"I don’t think the trick is to “lower" expectations. Or at least, that’s not the phrasing I would use. It is important to keep “reasonable" expectations and to be clear on our goals for the season," Becker of Becoming Minimalist told Bored Panda. "All the commercials on TV portray these picture-perfect Christmas scenes with family and decoration and endless smiles. But that’s rarely reality."

"When we set reasonable expectations for the season (taking into account our family dynamics, limited budget, and available free time), we’re less likely to think perfect is even possible. And when we get clear on our most important goal for the season (whether that be faith-based, family-based, or personal-based), we are more likely to achieve it."

We were also interested to know how we should help children understand that Christmas is about the spirit of giving, not about getting gifts. Here's what Becker had to say. "Most importantly, we change how we talk about the day and the season. As parents, it is so easy to unintentionally throw out phrases all December long like, 'Maybe you’ll get that Christmas… Let’s just put that on your Christmas list… Are you excited for presents this year… You need to be good so Santa will bring you presents this year.'"

"By the time Christmas day comes along, we’ve built up all these expectations about the number of presents our kids are going to receive. If you want your kids to learn Christmas is about giving, spend as much time talking with them about gift ideas they could give to others as you do talking about the gifts they might receive. Take them shopping with you for others. Let them see you being extra generous to other people throughout the season. And never let them see you complain about giving… only let them see experiencing and celebrating the joy of giving time, money, and gifts to others."

Lastly, Becker gave us some good advice about how we should look at New Year's Eve and about starting 2020. "In many regards, January 1st is just another day. There is nothing particularly magical about the clock turning over to 12:00, other than the cheering and kissing and confetti."

"What a new year does provide is a natural time to reflect on the trajectory of your life over the last year and chart a new (and maybe better) direction for the next one. So celebrate that opportunity and make the most of it. No matter the external circumstances, whether you are with friends, family, or by yourself, you are in control of the next year of your life. New Year’s reminds us of that fact."

He added: "Also, stay in control of yourself on New Year's Eve. Have a good time, but don’t overdo alcohol, narcotics, or peer pressure. The last thing you want to do on December 31st is something you’ll regret on January 1st."

Whether it's a photo shoot gone wrong or your cat demolishing your Christmas tree again (damn you, Mr. Mittens! Never again!), some things are bound to ruin your mood, unless you try to see the funny side of the disaster.

While it’s impossible to avoid all holiday mishaps or to foresee your cat going all King Kong on your Christmas tree (I mean, who could have predicted that? Like, seriously, it was so unexpected), there are some things that we can do and some shifts in our perspective that we can make to avoid being seriously disappointed during Christmas-time.

Joshua Becker writes on Becoming Minimalist that even though the pace of the holiday season might be hectic and that we might feel that rushing around like a headless chicken seems to be expected of us, we have to do our best to slow down. That involves having fewer things to do and intentionally cutting out some errands. Be a fashion chicken, not a headless one.

Becker also notes that perfection is impossible. So you shouldn’t expect perfection even if it’s something you aim for. Your home will never be perfectly clean just in time for the guests to arrive. Your kids will never be fully satisfied with the presents they get, even if they love what they got. And there’s bound to be at least one minor argument in the family because of all the stress.

That’s why it’s so important to find time to rest and recharge. Whether its a power-nap or sleeping in, you have to get your beauty sleep if you want to weather the holidays with a smile on your face. Recharging also includes snacking on biscuits and drinking hot choccy from time to time. After all, it’s hard to find the silver lining in disappointing situations on an empty stomach.