Halloween has come and--and the holidays won't be far behind. Newspaper ads weigh down the Sunday paper, and a few brave retailers kick off "pre-holiday" sales. It's the quiet week before the rising tide of holiday season to come.

Time for a Reality Check! During Reality Check Week, we take aim at holiday illusions. What are the ideas, preconceptions, and habits that drain the joy from your family's holidays?

Granted, this isn't always the easiest week. We'll be examining about several hot-button holiday issues. Money. Time. Stress. Unrealistic expectations. These factors are the not-so-secret underside of holiday joy. Don't be surprised if this week's exercises raise some holiday-related anxieties. At the holidays, is there ever enough time, enough money, enough energy?

There's a method to this madness. By taking a long, cool look at the forces and ideas that burden holiday observances, we gain the power to change them: to simplify, scale down and reign in holiday excess.

We won't leave you alone and in the lurch; each day, you'll find ideas and inspiration to arm yourself against holiday joy-killers.

Ready? Time for a Reality Check ... to get organized for your family's most joyous Christmas ever:

November's here, and it's time to clear the decks in the kitchen: holiday meals ahead! In the next two weeks, we'll declutter, organize and clean cooking spaces and food storage areas. This week, it's the kitchen; we'll leave food storage spaces--refrigerator, freezer and pantry--for next week.

Holiday prep chores focus on the tastes of the season. We'll dig out our holiday recipes, plan menus and baking, and do a tabletop check to prepare for the festivities.

Cooking Space Week Assignments Read more »

There's nothing like the approach of the holiday season to make our hearts turn toward home--and home improvement projects!

Problem is, our eyes can be bigger than our calendars (and wallets and time and energies) when it comes to preparing the house for the holidays. How do we keep the pre-Christmas fix-up list within the realm of reason at this time of year?

to do today ... plan holiday home projects!

It's not just "visions of sugarplums" that dance through our heads when we think of the holiday season. Many of us also succumb to Holiday House Fever: an intense desire to begin major home decor projects in the weeks before Christmas.

Anybody who's ever decorated a Christmas tree before a half-painted wall knows the risk: our dreams overpower our time, energies and resources. Result: damp carpets, naked windows, wet paint and lots of stress. Read more »

Sending holiday greetings this year?

A haphazard approach to season’s greetings is a recipe for Christmas-card chaos. Lovely as the tradition can be, it takes time to select, address and send holiday cards or Christmas letters.

Between poor planning and procrastination, too many of us find ourselves scrawling signatures late into the night, in a frantic dash to beat the postman to the mailbox.

Next day, our eyes blur as we sort the incoming mail: did we remember to send a card to Aunt Kaye?

to do today ... make a Christmas card list

Every family has one: a gift-giver of extraordinary flair and creativity. Year after year, this paragon finds just the right gift, large or small, for every friend and relation, and all without breaking the bank.

Her "just because" offerings are tiny jewels, she’s hip to the latest teen trends—and she never, ever hears the double-barbed response, "Oh, you really shouldn’t have!"

What’s her secret? A master gift list.

to do today ... make a master gift list

More than a simple “name-to-present” checklist, a Master Gift List is a power-giver’s tool of choice. It’s the place to record gift suggestions, track shopping, wrapping and shipping, and find inspiration for tough-to-buy-for loved ones. Read more »