Pregnant during the Christmas season? Congratulations! No matter which trimester you're in, Christmas comes with both challenges and joys. Christmas Eve is approaching quickly, but the decorations are not up yet. You haven't had time to bake, and the Christmas cleaning is behind schedule. When will you even have the energy to tackle it? When you think about it, you haven't even finished planning the gifts or where this year's celebration will take place.

But you know what? It doesn't matter! Believe it or not, Christmas can be celebrated and enjoyed without wearing yourself out completely. Do you have a partner? Send them to buy Christmas food and gifts. Or simply order everything online and have it delivered directly to your home!

10 tips on how to survive Christmas without stress

1. Write a list of everything that needs to be done. It gives you a good overview and you can also see if there is anything you can skip this year.
2. Talk to your family or partner and show them the list. Who can do what? A great way to have a stress-free Christmas is to share the tasks.
3. If possible, order everything you need online. This way, you avoid the stress of shopping in stores and the long queues. Shopping for Christmas isn't fun at the best of times, but doing it while pregnant can feel even more exhausting.
4. Consider having the celebration at someone else's home this year.
5. Have a potluck where everyone brings different parts of the Christmas meal. It's also a great way to save a bit of money!
6. Not everything needs to be homemade. Choose one or two cookies to bake. Do you have children already? Baking some gingerbread cookies or rice chocolate together is both fun and quite simple!
7. Deep cleaning while pregnant? No. Focus on the areas where people will be and close the other doors.
8. Decorate as much as you have energy for. Putting out a few Christmas figures or hanging a star in the window goes a long way.
9. Enjoy being pregnant and let your partner/friends/family help out.
10. Remember that everything you do is good enough. It doesn't have to be perfect; it will definitely be a very cozy Christmas anyway!

Remember that you are baking a new little family member

Christmas is a time for family and friends and perhaps especially for the children. It is also a time where everyone should have the peace to step back and enjoy the celebration, including you. Your place doesn't need to be in any particular spot, neither this year nor in other years, and it's perfectly okay if everything isn't just as "it always is". Sit on the couch and cuddle with the relative you don't see often. Feel the sensation that you are currently baking a new little person who will take part in Christmas celebrations and traditions. Try to think from the children's perspective, what will they remember from Christmas? Is it the calm and cozy craft day, the day out in the snow that ends with hot chocolate, or is it the stressed mom cleaning the windows?

Enjoy being pregnant during Christmas

During Christmas, the most important thing is to be together without pressure. If you're expecting your first child, nothing will be the same for a while anyway. The glass baubles will need to be replaced with plastic ones for a few years. The porcelain Santas will need to be moved up a few shelves, and eventually, a little elf might move in. Take the opportunity to try to enjoy being pregnant during Christmas, and think that next year you'll have your little bundle with you on the outside!

So, let go of all the must-dos for a while. Make a cup of hot chocolate and curl up under a warm blanket. Order a nice maternity dress you can wear for Christmas and enjoy feeling your baby taking shape inside you. Christmas is more than just must-dos; it's about being together and feeling good together. A bright spot in an otherwise dark part of the year.