I'm not one for making New Year's resolutions. But this year, I'm resolved to get a handle on my crazy mornings by starting a routine. Dozens of studies prove that people with a morning ritual are more effective at work, less stressed, and happier at home. Getting your "morning mind" right sets you up for a great day.

Take Control of Your Day 
Maybe you don’t know where to start building a routine. You’re used to leaping out of bed as soon as the alarm sounds, grabbing your phone and coffee, getting the kids off to school, answering emails, and rushing around to get everything done before you have to leave for work. How can you possibly fit a routine into all that craziness?

Hint: there’s no formula that fits everyone, but everyone can fit a ritual into their mornings. Here are five things you can do in the morning that will make your day:

• Drink water. When you wake up, your body is dehydrated. Grabbing a coffee first dehydrates you even more. Start your morning with one or two glasses of water. Then brew up some java.
• Exercise. It’s easier to exercise in the morning when you’re not already beaten down by your workday. And exercise gets blood flowing to your whole body – including your brain. 
• Don't forget to eat. You need to fill your tank. If you skip breakfast, you start your day out running on fumes. You need protein for your brain and carbs for energy. So eat.
• Think. About anything at all. It doesn’t have to be about work or family. It doesn’t have to be serious. Just let your mind wander for a while and see where it takes you. Some of the best ideas are born out of unstructured “think time”. 
• Plan. What do you want to accomplish today? How will you do it? When will you do it? What will it take to make you say, “This day was a huge success”? Make a plan to have a successful, less stressful day.

So get started on designing your ritual, but don’t start tomorrow morning. Start tonight by ditching your phone, tablet, computer and television before bed. Turn out the lights and get a good night’s sleep first.

I can hardly believe it, but I'm ready for Christmas! The decorating is done, the baking is finished, the guest rooms are full of family and friends and I'm just about ready to turn off my office lights for the weekend.

But before I go, I wanted to wish you and your families all a warm, safe and very happy holiday from all of us here at The Lighter Side.

I'll be back next week, ready to find more great gifts that delight, entertain and amuse for 2017. I hope to see you then.

Your "All Seasons, All Reasons" Gift Guru
Linda

If you're not one of those people who finish their Christmas shopping in June (I'm not), you might be scrambling to finish up before the big day arrives (I am). Last-minute shopping can be tough, but it doesn't have to be as bad as it sounds. Here are a few tips to keep your shopping sane - even right up to Christmas Eve.

• Use the KISS approach: Keep It Small & Simple when it comes to those last few items. Instead of looking for a big gift, pack a basket or bag with small things you'll know they love. For example, my husband loves craft beers. His sampler Beer Basket with a set of special glasses was super easy to put together.
• Listen for hints: Sometimes great gift ideas comes from passing comments. My mother-in-law mentioned how much she loved the PEANUTS holiday strips, so I found a collection for her. 
• Be frivolous: When you're a parent, it's hard to pass over the socks, underwear, and sweaters because kids grow fast. But hastily purchased clothes almost always end up at the back of a closet, never to be seen again. So skip the practical and find something fun and amazing - something (like temporary glitter tattoos) that they'd never expect from you. 

My daughter is one of those gentle, giving souls who never misses a chance to pay it forward, give back, or perform a random act of kindness. So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when she came home with a Christmas list of a different color.

She and her friends heard about the 'reverse Christmas list' on social media. They immediately decided to do it, so they shared the idea with their social circles. As the kids say, it went viral.

What is a reverse Christmas list? It's a list of things they'd like to give instead of get this holiday season. Among the people on their lists are family and friends, teachers, caregivers, service providers like mail carriers and sanitation crews, and classmates less fortunate than themselves.

In the age of posting 'selfies' and then obsessing about the number of 'likes' they get, these kids are using social media to make a truly positive influence on society. As one of the other parents said, "I don't need anything else this year. We're watching our kids grow up into amazing human beings. What better gift could we get?"

I sure can't think of one.

Your "The Greatest Gift of All" Gift Guru,
Linda

This year marks the 27th anniversary of National Lampoon's Christmas classic, Christmas Vacation. To celebrate, the film will return to the big screen this year at theaters around the country.

It's a favorite holiday classic around our house. We watch it every year and try to stump each other with little-known-facts and trivia about the movie. Here are a few new things I learned this year to boost my odds of winning the game this year.

• Frank Capra III was assistant director on Christmas Vacation. Capra was named for his grandfather, who directed It's a Wonderful Life in 1946 - one of the most popular Christmas movies ever made.
• Christmas Vacation was the last film Mae Questel made, who started her film career in 1930 as the voice of Betty Boop. She passed away at the age of 89 in January of 1998.
• Only two Christmas movies were released for the '89 season: Christmas Vacation and Prancer. 13-year-old Johnny Galecki of The Big Bang Theory was in both of them. 
• Clark and Cousin Eddie drink their egg nog out of Wally World mugs, the theme park the Griswold family visited in National Lampoon's original Vacation.
• We never actually see the Griswolds on Christmas Day - the film ends on Christmas Eve.