simply freezes her delectable sweets in freezer bags until it’s time to enjoy. We’ve taken this same mentality with our Christmas Eve preparations. We make the dips, the cheese trays and the big sides a few days before, then focus on heating, serving and plating the day of. I can’t tell you how much stress this has prevented. Plus, it allows us to talk with our guests and catch up with family members – instead of sweating over a stove.

Simplify your celebration

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One trend I’ve noticed lately (and can get behind 100%) is simplifying the holiday season. For many, that means adding less decorations and having a cleaner, fresh look (like my aunts simple green centerpieces from a few years ago). For others, that means buying less presents for kids and focusing only on a few that really matter. For my family, that means simplifying the Christmas menu with just an entree, a side and a few desserts. So many people think the holidays have to be opulent, decadent and flashy to be perfect when really, none of those things matter. Focus on what matters most to your family, and you, and your holiday is guaranteed to be more pleasurable.

Give edible gifts

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Despite being in a job that gives me more financial freedom than ever, I’m still very cautious with my money. And it’s very, very easy to go overboard (especially for me) during the holiday season. To keep spending at bay (and give more meaningful gifts, to be honest) I’ve starting sending edible presents to friends, colleagues and clients. In the past, I’ve made little pound cakes, soft-baked cookies or hot chocolate mixes in mason jars. This year, I’m going to add in a bag of my favorite Dunkin’ DonutsĀ® Coffee! Or, to those who I really love, a Dunkin’ DonutsĀ® gift basket, complete with homemade cookies.

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As fun as gifts are, the most important thing to remember is making time for your loved ones. Don’t let the stresses of the season prevent you from enjoying those precious moments. Because in the end, people don’t remember the gifts or even the food, they remember the memories. And isn’t that what matters most about this time of year, anyway?

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Dunkin’ DonutsĀ® . The opinions and text are all mine.

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